New member here thinking about a lift kit...

Hi guys,
I have owned my tacoma for 3 years now and have always wanted to lift it 2-3 inches. I wanted to get your opinions on what setup I should go for and what I would need to buy. I have a 2002 4X4 with the 2.7 liter engine. It has about 122k miles on it.

I am not looking to spend a ton of money but at the same time want a nice comfortable ride with a 2-3 inch lift. So basically, I am looking for what everyone else is looking for, the best bang for your buck.

After doing some searching on this forum I get the idea that the bilstein 5100s are a good buy but what all would I need to buy? Also, I already have a nice set of stock size General Grabber AT2s on the truck. Would I eventually want to go with a bigger tire size with just a 2-3 inch lift?

Thanks in advance for the responses!

 

With a 2-3" lift your current tires will look small, but you can always wait until they wear down to replace... or sell them.

If you want the easiest and cheapest, this lift kit is pretty good. I ran the same thing for over 6 years and it was excellent. Very simple, and if your springs are good then a decent option. A bunch of hive-minded people will jump in and say a spacer sucks, but a 2.5" top spacer is perfectly fine.

 

Thanks for the quick response. I am no mechanic but I do try to install everything that I can myself. Did you install them yourself? Is it an easy enough install?

 

I did it, pretty easy. Unbolt coilover, put on spacer, reinstall. Unbolt old shackle, put on new one. I'm sure you can look up some install info/vids online. If you have the tools and a friend it'll take 2-3 hours.

 

Ok that sounds easy enough. Thanks for all the info. Seems like a good cheap option. I was also looking at the bilstein 5100s. Anyone have any info on them? How much to buy/install? What differences would I notice between the R/C and the bilsteins? Just trying to weigh out my options and see what makes the most sense.

 

Top spacers are the cheapest way to lift a truck. They drastically increase the rate of wear on your suspension components and will cause them to fail prematurely. That said, if it's you first experience with a lift and your shocks are already old as shit you may as well just do it. It's a great entry level product and will give you an idea of the direction you want to take your truck afterwards. You could save another $100 by just installing those spacers and 1-1.5" blocks in the rear. This will keep you from needing new shocks, it will be very cheap and it will also give you an idea of if you want to invest more $$ into off road mods.

Going forward from here you should bear in mind that these mods are hammered dog shit compared to what else is on the market. If you throw these blocks on and some beefed tires and just love it then start saving money because there is tones of room for improvement. Good luck!

 

Thanks, good info as well. I'm not sure if I want to go top spacer as I don't want to cause any of the suspension components to fail. I do like the rough country option that buckoma suggested. Is that different than the top spacer option? Would the rough country setup cause parts on my truck to wear prematurely? Sorry, I am really new at this and with all the options it gets confusing!

 

The lift kit he linked uses top spacers. The cheapest lift you will find that has actual upgraded components and not just lift blocks in various places is going to run $1000.

There is a thread, probably in the suspension forum, that has tons of information about lifting and such.

 

OP, the top spacer is basically a leveling kit, the same thing virtually all manufacturers use to raise the front a bit. It's a relatively cheap and effective way to get a little lift while retaining near-factory ride, with minimal wear on the components. Spacers have gotten a bad rap, sometimes rightfully so, but each application/use is different. A spacer that gives 2.5" up front on a Tacoma coilover is just fine, and should give you 85% of the benefit at 25% of the cost of a premium lift. It's a trade-off, but for someone just getting started and looking for the most bang for the buck it's hard to beat a simple top spacer. I abused the shit out of mine for over 6 years and it worked great.

The next best option for a budget front lift is probably new OME coil springs and shocks. But that is more complicated and 2 to 3 times the cost.

 

Wow guys, thanks so much for all the great info. I think I will go with the Rough Country kit that Buckoma suggested. Buckoma, do you by chance have any pictures of your tacoma with that kit?

 

Any picture on my build page that does not have the armored rear bumper/tire carrier.