OME Dakar Leaf springs: Height and Rear shocks

Let's keep it 1st gen guys; heights vary on 2nd and 3rd gen Taco's

For those that installed OME Dakar leaf springs (without adding a leaf/etc), what was your initial height increase?

From there, how long did it take to settle?

After they settled, what was your final height increase?

I ask because I've got a ton of rake even after a 2" lift up front with Fox 2.5 CO. I know leaf springs settle, and I've read varying results regarding final height.

Wondering if I should keep driving my truck with some weight in the back, or one of these days take everything apart and remove the 3rd leaf from the top going down.

I don't carry much weight at all even when I head out off road if that helps.

 

Can you post some pics?

 

Absolutely -





So again I'm aware that there will be some settling but I'd like to get an estimate as to how much.

 

That's weird when I installed Dakars I got maybe 2.5" out of them, but I have a bed rack and RTT. I don't have the Dakars anymore though I switched to Expos

 

Here’s some pics from my OME setup, yes initial lift right after install is quite dramatic

Initial height(within a week of install)

1.5 years and some added weight




Just give it time to settle

 

@Fuergrissa

Well I won't be carrying weight.

 

Dakars aren't meant to carry weight, they have maybe a slightly better weight rating than the stock leaf packs but not by much. They're really just meant for lift and a soft ride, with any significant amount of weight they sag really bad. That's why I got rid of mine.

They are known to sit high though at first and should settle after a little while. I'd throw a couple hundred lbs of sandbags in the bed in the meantime to help them settle

 

@eon_blue Im curious how you like the expo's? I'm currently running a Eibach/Bilstein 3" lift having a AAL in the back. I want to upgrade to something better since I run a full time camper along with a rack platform fitted on top. I am also looking to eventually get a rear bumper with swing out so I will be running some extra weight in the back. I was originally going to go with Dakars but I think I will be looking into the Expo's now

 

Yeah I ran the Dakars with AAL for a short time but they still sagged onto the bump stops when fully loaded with camping gear and extra fuel, so I went to the Expos.

The Expos are much better at handing the day to day weight of the RTT but only marginally better at handling a fully loaded camping bed. They do sag a little but not a bad as the Dakars.

One of these days I'll probably add a leaf to the Expos just to beef them up a little more. They are noticeably stiffer than the Dakars, the best thing about the Dakars was the soft ride but the compromise with that is less weight carrying capacity

 

I had a ton of rake when I first installed and it's been gradually settling over the last two months without any added weight in the bed (sparing the canopy). Still hope it settles a bit more. Order of pics is before, immediately after, 1 month after.

 

I installed Dakars at the beginning of this year. My rear leafs were shot, so I gained close to 4 inches of lift in the rear. In 5 months they have settled very little, maybe a half inch at most. I did notice you don't have the spare tire installed. When I put my spare tire back the rear end drops about an inch, you might consider that if you don't like the rake.

 

I messed around putting some weight for a quick second - I think the universal shocks are what's keeping the truck afloat.

My Fox rear's aren't made for my Tacoma.

I'll call Fox and confirm the damping between those that I have and those that are a direct replacement for the Tacoma.

I went universal for an added 1" of travel if anyone's wondering.

 

@eon_blue & @Fuergrissa what springs and shocks would yall recommend for a work truck... tow/haul 1k-3k? dont off road or wheel... its a work truck. wanna keep a 2"-3" lift.

 

This is exactly what I had been thinking when I first saw your post yesterday. I'm nearly positive its your rear shocks.

One thing I've learned about OME, when the kit is first installed on the vehicle - ppl are obsessed over how much lift was gained. First thing so many seem to forget about is just how bad their original suspension was. For some they'll see xx difference in overall height/lift gain while others will see a much larger difference because their leafs and shocks were way past the crap line. It just varies - so much.

For your situation though, I bet its the shocks.

 

What shocks are you running?

 

Sounds Gouda, noticed in you pic your not running a spare, this also contributes to added height so just keep it in mind.

 

I almost want to just buy some Bilstein's or OME rear's just to toss them on for a bit.

Anyone have a spare set laying around?

 

Yeah but as mentioned, I put more weight than the spare itself and it was still jacked up pretty high.

The shocks really hold some weight by not damping as much.

I'll test the theory in the weeks to come by getting a pair of 5100's or something and swapping them in place.

I will say, the Fox 2.5's up front are a godsend; everything up front is easily absorbed.

 

I have my old 5100 rears I keep as spares but they're here in socal, my mom lives in Monterey but don't have any plans to be up there soon. If you're down this way for whatever reason let me know

 

Not for awhile!

Used to live in San Clemente; do miss so-cal sometimes but I belong in nor-cal