Realistic bilstein lift install time

Ive read a lot of threads about the lifts, but almost no one documents how long it takes. Ive got an 8 month old baby girl so I have to arrange things around her. Im not new to working on vehicles, but Ive never done the ECGS bushing or an add a leaf. Both seem straight forward...

I figure an hour per front shock/coil, an hour for ecgs and axle removal, and an hour total for rear shocks and aal. Including drink/break/coffee...5 hours?

Front 6112 struts already assembled. Rear is 5100 with 3 lead add a leaf.

 

I'd say if this is the first time you're doing it on these trucks, give yourself 6-7 hours realistically. I've worked on probably 20 tacomas and that'd likely take me 4-5 hours to do.

 

^^^^^ exactly. Give your self more time then you think you need.

 

Dang. I was giving myself more time than I thought Id need. The working quarters that tight or something to slow it down?

 

The AAL is a PITA, and can take a little while getting the leaf pack apart and back together.

For the ECGS the CV can be a hassle as well on a newer truck. I've done a third gen where it popped out and the whole process took 40 minutes. I've had another where the CV fought me every step of the way and it took an hour and a half.

Then there's all the little misc shit that adds up time, like removing skid plates and mounts, sway bar, topping front diff off on oil, looking up torque specs etc.


Here's a tip that I just tried the other day for the first time and it worked like a charm. Jack up the front drivers side as much as you can, so the vehicle is leaning sideways. Do the ECGS bushing that way. Reason being is when the CV pops out, no oil comes out. That saves time from having to top it off and the mess it can make. Gear oil is nasty.

 

Ye, gear oil is nasty. I intended to lift the driver side real high and probably lower the other side by deflating the tire, and tackle the driver side shock st the same time.

Ive got torque values already mapped out, and really expected the CV to be the hardest part

Gone are the days of 20 min shock swaps I guess.

 

We didn't need to deflate the tire when we did it the other day. Just had a chunk of 6x6 in between the frame and the floor jack to lift it real high and had a 6 ton jack stand maxed out to hold it there. I'm doing every one like that from now on.

 

When you do the ECGS have a 2-4lb hammer because you will likely need to hit these grooves in the CV away from the truck to get the CV to pop out. If you loose fluid it’s not a big deal because the front only holds 1.1-1.4qts anyways. The part of getting the CV out can be a pain unless you have a metal rod and heavy hammer you can wack this thing straight out. Note: I’m using the punch wedge to point at the grooves, ideally the punch should be almost straight with a slight angle when you hit it out so you get the most force in the groove. If you are worried about marring the metal wrap the tip of your punch in electric tape

 

Know how many years it took me to learn the tape trick, and you put it out there for free?

Honestly, solid advice in the post. Thanks!

 

If you've never done the ECGS bushing give yourself at least a few hours plus a helping hand to hold the axle. You can make a bushing install tool using the removal tool, a few sockets and electric tape to protect the inside of the bushing. Ck youtube, there is a video on this. I would also tape off that protruding bolt so you don't nick or tear the CV boot. If you're careful you won't even need to change the rubber seal if your truck has low miles - save yourself $16.

No gear oil leaked out of mine but I checked it anyways once it was back level and found it about a third qt low. So much for the dealer inspection. I plan to replace my gear oils after break in.

Give yourself a few hours for the front install and about 4-6hrs for the rear AAL and a couple more for the 5160s.

You will have to grind off the rear rivets of each leaf spring's rear alignment clamp and then use a pry bar to bend them off. The new leaf pack will have new alignment clamps.

Another consideration seldom mentioned on here is to install a sway bar relocation kit to move the sway bar one inch away from the larger new coils, the new larger coils might rub the sway bar when driving over a speed bump or off roading.

Unless you are rock crawling you should retain the front sway bar, it could save you in a bad situation. I drove mine with and without and it made a big difference. The kits run about $25-$35 and take about 20 min to install, I painted my brackets black.

 

That only applies to some AAL, mainly the Icon which is why I hate them. The headstrong and Wheelers don't have that issue.

 

I installed Wheelers AAL last weekend and the factory alignment clamp was in the way. Mine is a 2019, I think there was a thread on this awhile back.

 

Interesting, I stand corrected. Maybe it's headstrongs then, or maybe it's a model year difference. All I know is I've installed many different brand AALs on all different years of trucks and I've only had to cut the clamps once, on an icon pack.

 

Here is the link, scroll down. I believe he was using Headstrongs AALs:

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/norcal-craigslist-finds.179318/page-1107#post-20370158

Not a big deal, just use a creeper, good power grinder and wheel, eye, ear protection and wear a dust mask. Use a leaf blower afterwards to clear out all the grinding residue. Use a large pry bar to bend the clamp after grinding the rivets.

 

It took me about 6 hours one day to do both F shocks and 4 hours a second day to do the rear shocks. There is a learning curve. That time includes setup and cleanup time. I did this by myself on my driveway.

 

This video at about 1:38 shows the clamp removal. Note his AAL install took longer than he estimated.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9mdo-GnoVhY

This is why I always take my time, as a former mechanic I don't have to worry about meeting expected flat rate times when working on my own $hit and can do a much better job than any shop trying to make a profit.

 

That's a 2 day job if you include the ECGS bushing install. And you don't want to rush the ECGS bushing install. I did have to grind my removal tool a bit to make it fit to remove the needle bearing. Again that was not anticipated. The removal tool is waay overpriced for what it is but needed.

 

Just finished mine and with plenty of frustration along the way I'd say about 10hrs. A very very long one day project.

 

My Bro-in-law who works on F-16 Falcons and I took 8 hours to do just the lift. Didn’t do the bushing. There is a learning curve and things don’t always go as planed. Like when we were compressing the spring and it started to lift the truck off the lift while raising the lower control arm. Took time to figure that one out. I started spraying the bolts with PB Blaster a few days ahead of the install and that helped big time after 7 WI. winters.
This isn’t a NASCAR pit stop. Take your time so it’s done right and no one gets hurt.

 

Did mine yesterday. Taking my time and watching YouTube videos and reading how-to's from this forum. It took me around 10 hours. That was including assembling the new shocks. The front took me around 6 hrs and the add-a-leaf around 4hrs. Im still waiting for one of my rear shocks that's on back order so I haven't done the rear shocks but they look simple.

I had issues lining the passenger side Icon AAL. Took a break, went for a smoke, came back and everything lined up perfectly. Go figured. The driver side was fast and painless.

I have the SPC uca's and the ECGS bushing. Debating if that's a job I want to tackle or pay for it. In the end I saved myself around 600-700 hundreds doing the lift myself which in turn I purchased a bunch of tools to help me the project.