Recommended suspension for moderate off-roading?

Hey guys,

I've been trying my best to do research on what's the best route to go for a suspension upgrade.

There's so many moving parts, that I'm just hoping that someone can give me quick information on what would work best for me..

I'm looking for 2" to 2.5" in lift in the front, as well as something that will be reliable when I take it off road. I'm not trying to do any serious rock crawling by any means. I'd like something more for leisure off-road trails and camping. I'm not looking for anything flashy, just something that's dependable.

Would the Bilstein 5100's be adequate enough for everything I mentioned above?

 

Budget?

 

Have you been wheeling the stock suspension for awhile and figured out what you really need? If not, leave it stock for now! I wheeled the stock suspension for 3 years while I figured out what I really needed.

 

I'd prefer to keep it under $1,000

I recently bought the truck and I have not yet used it to go wheeling yet. I intend on running bigger tires (255/85/16) in the near future. It's currently still sitting on stock tires and rims.

 

You need to decide between 2" and 2.5". The latter it is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED that you get UCA's and those run $400.

What are you planning for the rear? Best option is a new leaf pack and those plus UCA's put you at $1k roughly

 

Billstein 5100's, OME coils (pre-assembled) (2" or less lift and you probably can skip UCA's) Deavers AAL for rear. Contact Marie at Headstrong Offroad. Very dependable, especially if you don't bash the truck.

Package deal from Headstrong WAS under $800 a couple years back. Marie can give you a shipped price.

 

Bilstein 5100 all around, ome coils (which one is dependent on your truck) and an AAL out back. ~$700 and you’ll be happy as a clam

 

So long as rear weight isn't a concern

 

If I were to go this route, would it be okay to do it piece by piece? For instance, get the Bilstein's first, get the OME's/AAL somewhere down the line? Would it damage anything if I did that?

My student loans is priority (Paying $1,000/mo to pay it all off within 3 years. 1 more year to go ), but I'd really like to get out there and have some fun with my tacoma as well.

 

The only pain in the ass thing to do is having to take everything apart multiple times. One and done is easiest

 

You could always forgo the ome coils and use stock ones, but ride quality would certainly suffer. I recommend doing it all at once.

 

You'll want to do front shocks and coils at same time since they go on together as a sub-assembly. You can do rear AAL with stock shocks for a while, then add the rear shocks later. Front coil/shock assembly is 70% of the cost.

 

These things are surprisingly capable when stock.

 

Anything decent (Bilstein, OME) will be $1,200 at least.

About anything less is spacer lift kits.

 

This is Billstien 5100's (set @ 0") OME 885 coils, Deavers 2" AAL, AllPro u-bolt flip kit, Wheelers Superbumps, 1/2" plate spacer on drivers side/1/4" plate spacer on passenger side. Tires are 285/75r16"'s . Aluminum bumper with Warn VR12s winch, full skids (aluminum) sliders, and ARE cap. With the added weight, it sits 2" above stock on front and 1-1/2" above stock on rear. No aftermarket UCA's but aligns perfect. Rides excellent. Get's wheeled quite a bit. Rest is hwy miles. Best I can measure, less than 1/4" sag over that time. Will do same EXACT thing next time.... About time for new shocks "just because"....

Lift (Headstrong) was under $800 about 3 years ago. That was 4 shocks, 2 coils, and rear AAL.

U-bolt flip and superbumps were "extra" and not required....About $400 at that time....

 

That’s just not accurate.

 

Same here then went all out on ADS

 

It is.

An AAL is a bandaid. Toyota's leaf springs are notorious for sagging. And upgraded UCAs are a really good idea if OP wants 2.5".

 

There is absolutely nothing wrong with AAL so long as there isn’t a constant load more than 200 lbs. UCAs aren’t necessary in the slightest either for what op wants. Yes they’re nice for more castor and better driveability but again, not a requirement.

 

Truth.


I've still got original rear leaf packs. Truck has 174K miles. Put AAL on at 77K....So 97K miles on AAL/Stock leaf combo. Topper and a full compliment of tools in bed for almost a year now. Rear ride height with-in a 1/4" of where it was when installed 97K ago, even with addition of topper.

Stock UCA's. 2.4 degree caster, O degree camber, 0" toe. Rides like a new one....