Recommended suspension for moderate off-roading?

The fact that you just bought the truck and haven't wheeled it yet and are on here talking about dropping coin on suspension upgrades and 33" tires is absolutely insane. Trust me. Don't fall for the bullshit culture around here that you need to bolt all this nonsense on your truck in order to drive down a dirt road. I guarantee your truck as it sits is far more capable that you are giving it credit for.

Budget a couple hundred dollars for some basic recovery gear, close tacomaworld, find a friend, and go out there and find your limits. We can't tell you what you need for your truck only you can, once you figure it out.

 

Yeah I'm still planning on wheeling it stock for now. I know it's very capable. I just want to know all of this for future reference so I have the knowledge now and to build on that. I wouldn't drop all my money at once, I just want to know more. I rushed everything on my old truck when I was younger and it went very south. Lesson learned from that.

 

It's also worth noting that the lifts ypurey talk about don't do anything for clearance, so you'll need some trimming for 33s.

You can do that trimming just as easily pre-lift as post lift, and get a free inch of lift.in the process.

 

When thinking about a lift, the cheapest one is the right one the first time. Buy once, cry once.

I went through three different setups, starting with the "budget lift" Bilsteins and AAL and spent a lot more money than I should have.

Wheel it as is, check out other builds and when you figure out what you turely want, get it. Dont waste money on "budget" options and save until you can afford the "right" option.

 

I whole heartedly disagree with this logic. I get where you’re coming from, but there’s no point in going 0-100 real quick. It’s all part of the process, using your truck and seeing where you want to spend money to upgrade.

Take me for example, I started out with the budget 5100/ome/aal lift and went from there. I was able to spend money on other things and slowly build other aspects of my truck. Rear end eventually for heavy, so I got dakars. Front end got heavy, so got new shocks and coils. Wheeled more and wanted to do some go fast stuff but also more articulation. Got higher end shocks and did a rear shock relocate.

All the while I’m selling off my old parts to help recoup funds, and also help out other newer members build their trucks. It’s a beautiful cycle.

What I’m getting at is there’s no way for the OP to know how he wants to use his truck, without using his truck and spending money on it. It’s just part of the process of a build.

 

Your an artist. I'm a realists. Not everyone can afford to live like you though

The cheapest way is to do it right the first time. When you have extra spending money and feel the urge to buy something cheap, delete your shoping cart and take that money and put in the back. After a few of these urges you'll find you can finaly afford those nice shiney coil overs that you've wanted all along.

If you have money falling out of your pockets, then explore your options if you wish. Don't kid yourself on "recouping" much though. I do agree, there will be many who benefit from your questionable decisions though

 

Haha are you kidding me, I’m not made of money. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING on my truck was purchased on sale/discount or second hand. First lift, $600 during Memorial Day sale. Those dakars, $260 used. Those front shocks and coils to support extra weight, $200 used. Everything I do is on a budget, and then when I’m done I turn around and sell it to someone else, passing along the deal. It’s a win win and has let me dial in the truck exactly how I want it.

How does OP know he wants shiny new coilovers? He doesn’t. Plain and simple. He’s just told he needs them by strangers on the Internet.

 

You want something based on your use of the truck, for most stuff stock is just fine. Heck the 5100s set on the 2nd setting will bring the front up some. Best advice get a good set of ATs an some recovery gear an a another buddy with a 4wd who has more experience an go get in the dirt. Houston has some members with serious rigs that were in your boat at one time. Go wheel with them try to ride in other trucks to get a feel for you want. Then you can make a educated decision on best way to go for YOU.
If you ever get an chance the ATX crew frequents a off-road park outside Austin on a frequent basis people from SATX, DFW, an HTX come out an we have a blast. Groups from stock to all modded out an experience levels. Most are happy to let you ride if an open seat is available. Word of advice supply the road sodas an it’s almost a guarantee....I prefer shiner

 

But keep in mind, that if you jump the gun and do it right too early, you may realize you did something "right" that you never needed to do at all. Nothing cheap about that.

 

Let's be honest, for moderate off-roading, and a $1k budget not much is going to get done "right" by TW standards, nor does it need to be.

33s, CMC chop, pinch weld BFH mod, maybe an AAL, and some skids/sliders will do for most people, most of the time.

Putting 10k$ into suspension is easy, but very few people wheel hard enough to need it, or want the maintenance headache that it results in. And once you've done that work, and wheel hard enough to really use it, other shit starts to fail. Steering racks, shackle hangers, etc...

 

Skip the 5100s up front and go straight to the 6112s if they’re in stock. It’s right In the middle of the budget build 5100s and nice shiny coil overs.

The rear is up to you, 5100/extended and 5160 or be stupid like me and get the bypass 8100.

Keep researching and stick with your budget.

 

This is right inline where I was going to go but will add consider some better than stock armor.