SumoSprings Worked For Me

After much research and not very detailed reviews, I thought I would give a detailed review of SumoSprings and why I decided to try them. I have a 3rd Gen Tacoma; and when I would go camping, bottoming out would happen not just off-road, but also on the freeway going over the bridge transitions that always have that bump between the bridge and the road on solid ground. The Tacoma soft squishy suspension is something I've never liked. (Unless my bed was empty) So here is my setup with the additions I have done.

- Full skid plates including gas tank skid.
- Yakima Outpost HD rack with added side bars
- Yakima Skyrise 3 man RTT
- Decked drawer system

I want new suspension, but I just cant afford it at this time and I am at least a year out before I can justify the cost and save up the money. So I have spent many hours researching add a leaf's, air bags, and sumospring. I thought I was set on airbags, and then I thought I would add a leaf, but ultimately decided to go with blue sumosprings based on being maintenance free and things I read on different forums.

My thoughts..... I actually like them. I am not going to forego new suspension when I can afford it. But the blue sumosprings are actually quite nice for my setup. On road, my ride is smoother and I feel more planted to the ground and have a less body roll. No more sideways movement when I hit certain bumps on higher speeds. And off road, I am not getting that hard bottom out like I used to and there is a slight smoothness to the off road driving. Don't get me wrong, the sumosprings are not making me feel like a trophy truck and I do not have the smoothness of the high end suspension, but I am feeling more planted to the ground and the bumping around is not as harsh as it was without the sumospings. I am still getting bumped around..... just not as harsh. Overall, I am happy with the sumospring addition with the added weight I have added to my Tacoma.

At first, I had the Yakima rack, RTT, and skid plates , the rear end with sumosprings was nice but definitely more stiff than stock and I was happy with what I was getting with the sumos. The addition of the 200 pound deck system just smoothed the ride out even more due to more weight in the back of the truck and I am even more happy with the sumos. Oh, one more thing to mention..... I measured from the ground to the top of the outer fender well before and after. The frame of the truck does rest on my sumosrprings, and I only lost a 1/8th of an inch in rear bead height. I hope this write up is helpful. With my ressearch, I never came across a real detailed review. So i decided to write one up.

 

Nice write up. After an internal debate and forum reading for around a year, I installed the blue about 1500 miles ago. My experience has been the same as yours. I have a relatively heavy tool box behind the cab and several times per year I haul junk, fire wood and other miscellaneous stuff - they perform as advertised. I noticed the truck handles curves with a sense of greater stability, less rear end sway. I don't off road for sport but I do go into fields with hay all the time. They have ruts, uneven surfaces, a lot of bouncing. It is a much better experience without hitting a rock solid bump stop. No buyer's remorse.
I did add about 15 pounds to the U-bolt torque. I found a lot of discussion about torque on the 3rd gen forum, I gave it a shot.
My wife even noticed the ride improvement and commented - unsolicited. It has got to be an improvement.

 

I went with the black sumo springs and have been very happy with them. When I drive “unladen” the frame rides about a half an inch above the sumo springs. When I have weight in the bed things are much improved over stock.

 

Thats great your wife noticed an improvement in the ride quality without having to ask. I was out with a friend who knew I put the sumos on but she also didn't know what they were or where they went on the truck, and she too mentioned the truck felt better as a passenger and asked me if I got new tires. I just smiled and told her my tires are 6 months old. What was your final torque spec on the U-Bolts. I need to retorque mine soon.

 

How much weight to you put in the bed with the black sumos installed? And how is the ride when the bed is empty?

 

The recommended was 37 ft/lbs, I went to around 57 ft/lbs with new U-Bolts.