Suspension Upgrade, no lift?

Oh no! I must have intruded on your private little fantasy truck land. I hope you don't get all upset that we can actually like the same things.

I didn't say it compare my roads to anyone else's.

 

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To get things back on track…

… I went with 6112/5160’s from @memario1214 and I think they are incredible. The digressive piston helps them corner and handle really well (much better than stock TRD OR), but when I big hit happens it absorbs it much better as well.

where they feel stiff is the small bumps in the road. The stiffness for good handling means some of the small cracks are felt more than other suspension options.

big bumps like a pothole or a large G out bump on the freeway are handled really well by these, and it’s worlds better than stock.

hotshot also sent them to me assembled and ready to bolt on, and were great to work with.

 

Eibach makes the springs that are used on many of the high end sets of coilovers available for these trucks. They're are one of the largest suspension companies in the world and are very well versed in these trucks lol. If your friend has their suspension and does not like it I would 100% assume they're the stage 1. Those ride terribly, however their stage 2 is much more comfortable than the 6112's and allows for ride height adjustments without being removed from the vehicle. For how smooth the stock OR suspension is I'm surprised how much stiffer the 6112's are. I would like to try their 8112's though, those look pretty trick. But of course YMMV based on the weight and needs of your truck and the rest of your setup.

That said, I run custom tuned ADS shocks (that use Eibach springs) and love them to death. Just trying to give the OP some additional options to consider.

Also fwiw I ran the Icon RXT's for a while and can confirm that they ride way too stiff if the bed is unweighted (which is my case 99.9% of the time) and they were 10000x more uncomfortable than stock. I could not get rid of them fast enough. Very happy after switching to the J66 packs instead, as are many others who have made the switch. If you do carry a couple hundred extra lbs in the bed at all times though, the RXT is a completely different pack and rides much more comfortably than unloaded.

 

I have used several

The takeoff TRD OR setup install does soften the ride on a Sport, but you introduce nose dive during hard braking.

if you do not need a front lift capability, Bilstein 4600 are a less expensive alternative to 5100 shocks with the same ride quality.

https://academy.bilsteinus.com/knowledge/4600-versus-5100#

 

Thanks for the details... question. I'm still stock but looking at the same setup... higher speed fun over pothole free, but very uneven chip and seal county roads. Any experience with your setup bottoming out and hitting the rear bumps hard with 2 adults in the back over mild"ish" bumps or tracks at 50ish mph? Sorry, a little specific. Deciding if I need to supplement with a leaf spring tweak or sumo stops.

 

I don’t have mine set up at stock height. I actually have an icon RXT leaf pack at option three in the rear. I have a go fast camper and rock sliders on the truck all the time though, and it handles the weight really well. With my set up I would absolutely not bottom out with that weight, but you might with the stock leaf pack.

 

How To Install a No-Compromise, Haul-Ass Suspension for the Toyota Tacoma! (motortrend.com)

 

My ride improved big time from the oem OR shocks to the 5100's. set @ 2".

If 2" scares some people, I highly recommend setting the 5100's up front to 1" and leaving the rear height stock.

 

I have been on 5100s for close to 6 years, different settings and now on the 5th perch. Ride never changed but does ride best on the 5th to me but I think its because on the new 285s from Toyo. The ride is a lot smoother than the stock Sport shocks and my family member had a 20 Off Road which rode nice but too mushy feeling for me and he now has a 23 Pro which rides great. I think the 5100s are a great shock and compared to his new Pro with the Fox shocks I think the 5100s are just slightly more harsh riding but in a good way.

 

Thanks!

 

That was a very interesting read, thanks.

 

TRD Pro suspension is designed to work well offroad while also riding well onroad. The shocks have an internal bypass one that lets them absorb smaller bumps on road before the firmer damping for larger travels in the suspension engages. I ran it on my Pro for two years before upgrading to another setup from Fox, and the only downside I felt was that you get a good deal of nose dive on harder braking due to the softer bypass zones at ride height, they handled rough pavement and potholes great IMO and were totally capable of going over speed bumps way faster than one was supposed to.

Fox gives the rebuild interval as 50K miles but if you aren't hammering on the shocks offroad per milage a lot they should definitely go a lot farther than that. Note that they have about 1" front lift so the truck is closer to level than other stock setups (but still a bit higher rear than front)

 

hmmmm, I am wondering where in the US of A you live? My little town it is better to ride in the ditch half the time.

 

I currently live in St Paul where the spring thaw brings shattered roads. We have two seasons in Minnesota: winter and road construction. Before that I lived in rural southern Minnesota (Midwest farm country) where a vast majority of roads are gravel. We tend to have effective governance here and I rarely complain about the roads.

 

I get it, I do. When we drive up to Flagstaff in the spring I expect to loose a windshield to a cinder rock or a tire to a pot hole. But here in Southern California the roads have 100 percent gone to shit and we are taxed to no end to pay to improve them. I am tire of the shit, I am. ....good night Jim Bob!

 

How many other parts of the country have compared your local roads too?

I’ve been to LA, the Bay Area, Austin, Seattle, Phoenix, Denver, and other places. The roads were fine. No competition with crap ass spring roads in Minnesota.

 

I a going to be quiet because I am off track on this subject.

 

Do you have the photos from your review still by any chance? They dont seem to load in your linked review. It's something i wouldn't mind doing to tame down the rear end shimmy.