Throwing the TRD Off Road a Bone

Wow, for 1k more it’s a no brainer!

 

yea after the second time i sat down to buy a SR5 from another location and they said it sold i was pissed and walked out. another guy came running out and told me to wait 5 min while they brought a truck around. it was the off road i have now.

then i booked it to make it to a campsite before the gate closed for the night, lol

 

Don't have a lot of rock here. Lot of dusty trails. 2 tracks are either preexisting with some grass or I cut them through plowed fields. The SR handles that stuff OK, it'll handle it better with a little more aggressive tire!

 

I thought about getting a SR utility package, and throwing 4600s and OR coils on it. I just don't want to spend 30k on a utility pkg.

 

If they offered SR DC and with MT, I would have gladly bought one. Would have had a lot of money left for tasteful mods.

 

I will agree what was posted earlier about the suspension being harsh, but I kind of expect that in a truck.

 

I don't know if you can see it or not but here is a before and after. I now for sure I have the factory OR clearance in my front wheel well because I measured a brand new OR and I am exactly the same. I don't know how much I dropped I am guesting at least an inch maybe a bit more.

Before with the Hitachi's


After with the TRD OR Toyota Bilstein's

 

Here's a little reference/summary of the suspensions:

SR, SR5, Limited - Hitachi Basic Shocks (Black)

TRD Sport - Hitachi Sport Tuned Shocks (Blue/Black)

TRD Off-Road - Bilstein Off-Road Tuned Shocks "4600s" (Yellow/Blue)

TRD Pro - Fox TRD Pro Shocks (Silver/Red)

 

Do the shocks interchange between models, say SR to TRD?

 

yes

 

Love my Deavers paired with 5160s! I'm running the Expo Stage 3. No squeaks.

 

Boy I sure hope so =)

 

Do you like the rubberized undercoating? Dont see many here talk about it. Everything is fluid film, woolwax, cosmoline. I ask as I'm thinking of doing rubberized coating on my new 21.

 

Not the original poster of the comment your replying too, but I've heard the rubberized coatings work good only if extra care is taken to get everything thoroughly. If any metal is exposed or the rubber is too thin in areas, rocks and gravel can chip away and allow water to get underneath the coating and rust from the inside out.

I've traditionally just go around once a year with a small piece of sand paper and a rattle can of Rust-Oleum Rust Reformer and another rattle can of Rust-Oleum Black. Sand and spray rust reformer on any metal that has rust forming (should be very little each year if done right). Then go back over those areas (or even the entire frame for extra protection) with the regular rust stop black paint.

 

I don't believe the stock hitachi shocks are garbage, imo, their not valved quite correct for this truck....too much compression, and not enough rebound. As far as their construction, their made pretty good.

 

So you dont use any real undercoating besides the paint? That almost sounds easier

 

It's cheaper, easier, and less messy for me. It works pretty well and keeps the frame looking nice. To be fair, I don't live up far north where salt is on the roads half the year. I'm only dealing with salt for maybe 2-3 months and always make sure to get undercarriage washes every few weeks or so throughout that time.

 

How often do you go to Ocala? I'd be down to meet up and wheel.

 

Doesn’t Hitachi make TV’s

 

Yeah, it’s definitely unpopular opinion. It really depends if you get a good installer, and the best time to do it is when the truck is brand new.

My undercarriage still looks great. There are some areas on the front leaf hangers where the rocks blast from off-roading, the coating chipped off a bit. Not a big deal IMO, can always be touched up. Diamond kote vulcanized rubber is an active coating, so it’s rust preventative by design. Would I do it again? Maybe.

Forgot to add, it acts as a great sound insulator.