01 Tacoma Suspension Advice

First - a thank you to everyone in this forum. I've ready hundreds of threads and it's helped me make informed decisions on buying my truck and what to look for. I pulled the trigger about a year ago and have been super happy so far.

I'm attaching some pics of my (dirty) Tacoma. I recently purchased BFG AT KO2 tires in 265x75x16, as well as new SRS wheels. Love the setup, but I'm getting a bit of minor rubbing (feels like on plastic). I'm also not loving the front end sag, and the truck has 185k miles.

My goal is to improve the ride quality (on and off road), level the truck, and improve off road capabilities. A slight lift is ok, but I like the current height of the rear, and wouldn't want to go much higher than that all around (maybe an inch more max).

Money isn't much of an object - I want to do this right, but not waste money on something I don't need. It sounds like Billstein 5100s are a solid choice, and that replacing the springs and leafs might be a good idea at this mileage as well.

Am I on the right track? Any other components worth replacing at my current mileage while doing the shocks? A local Toyota shop said new springs and leafs wasn't needed, and the shocks would be enough, but I'd like some additional data points.

Really appreciate your input! This forum is great!!

 

From my understanding Billstein 5100s are the way to go.

On my personal, I’m running rancho quick struts and haven’t had an issue. They are adjustable for ride quality. I’ve been running them for a year now with the 3” strut spacer.

I’m assuming it’s on preference and how deep your pockets are. For a cheap good ride quality I haven’t had any issues on/off road. I’ve been through every tire size from 245/65 to a 35/12.50

 

Most people on here are looking to gain lift with their suspension decisions. If you're only looking for ride quality (almost any suspension change which swaps the springs will get you at least 1.5" of life) then coilovers are the way to go. 5100's are a good upgrade from OEM, and they do provide lift, but they dont ride nearly as well as coilovers.

Stay away from strut spacer lifts/ anything which changes the geometry of the front suspension. They ride terrible.

Budget: 5100 Front Shocks and Old Man Emu 881 or 882 Springs. 2-3" lift (My 881's settled to just under 2").
Unlimited: Total Chaos upper control arms, 2.5" Mid Travel King shocks or Icon (ADS is nice but getting spendy too)

Good thing about the Coilovers is that you can adjust the ride height with a bit more precision.

What is your plan for rear suspension?

 

Thanks guys. I definitely want to stay away from spacers. I like the idea of coilovers, but a quick check on some of your recommendations Truck Yeah might be a bit spendy.

I guess money is a bit of an object haha. I don't mind spending $1000 - maybe $1500-$2000 if the performance is significantly better for the total setup (front and rear). Are there any good quality coilover setups that don't cost a ton? Or does my price range put me into the 5100/Emu camp?

I should add that this isn't my daily driver - I bought it to have fun with, wheeling, hauling/towing toys to the lake and dunes, and that sometimes includes longer drives, hence the smoother ride on-road to placate the girlfriend.

Thanks again for the tips!!

 

I have a 04 TRD. Upgraded to Icons and 5100 rear. After 9-10 years Icons needed a rebuild. This is my daily driver. No one in Portland that I could find could rebuild. I mainly use my truck for daily driver and camping in the mountains and the coast.

The left front ball joint (I was told) on the coilover is bad and rattling. It's annoying at low speeds.

I am choosing to go 6100 upfront 5100 in back again. I figured since they are getting old I'd replace the back too.

 

You're definitely on the right track.

Even though I have Kings now, I started on 5100's. I'd do it again too. Back then, it was my daily driver, and I had no need for $1000+ coilovers. The 5100's did the job, improved the ride, and were more than adequate for the occasional wheeling I did with it. Now that it's my dedicated trail rig, I'll spend a bit more on the more off-road oriented bits and pieces, like Kings...

I'm running 265/75r16 BFG KOs with stock SR5 wheels. My rubbing was on the frame to the rear of the suspension.

In the below pic you can see:
1) my son helping to replace my steering rack bushings

and

2) the 2 spots of rubbing; the more rusty part was at stock height, the shiny section is with stock springs and the 5100's set at the middle setting. Now, my Kings that are set slightly higher and don't rub at all. I'm sure with the 5100's on the higher setting than I had would be the same result.

Don't forget a diff drop kit if you go with more than 2" or so of lift to help preserve your CVs...

 

I like your style...

 

Well, it sounds like you more than got your use out of them. Most off the shelf shocks are probably done in a similar time frame.

 

The icons seem to go for a while, mine made it six years before I had them rebuilt. They're awesome again after the rebuild

 

Now is that Icon themselves doing the rebuilds these days or a 3rd party/ vendor? I hear Icon themselves are tough to deal with.They are probably pricier than King or some of the other rebuild-able providers.

Icons are way cool and probably would be a tough comparison between Kings/ ADS or Icons.

 

I had them rebuilt by SDHQ because they're 5 mins down the road from me. The rebuild was on par with other coil-overs but yeah the initial cost of icons is more I think, I got them used.

 

To do it right:
Fox 2.5 extended travel remote reservoir coilovers (or King)
UCA
Rear replacement leaf pack (not a heavy duty pack)
Rear shock relocation
Rear 2.0 x 10" remote reservoir Fox shocks

The shocks can be tuned for a much better on-road and off-road ride.

 

Doing it "right" depends on your application and driving style. Your list is hardly universal. I see a lot of mall crawlers with very similar setups, their body armor is usually quite scratch-free, too, lol... Then I see guys sporting 5100s with trucks that are obviously WELL used off road...

Everyone talks about "needing" resi shocks. This is hardly true. Resi's are only really useful if you like to bounce around at high speed. For slower stuff, rock crawling, etc... resi's are just making your wallet lighter than it needs to be.

 

This is list based on his desire for good quality suspension that will deliver substantially improved on-road and off-road performance.

Reservoirs are not just about heat, they're about lowering the shocks operating pressure. Lower pressure reservoir shocks ride better and last longer because the seals operate at ~200 psi instead of the 600-1000 psi found in ifp shocks. *edit* Reservoir shocks are also rebuildable and tuneable where most IFP shocks are not.

 

That's the first I've heard of different pressures (although I would assume the seals in IFP shocks would be of a sufficient design to handle the higher pressure), but even still, I'm willing to bet the majority of people (at least those with copious patch collections, snorkels, and shiny traction aides) with resi's honestly wouldn't notice a difference between those and non-resi shocks. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't. In other words, they overspent, IMO. Most people simply don't push their trucks hard enough to really need resi's... They look cool, though.

The OP said money wasn't much of an object, but also didn't want to spend money on things he didn't need.

I'm simply offering an alternative viewpoint that not everyone "needs" the most expensive external resi shocks, even if they can afford them.

 

Resis aren't really necessary on the rear for most, but they're great in the front with the high lever ratio. The front heats up pretty fast. The rear is pretty tame if you don't mob around hard.

 

Thanks everyone - great info and appreciate the multiple viewpoints!

I live in AZ too (Old Town Scottsdale) and it sounds like a trip to SDHQ might be in order? Yotapros has done the basic maintenance on my truck so far and they've been a really solid shop. Any other shops I should check out in AZ? Or am I asking to get raked over the coals at these places?

I can turn some wrenches on my own and love a good deal, but I appreciate leaving some stuff for the pros to install.

 

SDHQ are good guys and very knowledgeable but their prices aren't always the best so I'd shop around if you aren't comfortable with the pricing they give you. I've heard mixed things about yota pros but at least the prices aren't terrible. If you need exhaust work I cannot recommend Scottsdale Muffler enough. I'm at the border of Tempe and Chandler close to the I-10 if you ever want to test drive a truck with icons and kings haha

My truck is sprung and valved for comfort while mobbing around on dirt. Even without weight in the rear it is pretty damn comfortable.

 

I in the toytec 5100 combo with an aal and 5100 in the rear as well last year. I got easily 3 inches of lift all around. Front end is a little stiff due to heavier springs and me only having a 4cyl. Also installed light racing ucas due to their adjustability and use of a conventional style bj, ive heard uniballs and salt don’t mix too well. It definitely rides better than stock but hey it’s a truck and it still drives like one.

I also installed it all by myself and it was the first major work I’d done on my truck myself. Went real smooth once I got through all the rusty nuts and bolts.

 

Just installed 6100/5100 great improvement in ride quality. Doesn't shift as much for aft acceleration / braking. Only had it a day. Seems to soak up small bumps ok (50mph speed bump) Comparing to Icon / 5100 last setup. Better value similar performance. Don't know if I should keep old Icons or sell the for $100. Don't really have the storage space for parts.