2015 Taco - 3" vs 6" lift

Hey all! Advice/comments/suggestions needed for a total noob.

First, here's a pic of my stock 2nd gen Taco:



I know from my observations that some stock Tacos out there are set at the factory to ride higher. Mine isn't one of those. [EDIT - I recently parked next to another 2nd gen... they were the same height! wtf.. maybe i'm just delusional]

I wanted to get a lift job done, so started doing some shopping for kits. My budget isn't huge, so I was opting for the 6" Rough Country Vertex coilovers (I've always wanted coils). But after reading through pages and pages of threads, I'm on the fence with that kit. Some say they're great (threads found in the 3rd gen section). Dug a little deeper into the 2nd Gen owners section and found lots of negatives.

Looked around some more and found that there are cheaper options out there, but not surprisingly only at 3-4". Bilstein, Pro-Comp and yes, also Rough Country.

So, I'm all research'd out, and thoroughly confused by all the lingo and acronyms and shop talk. I know some stuff about cars, but clearly not as much as a noob that I am getting into the lifting game.

With my truck not being set at the factory to ride at the "higher" stock ride height, do I need to get a 6" lift to achieve the "look" of a taller truck? Or can I still get there with a cheaper 3-4" kit? Will I be able to run 34s, or are 33s the max size I can run? Pls keep in mind doing almost ANY kind of mechanical work is a no-go for me; I don't have a flat driveway or garage to work in.

Any advice you can provide would be greatly appreciated! Pls be gentle!

 

oh boy.

You have such a nice truck. Don't cheap out on suspension. That rough country stuff is junk. There is a TON of info on different lift kits if you search. Any of these cheapo tall lift kits require cutting of the front subframe so going back to stock really isn't an option without some welding and fab work. Personally, I would stick to a 2.5-3-inch quality lift kit.

 

I would talk to Hotshot Offroad about Bilstien 6112s adjustable fronts and 5125s in rear with a leaf pack. Quality parts and not going to break the bank.

 

What he said. Going cheap usually means sacrificing ride quality and on road handling and can lead to more fixes down the road to remedy that. I started with a cheap 3” lift 15 years ago and now have custom tuned coil overs, built from scratch rear springs and thousands of dollars of other products, many of them bespoke. Go with quality from the beginning. Consider that a 6 inch lift will need much larger more expensive tires to not look weird.

Also your truck is set at the higher ride height, it’s the 2wd base models that sit lower, unless you’re talking about the dealer installed lift kits?

 

awesome - thank you all for the replies so far. i guess i just needed further confirmation that the RCs are attractive in price only. i'll keep shopping around for options.

part of the reason i wanted to go with RCs was because they're offered by 4wheelparts.com and they can do financing. they didn't really bat an eye when i called them asking for a quote. i guess they're all for making a big-dollar sale and charging for the install?

and as for the ride height - i'm pretty sure the other stock tacomas i've seen in the wild ride higher. i can't help but compare my ride to others out there; human nature, right?

 

at this point i'm still leaning towards going with the local 4wheelparts shop since i can finance with them; last time i had over $3k to throw at a single purchase was.... uhh... never?

plugging in my year/make/model, these are the brand options that come up. any suggestions/thoughts/warnings?



i'm somewhat familiar pro comp, and i know that icon is $$$$. but can anyone speak to fabtech? skyjacker?

and tuff country...? is that a red-headed stepchild of rough country??

still going to do my own research, but figured i should ask the forum also to see if i can get some head-on advice from ppl who know the real deal.

 

I just ran a leveling kit with 33s until I could afford to do long travel suspension on my truck. If you're only trying to improve aesthetics buy a leveling kit and call it a day.

 

thx for the tip! we're a camping family and intend on taking the rig on some pretty rough terrain and putting it through its paces. we also watch reruns of the xoverland crew... so.. 'nuff said. LOL

 

So the big thing here is going to be homework.

read this. https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/the-ultimate-tacoma-lift-guide.509171/

Ill spare my opinion lol

 

Don’t finance. You shouldn’t finance toys and you shouldn’t finance aftermarket parts.

 

unless you want a brocoma, don’t settle with the 6 inch lift and 35 inch tires.

 

Bilstein 5100’s all around, dakar medium duty leaf springs of 1 inch block

 

1) 3" of lift and 35's will give you more clearance than a 6" lift

2) don't cheap out on parts; as someone that has changed his setup a few times in the rear alone...take were advice - buy once, cry once.

 

bumpity bump!

had a chat with a buddy via text recently. can anyone confirm if this is a common issue with icons?



also - tried messing around with dobinsons site.. i don't feel comfortable choosing SOOOO many options.. not sure which ones to pick, and if any of them are even necessary. going that route would need a ton more research and/or its own thread, in my novice opinion

 

I would say no need for a lift and bigger tires, go out and get some good stock size all terrains, air them down, and get out onto the road. Then it'll be really clear what you do and don't need.

 

If you are doing all this just for looks, lay down and put a cold rag on your head till the urge passes.

And if you are insistent on proceeding, at least save up and do it with cash.

Free tips.

Ziggy says 89.74% of people who get a lift don't 'need' a lift for how they use the truck.

Wheel specs have more to do with how larger tires fit than any lift

Lifts can introduce new problems that are challenges for even the DIY'r, much less the self admitted 10 thumbs

Real ground clearance is at the axle line. Only tires can create more, and then only 1/2 of the diameter

Off road success is more based on driver skill

 

Don’t finance the suspension. If you have to borrow money for that, you can’t afford it and save money until you can.

it is common for people to just as “what’s the biggest lift I can put?” But why do you want it? Talk lifts are usually made my crappy company’s and ride like crap. And perform even worse.

So why do that to your truck? You put a 6” lift and then you will complain that it rattles and doesn’t drive properly. And keep in mind, for a bigger lift, you need bigger tires and big tires are not cheap.

 

I think you want it lifted purely for looks so you look “cool”. Total waste of $$$. If you really want to mod it up to take your family into “some pretty rough country” then get the tallest tires you can that will work well on a stock rig, install a rear locker, and put some armor on it. You’ll be able to go most any place you want with those mods.

 

nah - definitely not doing it just for looks. i used that word in my initial post because the stock height is lower that other stock tacos i've seen out there, so i wanted to make sure that if i actually did the lift, then it'd actually "look" higher. (hope that clears that up...)

and yes, we definitely plan on taking it out on the dirt/mud/streams out there. not sure if i've said it here or some other post, but we're an outdoors family and likes to get out there and explore outside of this major metropolitan area as much as we possibly can. this taco's absolutely gonna see some backwoods/remote areas eventually. we just don't want to get stuck or not be able to make it over some rocks or logs with the added payload of all our camping gear.

speaking of - is that why they sell setups for just the rear?? when i said "added payload" just now, i had one of those "ah-haaa!" moments lol

so - with everyone's recent comments this week - maybe it IS possible to just ride stock suspension and just throw some bigger tires on there? i was under the assumption that bigger tires absolutely meant getting some sort of lift, but according to this article i just found, that's not necessarily true..

 

thanks to the lot of you for inspiring me to look a little more... and showing me the light on possibly saving a ton of $$$