Best suspension for softest, daily driving?

That's a very good point. I have a strong intuition the leaf springs are also not stock and for heavier weight. I will have to check what i have.

 

This is what I have installed at the moment

Leaf Springs: OME Dakar CS047R
Front Shocks: OME 9000 , Coils unknown
Rear Shocks: OME 60091

 

yep those rear leaf springs are the old version of EL095R/EL096R - lift and additional capacity weight, paired with the matching rear shocks. All perfect. It is likely the front coil is an OME also. Prior owner probably purchased the entire OME lift kit. So with that said if you want to tone it down your options are very limited - good news is you should not have any issue selling all the parts on the 3rd gen buy/sell/trade thread - lots of 3rd gen owners wanting what you want to change out. Front coils/shocks/top hats, rear leaf springs, rear shocks. TW vendors will have prices for those new as individual parts and entire kits. Headstrong and Rouge seem to always have best prices so they would be a good place to start to determine asking price.

 

That's good news. I appreciate your help.

I also learned the springs on my OME fronts are 886 coils. That helps explain the harsh ride now.

I'm ready to drop $2.2k on a Kings group buy for fronts and rears, and also considering Fox 2.0 or 2.5. I also wouldn't mind Bilsteins but I've read they're digressive unlike the Kings or Fox ride which I'm looking for.

 

The sport springs and SR5 springs are higher spring rates than the off road springs as far as I know. The off road package factory rear springs on my "13 were very soft, two leaves plus overload, with factory off road Bilsteins and it bottomed out a lot with just passengers. We have the worst roads here. I replaced them with used '15 sport springs with a 3 leaf add a leaf and 5100's . It carries what I need much better now but it is stiffer unloaded for sure. If you want a very soft ride and you don't off road or carry loads look for a used low mileage TRD off road suspension and use oem type passenger rated tires at the pressures noted on the door jam. I think that will be about as soft as you can get with factory parts and avoid the problems that come with aftermarket suspensions. I'm leery of peoples opinion of what is soft and a great ride in any aftermarket suspension. There are guys that say load range E tires at 45psi ride just great on these trucks. Maybe you can find a '16 off road, used, on a dealer lot. Take a test drive and see what you think.

 

You’ll never look back

If you decide on Fox, go 2.5s all the way around

 

Good choices. I went with Bilstein 6112 and 5160. Hard to beat for the price, and I have them (6112) set to the lowest setting to maximize travel and soften ride. I was not interested in lift. Compared to stock they are very nice and meet my expectations. I did not have the budget you are working with. I have no experience with Fox or King - both have a big following and are quality products. Can't go wrong with either. Headstrong is very open and honest with information - I'd give them a call or PM for products and what you are wanting to accomplish. Their customer care is very good.

 

I'll take a look at them! Also, I've considered the 6112 and 5160. I am hoping to install whichever setup I choose myself.Compressing the coil for the 6112s is the part I am looking to avoid and that's why I ruled them out. Unless I find a shop near me that can do it for me. Or I can try the floor jack method where I bolt in the shock to LCA, insert coil, and jack up till it goes through top plate and screw in place.

 

i don't think anything will feel as soft or muted as the factory setup. I'd go back to stock and sell your aftermarket stuff

 

A lot of vendors will assemble the coils on the ring you request for a nominal fee.

 

you won't find the gen 3 6112's anywhere - they are on National Back Order and per Bilstein it will be May before they show up. I got mine the last of January. Just had to wait for warm weather to install. I found a DIY garage near me for the 6112 coil/shock. Cost me $40. I just went with the removal of the sway bar linkage, remove the UCA castle nut and attached wiring. Took top hat out and had shop remove and install on the 6112's. Easy. Did not want to mess with loosening the LCA camber bolts. Good video on you tube on this method - they were installing 5100 on the front for a 2017. Anyway - good luck with your mods.

 

SR5 OEM will give you caddy mush you’re looking for.
OR OEM will give you balance of mush and rebounds.
A decent digressive shock is excellent for a daily driver, but you need to really figure out how the current lift is set if you plan to keep it. Many guys don’t balance springs, coils and shocks to their preload or driving habits and end up with a rough ride that looks cool.

 

Correct me if I'm wrong, but my understanding is that digressive shocks are stiffer at the start of their stroke and get less stiff as they compress. The opposite is true of the progressive shock. This makes the digressive shock ride harsher on a washboard road and have more compliance on undulating terrain as in off road deep suspension flex situations. The TRD sport suspension has stiffer sway bars, Bilstein/Toyota shocks, higher spring rate rear springs,and linear rate front springs, (a "handling package" if you will). The TRD Off road has a thinner sway bar ( I think), lower spring rate, more flexible rear springs, progressive front coil springs ( that get stiffer as they compress) and again some type of Bilstein /Toyota shocks specific to the off road package among other features.

The SR5 is just a base universal suspension. I've read many posts about the harsh ride of this setup, particularly the shocks , but have no first hand experience with it.

The O/P was looking for a soft ,street biased mushy "Grand Marquis" type of ride. I would hate to see him spend 2000 plus dollars and end up with a different type of stiff aftermarket suspension, especially without driving a similarly equipped truck. Why would someone add an aftermarket suspension unless they wanted lift, and/or flex, or street handing, or lowering or weight carrying/towing improvement?

I would suggest much more first hand evaluation before spending money on any parts and related labor.

It's his money and truck though, good luck with it.

 

Yeah I was set on 6112/5160. About $1,100 shipped with 6112 assembled and 5160. But....after further research but found out they're out of stock everywhere. Yep, @GoldenBrew was right.

Back to the starting point. My wife is starting to get upset at how much time I've spend these days looking this up.

This is ridiculous. All I want is a decent ride with a 2" lift. My only options are now Fox 2.0, Fox 2.5, or Kings. Don't mind Fox but I'd have to spend at least $800 ($1,900) for a comparable Fox setup (2.5 all around). The Fox 2.0 is okay but overpriced compared to the 6112/5160 combo and they realistically only give a 1" lift on 3rd gen Tacomas (despite labeled 2" lift). Then I've heard the Fox rusts fast (not sure how true). Kings, was set on the group buy kings going on but that'd be at least $2,700 with UCAs because they're the extended versions.

 

You're on the right track with fox/king. Progressive shocks will do you well. And keep in mind it doesn't have to be a true coilover to ride great. Stock raptors use a strut assembly up front with fox/king shocks and they ride just fine. But - something to look into is getting a shock/coilover with an adjustable compression knob. Only thing I regret not doing. You can fine tune that bad boy between say 0 and 14 turns, 7 being the normal ride - you could go as soft or stiff as you want.

For the rear it looks like you have a good pack, although I'm not familiar with the specifics. Thinner leaves + more of them tend to ride smoother. But again, a lot of the ride quality in the rear is up to the shock.

And for tires - C rated @ 32psi or less. Should ride like a dream.

 

Sounds good. Thanks.


So question is. Should I wait for 6112/5160 to come back in stock or spend almost $1.5k more for Kings w/UCA?

 

well it is almost April so what's another month? FYI - if you decide to go Gen 3 6112/5160 have the 6112's pre-assembled (a little more for the top hats but worth it IOM) and ORDER now as the vendors may be creating a wait list for their limited supply when it arrives. Check HeadStrong or Race Consultant Agency. RCA will have the best price on 6112's but not sure they pre-assemble. HeadStrong will have best price of 5160's. Or at least that was the case when I purchased. Both easy to install if you have tools and time. GL.

 

You're right. It can wait. As cool as it would be to have Kings and can afford it, I can't justify almost $3k for a truck that will be used 95% for highway commute. I am actually excited for the Bilsteins now. They look to be solidly built and the price is great. I've reached out the HeadStrong, but may also resre out to WheelersOffroad. They both offer the combo pre-assembled.

 

I've got 5160's on my sport and they are really not much different than the stock shocks from a comfort standpoint. I was hoping for a bit softer ride as well.

 

Well that's disappointing to hear. But I never had the opportunity to ride my truck stock. It came with the OME 3" lift installed. Can you say if the Bilsteins are at least more comfortable than the OME?