Extended rear brake lines for 2" lift?

How many of you think, or is there a need to extend the rear brake lines, when doing a moderate lift? I was under my 'Taco surveying the terrain, and was wondering about that.

I read a lot of posts here about moderate suspension lifts, but it's not mentioned much about extending the rear brake lines.

I'm going to be installing 2" blocks soon, with my TRD lift kit upgrade (just the 4 shocks). I plan on lifting equally all around (2" front and 2" rear) because I want to keep the OEM rake.

Pic of my current rear brake lines. Should I consider extending them or generally am I going to be ok?

 

I did about 1.75 in the rear and mine have been ok even when off roading.

 

My new packs droop 2.75in beyond the stock shocks. The service brake lines were great. More attention needs to be paid to the parking break lines and that they are not stressed at full droop. You might need to tweak the mounts and guides.

Find your favorite mallcrawlin' test spot and check things out:

 

THIS! I about ripped the parking brake cable out of the leaf pack. I put a new leaf pack in instead of blocks but the theory is the same. The axle will sit 2" lower and will really stress the cable.

 

I haven’t noticed any issues with my ~2” extended travel lift, but it’s possible I haven’t looked close enough. Headstrong Off-road said i would not need extended brake lines when I bought the kit from them. I have wheeled it hard enough to pick wheels off the ground.

 

Could do what I did for now. I bent the lower tabs so that they are almost facing straight up, thus giving me 2-3" of more brake line, and no chance for it to kink if the lines become fully maxed out, which they shouldn't unless you have a shock relocation.

 

This, I actually had an ebrake cable get jammed in between a couple leafs in the pack while wheeling, and didn't end up finding out until i got on i90. Hit a bump going 70mph and the cable got kinked in the pack, thus locking up one tire

 

Ouch! That sounds like a pucker moment.

 

Yikes

 

Unless you do a shock relocation a lift is still within factory suspension specs so extended brake lines aren’t needed.

You would only need extended brake lines if you install suspension components that exceed factory geometry.

Think about it. Factory lines are designed to extend fully with the shock and leafs so why would drooping your axle within factory geometry affect them.

 

Joe has a good point. Most types of lift kits on Tacomas are only changing the ride height within the same stock range of motion (suspension travel). Extended travel shocks (aka mid travel) add ~1”. Long travel adds more.

 

Thank you gentlemen.

I've started pre-treating all involved suspension fasteners with 3 in 1 penetrating oil (what I have on hand at the moment). I'll apply it each day and then this upcoming weekend, I will tackle the lift; as long as the weather holds up.

 

A lift of any sort is has the potential to droop further than OEM.

For instance, the OP is putting on 2in block on the stock springs, so the axle is going to drop about 2in more at the U bolts.

I did the check on mine because the original plan was to go with standard 5100s, but I was hearing a solid clunk with the new leafs and the stock shocks coming off my driveway curb. Measuring free droop showed that I needed the extended travel.

That said, the brake lines were okay at that amount of extension.

 

Its still a bit ambiguous to me what limits droop under normal circumstances and whether it’s different for the rear leaf spring SAS and the front IFS.

 

I've never hear a clunk in the rear previously, but I think there is a cushioned stop in the shock. I'm happy with the leaf being that static limit.

Up front, it is the coilover's extension.

 

The shock itself is the limiting factory. Extending it to increase ride height doesn’t change this. Case and point OEM king shocks in factory location with Deaver Leafs which provide 3” lift still only extend as far as factory shocks. Their are small variations in shock design but any shock in the factory location will be the limiting factor.

Swap the kings with 12” shocks in relocation and you’ll droop 4” past factory specs requiring extended brake lines. At which point your limiting my factor is the leaf pack itself.

 

I was not talking about ride height at all. This is all down travel and extension limits.

 

Ok I must not be understanding you as the shock range of motion is the same with or without a block. Moot arguments.

 

Got a picture of how you did this?

 

Joe is saying the shock will act as a limit strap and keep your leaf pack from extending beyond the limits of the brake lines.

Remember Tony, the addition of blocks in the back will not increase travel, as the shock is attached to the axle and won't let it extend beyond its own limit. Now, switch to a longer extended length shock, and that's out the window... although you'd lose uptravel and need taller bump stops to keep the shock from topping out and damaging it.