Is it worth getting new “tuned” King Suspension?

For the past 3 trucks I’ve had, I’ve always opted for the rather cheap spacer style lifts as I couldn’t afford anything else. I’ve now got a 2017 TRD PRO and just added the Westcott designs spacer-ish front lift with an icon add a leaf. It’s not giving me the ride I thought it would. It’s much stiffer now. I do the occasional wheelin at the local off road parks. We are planning on moving out to the Denver area soon and I’d imagine I’d only do more wheelin out in CO. I’ve been considering the King 2.5 coil overs and shocks with adjusters and extended travel or the Fox DSC.

Is it worth paying the extra money for a company such as Accutune or Filthy Motorsports to tune from the start? Again, I’m only a weekend occasional wheeler, for now. And I’m also planning on getting a front bumper and i’ve been entertaining the thought of 35’s. Thanks in advance.

 

No. But if you are set on getting all new shiny parts then why not spend the little extra.

 

Any reputable king distributor will work with you on your needs. Each king order is effectively custom and they will build the shocks to your needs based on configuration etc.

There is no extra charge for this but make sure you go with a good dealer and not just another generic drop shipper.

To answer your question, is it worth extra money? It’s completely free so yes.

 

Can’t argue with that!

 

Accutune has the set for $3198. But wheelers and ORW both have 10% coupon codes that would save me almost $500. I wasn’t sure if the tune is worth the extra $500

 

I'm not sure how 10% of $3200 equals $500 but I can tell you what I paid. Shock prices sure have increased..

King 2.5 Ext Coilover - $1400
King 2.5 12" smoothie w/ Adjuster - $1400 (prior to these I ran the OEM King shocks which I paid $750)

So my OEM King setup was right around $2100; and after upgrading the rears in a shock relocation, total cost was only $2800. These were also custom tuned by King.

TIP: The price you see on a website is often the minimum advertised pricing. I have purchased all my shocks through negotiations, coupon codes don't mean much when you can always call and talk the price down.

TIP 2: Find a reputable Shock dealer that's local to you. Work with them to get what you need, you will also need them to rebuild your shocks so you might as well befriend them early

TIP 3: Adjusters are pretty much set and forget, they allow final tuning but to be honest, once they are set they never move. Per Kings recommendation I got adjusters in the rear because I am constantly changing loads +/- 500 lbs but for the most part they are never changed. I would save your money.

 

King & Fox are a complete waste of money for a weekend wheeler. Buy a complete OME lift for $1400. and spend the rest on ammo & storable food.

 

If you're have issues with poor ride quality, ditch the Icon AAL.

Following the install of my 6112/5160 and Icon's 1.5" AAL, I was a bit unsatisfied with the ride quality and it was pretty harsh. I always assumed this was due to Bilstein's valving and thought that it could not be improved. Well, I was very wrong.

Fast forward a year and about 20k miles, I made the decision to replace the Icon AAL with new leaf pack from Deaver. This turned out to be a SIGNIFICANT upgrade and was immediately noticeable. My truck rides so much better than I ever thought it would loaded and unloaded. The Icon AAL was fully responsible for all the poor ride characteristics.

 

@JoeCOVA thanks for the tips man!
I’ve been emailing Accutune and they want $3198. Off-road warehouse comes out to around $2700

 

Once you go 35, you need to re-gear for sure. Ovtune too or if feeling lucky A super charger. Gets expensive quick for a weekend warrior buT if you have the funds why not. We only live once. You can’t bring it all in the afterlife . That’s why we work hard and enjoy life. It would look awesome too. Btw kings and fox needs to be rebuilt .

 

I am planning on trd pro shocks with the 265/75r16 tires I have now. Mostly trails out in the desert. For 33s my plan was control arms, 2.5 fox front 2.0 with reservoir in the rear and an entirely new leaf pack but I don’t want to spend the money. For 35s look at the guys who have long travel setups but then you have the problem of a teeny tiny engine moving those huge tires.

 

@AccuTune Offroad Thoughts?

Why? You dont need LT to run 35s and the 3.5 is fine, regearing is always necessary when running larger tires. I don't see any Samurai guys complaining about their 120hp 1.3L engine turning 35s and 37s

Considering that most people work M-F, quite literally every single vehicle here is a "weekend wheeler." I just ran Chinaman Gulch this past weekend and a basic OME kit would have made it miserable...

 

Any shop can put in a call to king for shock adjustments. I picked up mine from low range and wheelers. The benefit to accutune and filthy are they will help make the suggestions. Others will tell king why you tell them or wait to see what king suggests. You can also email tuning@kingshocks etc and hash it out before. They have generally been helpful but you may get a more personalized fit if aviator through other means

 

I decided to go with this kit: https://accutuneoffroad.com/product/05-tacoma-mid-travel-suspension-kit-stage-4a-fox/

I've been out wheeling with factory OR shocks and a spacer lift kit. Its been absolutely awful, bouncy as hell and generally unmanageable. Helps to air down, but I wanted top of the line and from my research, this appears to fit the bill with the custom tuning options they offer. I have over 800lbs of extra weight with front & rear bumpers w/ swingout, winch, full RCI skid package, etc. Also I like how their configuration of parts has been tested and known to work together well, rather than just buying different components and hoping for the best. Waste of money is in the eye of the beholder.

 

You want to buy what will be useful to you. If you aren’t hitting high-speed (40MPH+) off road trails, you don’t really need anything more than a 500-to-1000 kit.

why spend 2500+ on king suspension, when you will never use it?

 

eh ive wheeled with a bunch of guys with samurais and trackers on 35s/37s their little 4 bangers do fine with proper gears

 

$3200 for Kings?? Either they have gone up significantly or that includes UCA's and something to lift the rear...

 

I agree with your first sentence but the rest is rubbish. There’s a reason we see Kings, Fox, ORI on so many rock crawlers and buggies and it’s not for bling.

 

Just be sure you're comparing apples to apples. Yes the tuning we provide in our prices is free, $450/value. In addition to that we do offer 25% off labor for service work later on, which includes rebuilds or repairs. You also get a free revalve if the ride quality is not up to your expectations, which includes a year from now after you add more weight to your truck, we will still revalve it for free. We are 100% dedicated to providing the best product with the best ride. All shocks are built to order in-house. We are definitely not an online store that drop ships shocks from the manufacturer.

 

Agreed. Although we all see ourselves as off-road enthusiasts, the majority of the time these trucks are being driven on the street. Believe it or not, a properly tuned shock will ride a lot smoother than factory (for a lot of reasons). Properly tuned shocks will not only make your off-road trips more comfortable, but your daily commute will be more enjoyable also. Performance "off-road" shocks are not just about going off-road. Just like good tires and wheels, quality suspension can be a great investment for a nice truck.