Tough Dog Suspension Australia for Tacoma

Tough Dog 4WD Suspension​

I'm excited to show off what I believe is the first Tough Dog suspension kit for any Toyota Tacoma.

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"Snaeper, why should I be interested in this?" you might ask. Well Tough Dog is a very, very reputable suspension brand... in Australia. But they have yet to make large in roads in the American 4x4 Aftermarket. Understandable given that Aussie suspension is already well represented here, and that's before you go up against the reputable American brands.

However, I wasn't entirely satisfied with what the other products already available offered me, usually because most boxes would be checked, followed by a few compromises elsewhere. I had typically been looking at a certain German brand, as well as a very reputable coilover company located right here in Arizona (you know which one!) but again, compromises.

It was then that I discovered a mention of Tough Dog by another member here while looking at a competitor's suspension wares and for some reason, the name never could leave the back of my mind. It was like a tick that I just couldn't shake, so I began investigating. What made them so worthwhile? What did they do differently?

With no Tacoma reviews to go off of, I began looking around to see if the brand had any presence in the US and I found Trail Tailor (https://www.trail-tailor.com/index.html). Jason at Trail Tailor specializes in Land Cruisers, but just so happens to be the US link for Tough Dog suspensions in the states. Perusing ih8mud, the tacomaworld.com equivalent for Land Cruiser owners unveiled a significant number of positive reviews for the Tough Dog Land Cruiser applications. So while it's not exactly the same kit, I knew that this wasn't a brand that took anything lightly, and that Jason and Trail Tailor were going to be worthwhile to work with.

Meanwhile, Tough Dog's marketing material and videos further painted a picture of a straight forward, honest suspension company with an eye for quality, just as you'd expect when spending your hard earned cash on aftermarket parts. They specialize in foamcell shocks, and their foamcells are supposed to be the best in the game.

But then I saw something that really caught my eye. Adjustability.

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Tough Dog's 40mm Foamcells feature 9 stage rebound adjustment, a feature that I simply hadn't seen on any other products I was considering that weren't top-of-the-line coilovers with external reservoirs. This feature will hopefully give me exactly what I've been looking for in my Tacoma: A competent, comfortable Daily Driver for work, while still having excellent off road performance and fade resistance while off road.

As of this moment, the suspension is still a week or so away from being installed as I'm awaiting the arrival of my rear lift in order to do everything at once, so I can't even give you a guess as to how much lift you'll get from the kit, but these are extended travel shocks, so hopefully travel is significantly improved even without large amounts of lift.

I will certainly post a review of or after the install, and share my thoughts on how this suspension performs so others can make appropriate decisions in regards to this new option for our trucks.

In the meantime, feel free to ask any questions you might have!

 

So the install went down last weekend. I was fortunate enough to have @Man of Steel TRD offer to let me use his garage for the install. His truck is on it's second set of Bilstein 5100's so I was confident that he and the insight of @TailHook would be more than adequate to safely install the kit. TL;DR, Scroll to the bottom if you're looking for final lift measurements.

We got started on the fronts right away and that went off without a hitch on the driver's side. The Passenger's side required the top hat to be rotated. I alerted Trail Tailor of the issue but was foolish and didn't take any approximate measurements or proper pictures, but I will work with Jason to ensure there is no further issues. It was easily resolved by simply renting a spring compressor and rotating the hat into the correct position, though.

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As you can see, the Aussie twin tube is a big upgrade over my factory suspension. A much larger shock body, combined with the closed cell Foam Cell insert means more oil in the shock, more oil in contact with the surface of the shock body, and better cooling properties as a result. On top of that, the gas being largely separated from the oil means that cavitation and shock fade are greatly reduced. This gives you many of the benefits of a more expensive suspension option, but at a much more reasonable cost, and without the shorter service life and rebuild cycle from most monotube coilovers. I seriously think this suspension is one of the best options for those who DD their Taco, but still want a suspension that performs well off road.

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While I also upgraded my front bumpstops during the install of the front shocks, Tough Dog's internal bump stop is there to prevent damage to the shock. I don't want to rely on it if I don't have to, but note that it's a great feature with these shocks, ensuring they won't get easily damaged.

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With the fronts done, we switched to the rear suspension. Trail Tailor and Tough Dog are still sorting out a rear leaf pack option for the Tacoma, as the rear on our trucks was not as plug-and-play as the front was. So for the time being, I installed a Headstrong 3 Leaf AAL pack. @TailHook and I put the HS AAL on his truck and he was happy with it's performance, so I decided to go that route as well, as the cost to performance ratio can't be beat. The Tough Dog shocks themselves were the easy part, given the ease of install for rear shocks on our trucks. Tailhook noted that they were even easier than the rear shocks on his truck as they compress and do not immediately begin rebounding, making them very easy to work with. Did I mention it was easy? I don't think I said easy enough.

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I did have plans to install new bumpstops for the rear as well, but was still awaiting some parts, so the factory bump stops had to go back in for now. I dialed the 40mm shocks in to a firmer setting and, combined with the new AAL (sans overload spring), I was very impressed with how stiff the rear of my truck was. A quick break-in drive around town with an empty bed had me chirping tires in my four cylinder Taco, but loading it up with a floor jack, hundreds of pounds of tools and a few other miscellaneous items settled things down. The next weekend, with an empty bed again, I adjusted the rebound on the shocks and was delighted that the bed didn't ride as stiff. I'm going to keep playing with rebound adjustments to get them completely sorted for what settings I want/need depending on the conditions, but I am delighted that I even have the option to toy with such things at the price point.

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All things considered, I am very, very happy with how the truck performs in terms of ride quality and handling. The amount of lift I got was also absolutely perfect, and I've been pleased that there haven't been any concerning clunks, whines or vibrations that typically follow a suspension lift. That being said, all trucks are not created equal, so while I hope that your lifting experience mirrors mine, there's the possibility you might need a CB drop or shim where I didn't. Note that I did not get a 1/4" top spacer for the Driver's side to correct for Taco Lean, and I have not noticed the truck sitting lopsided by any means.

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TRUCK: 2019 Toyota Tacoma SR, 2.7 I4, 4x4 Access Cab.

INITIAL LIFT MEASUREMENTS:
-Front Lift: 1.75"
-Rear Lift: 2" (with HS AAL)

FOLLOW UP "Settled" MEASUREMENTS:
-Front Lift: TBD
-Rear Lift: TBD

PRICE:
Front assembled 40mm adjustable strut-- 459.00 per pair (shipping 45.00)

Rear 40mm adjustable shocks – 309.00 per pair (shipping 28.00)

UCAs – 459.00 per set (shipping 32.00)

Tough Dog Upper Control Arms​

Given the Tacoma's front suspension design is shared with other, popular, global Toyota SUV's and 4x4's, there's a real possibility that the Upper Control Arms that Tough Dog makes for the Land Cruiser Prado and the FJ Cruiser will work for our trucks as well. I talked to Jason at Trail Tailor and he quoted me a price of right around $511~ including shipping. I believe that's an excellent price for a very high quality, capable Upper Control Arm and I will likely get them as soon as I can reasonably afford to.

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Where are these for sale or are they for sale to the public? Doesnt have an option for tacoma on their website.

 

They are for sale.

Trail Tailor is the US distributor for all Tough Dog kits. He specializes in Land Cruisers but can order any of Tough Dogs kits for any vehicle from any brand. He does not keep a large inventory at this moment, so you have to email. Jason will give you a quote and a shipping date.

I am running the first Tacoma kit that I am aware of, and worked with Jason to get the rear shocks set up with the help of @Man of Steel TRD @TailHook and @Nitori. The front shocks and springs are a direct crossover from the Land Cruiser Prado and FJ Cruiser, which Tough Dog already made since they were available in the Australian marketplace.

As interest grows, I hope that Tacoma kits can become more available and easier to view and order.

Tough Dogs website will likely not show the Tacoma as an option as they focus exclusively in vehicles available in the Australian market. They will tell you to get into contact with Trail Tailor as they did me when I went to them about a potential Tacoma kit.

 

Great thanks...
Im a complete noob when it comes to suspensions... Ive got a 2018 sr5 dclb that im looking to lift and attain a little better ride on the road as well... Loved my old fj55.. wish I still had her...
Thanks again and if you have any suggestions feel free to share them

 

Well my first suggestion is to think about how you use or plan to use your truck, figure out what you're gonna eventually put on your truck, and then evaluate how your suspension will work with your use and the truck.

Adding some weight to the truck before you swap suspension is advisable, that way you can assess what kind of springs your truck needs. You don't want to anticipate weight and get springs accordingly, but then get punished by a stiff ride until the weight gets added. Bumpers, Winch, Rear Rack and Tent or Shell are big items you will wanna put on first. Wheels and tires, too.

 

Thank you for the write up. If anyone has any questions they can email me at:

jason@trail-tailor.com

Trail Tailor
Redding, CA

We are mainly a Land Cruiser based one off build and fabrication shop and the USA distributor for Tough Dog out of Australia.

Thank you,

Jason

 

It was recommended by one of the forum mods to initiate a group buy for the Tough Dog parts. Here is the pricing for the parts. If I can get 5 complete sets (Assembled 40mm adjustable strut, 40mm adjustable rear shock and UCAs) I'll pay shipping from Australia to your door (AIR shipping approx. 2-3 weeks from time of order to your door pending customs release at LAX) This has been a few extra days due to Covid but still moving fairly quickly.

If 5 complete sets are not met pricing will be as listed below for this buy. Lets set this until 7/18/2020 at midnight and I will put in order the next day. 50% is required and the remaining 50% before shipping.


Front assembled 40mm adjustable strut-- 459.00 per pair (shipping 45.00)

Rear 40mm adjustable shocks – 309.00 per pair (shipping 28.00)

UCAs – 459.00 per set (shipping 32.00)

Jason

 

Looks OK, I wouldn't go with an unknown product, my stock bilstein front coil overs have 120 thousand miles on them and are actually still riding good. I'm going with 6112/5160's there in no substitute for size in the sho,ck world, plus and shock without an external resi, will not, cool/seperate oil from nitrogen charge completely. While I know the 6112 is not an external resi shock it's size is impressive. I'm also not sold on foam in a shock, seems counter intuitive and only the Aussie 's are doing this. I'm not trying to rain on your parade just countering some points, hope it works out for you, will be interested in the long term performance. Also, for uca's I recommend JBA, zerk fitting on pivot points plus joint, easily replaceable, Chevy ball joint and 450 dollars, plus made in USA!

 

That's understandable, I'm probably literally running the first Tough Dog set up for a Tacoma. The Land Cruiser guys raved about them, so that was enough of a vote for me, since I figure most Cruiser owners wheel more and harder than most Tacoma owners. These are a twin tube shock, so I expect better life span out of them than most, if not all, aftermarket monotubes.

I totally agree with size being a big factor. These shocks are beefy. I didn't get to measure the exterior diameter of them, but the larger the shock, the more surface area, the better the cooling ability when combined with the added oil of the large shock. The general thinking in Australia is that External Reservoirs work best when 1. Mounted in an area where the air can hit them to cool the oil and 2. Are paired with a shock that has a long enough travel to actually cycle the oil into the reservoir. Since most trucks mount the reservoir high in the bed or behind the bumper, it's not working quite as well as it should be, and the limited suspension travel on most truck won't cycle the oil enough to utilize it anyways.

This truck is just a DD that I occasionally want to wheel in comfort. Having the bigger shocks without the reservoirs and with the adjust-ability for a reasonable cost was very appealing, and so far the truck is checking every box.

Not sure how a reservoir would separate oil from a nitrogen charge in a monotube, since the gas and oil are separated anyways.

There are more than a few that have reservations about the foam cell insert. The foam is certainly engineered to deal with the heat and rigors of suspension duty, and the benefits of being able to put more oil in the shock and have that oil stay in contact with more of the shock body, while getting the advantages of the longer life and cheaper cost of twin tubes certainly speak for themselves. The 9 stage rebound adjustment was one of the cherries on top, and one of the reasons I picked the "unknown" Tough Dogs over the Bilstein 6112/5160 kit I had been eyeing as well.

The Aussies use Foam Cells in part because of the performance benefits as listed above, and the lower cost. You have to remember that in Australia, a vehicle needs to be signed off by an engineer after any significant modifications have been performed to them. The vehicles need to safely complete a number of tests which require renting a facility to conduct the tests and paying the engineer to come down and observe the tests so that they can then sign off on them. Those added costs (all on the owner), I feel, largely contributed to the exploration of alternative tech in suspension, to give them the ride performance they were looking for, while reducing costs of the parts themselves.

 

When you say adjustable, do you mean height or the little adjuster knob on there? If you did mean height what are the settings? Did you get your settled measurements?
I’ve been eyeing the Ironman kit but maybe this will work with the better price point.

 

These are not height adjustable as they are a shock and coil.

The knob is for rebound adjustment, allowing you to control the effect the shock has on the vehicle.

I am going to wait another week or so until I take measurements.

The Ironman Kit, especially with their discount, is a competitive kit that I was eyeing myself. Tough Dog is still working on a rear spring option, so factor that into your decision making process, because you will need to purchase either an AAL pack like I did, or a replacement pack separate from what is currently available with the group buy and in general.

The rebound adjustment is the big seller for me though, and worth the extra money you'd pay. Since your truck is new, getting a 3-leaf progressive AAL pack (~$200) will put you right in line of Ironman's Stage 1, but unlike their Stage 1, you'll get an Upper Control Arm that will ensure you'll be in alignment, but more importantly, will give you added droop travel when off road.

I finally put the rebound adjustment to the test and the truck rides much, much, much better than my stock Hitachi's off road.

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With my tires aired to 18psi, and the shocks adjusted to level 3 front and rear, I found that most of the small to major bumps were absorbed exceptionally well. My little Taco was keeping up with my compatriots who have spent a few more dollars on their suspension than I did. Lastly, unlike my last trip to Bulldog Canyon with many of the same trucks, I was not getting rattled to death from shock fade by the end of the run.

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I can vouch for this suspension even though I don't own it. I went wheeling with Martin today and couple others with nice suspension set ups. They were all airing up when I finally arrived with my Bilstien 5100 set up. Obviously this set up works very well off road.

Signed

The Last Guy Back

 

It was great to have you out, @Bikinaz

Sorry that your Bilsteins were beating you up.

 

Thanks for enforcing my previous thoughts that for what I do, I need to spend even more money...that the CFO is not going to be happy about.

 

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The uniquely bulged tube design is one of the features that sets this shock apart from the rest. Specifically designed to create more surface area and carry more of the all-important oil, this shock can dissipate heat from friction more easily.

Because it can hold much more oil than a regular shock or a gas shock, the foam cell shock is a popular choice for long-distance 4WD trips across Australia.

Foam Cell Technology
Ever wondered what exactly this talk about foam cells is and what it is they do? Well, what basically looks like just an ordinary piece of foam is actually foam of the highest quality available. It is specifically designed to withstand long periods of intense heat without suffering damage or deterioration.

Each piece of foam is filled with thousands of tiny gas bubbles in order to maintain even pressure levels within the shock absorber itself. The foam insert itself acts as a divider between oil and gas inside the shock to prevent the formation of bubbles also known as cavitation.

Because the gas never actually comes into contact with the oil, foam cell shocks are far less likely to suffer from shock fade.

These shocks hold 2-5 times more oil than standard gas shocks do. Also weighing more than standard gas shocks.

Foamcell is old technology that Tenneco (Monroe) and Gabriel used in previous years and moved onto for a less laborious design with gas. Cheaper to make and cheaper to ship. Gabriel in the US and Mexico make some of the foamcell models for Tough Dog still to this day as it is the preferred model for TD customers. Yes they make gas shocks as well but the foamcell is their premier requested shock worldwide.

The Tacoma shocks dims are here:

• 40mm internal bore
• 60mm external casing
• 18mm chrome-plated rod
• High temperature, all weather oil
• Foam cell
• 9 Stage external adjustment
• Additional welding on all studs and eye rings

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CaE0BUekybg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFAnXwcfcb8

 

Also a little pre 1984 history on Tough Dog.

Lund used to own Tough Dog and 4 Way Suspensions in the US. The owner of Tough Dog now used to buy parts from Lund and ship to Australia. The parts were so well received in Australia that they purchased the name, branding and parts designs from Lund.

As the owner of Tough Dog said when I sold a suspension kit to Lund for their SEMA Ranger PX build.. "They used to own Tuff Dog and 4way in the USA. i used to by my stuff from them 26 or so years ago. Well, well, the circle of life!!!"

Same rig, same Tough Dog suspension before and after SEMA prep

 

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Thanks for the great information. Those adjusters sound like a really nice feature to have. What size tire/wheel are you running?