two finalists - anyone regret 6112s? anyone regret Kings 2.5?

for my 2016 SR5 w TRD Off Road pkg: I am adding Falken 295/70 18 and Method wheels with +25 offset. I now realize I need a lift and from reading all of the posts here. I think the 6112s are the best shocks for me for the $. I dont want any taller of a lift than necessary and want a smooth but maybe sporty ride. Does anyone regret 6112s? I will also add the small warn 1/2 bumper and a winch in the future which looks to be an extra 140 lbs or so. Should I get an extra 100lb spring now?

A little voice is telling me to look at the upper level of shocks - King/Icon/Fox. I will not be doing any rock crawling but a lot of beach and some offroad. This will also be the family road trip vehicle - no daily driving but many trips to the lake and beach. I kind of think if i get a boat the Kings may be a mistake?

I am intrigued by the adjusters and remote reservoirs but I readily admit getting Kings would be more of a F*it I love my truck and why not do it right the 1st time. from what i can tell this is 2000 minimum over the 6112/5xxx in the back.

anything Im not considering? for anyone that had both what do you like or not ?

 

I too am thinking about upgrading my suspension, I bashed up my bash plate so maybe some front lift is in order.

But why do you think towing a boat with Kings may be a mistake?

 

I don’t really understand the debate between these two. It’s kinda like saying I want to buy a car and I’ve narrowed it down to a Jeep or a G-wagon. One is an order of magnitude higher than the other.

 

Love my fox 2.5 rr. Like, more than I ever imagined I would.

 

Not just that, they are valved differently.
6112 digressive
King progressive

They will ride and perform completely different.

 

I guess my question is are the Kings etc worth the extra $ given my intended use and situation. Has anyone upgraded later and why? i could spend the $ on shocks now but I would hate to buy the cheaper ones then do it again in a year. also - if i get a boat down the road thats 6k w trailer would the Kings be a mistake?

 

Read the articles at accutune, they mostly point towards fox over king for several reasons.

 

I have had my 6112s for nearly 40k miles and have zero regrets. But comparing them to Kings is apples to oranges. A full King set will run you over 3 times the cost of a set of 6112s.

 

What do kings have to do with towing a boat? I have kings on mine and tow all the time without issue, it's actually the one time I use the compression adjusters (although the load has to be pretty high to justify it). Honestly i doubt you'll do anything the 6112s won't handle fine, but if you want the fancy get the kings or foxes. Honestly I would go fox over king, the king materials don't hold up as well as the foxes in my experience. Regardless, they'll be total overkill whatever you pick.

 

Which one's a rebuildable and which ones are throw away?

 

apples and oranges, very different products. Kings will be nicer for sure.

For the price of 6112s, you should look at eibach pro truck 2.0 system. It will ride better than 6112s, lift 2.5 inches and is on sale for 934 with free shipping. Hard to beat that deal for what you get.

 

I had King 2.5’s on my Tundra and took them off and sold them a few weeks later for 75% of what I paid. The ride was just too harsh for these roads in the greater LA area. The truck pogo’d on the smallest road irregularities. I’m sure they would have performed great off road but 99.9% of my driving is on paved roads.

 

You can have your 6112's rebuilt by Bilstein, or at least that is what I've read. No personal experience.

 

In your scenario, there's no use for Kings. Only reason to buy is to say you have Kings, which is pretty cool, but also pretty expensive. Love my 6112s and 5160s. Bomb washboard riverbeds in Moab, gravel forest roads in SC, rock crawl in CO. Never let me down, never will.

 

Buy once, cry once.

 

100% the same feelings with my 6112's.
unless i was out jumping my truck or going harder than the light offroading i do maybe 10 times a year, a set of king's would serve as nothing more than expensive jewelry on my rig.

 

Consider Eibach too. I couldnt find 6112's anywhere and went this route and im extremely pleased with it. Under $1,000 dollars to my door for front and rears.

 

I've jumped my truck with 6112s/5160s multiple times. Your Bilsteins are far more capable than you imagine!

 

6112's are not rebuildable.

 

A Google and YouTube search will say otherwise

https://youtu.be/9tFEquVPpAs

Talked about around the 3:45 mark. That's just one. There are other articles and videos, too

 

My 6112s are stiff as fuk.
I've had them for around 60k miles.
Second to the lowest wetting with 1 CB shim on each side
5160s in the rear, but they ride the same as the 5100 rears I had before them.
It's the front that are harsh on concrete.

Love the lift, hate the ride.
Considering going back to a stock 4600 and back to stock height.

I'd look elsewhere.

 

Maybe just take the shims out.

 

They are according to Bilsteins website. You have to send them in to them though. Poway, CA location.

 

those look good - how is the ride compared to stock? also did you add shims and what springs sis you get ? thank you

 

I dont know much about this but why have a shim if the suspension isnt raised more than it is?

 

You think that would help?
Maybe set them on the lowest setting too?

 

In my extensive research, the less compression put on the spring (using the taller settings) the smoother the ride would be.
The higher lift would result in a stiffer ride.

Being the shim doesn't affect the spring tension as much (at least that is what I read), I was hoping the shim would give me another 1/2 of lift without stiffening the ride.
Coachbuilder says he does a lot of vehicles this way with good results.
With this setup I got 2.5" of front lift, I have toytec shackles on the 1 " setting in the rear.
Love the look, hate the ride.

My ride is HARSH on bumps, concrete seams, and the smallest of pot holes.
Truck feels like it is jumping over every little bump in the road.
It is a jarring ride, has been for over 4 years.

If y'all think removing the shim and moving the 6112 to the lowest setting would improve the ride, I guess I could try that before replacement.

I didn't care for the black stock shocks, felt like I was riding in a boat on the road.
My 2005 Tundra had a better stock ride.
I'm in a rental Tacoma TRD until my replacement cats come in from being stolen.
It has the TRD 4600 shocks and rides better than my 6112/5160s.

A lot of guys LOVE thier 6112 and 5100s.
Maybe I should have gone for the adjustable 5100s instead of the 6112, but I bought into the 6112 hype.
Never have been happy with them.

 

Something doesn’t sound right. I have 6112s on third notch and they ride very comfortable. We vacation a good bit( 2-3k miles a year) and the truck rides like a dream on the interstate. Haven’t you checked to make sure your top nut is torque to spec? Any other bushings that may be bad?

 

I had the TRD off road yellow shocks stock. After about 1500 miles on the truck I put the 6112/5160’s on, front at highest setting. It rode stiffer than stock but not uncomfortable. It rides like a truck, but not as stiff as a 3/4 ton truck. I went that route for desert driving. Every time I thought I was going to take a pretty good hit the 6112’s soaked it up. Definitely not trying to get any air in my truck. I have about 28k miles on the 6112/5160 setup and am very happy with them. Great improvement without being too expensive.

 

I'll look into that.
Truck had 12K miles when I had it installed.
It's been stiff since day one.
I had hoped it would soften up a little over time, but it hasn't.

I get it's a truck and all that.
But I've never been satisfied with the harshness of these shocks.

My SIL's 6" lifted Dodge has a smoother ride..