How to tell how much your vehicle is lifted.

I bought a 2015 Tundra that was already lifted. 2 Questions.

Q1. How can I tell how much it was lifted? It has a 2 in rear lift Block and a spacer on the front, which bolted onto OE Struts.

Q2. My passenger side Inner CV Boot tore. Should I invest in an ET CV axel? (To note, it does have a ~1.5 in diff drop.)

 

1. It’s lifted 2” in the rear and double whatever thickness that front spacer is (probably 3”)
2. That joint might be shot if it’s been exposed for a long time. Looks dry. Original axles are way better than any aftermarket ET ones. Most just put high angle boots on. But if yours are shot, grab some new OEMs and reboot, or get some ETs (they will probably fail much earlier than stock would). Also, diff drops are generally hocus pocus. They actually just change the angle of the diff.

 

Thank You.

 

If I plan to lift it 3.5in. Would OE Axles be fine? I bought the truck at 105k miles. The rear shocks are Bilstein 5100s, with Timbren Bump Stops, and like I said previous post the front struts are OE with a Spacer and rough country UCA. What are your thoughts on a 3.5in lift. Should I just do Coilovers and shocks same brand since I don’t know how long they have been on the vehicle?

 

mine is lifted 3, 3.5 should be fine, if I remember right 3.5 is the limit for the factory cv shafts and the angle

before you plan on what shocks figure out if you're gonna start from scratch on the lift/suspension -> are you gonna reuse anything? (since we aren't 100% on how much the truck is lifted measure from the center of your wheels to the bottom of the fender on all 3 corners and report that back here, I'll pull up the factory heights and see how much lift you're running)

From there we can then help you figure out what setup would be best for your needs/what you're wanting

 

Sounds good. I’ll take pictures of everything as well. Just to see if your eyes catch something mine didn’t.

 

If you are going to lift it that high you are going to want some after market control arms meant for a lift so you can get a proper alignment.

 

Yep, mine is lifted 3.5 and I'm running a complete Rough Country suspension. Vertex reservoir shocks all around and coil overs in the front. Drives great!!
Currently sitting on 33s. Well, 305/55R20s. Terra Ridge Grapplers.

 

I hope I got as center as possible.
DF:~26in
PF~26in
DR~26.5in
PR~26.5in

And looking at my axel it has a slight bend, in the outer boot. That’s why I was curious if I needed ET CV Shaft or is that normal for it to have that about decline. Picture from front of vehicle has that ~1.50in of DIFF drop. I’m driving my wife’s car not but plan to work on mine tomorrow so if OE AXLE is fine I’ll buy that today before I hit the road Saturday in my truck.

 

Needs bump stop extensions or longer bump stops. The LCA's can travel up too far and destroy the shocks

 

Suspension lift you can measure from center of axle to top of fender. I think stock height is 21.5 in front and 24 inch back. Total lift would be that number plus the difference in stock tire diameter from 32 inches divided by 2.

 

Hard to see, but it looks like the front sway bar is angled down at the rear. Sway bar drop blocks will help level it.

 

There’s no pictures of the front strut setup. What’s that spacer up front look like, what’s it measure in thickness?

 

I’ll have to measure it when I get hom. But here it is.

 

That is a giant spacer, and those are aftermarket upper control arms.

That's gotta be 4.5" of lift up front. No wonder your CVs are wrecked. Probably a kit for a 2wd.

 

How much would I need to change? Could I just get 3.5 in coilovers and leave the rest the same, based on everything I said about the vehicle already?

 

You will still need to adjust that stock bumpstop height to avoid destruction of new coilovers

 

What bump stop would you recommend for a 3.5 in lift? I’m just going to swap out the OE struts and worry about the Bilstein 5100 late.

 

I would suggest bringing the truck down quite a bit in overall lift. The need for taller bumpstops and aftermarket upper control arms, along with the increased wear and tear on CV axles ain't worth it.

Not to mention it looks goofy with those little rubber band tires on there with that much lift, and there's no way it drives nearly as nice as a stock truck. Plus the nearly complete lack of rake means if you ever choose to use it for truck duties means its going to squat heavily.

I bought my truck with a similar setup as what you have now. I promtply removed all that crap, and put Icon Add-A-Leafs in the rear to replace blocks, and TRD Pro Fox shocks (takeoffs) to replace the front spacers, and the truck drives so much better.

Not trying to be offensive, just sharing my experience and trying to help you make a wise decision you dont regret. Happy wrenching

 

Timbren makes about the best IMO. That said, be damn careful with removal of OEM. They are corroded heavily and will to snap off. Heat, oil, and slow back and forth movement will be best. Try to tighten slightly first and do not attempt to keep turning if they get tight cuz you will break the internally welded nut off. Finesse with care!

 

Here was my truck with the same 3"/2" (spacer/block) lift:


And here's it with 1.5" rear add-a-leaf + 2" TRD Pro Fox Coilovers up front:


Truck drives so much better with less lift. CV angles are much better. And it has a modest 1.5" rake that allows it to tow/haul without excessive squat.

 

By the way the notion that 3" spacers on top of a coilover offer 4.5" or 6" of lift isn't true. I thought the same thing, until I actually removed the 3" spacers from my truck and then added the Fox coilovers and noted only a 1" ride height difference. A 3" spacer will provide 3" of lift

 

The ratio is 1:2 on a this platform. A one inch spacer provides two inches of lift because the contol arms angle away from each other and each one has a length to it. Hold up your hand and spread your fingers apart a few times. Notice the distances between your fingers at the base vs the distances apart at the fingertips. Geometry is cool AF!

 

Then apparently Toyota built my Tundra differently. I removed a gigantic 3" lift spacer, and replaced the entire coiliver assembly with a TRD Pro Fox shock set that is claimed to provide 2" lift above the stock Platinum coilovers.

By your math I should've seen a -4" reduction in front end ride height (measured from center of the wheel hub to the fender)?

Instead I saw a -1" reduction. What kind of sorcery is at play? Or did I somehow buy special TRD Pro takeoffs that offer 5" of lift over stock Platinum coilovers?

 

First, you might have measured before it settled. Secondly, your LCA bushings might have been carrying some of the load because they didn't rotate properly during the swap due to being too tight or corrosion buildup. Lastly, you bought used and we don't know the spring rate of your coils which means they may be providing additional lift too.

 

I'm not trying to be argumentative, but I disagree.

Considering the TRD Pro Shocks were used I doubt much, if any, settling occurred after install. And my measurements were taken after the allignment which was 3 days after install.

Regarding LCA bushings being too tight or corroded - the truck lived in Vegas and now AZ its whole life, so corrosion is a non-factor. And I did the shock swap without touching the LCA bushings/bolts. Truck was aligned without issue afterwards.

I was able to see factory Fox part #'s on the coils and they matched the factory part #'s I've seen on numerous threads on here, so I'm quite certain there's no additional lift at play from the new-to-me Fox coilovers.

Seems bizarre that the observed (measured) ride height difference between the +3" lift spacer and the +2" Fox Coilovers is right at -1", vs. the expected -4".

 

No worries. Said it yourself, did swap with tight LCA bolts. They should have been loose and tightened to torque spec. after on the ground. Those bushings cannot rotate while the bolts are tight. Your bushings are likely now tearing or are torn.

 

Stock heights are:
FL: 21.8”
FR: 21.8”
RL: 23.75”
RR: 23.9”
(These are all averages)

but overall looks like your truck is lifted about 4” in the front and about 3” in the rear

since you’re wanting to drop down to 3.5”, it would be better to swap out everything to ensure good caster/camber and toe angles in the front; also eliminating spacer lifts is another very high plus

Rough country sells 3 different options for 3.5” lifts, one with blocks, one with their base N3 shocks and one with their vertex reservoir shocks (I would either go with the N3 or vertex, stay away from blocks where possible): Link

iron man sells a 3.5” lift as well, included is shocks, new leaf packs, bump stops and shackle hangers, similar cost to the vertex lift from RC: Link

overall it depends on what your budget is and the height you want, there are several other options at the 3” mark instead of 3.5”

and lastly with the diff drop, I’ve done the testing and others have as well that it isn’t required for 2-3” lifts, I have heard that it helps more at the 3.5” and taller but your mileage may vary and will require testing

hope this helps, let me know if you have any questions

 

Yeah....Lifting an IFS has its downside.
You lose droop which sucks off road.
If you dont offroad your Truck it's not an issue.