Newbie question about level kit

Hi, i recently purchased a 2018 crewmax TRD offroad. I purchased the TRD offroad package because I thought I was getting a decent offroad package for when we go fishing. My plan was to always level the front end with a leveling kit. I had strut spacers on my gmc and the truck looked and felt fine without messing with the ride.
I have gone through these threads and see that a 3/1 or 3/2 spacer kit is not good for the truck longterm and doesn't really do much besides looks. I dont want to spend a lot of money. I had a local guy tell me that i could buy bilstein shocks for the front to raise it. Honestly, I dont really want to mess with the back much. It has the pretty red rear sway bar which i am in love with.
Can i get away with just replacing the front shocks or coil overs in the front to level it? My only concern is that when I do put something in the bed i dont want it to squat like a dog dragging its butt.
Again. I dont want to make thousands of dollars of mods because I kind of felt like I wasted my money going with the TRD off road package. Can someone please give me some advice?
Thanks in advance
Gabby

 

Contact @Toytec Lifts. David will get you squared away.

If money allows I would spend a bit more and go with a replacement coilover kit like the Eibach 3/1. It’s still budget friendly with great performance on and off road.

 

Welcome to the party!!

 

Gabby there is so much info on the forum you can get lost in it.

Sounds like Bilstein 5100's would be a good pick for you, but I'm still on stock suspension and I'm not as educated as some of the guys on here when it comes to suspension.

It all comes down to how much you want to spend.

Post up some pics of the truck!

 

Welcome from Texas, @Toytec Lifts can sqaure you away

 

Welcome from Obx @ Gabby. As Moto mentioned above Bilstein Adjustable front shocks would do what you want to do. If you need to bump your rear up, then a 3/4- 1" tapered block will do the job. There are members here that don't like blocks, but when your talking 1" it's just fine. I have a 1" block in the rear and it gives me a slight rake.I've had no problems or complaints regarding blocks. Tight Lines and don't forget to post fish pics

 

Welcome from AZ

 

Welcome!!

 

Welcome from Ohio!

 

Welcome from Oregon!

 

Welcome! Let us know what way you decide to go!

 

Welcome from CO.

 

Let us know what you go with, don’t forget to post a pic.

 

Welcome from Arizona. Several members here have raised the front with Bilstein 6112 and left the rear stock so yes, you can do that. As previously posted, the 5100's should do what you want for less $.

 

Welcome from CO.

 

I know the whole spacer stuff gets a bad rep. I decided to go with them on mine with a 3/1 for the time being. I mainly drive a highway queen to and from work. I did the diff drop and whatnot so my angles arent bad.

If I did anything more than a gravel road now and then I may do more, but for now I think I am ok. I plan to build my XJ cherokee project for more of the offroad stuff.

 

Your local suspension guy sounds knowledgeable enough. Most shops will just resort to spacers. As others said the bilstein 6112 will be good for your truck (they are a 2.5 shock body vs the 5100 2.0 shock body).

 

If you are loading the bed frequently I’d suggest 1.5 to 2in in the rear if you are going 3in up front. Or possibly airbags if you don’t want to lift that much. If you want to just level the front 2in up front will give you some slight rake leaving the rear a little higher. 2.5 up front nothing in the rear is dead level.
Check out my build before I went to coilovers I have 2.5 leveling kit then later added a 1in block then finally coilovers 3/1.

2.5 level up front nothing in the rear


2.5 level up front 1in rear


3/1 coilovers shackle

 

WELCOME

 

I've got the 5100s in mine. I went with the 1.4 inch setting. It sits level unloaded. I got the steel bumpers front and rear so I needed the lift up front for the extra weight. It sits proud up front when loaded but I have the weight of the rear steel bumper also. I do a lot of towing with it. First thing I noticed when towing is the front doesn't feel so spongy when the trailers are rebounding over dips and bumps. Front stays nice and firm. I can't remember now but I think the three settings wer maybe .8 inch, 1.4 inch and 2.5 inch. I could be off a tenth, it's been a few years since I did it. If you go any more than 1.4inch you'll need to raise the rear. Also gotta do a drop diff kit if you go over 1.4.

I talked to an engineer at bilstien. I just googled the number and asked for tech support. The guy was pretty helpful and answered all my questions. He was running a gen one tundra with the 5100s. He said he's tried every adjustment on his and had the drop diff kit. He told me they engineered that shock on tundra trucks and were testing on the gen 2s. I think the 2.5 was highest setting on the shocks and he said definitely gotta do drop diff but not necessary with mid or lowest setting.

When I was researching I read a bunch of stories about guys having shocks blow out from adding the leveling spacers. Too much pre load on the shocks they said. Forums were saying they blow the bottoms out of the shocks. I don't know but I read it on enough forums so I decided not to go that route.

I just purchased air bags for the rear. My truck is always loaded or towing so I'm going to give the bags a try. Gotta get to installing them but it's July and there's boating to be done. Maybe we'll get a rainy day and get them installed.

 

Welcome from Ventura California

 

You're saying stock rear and 1.5-2in lift in the front (0.5-1in lower in the front) is enough to offset "most" squatting? Obviously it depends on the load.

Any idea how much install runs? or did you DIY?

 

Yes of course it depends on how much you load. For me that was perfect most weight I had in be back was roughly 700-800lbs I’d say. I install everything myself. It’s pretty simple

 

Thanks for the info!

 

I'd start with just the 5100s up front. That's the most bang for your buck. If you later notice some squatting issues under load, you can add airbags in the rear. Solving one problem at a time saves you some up front cost, and allows you to target your mods to address specific issues.

 

It all depends on what you will use the truck for, and what your budget is. I put a 2" spacer on my truck and have roughly 50k miles on it with no issues. With that being said, my truck does not see anything off road. If you are driving a good bit offroad or a lot of uneven terrain, I would probably go with something else. If you have the money, I would do the Bilstein 5100's.

If I have any issues with mine in the future, or decide to go bigger tires I will replace with one of the lift strut/shocks or the Eibach kit. I've been happy with my 2" spacer so far though.

 

Says the truck doesn’t go off road.

... with a picture of the truck off road ...





Splitting hairs, I know, but I thought it was funny.

 

Haha that's my driveway and just a little dirt/gravel spot to turn around!