Critique my Suspension plan

So I've been weighing out different options for a new suspension and have finally narrowed it down between 2 options. Either option will be using stock wheels with 285/75r18 Falken Wildpeak AT3Ws (which I already have sitting in my garage). I'm shooting for a minimum of 2/1 lift. I have no plans of selling this truck. It's a 2012 DC with 75k miles and I'm gonna drive it until it begs me not to or until Toyota establishes a higher MPG truck that makes economic sense to buy, and at that point I may keep this one and turn it into a off road dedicated rig. Either way, this truck is my baby until at least 200k miles as it's paid for and I love that spruce mica color.

Use: 10 to 12k miles per year as my daily driver and interstate driving. Another 2k-3k on gravel roads (lots of washboard and typically 55+ mph), poorly maintained 2 lane hwys (70+ mph), Forest Service roads, and prairie trails. The nastier the trail the slower I'm going, but sometimes I do get carried away on prairie trail. I'm not going anywhere to "off-road", I'm there to get to a spot to hunt/camp. I live up north, so lots of corrosive shit going on from December through march.

Option 1: Allows me to get everything done at one time. 6112/5100 set at the top setting with a shackle or mini pack in the rear for another 1"-1.5". This is probably the most practical for my uses and is more cost effective. A full leaf pack and UCA upgrade would essentially be an optional luxury down the road. I can get into this for just over 1k if I install myself and just over 1500 if I have it all done at the shop.

Option 2: ADS 2.5 resi in the front and 5100s in the rear with a shackle until I can upgrade to a Deaver K37 and better rear shocks. With this set up I'd probably plan for a UCA down the road so I can lift it to 3.5"-4". For my type of driving, there is no doubt that the ADSs are more than I need. I'm not jumping sand dunes at 70 mph or climbing rocks. I have no idea why I'm even considering these and might be posting this for someone to talk me out of doing this....seriously. However, I do like the idea of being able to rebuild these and keep them if I end up turning this into a dedicated offroad/hunting rig. That 4" of potential lifts gets me thinking 37's are somewhere in the future and that makes me feel all the warm and fuzzies inside. Really, If install myself, its not that much more than the full bilstein set up with ADS in the front and 5100s in the rear with a shackle. But I might try to get away with just the ADS in the front so I can fit my tires and wait a bit on the rear as anything beyond the ADS fronts puts me over budget for this year. Am I an idiot for putting 5100s in the back with ADS in the front?



shoot holes in my plans...don't be shy.

 

For the price, 6112s are great! Alot of people been running them no problems at all. For what you want to do is perfect setup.
The ads are great from what I heard, but overkill for what you want to do.
If you want to spend more $ than the 6112s, another good option is the toytec boss kit. They're adjustable, optional heavier spring if you plan bumper/winch later on.

 

I don't like the colors. There I did it.

 

I'd go option 2, not specifically ADS but getting the coilover you want up front to start with is a good idea if you're planning future upgrade

 

Buy once, cry once..

 

Not an idiot for putting 5100's in the rear and ADS upfront as you said that you'll upgrade the rear to match the front later, it's not a bad thought. Also, I'd buy what you want, don't want to have buyer's remorse after.

 

I think one of my concerns is that I'll never really push this truck to the point where I get the benefit of the ADS performance wise, but I'm unfamiliar with the ride in either setup and don't have anyone I know with either to get a feel for it either. It is unlikely that I will ever really do the type of offroading that requires suspension performance like ADS offers. Will the ADS be smoother for what I'm doing? Sure... But how much? My understanding is that the higher end stuff really doesn't start to shine until you're being agreesive in the off road department. I do like the extra clearance the ADS provides with a 2-4" of lift. Clearance is the main reason I'm doing any of this.

 

for a majority of my driving around town and on the freeway...how is the ADS ride quality? I understand that you can have them tuned but it is unlikely I will mess with that and will leave them in a setting where it is just good all around. Is the ride very comparable to a bilstein 6112 in those situations?

also, do the ADS shocks for offroad use really need to see high speeds to gain their advantage in performance?

 

You would feel a significant performance increase in a Mid Travel setup from ADS 2.5's or 3.0's (or King/Icon/Fox). If you have crappy roads around you would will really appreciate a Mid Travel setup. Don't skimp on the setup though. Do your fronts first and get UCA's. When you get more $$ do the rear with k37's if you don't tow or haul anything. Get U748's if you do. Get bypass shocks for the rear. I don't think you will be seeing 4in of lift from a setup like this though. More around 3in's of lift in front. Based of what you're saying you would benefit way more with some nice shocks than trying to fit 37's

If you're in the bay area, you can go for a ride in my truck.

 

The type of driving you describe will be smoother with a digressively valved shock, which Bilstein is.
Basically a digressive shock like Bilstein or Icon gets smoother the harder you hit it with small bumps like washboard and chattery shit.

Progressive valved shocks like ADS, Fox and King get harder the faster you hit them at high speed with little shit and makes the ride uncomfortable. The real benefit of progressive valving comes with large undulations and big hits that cause the truck to bottom out.

If you’re gonna be bombing gravel and prairie roads, go with the digressive Billies or Icons. Also, you can fit 37s on a 2” lift. Just takes some cutting.

 

I would Def say when I'm pushing my suspension its bombing trails and gravel roads. They're just so fun at 75! Big bumps and maxing out shocks is just accident... Like going a little too fast on a Prairie trail and not paying attention. But I'm never seeking out stuff to crawl over.

 

Hell yeah! We love hauling ass in the dirt. Where we are (or were) in the southwest, there tends to be a lot of washouts and whoops that you need the bigger suspension for because they can come out of nowhere.

 

Now which one? https://www.bilsteinlifts.com/shop/...JHqCOZqhmvkolGNe0EQZnHASXj45nyfgaArfhEALw_wcB

 

It gets too much real quick like when I was shopping for shocks for high speed stuff. Get the most expensive shock you can afford, do it right once and you won’t regret it. I chose kings regular 2.5’s all around no clickers because they’ve had less problems , I love them. 30k+ miles no problems plush on the street, comfortable on whoops and high speed stuff. You’ll end up thinking “maybe 3.0’s are better”, naw brochacho, 2.5’s no matter what brand are plenty enough for what you do. Pick your favorite color and go!

 

You run ADS don't you? Spend a lot of time at hwy speeds on gravel like 65 or 70+ mph? Crossing cattle guards at 55 mph? Washboard gravel at 55 or 60? Forests service roads with the big potholes and wash outs at 35 or 40+? I feel like those are the places I want my suspension to handle the best because those are situations where I cringe a little bit taking hits to the stock suspension. Lots of two track stuff that's not really rutted and seems smooth for stretches but then you just hit some bigger bumps that jolt the truck at 40 mph... I should be going slower but just don't want to.

When I'm creeping Prairie trails it's usually not very far and they're just rough no matter what's on my truck. Typically not for more than a mile.

I'm assuming any of the big 4 (fox, king, ads, icon) will be better than stock in certain ways around town.

 

Get something that can be rebuilt when they get worn....King,fox,ads etc....i thinkcthe bilstien stuff is pretty glammed up....I’ve had it and it’s nothing special better than a spacer but that’s about it really...

 

The ones with the remote resi will resist heat soak for longer drives. That’s the main beneifit of a remote.

 

Tomorow I’m putting on the fox 2.5 res and 2.0 res in the rear( where I saved money ) with t/c uppers. When I priced out all the kits king,ads,and fox I could save the most using fox. That being said I like you drive a lot of street we have land in the mountains but it’s slow trail stuff im not bombing the desert at 80 so we’ll c how she holds up but time will tell

 

Yes I run ADS and I've done a few high speed trips out in Death Valley, Johnson Valley, and Mojave with my setup. I've also done slow speed, more technical trails with my setup. My truck is also my daily driver

I run ADS 2.5's (650lb spring) up front with 2.5 triple bypasses with MCM UCA's and MCM bolt on secondary shock hoops. In the rear I run ADS 2.5 triple bypasses with Deaver U748's and MCM shackles.

 

Partial to ADS, but really boils down to how much performance you want and how much you want to spend. I had Bilstein's (5100) on my 4runner and didn't feel like had much performance benefit. So I joined this site, and figured I needed some badass shit regardless of how much I drive on or off road and went ADS 3.0 w/ clickers front and 2.5 piggy back's in the rear (will probably change this up in the future, but for now it does fine).

My advice: sendit. Buy the best you can, you won't be dissapointed.