Let’s talk suspension, icon vs fox

I emailed Eric about shackles, he said the 4 inch was incorrectly listed as spring under for the tundras, when it was copied over from the Tacoma listing. I ordered his shackles mainly because of the grease fitting. Archive offers the fab’d shackles and the bushings front stock. Stock shackles are 3.9 inches.

I haven’t ordered my tube yet but I’ve got it bookmarked. I ask him about a pre-fab’d option but he said he didn’t have one for us.

here’s where I’ll be ordering from though:
https://www.ruffstuffspecialties.com/175X120DOM.html

When I ask about lead times, he said hammer hangers about a month and the same for shock relocation.

 

I'm curious who has done the U-bolt flip, and what have you all used?
I've been looking at the Wheeler's Offroad for the Tacoma and maybe the Archive Garage but those are pretty pricey just drilled platforms that don't include bump stops.

 

@Rex Kramer

 

Do you do a lot of rock crawling? If not, I don't see any reason to do the U bolt flip kit.

 

I wouldn't say a ton, but a lot of the places I drive to access climbing or hiking involve a lot of exposed rocks and some large boulders. I have to get new U-bolts anyways and figured might as well do the flip.

 

If you trim your excess down wont the shocks still be hanging down lower

 

I think the U-bolts are the low point. The rear lower shock mounts sit up higher I think.

 

Excuse me for resurrecting this thread, but any updates on the ADS shocks??? I’m currently in the same boat y’all were regarding Icon 2.5’s front and rear vs. ADS. I know about Icons being a little rough on bumps at low speeds, wanting to know how the ADS handle them. Hoping to run SPC Uppers, 285/75/17’s as well.

For reference, picked up a 06 DC 4WD in August, currently has 53k miles on it. Looking to turn it in to a lifetime trail rig/ potential overlander. I live in GA so mostly trips up into the Appalachian mountains on gravel/dirt trails with occasional water crossings.

Looking to get the most comfortable/ plush but capable ride for the $$$, and I know that Icons and ADS are around the same price.

 

I’m sad to say mine are still setting in my garage uninstalled, have quite the collection of parts going at this point

 

@Cummins3500 it’s alright. I have about a month or so till I’m ready to pull the trigger on some coil-overs. Mainly on the fence between Icon and ADS now, just not too many guys running ADS to talk to.

 

Just a thought, but for what you're looking to do, I think both are overkill. If you were doing serious rock crawling, or high speed dune racing, then by all means, but I don't think you'd feel difference between those shocks and something half the cost. I'd recommend the old man emu kit or the bilstein 6112 up front and 5160 in the back.

 

@rock climber I’ve had multiple people tell me that. But from what I’ve gathered the Bilsteins are not rebuildable. I’m looking for a Buy once/cry once type thing that will last for many miles to come

 

We actually have 3-4 members running ADS and all have spoken highly of them. @Jon@Mule @Kimosabe and a few others I can't remember. There are also some guys on Instram running them and they have given positive feedback.

I'll make the decision easy for you. I have ICON's and when these wear out, I'll rebuild them and sell them. I'll most likely buy ADS or King.

 

Unless you rebuild them yourself the ability to rebuild from a cost standpoint is pretty much a wash. Replacing a Bilstein and rebuilding a coilover are close to the same price.

Most places refuse to charge a shock with nitrogen unless they did the rebuild. A nitrogen kit even if you go cheap will be around $300. Shock oil is surprisingly expensive, seals are cheap at least. Unless you already have a nitrogen kit on hand your first rebuild will cost more than a shock replacement.

The only real benefits to rebuildable coilovers is the ability to custom tune the valving and never having to wait for back ordered Bilstein shocks. I have run rebuildable coilovers for a long time and rebuilt them twice, meanwhile my Bilstein in the rear have been on since 2009 and haven't needed replacement.

 

@Darkness this is why I come here. Education

 

@FatBuddy92 I have been running ADS since November. I haven't been able to fully test them out since it's snowboard season and it's an easy drive to the mountain. Daily driving they are great. They feel stiff and stable through turns and handle small bumps well. I have tried testing them on bigger hits by driving over a curb with some speed and it felt very smooth. I was shocked (pun) at how well they felt on something big. Overall I am very happy with them.
I ran a few different shock and coil setups using Bilsteins on my old 4runner and while it rode "okay" I was never pleased with the ride. When I got my tundra I too wanted to buy once and be happy. I poured over Icon, King, Radflo, Elka, and ADS. My conclusion was that ADS is close-ish proximity in Arizona and their shocks use quality parts, made specifically for the tundra. There aren't any brakeline issues and their customer service was phenomenal when I was making my decision and navigating bullshit with the retailer.
My only thought is that the extended reservoirs may have been overkill and the mounts they send with the coilovers aren't useful if you are running tires bigger than 265. I used metal strapping to mount the reservoirs and got them in a good spot out of the way.

 

@Kimosabe could you send a pic of your set up when you get a chance?

Also I just heard from someone that the Rear shocks from ADS for our 1st gens don’t add lift, like the Icons, and are made for use with Deaver springs? Do you have to have Deaver springs that provide lift to get any rear lift?

 

I have different shocks in the rear. I have stock leafs with the Deaver AAL and Fox shocks. The fox shocks are for 2" lift.

Here's a pic during the install of the front


Here is how she sits

 

I made this same mistake but no rear shocks add lift. If you want to lift your rear it is done with new leaf springs or other methods like blocks.

 

@FirstGenVol

these are what I was/am looking at for the rear. So the 3” lift isn’t correct?

 

Same here buddy. I learn a lot here.

 

It's saying those shocks can work on trucks that have up to 3" of lift, not that it provides 3 inches of lift. Again, I made the exact same mistake when shopping ICON. Rear shocks don't support the vehicle they just soften the impacts.

 

@FirstGenVol son of a..... well thanks for the clarification. That’s disappointing

 

Yup, just like in the front. The shock doesn't add lift, the coil does.

 

Those are to be used with 0-3” of lift.

 

@Darkness @FirstGenVol

Tagged the folks who talked most about this, but has anyone tried the Fox 2.5's on the front since this chain? I went to the Expedition Portal link from earlier in the chain and it looks like the poster figured out how to fix Fox 2.5's fairly easily. I am just wondering if anyone else has solutions?

I really want Fox 2.5's in the front and 2.0 in the back. Thanks in advance.

 

I believe people have said that Fox finally fixed the issue but you should probably call them to confirm.

 

What is the flipped u bolt trick?

 

There are kits available that invert the u-bolts so that they wrap around the axle and extend upwards through a mounting plate that sits on top of the leaf pack. The plate acts as a mount for a bump stop or a strike plate for an overhead bump stop.

This orientation provides greater ground clearance under the axle near the wheels and protects the u-bolts threads and nuts.


Image courtesy of archive garage