Stacking lifts first gen

I have a 3 inch level on my truck right now and I want to get a rc 2.5 inch lifting strut aswell. How can I do that and also keep my ksp upper control arms?

 

The simple answer is, you can't. The components you mention will not accept it and the suspension geometry will be very poor. If you could even squeeze it in, you will end up with poor handling and prematurely worn components.

 

Don't.

Your options are buy a drop bracket lift for 4"-6"
Or a body lift.

 

The 3rd option is forget it.

 

4th option is save for a decent, respectable, 2"-3" suspension lift, front and rear.

 

But the OP is asking for 5.5", so that's not an option, or am I misinterpreting his question?

 

why do you need such a lift?

 

Mostly just giving my opinion on that one lol

 

Should not stack suspension lifts, such as lifted coilovers and spacers.

But, you an do a suspension lift and then add a body lift if they make them for your truck. That was common with older jeeps as you could not lift more than about 2-3 inches without a driveshaft extension or other issues. So folks would do 2-3 inch suspension lift and then add 1-3 inch body lift to clear 35 or bigger tires.

 

Before you genuinely fuck up your truck, you really should read the “suspension / wheels / tires” section of this thread we worked as a community to compile for folks just like you who may not understand the ins and outs of lifting a 1st gen Tundra: https://www.tundras.com/threads/so-you-wanna-buy-just-bought-a-1st-gen-tundra-eh.115928/

You cannot safely mix strut spacers and suspension lift on these trucks. I could link you up with the last person who did this using the garbage Rough Country sells; short version is, he bent his spindles, and potentially tweaked other stuff, doing thousands of dollars of damage. I see dumbasses on Facebook complaining at least once or twice a month about how their UCA is slapping springs b/c they don’t understand what strut spacers do, why you shouldn’t use them, and that you can’t mix them with suspension lifts. Lifting and lowering is all about the geometry, and with every change in angle, you add extra stress on things, accelerate degradation of components, and if you make really stupid mistakes, like using aftermarket lower ball joints which are prone to early and disastrous failure, you’re asking to kill your truck, at best, and yourself, at worst.

If you legitimately need 5” lift - which these trucks weren’t made for without significant modification ($$$), despite what any vendor or internet stranger tells you - get a bracket lift kit that permanently, irreversibly changes your truck, like what Tuff Country (unaffiliated with Rough Country) sells, but DO NOT get the 4.5” kit that uses spindle spacers, buy the 5” kit. It is the only way to exceed 3 - 3.5” of lift in these trucks without causing irreversible damage and constantly dealing with maintenance probs/safety disasters related to doing things 100% the wrong way. But note, those kits usually have you tossing blocks out back, which without taking extra steps to readjust driveline angles, will result in destroying anything/everything from the carrier bearing back. Again, costly mistake I see made by young teenage boys who need extra special attention.

OR stop and evaluate, “Why the fuck do I need my truck to be taller, honestly? Is it really going to help me crawl the mall more efficiently, improve my odds?”

Body lift may be a smarter way to get to 5” from where you are, but you really should get a proper lift, ditch the leveling spacers, and understand what each type of lift does before proceeding. Don’t leave it up to anyone else to do the work for you, and assume it’s alright, or get in the mindset of, “Company and/or Vendor XYZ says this is compatible, so it must be OK, right? They wouldn’t say that u less it was alright, right?”

(Pro tip: unscrupulous Shops/Vendors/Manuf’ers want your money, and will say almost anything to get you to buy in, even if it’s only partially true and/or misleading)

 

Solid axle swap. Then you can lift it to be as tall as you want.

 

The last paragraph says it all, and in the end, what @Sirfive said about a solid axle swap could probably be done for less $ and headache.

Edit: I'm being somewhat facetious, but for what OP wants, that's the route I would take.

 

And be waaaay fucking cooler too! Talk about attention-getting the right way. Hardest part is finding someone to do the work correctly.

I feel like most people don’t care about doing anything the right way, or want the easy bolt-on “solution”, or chalk up warnings from anyone who knows better these to, “yeah, well, that’s just your opinion, bro!”

 

Well, hopefully the OP will come back and share why he wants that much lift. 5.5" is a lot to ask on these trucks and doing it correctly wouldn't be done cheaply with bolt-on parts. Each change in one area would require another change elsewhere. Been there, done that on my Jeeps. It's never simple and no kit supplies everything to make the angles correct. And that's even assuming all other things being equal (e.g. all bearing and bushings are in-spec).

 

shoulda bought a cheby

 

I believe I shared this when @Outbound was having driveline vibe issues on his 1st gen a few years back. Probably worth sharing again now. Not the only issue that would be faced at 5.5", but definitely a big one that would have to be addressed. Bookmark it. It's some of the best info available on the subject.

https://4xshaft.com/blogs/general-tech-info-articles/driveshaft-angles

Edit: ignore the fact it comes from Jeep-world. The information is true regardless of application.

 

Geometry is geometry, regardless what badge is on the front.

Suspension is suspension, doesn’t matter if you’re lifting or lowering, the fundamental geometry at play is still the same.

 

Yep

 

How much lift would i need to have the right angles for dual ttb's? U-joint axles have a sweet spot, right?

 

Does anyone make axle portals for the 1st gen?

 

Someone posted a link for them on here in the past, but the cost was prohibitive for anyone lacking plenty of f-you money.

 

One thing I forgot to mention, assuming the the OP is 2wd and has some serious $$, he could get some lift spindles. I think Total Chaos and Solo Motorsports make some.
I wonder if a Maxtrack 4" lift spindle for a second gen Tacoma would fit haha.

 

Ole Carolina Dookie Booty

 

Fortunately it’s finally illegal in several states, including both the Carolinas, IIRC. Stupidest, most irresponsible trend I’ve seen in the automotive world in a while. F’ing idiot BS nonsense.

 

the squat is slowly spreading out west to oregon

 

My first thought is, that poor truck. Lol! He/she is obviously trying to earn a living and support themselves, and maybe loved ones, honestly, too. I can respect and appreciate that.

 

Correct. But these pieces of shit are still riding around. They are not enforcing it, unfortunately.

 

poor truck indeed! My parents definitely appreciated all the firewood though. Those 20” long rounds of wet Elm that i cut were sure dang heavy. Many of them were well north of 200 pounds. The bonus was that the more the rear suspension sagged, i didn’t have to lift the wood quite as high to get it in the bed. The frame was sitting on the bumpstops when the bed was only half full of wood. I them proceeded to fill it up the rest of the way….then filled up the trailer (and i have Timbren bumps mounted in the trailer) and then hitched it back onto the truck. It was a scary 30 mile drive back home. I didn’t dare to drive much faster than 45mph down the highway. The truck now has airbags so as least it will ride level.

 

Lol! I've felled more timber and cut it to size in my youth courtesy of a grandfather more than I care to remember. It taught me things I've never forgotten, though.