2001 2wd lift question

Hello. This is my first post. i have enjoyed reading all the content and reading the many stories of builds. We are at the beginning of our journey. I recently bought a 2001 sr5 2wd access cab with 82k original miles for my son. It is in great shape and has always been in california and garaged. I am going to replace the lower ball joints with OEM joints as I saw the photos of fails and do not want to be added to that list.

We want to lift it. I have read the threads on here regarding lifts. I agree I should stay under 3" as I do not want a monster truck, but just a tasteful lift. The most we will do is take it camping and drive on dirt roads. More likely it will be driven on paved roads. After research and reading this board, I thought I was going to level/lift it with 5100 and old man emu springs. Then a shop recommended Bilstein 6112 in front and 5160 in the back. They will also do alignment. I was told I do not need swaybar links as that is "snake oil." I also believe I do not need upper control arms as long as stay under 3" of lift. I have also read that 2wd lifts end up much higher than 4wd? Thoughts on the 6112 and 5160 shocks?

 

Plenty of happy people running 6112-5160 here. Just make sure you’re aware - as you should be if you read our community megathread - of the typo in the documentation for the 6112, and more than that, be sure THE SHOP knows about the typo in the literature so they don’t over-lift. I wouldn’t let them go higher than #5/#3 setting, and honestly, I’d recommend #4/#2 since it’s 2wd. Taken from said thread:

• If you choose Bilstein 6112s for lifting, be aware their documentation has bad info for AC trucks. More info HERE. On AC V8/4WD, circlips at 6/4 should give 2 - 2¼" lift.

 

https://www.carparts.com/details/To...4lMsB3TXFqWm9TJuqqwaAnX4EALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

One of the LT companies makes a lift spindle for 2wd, too. As soon as someone figures out hot to run a cv axle through one, i’m game.

3” lift
https://solomotorsports.com/shop/pa...oyota-parts/fully-fabricated-toyota-spindles/

 

I did read that. Thank you.

 

welcome to tundras! 82k is super low miles!

Another thing to think about is that when most people install a lift, they also install oversized tires. Do yourself, your engine, your transmission, and your fuel economy a favor and install a lower set of ring and pinion gears in the rear axle. It will only cost around $1k to do and you will greatly reap the benefits.

As for swaybar links when you lift the tundra, you kinda have three options-
-if yours are in great shape, you can use a welder and extend your existing links for pennies on the dollar.
-buy expensive aftermarket extended swaybar links.
-remove the swaybar links completely, but understand that you’re going to have more sway…especially since you’re truck will be on the pavement 99% of the time.

 

Only two reasons I wish I had 2WD: easier gearing changes. Sport suspension.

Dragging around the 285/70r17 was painful on the wallet and performance. 275/70r17 wasn’t much better but at least cruise control will hold my speed, most of the time, if no hills are involved.

275/70r17 + 1.75” lift puts you around 3” - 3.5” if memory serves, and looks like you’re running 33s at a glance, if you get meaty A/Ts.

I dunno how you west coast folks afford to drive with oversized tires. Gas cost half as much over here and I’m paying $120/mo with only two fillups. I’d hate to be a kid having to fill up once a week in Cali. I can’t afford $250/mo in gas. Well, I can, but I can’t justify it.

 

So it sounds like endless bills once you go down the road of lifting the truck. I know what I am getting into and I am hoping it will be fun for my son and I. I have already done small things like interior LED lights, changed gauge lights to led, and new hinges for rear windows. Already having fun. So for this next step, (the lift) Is this list correct?
1) lift =6112 and 5160 plus labor 2) tires and wheels 3) sway bar extenders. I don't want to have to modify tubs or have tires rub. So wondering if I i put a bit thinner tires like 265/75r17 Is it necessary to change the gearing? Not sure I want to mess with the gears. Does everyone who lifts their trucks and puts larger tires/wheels change the gearing? What if I don't? Thanks in advance.

 

also do I need to do anything with the leafsprings?

 

These are little engines and would need to downshift to spin the heavier tires.

i’d skip the AAL & lift blocks and get a proper set of leafs.

 

Half worn out 265/75-16 bfg at tires rub on my frame. A 265/75-17 tire is 1” taller than my half worn bfg’s…which might make them closer to 1.5” taller than my existing tires. Undoubtedly your suggested tire size choice will rub on the frame.

Keep in mind that the base model v8 tundra came with 245/70-16 tires and 3.9 R&P. The optional 265/70-16 tires with the 3.9 gearing made the truck slower and get worst fuel economy. If you were to tow or haul anything with the original little 245/70-16 tires, the 3.9 gears were barely adequate. The simple fix was to swap in 4.10 gears. If i had the taller 265/70-16 tires, i’d swap in 4.3 gears. If i were to swap in 265/75-16 tires i would either steer towards a 4.3 or 4.56. A 33” tire and i’d probably be looking at 4.88.

I normally run a fairly small and skinny 215/85-16 tire in my 2004 4wd access cab. I also swapped in 4.10 gears. I’d actually like to drop my gearing a little bit lower to a 4.30, but i only paid $64 total for both my front and rear 4.10 3rd members. I also have a second set of tires and wheels that are the half worn 265/75-16 bfg’s. The only reason i have a tire that large is because i found them in the back of my shop and they weren’t being used on any of my other trucks. Pretty much the only time i use the larger 265 tires is when i need a deeper traction tire. And my truck does see quite a bit off offroad work abuse.

 

First things first, let me say two things:

1. The higher you go, the faster you're going to wear through other suspension components; it's a balance between function, looks, longevity.
2. The higher you go, the more add-ons you're going to need to throw at the truck, thus the more money you'll need to spend compnesating.
3. Unless the shop you're talking to/dealing with specifically deals with 2WD access cabs, which are pretty unusual, be skeptical of anything they tell you. Most shops seem to work on double cabs 2WD and 4WD. The folks on this forum, however, have dozens of access cab 2WD trucks to reference.

Second, to answer your questions ...

These trucks naturally have about 1"-1½" rake from back-to-front stock, but the way the fenders are cut, even if the truck is an inch higher in the front, it still looks basically level. Like, I've got somewhere in the proximity of 2½" - 2¾" lift and I'm squatted ¾" to the rear at the moment, you tell me, can you tell even from a biased/disadvantageous angle like this? Note the 1st pic there is 33s, the 2nd pic is 32.5s, which looks bigger to you? Proof positive: Which tire you choose is probably more important than size.

For another example closer to your son's truck, @FirstGenVol is running Icon coilovers and says he's at 1.75" lift. He's on 285/70r17 (33"), he recently got KO3s and here's a pic, here's a closeup of how much fender gap he has (and from the other side), and a distance shot without suds. I think he has one of the best stances possible for a 1st gen AC, and he genuinely gets his truck out there in the wild, has zero issues. Distance from the truck, snow, wheels turned, all these can create optical illusions, but generally speaking, I think it looks great, and that's what you can expect with 1½" - 1¾" lift and 285/70r17, although I'd go 275/70rr17 to shave ¼" of radius to help reduce rubbing. (He only rubs frame at full lock, but that has more to do with alignment and a less aggressive tire knobbiness, my Mickey Thompsons are wicked knobby).

That said, lifting out rear, as long as you don't exceed 1½" or so of lift, maybe 1¾", you shouldn't need to lift in the rear, and that's a good thing. And if you do lift, DO NOT use blocks. Get new leaf packs instead, or opt for an add-a-leaf kit from Wheelers.

Of course, the 1st step to any lift is taking measurements from the center of the hub to the edge of the fender flare. You'll see some before/after measurements and pics in this thread: https://www.tundras.com/threads/how-big-is-yours-measure-up.46186/

I can tell you: I've dumped a lot of money into my suspension, the list of what I've installed is in my signature. There are guys on here who've definitely spent 2x-3x what I have, easily. Despite having a $1,000 pair of Toytec coilovers currently installed up front to get the lift you see linked above, I've got a brand new pair of Bilstein 6112s sitting in my basement, in the box, with a KYB tophat/isolator kit, ready to assemble and ultimately install. Because, frankly, 2½" - 2¾" with oversized tires is far more than I need, personally, and I'd like to drop the truck down into the high-1" to low 2" range, I intend to set the 6112s at #6/#4 on mine (or #6/#5) to get there. That should get my 4WD to 2", but knowing your kid's 2WD and has several hundred pounds less weight up front w/o the 4WD axles, diff, transfer case, it'd probably push your kid's 2WD up to 2¼" or more.

Tire-wise. Stock 17" tire sizes as they got into the last couple years of the 1st gens were 265/65r17 for 17" and 265/70r16 for the 16" if my memory serves. You tossed out a number in 17s so I'm assuming you'll be running 17s, and I'd give you this info.

You mentioned "265/75r17", I'm not seeing much of anything in that size. There are three more-popular upgrade sizes in 17":

• 265/70r17: You get 1" more diameter, with the same tire width, virtually zero rub risk involved.
• 275/70r17: You add ~½" more in diameter, and between ¼"- ½" overall width over the 265/70
• 285/70r17: You add ~½" more in diameter, and between ¼" - ½" overall width over the 275/70

There are some "pizza cutter" sizes you may find in between that are odd sizes. It seems to me from observations of others on here, the three contributing factors to rub, in order of worst to least: Wheel offset, overall diameter, alignment. Alignment is unique, it's variable, if you get a shop that knows what they're doing, you can erase rubbing. We have "proven" alignment numbers in the megathread.

Oh hey, there's a topic: Wheel selection. This is super important.

[wheel offset + wheel width] = backspace, i.e. where the wheel is centered in the wheel well, effectively. Every wheel has offset and width measurements, and you need to know them before you select a wheel. If you're using OEM wheels, many of them DO NOT have a favorable offset, and some, like many of the Tacoma OEM wheels, are extremely fond of rubbing suspension. Ideally you want to heed what's posted in the megathread:

• Wheel fitment (backspacing/offset info) ... backspacing/offset plays an important role in whether or not you're gonna rub when choosing larger-than-OEM tires. If you need help with understanding what ballpark you should be aiming in, this is a good thread to read. Gist: The best put year near the fender edge w/o rub on 8½" wide wheel is ~4¾" backspace, at 9" wide ~4.5" backspace. Popular OEM 7½" wide wheels had 5" backspace. You can run oversize 275/70r17 tires on 17x8.5" wheels @ 0 offset (i.e. 4.75" backspace) leveling up front w/minor rub.

If any of this is remedial for you, apologies. After a few decades in tech, I type really F'n fast so it's pretty easy to get ideas out on a keyboard.

 

Thank you for the posts. You guys took some time and provided amazing info. Much appreciated. Shifty, I looked at your photos. I like the machined wheels and your truck looks awesome. That is what my son is leaning towards as well (machined finish). The wheel the shop discussed with me was the Method 703 with 0 offset. I believe it was 17 x8.5 with 4.8 backspacing. As far as tire size, that was a weird (not common) tire size i mentioned and as I recall the shop guy said the same thing. I think I meant 265/70r 17. Shop guy wants to put toyo tires. I have read that some people are happy with Falken Rubitrek. I don't want loud tires. Not sure on this yet.

Whodat thanks for info on the gearing. Not sure if we will ever tow something but would probably want the option. I can also do the gearing after lift and wheels and judge performance right?

All good info. Thanks again guys. I will let you know what I go with. Right now it is still just stock.

 

If you want good but way more budget friendly consider ome 2883 springs (or 2884 for more lift) and 4600 shocks.

 

The Toyo Open Country are supposed to be good? But there are a couple of variants of it, and I can't speak to it. I had the Open Country AT2 on my list based on some feedback I got on here.

I absolutely love my Mickey Thompson Baja Legend EXP. We have two other 1st gen folks running them on their truck and they love them too. I think they're way more aggressive lugging than other brands but not too noisy on the road.

I'm on my 3rd set of wheels after playing with a few offsets and colors. The Methods you're looking at - same backspacing I had on my gold Methods (pics here or more here, and here's some with the 1st wheels I ran, some Racelines).

Mine Methods were the 315, 17x8.5 @ 0 offset (4.75" backspace), and the 703 you're looking at will look similar to what @805Tundra has on his truck if machined, he's running 305 machined (pics here). Those may give him an idea of how aggressive it'll look. Here's some more pics of FGV's truck too, which is running SCS wheels (Rays, 17x8.5 @ -12 offset).