Recommended Front Shock/Coil Combos and Why

Scattered through the forum I occasionally find suggestions, comments, second-hand "I talked to 'x' vendor and they said not to use 'x/y' combination".

It would be nice to have this laid out in one place.

A very common recommendation is Bilstein 5100s and OME coils, and many people run this setup. But I've seen in multiple places that people heard from a vendor not to do this. I've heard Eibach specifically recommends against running their front shocks with OME coils. Maybe Bilstein would say the same?

I remember when I first bought OME coils, when I had a Tacoma, OME said their coils don't work with anything but OME shocks. I took this to mean an OME coil wouldn't actually fit on a front shock other than OME, but that's obviously not the case. So they must have just meant 'they won't perform well'.

So...what I see recommended most is Bilstein shocks with OME coils, as the most budget-friendly aftermarket upgrade for people wanting a lift. Is that because it's the best or only quality budget-friendly combo, or it's just...what's most often recommended?


Though they may be "compatible" in that they actually do fit, what are the combinations that are not recommended, and why? What are the combinations that are recommended?

I'm still new to this so this is far from an exhaustive list, it's just what I've seen through searches being recommended most, is within a moderate budget, and is for 0 to a couple inches lift.

Toyota coils
OME coils
Eibach coils

Bilstein shocks
Eibach shocks
OME shocks

What are the arguments for and against mixing and matching any combos of these coils/shocks? No reason to avoid stating the obvious, like Bilstein 4600s not working with an OME 2885 because the 4600 isn't meant for that kind of lift. But personally I'm more interested in the advice I've heard second hand that the valving of a certain shock isn't compatible with a certain coil, etc. I don't understand "valving", but I accept that it's a thing and that it matters and that some valving doesn't like a certain type coil.


I'm about to install OME 2883s on Bilstein 4600s, because I have pretty new 4600s and hear they'll work with a small lift coil. But I eventually plan to replace them with either 5100s or Eibachs or..? I don't know, but now that I'm using search engines rather than just reading the usual sticky threads that people have worked hard to put together on this stuff, I'm getting less sure I know what's what.

 

Example of "things we've heard" from another thread, CMPtundra wrote:

The way Toytec's 'sales manager' explained it to me was that the three manufactures, Bilstein, OME, and Eibach, have decided in recent years to change slightly their individual designs with the coil base, the spring perch, or both in hopes people would not mix and match parts, but rather run the full setup from a single manufacturer. He told me that the OME coils have a slightly 'fatter' wire diameter (the actual diameter of the round metal that forms the entire spring) and have a wider base than the others and that OME uses a larger diameter spring perch on their struts, and it has a cupped edge around the outside. Eibach coils have a tapered coil base (pigtail end) and that the size of the wire diameter is different than what the Bilstein 5100 perch is designed for. The Eibach coil also has a larger wire diameter than what the 5100 spring perch was designed for, and vice versa for the Bilstein coil with Eibach struts . Again, all this was his explanation.

At the end of our conversation I asked if it was still possible to mix Eibach coils with the 5100 and he said yes, but that if anything ever happened the warranty from either brand would be voided, and that Toytec would not assemble the strut for me. He also stated that depending on what configuration of mix and match, there is a greater risk of the coil loosing it's seat and coming off the spring perch, especially in off-road situations.

 

From 1stgenoffroad website. Although I'm not sure they're currently offering these shocks...I can access this page through a direct link from a search engine, but not from their actual website. OME claims not to make shocks for 1st gen Tundras, but it seems like there are compatible versions?

 

have you looked into the bilstein 6112 setup? plenty of members have these installed and are happy, pretty much a tried and true set up

 

Thanks. Personally I have not. I've got 4600s on currently, OME 2883s sitting on the floor waiting to be installed (on the same 4600s). I meant for this thread to be more of a general guide for people in future, with the community's knowledge of what works and what doesn't.