What's the Easiest way to add a few inches for off roading

ok, makes sense

 

thanks everyone for the input, found out more in the last hour than i have all weekend

 

anyone have experience with sky jacker?

 

Beware there is a lot that goes in to modifying the susp. Little mistakes like not extending bump stops to compensate for lift can easily turn into damaged parts and costly mistakes. Like many other things in life 1 thing leads to 15 others!

 

thanks, i am going to come up with a few ideas to take to my mechanic so he can tell me they are all wrong lol

 

2mchfun, i think I'm going to need to go to the pros on this one. you seem pretty savvy on the subject, what do you do for a living if i might ask

 

Get ready to laugh....Proffessional gambler here, how about you?

 

I haven’t read everyone else’s answers, but here’s the easy explanation if you’re done in by your forum research:

1. The only way to lift your truck for higher off-roading clearance is to put on bigger tires. That’s because the more (higher) the tire rubber is, the higher you raise the axles and diff = increased clearance above ground of the components that can get hung up going over obstacles. Swapping out suspension parts is how you overcome limitations of the stock set-up to add bigger tires.

2. Any lift that doesn’t create “room” for you to replace stock tires with larger diameter, higher, tires is a “body lift”. You can struggle to get up in the cab and look cool in the mall parking lot, but the axles and diff will still be stock height above the ground, so you won’t see any benefit off road.

3. Replacing stock shocks with after-market coilover shocks (coilover must handle the weight of your truck including any mods) will allow you to “lift” to fit bigger diameter tires.

4. Do NOT use a spacer if you want to do anything more than well-maintained fire roads “off road”. Adding a spacer creates a likelihood that, on the day you hit a good rut at speed, or even get into a collision on pavement, your expensive coilover shocks will collapse. No way to fix that.

** I know this is really simplified; please don’t be offended. When I *started* reading others’ answers, I saw them going, typically, toward recommending specific mod options instead of answering your questions with “how” and “why”. I want to make sure you understand the basics: tire size is the only way to create lift for off road clearance, and

spacers have no place in off road suspension set up.

No one on will spec components for you, and if they do, that doesn’t mean you should do as they suggest. Instead, read this:
https://www.tundras.com/threads/largest-tire-you-can-run-stock-for-all-generations.9762/

and then go into the Build Threads sub forum, find trucks that do what you want to do, then copy their builds.

 

disabled vet

 

Thanks a million! Make the most of it while you can!

 

I'm beginning to realize the tires are the issue, I'm not to worried about looking big, i need the extra clearance, I'm in rural Montana, 10 min away from miles of old logging trails and unlimited off road opportunities. what is the biggest tire i can get away with on stock suspension, or like a 1.5-2" front lift and some 285 75 18 tires. how much extra wheel well clearance am i gonna need for tires that size?
sorry for the long post

 

$2k “real” dollars? Or “what I told my wife I spent, when I actually spent double that” dollars?

 

well you know gotta raise it, then some nice tires, maybe rims, I'm a little hush on the details, needs shocks is what i said..lol

 

The way to approach suspension is to honestly assess what you need. Most of us(myself included) don’t even come close to needing the 2.5 inch race quality shock that we’ve purchased. Yes it’s nice to have, but if a spacer lift was in your mind, you probably don’t need to spend 3-4k on race shocks

 

I'd suggest starting with a Body Lift, 3". Its advantages are less cost, just about DIY, raises center of gravity far less than a suspension lift so less body roll on highways.

If you want more Then add suspension lift, which you'll probably need less of with a body lift first. Luck deciding.

 

idk, I've ended up with mud in my front recovery hooks a few times, I've only high centered to the point of my back tires being off the ground like twice, when it's dry and i can see a path it's good, but that's rare almost need to map out the deep holes and big rocks. can never remember the exact route, maybe i should have my kid record the trails

 

3 might be a little high
I've had a few knee surgeries so it's tough to climb to high, used to have to put a stool down to get in after my surgery before i got step rails

 

This sounds like a great case for taller tires, locking rear diff and sliders.

 

I missed this part. If you’ve only got a $1500 - $2000 budget, stick with the set up you have now and save up. What you can get for this budget, even if that doesn’t include larger tires, won’t be much better than what you’re running now. And what you’re running now has been good so far.

I edited my earlier post to answer this.

 

What wheels you currently have? Stock? 20’s or 18’s?

 

this is what the Toyota app said i had via my VIN, i didn't know about the Bilstein

 

that might be best, tax return right around the corner, so i guess I'll put it off until then, and decide what i actually need vs want

 

the second to last is the bent mount on the rails, passenger side is worse

 

Ok. You have the TRD Offroad wheels. And yes you also have the TRD Offroad Shocks which are Bilsteins but they’re nothing special. If I were in your shoes, I’d just get some Bilstein 5100’s with 2” lift, throw some 295/70/18 tires on your stock wheels, and get a set of sliders. Should be just a little bit over your budget. Then later down the road, upgrade your suspension if you feel you need more.

 

what is a seat jacker

 

will there need to be any trimming or running to much over the bumps?

 

Some points to consider.

 

Accutune also advised its not needed with a 3/1. These guys selling high end suspension components to people hauling ass through the desert probably don't know any better, though, huh.

 

from personal experience what is the largest diameter tire can fit on stock or with a 1.5" front lift only. 275/80 17 tires do good? +2.25" and same width

 

Maybe some minor trimming on the plastic and might need to remove your mudflaps but no CMC. This is probably the cheapest way to achieve what it sounds like you need. As a matter of fact, this is the first time Bilstein 5100’s has ever come out of my mouth. Normally I would suggest getting a higher quality suspension but just not possible with a 2-3k budget.

My thinking is, you need to get bigger tires and get those steps off your truck. They’re hanging too low to be offroad. You can simply remove them but if you’re on terrain that’s hitting them, you’ll eventually get some body damage. Sliders are expensive but they also serve as a step and that one time it prevents body damage, they’ve already paid for themselves.