Lift Issues...
 

I've got a 2004 Tacoma with some upgrades and have a minor issue with the front vs. rear lift. Here is the list of modifications done already to the suspension. There is additional work done to the truck as well.

Front:
All-Pro front upper control arms
OME front coil springs (110-220 lb load rating)
OME front struts (firm valving)
All-Pro diff drop kit
All-Pro 1 inch polyurethane spacer

Rear:
All-Pro 3 inch lift rear leaf-springs
All-Pro 1.5 inch longer shackles
Walker-Evans remote reservoir shocks

I am running 285/75-16 Cooper STT tires on Pro-Comp Rock Crawler steel wheels (16 X 8, 4 inch BS).

The current issue is that the front of the truck sits about 2 inches lower than the rear. The other issue is that under compression, the front tires are rubbing in certain locations. I understand I need some rake because that is how the truck was designed, but I was wondering if there is any way I can safely bring the front of the truck up, such as ToyTec's 3/4 inch top plate spacer under the All-Pro spacer already installed. I called All-Pro and they feel this should be okay, but I would like a second opinion. I have another option, which is to install the original shackles that came with the OME rear leaf springs I was running and therefore lower the rear an inch or so. I have also considered a 1 inch Day Star body-lift, but this will not fix the rake issue.

Any opinions? All info is welcome.

I really don't like stacking lifts, I'd change out the rear shackles first and lower the rear a bit. Where's it rubbing on the front? On my Tacoma we had to pound the pinch weld completely flat (most of the plastic liner is gone now), and when I ran 12.50's we had to fold in the lower edge of the fender in to match the flattened pinch weld. Looks like the back spacing on your wheels is fine.

Hope this helps.

Gerone

There's no way to safely match the 4.5" of rear lift you have, except to get a 4" bracket lift for the front. I would not stack the spacers either.

3" is max for a straight spring/spacer lift on the front. Even at 3" you may have CVs puke grease. This can be fixed with new clamps. Also at 3" the ribs of the CV boots are probably touching each other. This will cause the boot to wear out.

How much lift did the coil/spacer give you up front?
What coil is it? 881? 882?
Is the spacer between the coil and the top plate? or on top of the plate?

If you use a top out spacer (spacer that is on top of the plate, outside the coil pack) this will allow the wheel to droop beyond the designed amount. Some people, me being one of them, believe that this will cause major CV bind when drooped. This bind can cause CV problems, breakage. (with this said, I do run a small topout spacer, 1/4" and have had zero problems (knock on wood)

If you want to level the ride then you may have to loose the shackles.

Remove the 1.5" lift rear shackles.

You got 3" of lift up front maybe and 4.5" in the rear so obviously it is too high in the back.

Did you buy a complete lift kit?

How all of this came about was I got into an accident about 6 months ago. I originally had the standard OME suspension (front springs, struts, rear springs/shackles, rear shocks) on the truck. I then installed the 1-inch spacer on top of the spring plate so I could run 33s. I found the back sagged as a result and then installed the 1.5 inch rear shackles. With the OME rear springs the truck sat just about level with a very slight forward rake with nothing in the bed. Once all my gear was added, it sat level.

After the accident in which we thought all the damage was limited to suspension (no body damage) I ended up with a totally new front suspension (literally everything) minus the springs/struts. Then we replaced the rear springs as well with all-pro units. When the truck still wouldn't sit level (side-to-side) with the left front sagging by more than 2 inches, the we sent the truck to the body-shop.

Six months and a new frame later and now the truck is back. Mind you the body shop had to take all my stuff off (including welded-on sliders) and then install it all on the new frame, which is why it took forever. Along with Toyota taking their sweet time getting me the frame and Allstate screwing around as well.

And that brings us to where we are now. I am trying to sort all this stuff out and get the truck sitting "right" again. The front CV boots are not touching at all and the half-shafts are nearly level, with an angle that is near stock. The 33 inch tires are still on the truck.

Hopefully I can get all this stuff squared away because I would really like to start enjoying it again. Along with my brand new frame & suspension.

oh yeah, forgot to mention....

the front springs and shocks have been replaced... with new OME units... the springs are OME881 and the struts are firm valve 91S models...