2-3"
Stage II, 35s with trimmed fenders…
sitting higher now since i have less weight at the moment
1 Like
stock height with more weight capacity most likely can only be achieved with airbags and/or add-a-leaf
or do a leaf conversion like you can do with tacomas swapping to chevy 63" springs. but you’d still end up with a lift
1 Like
I plan on just going to Deaver and having them make me a custom pack
Alcan also makes high quality leaf packs and can do custom packs to throw out another option to price out
Thanks for that. Totally forgot about about them
i recently switched to a deaver 402 stage III after having dakar HD with my previous shell / rtt setup. loving the deavers - they are fantastic and handle the weight well.
2 Likes
How is the ride when you are not loaded down with weight? Would you recommend for off road and daily driver use?
The ride difference is very noticeable On and off road. I’m also running the archive garage hammer hangars with the cross tube support but I can def say the leafs have improved the ride quality. Also the stage III will maintain your ride height supporting the weight on the back end no problem.
2 Likes
yeah i like the ride quality as well, both on and off road, and as @Overlanderson says it maintains the ride height no worries
1 Like
Did you do 6150? I have been thinking about doing add a leaf plus this bilstein set-up, but have also been contemplating king bolt on front and rear 2.5 shocks. It is about a 1k difference in price to go with the king set-up so I am trying to figure out if I really want to spend the extra money.
I got Bilstein 5100. After a bunch of trips off road now I want something more than add a leaf. When loaded down it’s not that good off road.
1 Like
@NYCO, or anyone else that cares to chime in , you had the Deaver stage II but now have stage III Did you do this because you increased how much weight you had on your truck? I feel like in order to have stage III I should always have a minimum of 600 pounds on the back of the truck?
A lot of my driving is done with just the weight of the GFC and my bike rack so I’ve been considering doing stage II. There are times I probably pushed over 700 pounds but it’s just not that often. My thinking was that if I did stage IiI my ride quality on the freeway would be shity.
1 Like
i still have the stage II. my bed should carry the same weight that i had with the bed rack and RTT setup. so i’d imagine the ride will be very similar.
currently though i feel like i’m sitting slightly higher in the rear with the camper, tools and spare parts in the truck. so normal driving it appears i’m lighter than i was.
but with the RTT setup, i was basically on my bumps. i have the timbren bumps on the all pro flip kit. i shaved about 3/4" off the bumps for a little more clearance and uptravel.
when loaded up for a trip, my leafs are basically flat and almost on the bumps. ride quality i think is still fine thanks to the timbrens.
since i have a commuter car, most of the truck time is on trips, so it would make sense to have the stage III on my truck since it’s loaded with camping gear more than it’s not. most of the time i’m using the truck and not on a trip is heading up to the mountain to ride (board and bike).
would i swap my springs at this point though? probably not. i was hoping i could just add a leaf, but talked to deaver and it’s not that simple. replacing the full pack for the stage III is really the only option.
if you already have a stage II, i’d just make sure you have a good bump setup like the timbren and call it a day. do not go hydro since you’d be slapping the bump all the time. the timbren is a nice cush feel.
1 Like
Hi. I’m grappling with this issue in my mind… I have not gotten my GFC yet, but by my estimate I should have about 920 lbs of payload added to the truck including GFC, driver, hitch rack, rock sliders, and misc. interior cab drawer contents. I’m between the deavers stage I or stage II since not all my weight is in the bed. Fully loaded for an overland trip I have estimated about 1500 lbs of payload. 200 over Toyota payload limit. Comments?? I want to stay stock height with stock tire size. I don’t want excessive rake and I fear harsh unloaded driving characteristics. My intention is light off-roading associated with overlanding wherein you don’t always know what you’ll encounter.
I’d appreciate any guidance or recommendations.
Peace.
1500 lbs loaded for trips? Wow, that seems like a lot. I would do an audit of that inventory and see if you can cut that down.
There are some considerations to your original question:
-How often will you be taking trips where you’ll be fully loading your truck with all that extra weight?
-Are you going to be arriving at camp and unloading most of that weight before hitting trails? Or would you be attempting to go off-road with all of that weight still in the bed?
If you end up loading very much over payload capacity, I would seriously consider upgrading your braking system.
1 Like
Well… I’m talking about payload, not just what I put in the truck, but what I put on the truck too. I don’t believe Toyota recommendations include passengers. Toyota states that the long bed TRD OR has a payload of 1300 lbs. Maybe I’m way off on my calculations, but I believe many modified trucks are above Toyota’s recommendations. Below is the working list of my assumptions…
Everyday
Driver 175
GFC 300
Bike rack/swing out. 110
Rock sliders 100
Interior drawer/contents 80
TSC box 100
Front recovery point 25
Crossbars/mounts 30
Total = 920
For camping/overlanding
Passenger 110
Hi Lift jack 30
Kitchen box 40
Bedding box 10
Cooler loaded 80
Food box 30
Fire wood 40
Potty 10
Ladder 5
6 gallons water 50
2 bikes + gear 80
Maxtrax/brackets 20
Wooden chairs(2) 10
Total = 515
Loaded total = 1435
135 over payload
I’m trying to figure out which springs would be best. Looking at Deaver currently, maybe stage I or stage II expedition springs. Don’t think I need the stage III. Heck, maybe I don’t need any new springs at all. I really don’t know. I just have stay-at-home time for my mind to ponder such things… I have not called Deaver as of yet. Just trolling for GFC owners’ experiences.
Peace.
1 Like
Payload is GVWR minus stock empty truck weight. Driver and passenger weight’s would be part of payload, as would the 20 gallons of fuel in the tank. There are no mods that will increase GVWR, that’s a static number set by factory testing. If you are going to be operating at or above that weight you should do some things that lessen the impact, such as upgraded brakes as @JKD said.
Your back of the napkin math likely has some slop, take your loaded truck to a scale to see where you actually are. But an overloaded truck will see more premature parts failure, and could be a liability if you are in an accident and your insurance carrier feels the weight contributed.
Thanks for your help. Yes. There’s definitely slop. I can certainly upgrade my brakes. I agree, that’s an important consideration that I hadn’t thought about. From this discussion, I suppose every modified tacoma needs upgraded brakes… Big tires, aftermarket f/r bumpers, sliders, a GFC, a full tank of gas, and a driver definitely puts the truck at or beyond payload capacity. This added weight also, begs my leaf spring question. Any leaf spring suggestions? I’ll begin looking at brake upgrades.
Another freakin’ thing that needs upgrading on my tacoma… It seems that stock tacomas are fairly unfit for any real use.
Peace.
1 Like
Oh. Also… I’ve never had a vehicle weighed before. Where does one do that accurately? I’ll load it after I get my GFC and make some final decisions then based upon the weight.
5600 lbs GVWR, I believe…
Peace.