suspension

[AMY1975]

Hello everyone! This is my first time on wander the west and I can't believe I just found out about it! My husband and I spend up to 9 mo a year in our Eagle FWC. We have it on a 2014 tacoma. It is not the TRD. We will be using it for desert work this spring and will be required to drive on all kinds of sandy, gnarly roads. So far we have put the Helwig spring pack on our truck that I guess is sort of made for our truck to specifically carry a FWC. Anyway, we need to upgrade our shocks from the stock toyota shocks that are still on it. Our camper lives on our truck 100% of the time so I don't think we need airbags...Any advice on which shocks are the best or anything else we should do to our suspension to get it ready for a long work season in the desert would be SO appreciated! We also have E grade tires already...Thanks so much!

 

[buckland]

I would suggest air bags if you carry a lot of weight. Helps even the load. If your camper stays on all the time you don't need adjustable shocks... so for a nice ride and good support the Bilstein 5100 would be a good shock. I would suggest getting MaxTracs to get you out of a bad sand situation. A high lift jack helps too. otherwise (I have an Eagle 2011 and it was at first on my 2001 Tacoma) you are good to go.

 

[AMY1975]

Thanks for the info! What are MaxTracs? We just got off the phone with a 4x4 guy and he said he wouldn't recommend taking our truck and camper off road. Huh. He said it will put too much stress on the frame and the chassis? Any words on this?

 

[kmcintyre]

You might add a spring too. Contact Boise Spring works and they can help.

 

[moveinon]

I have a 2013 Tacoma TRD and do not have any exact mileage, but probably have put 11,000-12,000 miles of off road and logging road on it with a fully decked out Fleet camper with no problems and certainly some on here have more miles than that on rougher roads. I take my camper off for the winter so have air bags and not springs upgrade. I had a previous Tacoma that I hauled way more weight in wood than the camper on some very rough trails where my winch got a lot of use. This truck had many upgrades to the suspension and braking, but without any problems with the frame at all. I think there are four weaknesses in hauling the camper with a Tacoma -and any of us that have one know we push against the GVW Toyota recommends with a FWC. Those are the stock tires, stock shocks, stock springs, and stock brakes. Those are not cheaply, but easily upgraded to E rated tires, 5100’s or adjustable shocks, custom spring set or air bag or both, and slotted brakes or Tundra brakes. I have heard good things about the MaxTracs for desert use. Here in Oregon I tend to use a winch more because there are almost always trees around. If you go off road much you will discover that airing up and down your tires makes a substantial difference in ride comfort and traction which means a quality compressor either portable or built in. And I love my air bags for ease of leveling both side to side and front to back with changes in weight as passenger weight changes, gas and water go down on the trip or sit on slightly uneven camp site with my 3 way fridge. I had bags on my previous truck and it did improve the ride some even with the spring upgrade.

 

[AMY1975]

Awesome! thanks so much!

 

[buckland]

I had a 2001 tacoma and yes you can take them off road (no arial jumps!) ...You need a support of the frame ...airbags help. Good shocks help the hits...but an added leaf in the leaf spring pack adds weight capacity for the axil. I feel your frame should be fine. One must drive with caution and sense. Max Tracs are found on google... they are "sand mats" to lay down under the wheels when you are stuck in sand i.e. desert. A tire compressor is also a good idea if you are in the boonies of the desert ....airing down tires gives you better traction in loose roadway material.

 

[pawleyk]

We have airbags on Daystar cradles and really like them a lot. They are similar to your added spring, but they let us adjust them as the weight of the load changes (water/fuel weight) or with road conditions. They also let us level our truck out in camp, which is a definite bonus.

I'll throw in another vote for MaxxTracks, they're awesome.

Heres a video of us driving right out of the hole I dug in the sand with our pair..
https://youtu.be/yANCehtIfMw
https://www.amazon.com/Maxtrax-MKII-MAXTRAX-Black/dp/B01ACMCUGM

We have a winch and never use it because the MaxTrax are easier and safer..

 

[ntsqd]

My own recommendation is Bilstein dampers as I have had excellent results using them exploring and chasing desert racers, though some use Old Man Emu with success.

Lowering the tire pressure even just 10 psi can make a big difference on washboard. Which there is a lot of in the West. You'll want a way to re-inflate your tires when you get to pavement. Search here and other forums and I think you'll find that the MV-50 compressor, and it's various similarly labeled cousins, are one of the best bangs for the buck. The weakness' of these are known, and the fixes well documented.

 

[Moss Grimmick]

I drive a 2015 Taco with ATC Bobcat camper. Replacing the leaf springs (EMU dakar springs) was the most important addition since the Taco leaf springs are soft. This drastically reduced the sway and bounce due to the camper weight. I added Bilstein 5100 shocks to lift the front to accommodate the lift in the rear due to the new leaf springs. Well worth the expense. I also have airbags and daystar cradles.

 

[JHanson]

Welcome Amy,

You have an excellent combination, and it will do just fine on 4WD trails. We put 150,000 miles on our first Tacoma/FWC combination, and are on our second now. (We also do extensive work in the desert.)

I'm not a big fan of add-on helper springs such as the Hellwig; however, if your current combination supports the weight of the camper (with water, luggage, etc.) and levels the truck, and you leave the camper on all the time, you might do okay. Don't worry about air bags if you leave the camper on. For shocks, you have several good choices. The Bilsteins mentioned are good, as are the heavy-duty Old Man Emus from Australia. You can spend a lot more, for example on the superb new OME BP51s, which are adjustable, and due to the internal bypass feature combine a superior ride with proper damping. Shocks will do at least as much as the springs to ensure safe handling, so don't scrimp.

You might find some information on Overland Tech and Travel that will help. Search for JATAC.

 

[AMY1975]

Wow! Thank you all for the great information! Everyone's advice has been so helpful!

Old man emu also recommended new stronger U-joints and front coils...any thoughts on this?

 

[JHanson]

Wow! Thank you all for the great information! Everyone's advice has been so helpful!

Old man emu also recommended new stronger U-joints and front coils...any thoughts on this?

We've never had a problem with the stock U-joints. And I think the stock front coils are too stiff to begin with. I left them in place, and we have an ARB bumper and winch. I did replace the front shocks though.