From Faq
The Suspension Modification FAQ includes excellent info on the different brands, methods and "how-to's" available to lift the front of 4wd and Prerunner Tacomas. However, due to the number of threads asking about front lifts on the main TTORA board, I thought it would be helpful to explain how they work in this submission.
Control Arm Type Lifts:
A "control arm" type lift is achieved by pushing down on the control arm assembly, thereby lifting the front of the truck upwards. This type of lift uses the front suspension's available wheel travel. One way to push down on the control arm assembly is to use a coil spring spacer, such as an All-Pro spacer, a Cornfed spacer, a Revtek spacer, etc. Another way is to use a longer coil spring, such as a longer Old Man Emu (OME, not to be confused with "OEM") coil spring that replaces the stock coil spring, or an adjustable coilover that replaces the whole stock strut/coilover assembly.
A longer coil spring does not require a longer front shock. In fact, the same stock shock/strut can be used. However, it is usually recommended that a new shock/strut be used to replace the stock one in order to improve damping performance, especially if the new, longer coil has a higher spring rate (which is usually the case) than the stock coil spring. The longer coil spring will achieves lift by virtue of its longer length pushing down on the control arm assembly, thereby pushing the front of the truck upwards. A coil spring spacer acts the same way - the spacer, by adding length to a stock coil spring (or, in some instances, by adding length to an aftermarket coil spring that may have sagged over time or which is not long enough to achieve the desired lift), results in the control arm assembly being pushed down accordingly.
An adjustable coilover includes a new shock, sometimes with a threaded shock body, a new coil spring (usually of a higher spring rate than the stock coil spring), and a means to adjust the ride height of the suspension by means of an adjustable collar ring. Most adjustable coilovers, such as the Downey/Bilstein coilovers or the Fabtech/Fox coilovers, have the adjustable collar ring at the bottom of the coilover assembly. Ride height is adjusted upwards by "cranking" or threading the collar rings upwards. The bottom of the coil spring sits on the collar ring, and when the collar ring is threaded upwards on the shock body, the shock body is forced down, thereby pushing the control arm assembly downwards and causing the front of the truck to lift upwards.
It is important to note that a control arm type lift should not be used to lift the front of the truck more than 2.5", with 3" being the absolute max, despite the claim by some adjustable coilovers as being 3.5" coilovers. As once explained to me many years ago by David, of Cornbred/Cornfed fame, it is possible to lift the front by 3.5", however, it is strongly recommended that it not be lifted more than 2.5", with 3" being the absolute max, so as to avoid the added stress placed on the CV boots and axles, the ball joints (especially the upper ball joint), the tie rod ends and possibly even the rack and pinion steering. This added stress is caused by the increased angle placed on these components from the lift.
If you jack the front of the truck up using a hydraulic jack, you will see what I mean as the front tires droop downwards off the ground. The CV boot fins will then touch, potentially resulting in them to wear prematurely on ADD-equipped Tacomas which have the front CV axles rotating along with the wheels rotation. However, even those with manual hubs (non-ADD) should avoid the temptation to lift the front too high because severe angles will also be placed on the ball joints (especially the upper one) and the tie rod ends.
Another reason not to go over the 2.5"-3" max is wheel travel (sometimes erroneously referred to as "articulation" or erroneously interchanged with "flex"). The amount of front wheel travel for a stock Tacoma is about 7" to 8". That leaves roughtly 3.5" of downtravel (extension - or tire droop) and about 3.5" of up travel (compression - or tire stuffing). Since control arm type lifts use (or sacrifice) the available downtravel to achieve lift, then that downtravel is no longer available. In other words, the lift is using it already. So if you have 2.5" of lift, then all you have left is about 1" of downtravel - not much - and the remaining 3.5" or so of uptravel.
Again, let's not confuse wheel travel with articulation or flex. Articulation is best left for discussion of a solid axle suspension, where one side of the axle articulates up, while the other side articulates down, using the front differential as a kind of fulcrum. Flex is also a different issue. Flex is the ability of a coil spring or leaf pack to compress and extend. For example, the higher the spring rate, the more force it takes to compress (or flex). However, wheel travel remains the same, even though a coil spring with a high spring rate may not flex as much and may therefore make it appear as though wheel travel has lessened.
Drop Bracket Type Lifts:
A drop bracket type lift uses drop brackets to lower the suspension components on the vehicle, thereby pushing the truck upwards. Unlike a control arm type lift (such as with a coil spacer or an adjustable coilover), a drop bracket type lift usually retains the stock geometric angles, thereby allowing the lift kit itself to provide more lift than a spacer or coilover lift. Examples of drop bracket type lifts include the Pro Comp 4" and the Trailmaster 6". These lifts will allow more than just the 2" to 2.5" of lift usually allowed by a spacer or coilover lift because the geometric angles remain the same. The CV axles, ball joints and tie rod ends should still remain in the same parallel vein as in a Tacoma with a stock suspension. However, a drop bracket type lift, although allowing greater lift for bigger tires, still causes the front differential, along with some of the drop brackets themselves, to hang lower on the vehicle than with a control arm type lift. So ground clearance with respect to those components may not be as great as originally desired, but greater amount of lift is still achieved.
Long Travel Setup:
As Kevin H. (aka "ToyPrerunr"), Mike (aka "BADASSTACO"), Corey, Jordan and the folks over at race-dezert.com explained to me over the years, a long travel setup is a suspension system that is designed more for performance than it is for achieving lift. However, it has the consequence of lifting the front of the truck upwards while using high end, desert-racing inspired shock technology with adjustable coilovers. This type of suspension allows the front to achieve greater wheel travel than in its stock configuration. It is much more expensive, however, and because of the increased wheel travel, requires either fiberglass fenders or lots of sheetmetal cutting on the stock front fenders. Otherwise, the wheel/tire combo, with the greater amount of travel available, will slam into the stock front fenders and shred, deform or rip them out. Also, longer tie rod ends and CV axles (for 4x4 Tacomas) are needed since the front track of the Tacoma is widened by a few inches on each side. Long travel suspension setups are usually desired by those wanting to go fast in the desert.
Solid Front Axle:
As you probably know by now, the Tacoma's front end consists of an independent front suspension using upper and lower control arms. This suspension is great as it is in its stock form, however, those desiring to tackle much more difficult trails, such as hardcore rockcrawling trails, may want to do a solid axle swap to gain the benefits of an articulating front axle and its usually simpler and stronger design and construction. This type of swap requires cutting off the front IFS components, strengthening the front of the frame, getting a donor front axle, and deciding whether to use coils or a leaf spring setup from which to suspend the axle. Metal cutting, steel fabrication skills, welding and a good knowledge of suspension engineering, geometry and systems is a must for the do-it-yourselfer. As with a long travel setup, a solid axle swap can be expensive, even for a do-it-yourselfer, and much more so for a reputable shop to do it, and is more complicated and harder to do on a Tacoma than it is on an 89-95 pre-Tacoma IFS 4x4 Toyota pickup or 4Runner. However, if done right, the benefits of a solid axle swap will allow a 4wd Tacoma to tackle the extreme rockcrawling trails with much more ease than with the stock IFS setup. Robert Cannon, of Frankentaco fame, is the first solid-axle-swapped Tacoma that I know of, and his pioneering experimentation with it paved the way for countless others, such as Shannon and his Tacozilla and Chris K and his beast.
Hopefully, this FAQ section will help others understand how front lifts work on Tacomas. Additional information by others willing to edit or modify is welcome for the benefit of aiding Tacoma enthusiasts wanting a better understanding on how to lift the front of their truck.
Humbly submitted by Ed Quinones (aka "EQuin") on 10-7-05 after years of reading, researching and learning from the knowledgeable folk on TTORA.
