heavy duty shocks....???

[ben]

My truck tends to sag a bit, from the tongue weight of my trailer. I cannot switch out the leaf springs, so I was curious if any of you guys could recommend the heavy duty shocks with the coil springs that go around them? It is for a 1996 Toyota tacoma. Thanks for all the help, it is for a one time trip as I need to drop the boat off out east. So I would preferr not to spend a ton, but do want to be safe. Thanks...

[BIG AL]

BUY AMERICAN !!!!

[Phil T.]

I used spring/shocks on an intermediate-sized station wagon to improve its load carrying. They worked, but made the overall ride a bit firmer and harsher. Its a short-term, low cost alternative to air bag springs.

[Fin Addict]

You can add what I believe are called helper springs to the leaf springs in the back. You need heavier springs, not shocks.

[dkooser]

I owned a Toy at one time and used the spring shock combo. On my present vehile (Ford) I have the AirLift system. It gives me the ability to change the pressure in the air bags and get the ride I need based on what I am towing/hauling. They cost about 175 and can be installed easily by yourself.

[EricCO]

I got some helper springs for my Exploder. Firmed up the ride. I actually like the way it rides better even without the boat. I don't get that slushy weak feeling in the rear anymore.

They were only $40 and just bolt on to the leaf springs. Could of done it myself but spent the $30 of labor since my mechanic saved me $300 on a Mass Air Flow Valve or something or other that he fixed for free.

[chrism]

I have a 97 Tacoma which suffered the same problem. I went with an extra leaf in the rear (4 instead of 3) springs to the tune of Cdn$ 175. It worked great and only took an hour to complete.
Any spring/chassis shop will be able to do this for you.
I also tried putting heavy duty shocks in prior to this, and it really stiffened up the ride to the point of being uncomfortable. I ended up changing back to the regular shocks, and beefed up the springs.

And to the guy above who says to "buy American", FYI all Tacomas are produced and assembled in California.

[AquaMan]

There are two schools of thought.

1) Add a device that you can adjust like air bags or air adjustable shocks (Gabriel Hi Jacker).

Pro: You can adjust to a ride control that is right for the load without sacrificing the empty ride.
Con: They tend to wear out faster and require instalation of air lines and some require an airpump.


2) Add a heavy duty shock (Rancho Adjustable) that can handle the max loads.
Pro: They are very durable and can be manually adjusted for the type of load you carry.
Con: They effect the empty load to provide a stiffer ride and the back end rides higher empty.

I used to have air adjustable shocks on a previous vehicle that you filled with a tire compressor. They worked great for the first season but the lines to the shocks dry rotted that following summer and I sold the vehicle before I did anything about it. I have seen the air bags that mount on the springs and pump up for load leveling, but have never tried them.

AquaMan~~~~~~~~~~~~~

.·´¯° --- "It all begins and ends at the water's edge"

Eric@crowncomputerinc.com

[Gumbo]

For a one-time trip and the rear just "sags a bit", I'd try moving some of the weight in the boat behind the trailer axle and just take it easy on the drive.

Use the money you saved to change your transmission fluid before the trip--consider replacing with synthetic. Make sure your brakes are in good condition too.

[Gord]

See your Toyota dealer. They probably have something that has been engineered by the factory. Some trucks have opt.helper springs that don't do anything until the vehicle settles down onto them under load. Stiffening your springs might make it ride like lumber wagon. Shocks won't help the sagging, but will help "absorb the shock" if you hit bumps.

[Stan]

Ben,

Tacomas are known for very,very soft rear springs. This gives them a "boulevard ride" but becomes problematic when loading with anything over a couple hundred pounds. I had a 90 extra cab and suffered the same problems you are experiencing. I first went to heavier shocks in the rear. This helped a little, but the rear still sagged. The unloaded ride was also considerably stiffer. So these didn't really achieve their intended goal.
I then had an extra leaf added to the rear springs. (not a helper leaf, but a full leaf) This gave me another 900 lbs capacity, but the rear of the truck was now 2 inches higher, and the unloaded ride quality would have loosened your fillings in your teeth.
Compromise--go to an additional leaf. Find a suspension shop and tell thwm exactly what you want. They will be able to add a smaller capacity additional leaf (like an overload or helper leaf) so that normal empty driving is not changed, yet when the weight is added, it kicks in. Just had one added to my T-100. A new boat (heavier tongue weight) required a little more spring. They installed one for $165 and now it rides as soft as before, yet handles the weight very well.
Sorry for the long post, but bspending an extra $100 or so, you can get a better result.

Good Luck