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Tacoma Suspension?


Bryan70usa
04-02-2006, 06:57 PM
has anyone bought and used the donahoe suspension system for the 3rz reg cab short bed truck? it is supposed to increase travel and not neccesarily increase lift though possible to lift up to 3 inches!!!????

todds21
04-04-2006, 09:02 AM
has anyone bought and used the donahoe suspension system for the 3rz reg cab short bed truck? it is supposed to increase travel and not neccesarily increase lift though possible to lift up to 3 inches!!!????


I have looked at this upgrade and it supposed to be a great suspension. It is designed for desert racing. Definately one of the most expensive suspension systems out there. Here is a write up on it:

http://www.off-road.com/toyota/tech/donahoe_tacoma/

boylem002
04-09-2006, 12:19 PM
has anyone bought and used the donahoe suspension system for the 3rz reg cab short bed truck? it is supposed to increase travel and not neccesarily increase lift though possible to lift up to 3 inches!!!????

I have the donahoes on my truck as well as the camburg engineering upper control arms. The Extended version of the donahoes allows for 1" more travel over stock (.5" up and .5" down). The adjustability of the shocks is great. Once you dial in the lift and level, you get an alignment and it's done! I've got mine set for 2.25" of lift (they come with 2" set already) and they perform great. I would suggest you read up on them some more, there are plenty of sites out there, including donahoeracing.com , that will inform you. A good start would be to toyotaterritory.com or tacomaterritory.com .

Bryan70usa
04-11-2006, 12:51 AM
thanks guys for the info, i appreciate it! what size of tires are you running with the 2.25 inch of clearance? Also, do you have the 3rz or v-6?

boylem002
04-11-2006, 05:24 PM
thanks guys for the info, i appreciate it! what size of tires are you running with the 2.25 inch of clearance? Also, do you have the 3rz or v-6?

My lift is the following:

Donahoe's coilovers in front with 2.25 inches set on them, which means that the driver's side is actually set for more lift than the passenger side. I know that sounds weird, but the tacos have a driver's side lean to them due to the weight of driver/battery/fuel, etc. that isn't present on the passenger side, so to get them level you will put more preload (lift) into the driver's side. The rear is a full custom leaf pack from deaver springs in santa ana, ca. There are many other lower cost options, but i needed to get the lift I wanted without sacrificing ride quality (add a leaf packs) or load capacity. Shackles will lift the truck, but they will prematurely wear the springs out. Blocks are/can be dangerous offroading when strains of sudden torque are applied, plus they wear springs faster. In the end, I bought a 9 leaf pack from them (through demello-offroad.com) with a set of donahoe remote reservoir shocks. This netted me about 3.5 inches of total lift in the rear after settling (started at around 4.25, I used 200lbs of sand to offset the uneven front to back lift until it settled). I like the same rake that the truck has stock, so I factored that into the lift, adds in aerodynamics/fuel economy. Beyond that, I put the aftermarket upper control arms in the front of the truck from camburgengineering.com and am very happy with those. It lowered the roll center of the truck and gave better steering response along with a little more susp. travel (1").
I have the v6 double cab. I run 285/75/16 wheels (metric 33"). I use Mickey Thompson Classic II wheels with 3 and 5/8 backspacing, it sets the wheels outward a bit more than stock (4.5" backspacing stock) and prevents rubbing at full lock and in the rear front fender area. There is a modification that is REQUIRED for this to work, it's called the pinchweld mod. You basically just beat the ever loving hell out of the little fin of sheet metal where the rear fenderwell/body/quarterpanel parts all meet. They protrude there and the tire will rub. It's simple to do. Run a google search or log onto ttora.com and read around, TONS of information there to get you going with your truck, from simple free modifications for performance on and offroad, as well as info to prevent you from buying things that are worthless. Another OK site is customtacos.com . Enjoy!

Bryan70usa
04-11-2006, 11:48 PM
thanks, you are a ton of help. you have any pics of your truck online anywhere?

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