Ready to pull the trigger on 200 suspension upgrade (2 Viewers)
- Thread starter DPA200
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Agreed. I had the basic OME on my 100 and 14 LC, and now I have the BP51s on the 16 LC. The basic suspension is great for what it is, but bombing down a desert road with whoops and undulations at 60 mph isn't something I would have even considered with my basic OME. I'm glad I ponied up for it this time, but there is nothing wrong with going the less expensive route IMO.
- Thread starter
- #43
So per multiple suggestions from this post I reached out to Jason at Trail Tailor. Very very helpful thanks @SQRRRL and others for the suggestion. I'm working with him now on configuration but i do at this point believe Tough Dog is a much better option than OME. The basic setup is about the same $ as OME, and the adjustable is not a ton more for that level of capability. I've struggled to find 1 post where anyone has anything negative to say about Tough Dog suspension. Jason also told me "Tough Dog is an approved aftermarket replacement for Toyota in South Africa and the Middle East. The Toyota service centers are allowed/approved to stock TD in their parts warehouses.... No other aftermarket suspension can say that". That impressed me. @ytaebnairb I'd recommend at least exploring the alternative. If you are not in a hurry hopefully I'll have this all installed on my truck in the next few weeks and I'll let you know. Currently, I'm still deciding between 41mm Foam Cell vs 45mm adjustable, @TonyP which version were you using? Also curious did you ever get his sliders?
Another nod for the TD. After talking to some of the guys here in the forum and Jason I went that direction. I ran an OME setup on my 80 for 10 years it took all the abuse I threw at it but wouldn't say it rode well. Very pleased with the TD setup so far. I added the Tundra spacer up front no diff drop and trying to avoid UCA's as well. So far so good the ride is great, it performed well on the trail and the tires look to be wearing well.
- Thread starter
- #46
For the shocks were they both adjustable, or just the 45mm adjustable? were you happy with them, any suggestions on the configuration for me? How about the sliders, I've been debating White Knuckle, Budbuilt or Slee but curious how this compares.
- Thread starter
- #47
which configuration on the TD did you go for? Did your shop have any issues or complaints getting the alignment done after the lift without replacing the UCA's?
I went with the 41mm struts, rear 0-660# load coils and rear 41mm shocks. The alignment shop was able to get the alignment within specs when I asked Jason about UCA's he said about half of his customers are able to get the alignment within specs I guess I fell in the half it worked out for.
They are both compression adjustable.
No real complaints. They aren't King 3.0s or anything but they're good for what they are being far less than half the price of the price of BPs.
Sliders have been fine. I haven't test the newest version yet but I will in Moab in a couple of weeks.
I have the 45mm adjustables, set at 4 all around. I crank the rears up to 6 to dampen the bouncing when highway towing for long distances. At 0 they float like a caddy; at 9 they're like driving an F1 car around the city (tight but teeth rattling). If the weight/use of your rig doesn't change much then the 41mm are probably fine, but if you will add/remove a lot of weight when traveling, towing, or wheeling your truck hard I would go with the 45mm adjustables.
I have one negative comment about Tough Dog, which is that they're not very familiar with the difference between US and non-US configurations. When my kit arrived the rear springs are marked "LH" and "RH". There was a sticker on the box which said "US vehicles should ignore the spring markings and put the taller spring on the driver's side". That seemed odd to me since the taller OEM spring was on the RH/passenger side in the US. But I did as the instructions said and I had about 1.5" of cruiser lean. My alignment sucked, the truck had a lot of torque steer, and when I contacted Tough Dog directly they said "the taller spring is to account for the weight of the driver, but we've seen that some vehicles might need them set the other way so try and swap them". Apparently the taller spring is actually to account for the weight of the fuel tank, not the driver, because when I put the RH spring on the RH side the lean went away. I had the truck realigned and it's been level since. But IMO it was a hassle to swap them and aside from a few hours in my driveway it cost me about $200 to replace the firestone airbags (since you can't remove the air line from them without them leaking) and get it realigned. I think TD hadn't really tested their setup on a US vehicle and had just assumed that the springs would need to be swapped like OME. But OME springs need to be swapped because they're marked PS and DS, which changes between the US and AUS, whereas RH and LH don't.
Maybe more of a question for Jason but when you adjust them are you actually adjusting the compression or the rebound (or both)? It was never clear to me exactly how the adjustment works, I just turned it a few times until the ride felt firmly planted but driving around the city didn't make me feel like I was in a 1-ton pickup.
- Thread starter
- #52
Good tip! So to avoid this hassle for myself just make sure my shop knows to put the longer "RH" marked spring on passenger side correct?
Yep
I only felt a difference on compression.
I'm in Fayetteviile, and am driving to exploration outfitters at the end of this month to pick up my patriot camper trailer. While there, the guys at EO are going to install this set-up for me.
FRONT
+OME2700: 1" Stock/Light Front Coil
+91005 Front OME Nitrocharger Sport Struts
REAR
+OME2721: 0" Medium Rear Coils
+61029 Rear OME Nitrocharger Sport Shocks
+trim packers
Not sure how close we are but you're welcome to check it out yourself once I get back.
-Chris
Awesome, thanks for the offer. I may hit you up for sure!
- Thread starter
- #57
Congratulations on the Patriot those look awesome!
Thanks! Pictures will absolutely be posted when we pick it up!!!
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- #59
x1 or x2? I’ve watched the videos of them so many times they look awesome. Made my wife even watch. I recently purchased a Bivouac MOAB fort xl and love it. For me Bivouac is local in Phoenix so I like that I can easily take it in and talk to them. Quite a bit less expensive as well. Great company to deal with. That being said , Patriot is my dream rig! I’m really impressed with what they are doing.
X1 GT, we are a family of 6 and needed something robust enough for all of us.
We went back and forth on turtleback vs patriot, but the independent suspension, the tent system, and a few other small things really sold us on patriot.
Can’t wait!
-Chris
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