Rear shock length for 2005 Tacoma overlander

[fourfa]

Greetings, first post here after suffering through the rather cosmetic-oriented forums I've found elsewhere.

I have a 2005 Tacoma DC/LB used mostly for deep backcountry duty around the US southwest. I did some suspension work when I first got it two years ago - Bilstein 5100s on stock front coils, rear OME Dakars (non-HD). These cheap shocks never had nearly enough damping even when brand new (I come from a sports car background, I like a well-controlled chassis).

Looking at upgrades now - front, got a great deal on new Icon 2.5" coilovers (650lb/in), planning to convert them to long travel and add Camburg 1.25" ball UCAs, and add swaybar disconnects. Rear - might get the HD overload leaf for the rear, as there's only 2" of static travel as loaded with all my camping and rock climbing gear, water fuel etc. [EDIT: subesquently measured 3-3.25" free travel]

My question is this: which rear shock would be a better match for this vehicle - the Icon RR (24.1" free length, 10" travel) or Fox 2.0" adjustable-damping RR (25.75" extended, 9.5" travel)? That seems like a pretty significant difference, and thought I should see if others have been down this road before. Just concerned with dimensions, not price or features (if I get rear Icons to match the front, I expect I'll have them custom tuned after thrashing them around a bit).

 

[Dave Bennett]

Neither if you intend to use the truck as a truck for overlanding vice long travel desert racing setup. These two types of setups are quite different IMO.

For overlanding with loads like you mention I'd go with the OME Nitrochargers that are matched to your OME Dakar springs and forget about it. Great shocks for the $ BTW.

.02

 

[WASURF63]

Neither if you intend to use the truck as a truck for overlanding vice long travel desert racing setup. These two types of setups are quite different IMO.

For overlanding with loads like you mention I'd go with the OME Nitrochargers that are matched to your OME Dakar springs and forget about it. Great shocks for the $ BTW.

.02

x2 on the entire statement above.

I have Nitrochargers all the way around (full OME suspension) and can't say enough about thier performance on our type of rigs. You won't be dissapointed.

WS

 

[fourfa]

Well I guess I don't want to get into an argument about the semantics of 'overland.' I just figure, there's a certain amount of travel that the rear suspension is capable of; if it's just a matter of picking one shock or another, I might as well get one that's well matched to that. No point leaving capability unused, or risk damaging a shock by getting one that's too short or too long.

Anyway, I measured extended length on my truck at full droop, center of the lower eye to the bottom of the upper mounting flange: 26.25 inches. This is a whopping 2" longer than the Icons, 0.5" longer than the Fox model I mentioned. I have an email in to ARB to check the length of the Nitrochargers.

I should add that the small difference in price between these shocks isn't a big deal, having gone too cheap with the 5100s I got to replace the worn out OE shocks, I'm not inclined to try to save a few bucks but have to get into this again later.

 

[fourfa]

got this today from ARB:

"rear N182 shock. It has an open length of 608 mm and closed of 352 mm"

Or extended length 24", 10" travel. Doesn't seem to be matched to my Dakars in the slightest, glad I didn't just blindly order those...

 

[cruiseroutfit]

How are you measuring your extended versus closed on your truck? Hanging the entire rear axle or with a flex test?

I'd be content with the 24" extended length if that is what the truck calls for, and having installed quite a few N182's they seem to be a great fitment. While the 'longer is better' works in scenerios where absolute flex is only limited by the shocks, this is not the case with the rear leaf setup of the Tacoma. In many applications shocks are actually utilized covertly as 'limiting straps' to protect other components, keep coils in their buckets, park brake cables, brakelines, etc. That said there are cases where running a longer has benefits. I would give your truck a 'flex test' sans shocks and see where you land.

 

[fourfa]

I did exactly that, a couple posts up. My truck, my springs, with no shocks. extended brake lines, the parking cable seems plenty long.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

I did exactly that, a couple posts up. My truck, my springs, with no shocks. extended brake lines, the parking cable seems plenty long.

Yes, but is this a full droop measurement or a flex test measurement? They will result in slightly different measurements. Unless you air out your truck on a regular basis, your truck is not likely to see this type of unloaded situation.

You'll need to decide if your uses warrant the extra droop, there are even ways to get more if you need it. Keep in mind the twin tube shock design requires they loose a little bit in the length to travel ratio versus a single tube reservoir. Not sure on the specs of the other shocks you've been looking at but for longevity and durability the twin-tube has advantages. Worth the slight loss in droop? Thats up to you.

 

[fourfa]

Flex test I suppose, only one side. Don't have a lift or enough gear to get the whole back end in the air safely. Besides it seems more realistic to me than getting the whole axle in the air.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Besides it seems more realistic to me than getting the whole axle in the air.

Agreed, that's what I was trying to decipher which method you used to get your measurements

Remember to take a look at the collapsed length too, those longer shocks are going to have longer collapsed numbers, may or may not present an issue on your setup. Be sure to follow up with what you end up with and how you like them.

 

[MrUnderwood08]

Sorry to dig up an old thread but it would be great to hear the follow up. I am upgrading my suspension with Dakar leafs and Icon Coilovers but I am not sure what shock to go with in the rear.

 

[bat]

Bilstein be5-b110

 

[MrGrimm]

Sorry to dig up an old thread but it would be great to hear the follow up. I am upgrading my suspension with Dakar leafs and Icon Coilovers but I am not sure what shock to go with in the rear.

I have the OME dakars and recently upgraded my old fox 2.0 piggybacks to Icon 2.0 RR that had 2 inches added to them. just call up Icon and ask for them to extend the rear shocks 2 inches. Rides better than the fox setup.

 

[downhill]

Just read through this thread. I agree with getting shocks that match the articulation potential of the suspension. No sense in leaving potential on the table. For a vehicle that sees multi-use like an expo rig, I'm also in favor of limit straps. Such rigs will never get pushed into the situations that an extreme 4 wheeler will. They are too heavy for that use, and the mindset is more often geared toward preservation of the vehicle rather than the destruction of it. Getting every last 1/4" of articulation out of an expo rig is misplaced energy IMO. I'm guessing that was TacoDoc's rational. That said, having properly set bump stops and limit straps will ensure that nothing ever over extends the suspension, and are cheap insurance against possible damage.

On my rig I actually installed a rear sway bar. I gave up articulation by doing that for sure, but the bar stabilizes the weight I carry to a great extent on winding mountain roads. It's not a trade I would make on a dedicated off road rig, but for the thousands of miles of highway that my truck sees it's a very good trade. So far the lost articulation has not hindered me at all on the trails that I would take my truck anyway. Beyond a point, I have good boots and a daypack :sombrero: