Carlyee wrote:Topper, I purchased a 2012 Taco in June. I really like the updated interior and the purported driveline vibration is not an issue to me anyway. I went with a Toytec lift with the Bildstein 5100s. Not as HD as your suspension but seems adequate. I made a mistake though and got BFG All Terrain T/A's. They are a shit tire in snow and I would have thought I learned my lesson the last time I wasted $1100 on them.
The inverter makes field dressing deers on the tailgate a snap! I pack along a fircken heater. It's awesome!
Auto or stick?
Is that a Toytec top spacer on the Billys? Just the fronts or did you do something other than shocks in the rear. The problem with spacers is they preload the springs.
You won't get a drive line vibe until you raise the back end. I have a new hanger bearing for the rear driveshaft sitting in a box in the basement.
I ran BFG At's for years. They were the best compromise of highway and bush use I could find. Always found them to be fine in snow, but a squirrely nightmare on ice. I had my last set siped and that made a huge improvement. Last year I ditched the aluminum 17" inch rims and went to 16" steel shod with 265/75-16 Goodyear Duratracs. I really like the Duratracs, more than the BFG's, though there is some tread squirm to them that takes some getting used to. Several folks complain of sidewall squirm, but it is the tread blocks as they are not connected to one another.
Try dropping the tire pressure on your BFG's. I ran 36 psi on long highway runs, 30psi around town and 18psi in the bush. I'd sometimes drop to around 10psi in deep snow.
Beware of reversing in deep snow. The snow can build up under the skid plate (the real one, not the flimsy polished aluminum accessory jobby Toyota sells) and lever it off.
If you've got 17" rims (TRD Sport Double Cab), you're probably running 265/70-17. One size up from the stock 265/65-17. That is what I ran, its a 32" tire, anything larger and you may have rubbing problem in the front on the body mount. There is no room between the upper control arm and the front tire for chains on the front of these trucks.
I also found something with the design of the 17" rims makes them awful for the inside filling with mud/ice and throwing out the balance.
The Duratracs are better than the BFG's on ice but not hugely better. One day I may have to break down and buy a dedicated winter tire for the truck. I've got about 500lbs of sandbags in the back plus a dry box with recovery gear and chains for the rear and that definitely helps.
My centre overhead compass/temp went out a couple of weeks ago. Apparently it happens to all at ~150K kms, I'm at 145K kms on my '07. It is easy to pull (four screws and plug) and either re solder yourself (screw and it's toast and $300 to replace from Toyota) or there in a guy in Texas who will replace the bad part for $20 plus mailing.
I've only used the inverter a couple of times. Kept the laptop charged during a three day blackout so I could keep working, but it is handy when needed.