Anyone in Wilmington, NC?

[thirstyturtle]

Hey everyone, I'm looking for any fellow 3rd-gen owners in (or near) Wilmington, NC!

My 2002 SR5 4WD came with OME/Toytec coils and Bilstein 5100s and I soon discovered the ride was way too harsh for my wife (it's her daily driver). So I put on Monroe Quick Struts up front and Monroe Sensatrac shocks in the back with Moog springs and a 2.5" spacer to avoid the sag. It sits pretty level now and looks great and ride a lot better than before but it's still not good enough and she complains all the time and really wants a softer ride. We realized it's a truck but our friends in Colorado with the exact same truck have a much better ride (we spent a week out there and rode in it a lot) and I can't figure out why!

I'm hoping someone one here would be willing to let me ride in their truck and see how it compares to ours and maybe even help me diagnose why my ride is so rough.

I have 265/70-R17 P-rated Nitto Terra Grapplers that I run at like 22psi in an effort to provide a smooth ride. I've also removed the rear sway bar which helped a bit but we're just not their yet.

The main symptoms are a "jerky" sort of feeling and if you go over train tracks, it feels like it wobbles back and forth and I've been told that it looks like it wobbles back and forth from the back.

I'm wondering if there are some bushings that could be worn out and need replacing that are causing this issue.

Anybody nearby that wants to help me out?

 

[ncjeyota]

Just reading your post, it may not be so jerky and sway side to side if you put your sway bar back on and possibly replace sway bar bushings and end links.

 

[nc-grayson]

I'm in Wilmington! CB technically, but I work in Mayfaire.

You're more than welcome for a ride in my truck, but it wouldn't help you at all. my stock, suspension is shot, but a pile of parts is slowly accumulating

 

[midcoma]

I'm in Sneads Ferry. What'd you do with the Toytec kit that you removed?

 

[LittleCaesar]

The roads on the East Coast for the most part are abysmal to those out West IMHO. 17 inch rims aren't helping either.

Not trying to talk you out of a 3rd gen but a crossover utility is a much better bet, 4wd if you drive on the beach. My ex wife hated my lifted ride on my 4runner.

I would think the rear sway bar would be more beneficial.

 

[SilverRidgeRunner1]

One thing I've learned and I don't think NC roads over the mountain are any different but these T4R are no porsche. sway bars and rack bush have been my major areas of correction and seen improvement. Dragon tested !

 

[PoshSnoop]

129

...Dragon tested !

memories... used to run the dragon in a 1970 Datsun Roadster I scrapped together for autocross. fun stuff. soon after the turn of the century, I was back that way in a 2000 Tacoma 4x4 short cab. tipsy!

 

[SilverRidgeRunner1]

memories... used to run the dragon in a 1970 Datsun Roadster I scrapped together for autocross. fun stuff. soon after the turn of the century, I was back that way in a 2000 Tacoma 4x4 short cab. tipsy!

I live down the road from the Dragon and if u have a suspension problem it will be found there or break and leave u on the side of the road. Oh its fun times best time to go is summer night on weds night at 9 time trials. I ran a lot of MG'S up there good times.

 

[eatmorechickenx]

Op, you weren't clear on whether you actually replaced the front springs. If you didn't, the toytec coils are where your rough ride are coming from. They are 620lb coils.

Edit: Never mind, you said quick struts. Get some quality suspension components, like factory, and it should ride a lot better. Factory components are probably going to cost the same that you paid for the monroe components if you source them online.

 

[thirstyturtle]

Just reading your post, it may not be so jerky and sway side to side if you put your sway bar back on and possibly replace sway bar bushings and end links.

You certainly have a point but ultimately I want my wife happy with the ride and she told me it's been much better since I removed the rear sway bar. The front sway bar end links are in good shape.

I'm in Sneads Ferry. What'd you do with the Toytec kit that you removed?

Sold it to a user on the forums about 6 months ago, sorry!

Op, you weren't clear on whether you actually replaced the front springs. If you didn't, the toytec coils are where your rough ride are coming from. They are 620lb coils.

Edit: Never mind, you said quick struts. Get some quality suspension components, like factory, and it should ride a lot better. Factory components are probably going to cost the same that you paid for the monroe components if you source them online.

I'm highly considering getting some stock Toyota spring/struts for up front. Think I should do the same for the back? I'd hate to dump several hundred more dollars of suspension components into it and it not make a difference...

 

[thirstyturtle]

The roads on the East Coast for the most part are abysmal to those out West IMHO. 17 inch rims aren't helping either.

Not trying to talk you out of a 3rd gen but a crossover utility is a much better bet, 4wd if you drive on the beach. My ex wife hated my lifted ride on my 4runner.

I would think the rear sway bar would be more beneficial.

Ultimately I think I'm gunna have to sell the T4R and get her a crossover or possibly a 4th gen. I had a 2006 Sport and she LOVED that truck. I'd like to trade up but obviously I prefer having the tiny car payment that I have on this truck plus, I'm not sure why, but I REALLY like this truck and would hate to sell it. I just want to get her happy with the ride because it's a great truck for us.

 

[thirstyturtle]

I took the truck to my buddy's auto shop yesterday (he has owned a 2nd gen and 3rd gen) and he took the truck for a ride. He said it was one of the best-riding 3rd gens he had been in, haha! So that was good and bad because that means there is likely little room for improvement.

He did a visual inspection of the bushings and end links and everything like that. Bounced on the front and back, swerved back and forth on the road, drove through the rough shoulder soil at speed. After all that he said he doesn't understand what my wife (and I) are complaining about.

Only thing he said was that stock sized wheels and tires would likely make the ride better but he didn't think it would be a tremendous difference.

So that's where I am...
Considering Toyota stock suspension...considering stock wheels/tires...considering doing nothing.

 

[LittleCaesar]

The roads around Wilmington aren't the best. My uncle retired to Holden Beach for some time and a buddy of mine worked out of his house on the Intercoastal.

If she liked the 4th gen I would not even consider keeping the 3rd. My friend had a 2wd 3rd gen for his wife, she didn't like it so they got a 2011 Rav 4 4wd, which she loves now. Keep the wife happy.

 

[thirstyturtle]

The roads around Wilmington aren't the best. My uncle retired to Holden Beach for some time and a buddy of mine worked out of his house on the Intercoastal.

If she liked the 4th gen I would not even consider keeping the 3rd. My friend had a 2wd 3rd gen for his wife, she didn't like it so they got a 2011 Rav 4 4wd, which she loves now. Keep the wife happy.

Ya at the time, the 4th gen was my DD and she had an Acura TL. I sold the 4th gen V8 and got a VW TDI because fuel cost was killing me as I drive about 40k miles a year for work/life. In retrospect, should've given her the 4th gen and sold the Acura but we couldn't afford that. Not sure we can afford a 4th gen Sport 4WD which is what I would want but who knows...

Can anyone comment on the ride comparison between Monroe Quick struts and sensatracs vs. stock Toyota coils and shocks?

 

[averyislost]

I just noticed this thread, I live here in Wilmington as well.

I can't comment on the Monroe struts specifically, but I can tell you there was a big difference in the feeling of the suspension between the stock setup and what I'm running now. A little stiffer than the stock setup, but definitely more controlled and less bouncy over bumps.

And I can definitely agree that Wilmington roads are pretty rough. Most of my trip to school is spent dodging potholes and other road defects

 

[thirstyturtle]

I just noticed this thread, I live here in Wilmington as well.

I can't comment on the Monroe struts specifically, but I can tell you there was a big difference in the feeling of the suspension between the stock setup and what I'm running now. A little stiffer than the stock setup, but definitely more controlled and less bouncy over bumps.

And I can definitely agree that Wilmington roads are pretty rough. Most of my trip to school is spent dodging potholes and other road defects

The more I talk to her the more I understand that the ride is alright for the truck, but she wants a less "trucky" truck.

4th Gen in our future perhaps...