Calling All Kings: an informational survey

[meeksodorifto]

i'm running king hydraulic bump stops in the rear actually. I have them set up to engage ~2" before the shock bottoms out so the bump stop bottoms out right before the shock does. So i have lots of space.

how do they feel offroad with bigger hits? If you have a little bit of weight in the back does it make a big difference? small stuff like expansion joints are usually tire/sidewall. once you actually get some axle movement then its up to the shock valving to control the spring movement.

i run them on the softest setting. I'm not sure if the softest setting is what the non adjusters are set at from King or what. (front are non adjusters)

Ahh, sorry I've misread your signature thinking you have duros in the rear and the HBS in the front. Not sure what the settings are for the non adjusters by default, but maybe somewhere in between softest and hardest.

Funny enough, I run D rated tires for this very reason, as E rated tires are overkill for my application. I run GY Duratracs which have one of the softer sidewalls available.

Once I airdown on the trail, the truck feels plush and nice. Big hits at speed feel great with the limitation of having non hydraulic bumpstops, ofcourse. I have an sr5 with the extra 2 seats in the back, so I think that adds weight, plus sliders too. When I have a full load of camping gear, the truck feels marginally better. Curious to see what you think since you're also running t13s. Could it be the springs not jiving well with the shocks? "Oversprung"?

TBH, that's not how kings were advertised (to me, at least). Most glowing reviews claim they improved the ride tenfolds, some mentioning going thru "washboard" forestry roads without airing down and not having a problem at all. Not mine tho. My teeth feels like it would fall out unless I airdown.

That said, offroad isn't my main concern, it's the on road manners that matters. Once I'm back at 35psi, the rear feels like my old ae86 corolla on 8kg swiftsprings and tokico shocks...it's jarring. Good for track car, bad for DD truck.

Ive researched tons of forums and the best response I got was from Tacoma world . Guy had a similar problem and he got accutune to revalve his kings to their proprietary flutter stack combination. Long story short, the guy said it definitely improved the ride. I would do this except...well, costs and the truck being down for a while.

Still chasing for an answer.. I'm sure getting flutter stacks is one of them but there should be a less drastic one out there.

 

[vt100]

Could it be the springs not jiving well with the shocks? "Oversprung"?

How much extra weight you have on the back of your truck?

Looking at the specs for your T13 it looks like they are 12% stiffer vs stock springs.
I've got Toytec Superflex which are 10% stiffer and with almost stock weight (except heavy rock sliders) ride is very harsh and bumpy. But once I put in extra weight (200+ lbs) and 4 ppl it starts feeling like a good foam mattress

PS: and I always run adjusters at 6 clicks on the road and zero off the road

 

[vipers28]

Thanks. I will pull them tomorrow. Suggestions for the saggy ass? Also do you have an exact part # for the Lexus bumps?

stock springs are softest. pull the timbrens and see how it does. replace with stock GX bumps or Durobumps. Anything that doesn't limit up travel. Stock bumps work but they are rock solid and not progressive at all

 

[honda250xtitan]

yea the wheelers are 12% spring increase, so empty they're firmer then stock. I prefer it, takes away the boat like feeling. Ride quality is so subjective though. i'd agree with your research that a new valve stack would help you out. they can make them softer thru the ride height portion of the shock travel. My kings feel softer then the fox 2.0's i had on the rear.

rear shocks are all over, throw some stocks on and send the kings in. or find someone local who knows what they're doing.

 

[honda250xtitan]

Thanks. I will pull them tomorrow. Suggestions for the saggy ass? Also do you have an exact part # for the Lexus bumps?

lower the front would be cheapest. new rear springs aren't much money either and you won't mess with the alignment. you'll also gain more room between the bump stop and the axle tube if you say go with a 1.5 spring you won't need a bump stop drop

https://www.toyota-4runner.org/3509579-post37.html

What bump stops are you running?

 

[usdmej]

Stock rate is 550.


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wow that's kinda surprising

now i regret not specing stiffer front springs now since i paired my coilovers with ICON 2" rear springs (15% stiffer)

 

[daytonaviolet]

wow that's kinda surprising

now i regret not specing stiffer front springs now since i paired my coilovers with ICON 2" rear springs (15% stiffer)

I’m in the same boat. Got my front kings nib locally but came with 550lb. I plan on havjng c4 low pro winch bumper soon, but I don’t want to have much preload. I found a set of 600lb locally for $100 so I’ll give those a try.

This site sells new springs .. kinda pricey ? I may need 650

King 14.0"x3.00" Coil Springs | POLY PERFORMANCE

 

[Itssslance]

wow that's kinda surprising

now i regret not specing stiffer front springs now since i paired my coilovers with ICON 2" rear springs (15% stiffer)

Curious how do you like those rear springs?
Do you have any added weight


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[usdmej]

I’m in the same boat. Got my front kings nib locally but came with 550lb. I plan on havjng c4 low pro winch bumper soon, but I don’t want to have much preload.

fwiw filthy motorsports talked me out of increasing the spring rate unless i was planning to add in the 200 pound range to the nose of the car (not even overall)

let us know how those 600# springs work tho!

 

[usdmej]

Curious how do you like those rear springs?
Do you have any added weight


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unfortunately have not installed anything yet and probably won't until around february. i plan on adding no more than 150 pounds to overall vehicle weight, tbh tho i was looking for a stock spring rate for the rear but couldnt find any in the 2" lift range

 

[4RUNNER4]

- Year/Model: 2020/SR5
- Compression adjusters: No
- KDSS: NO
- Spring rate: Stock King 550
- Preload: 10/10
- Height increase: about 3" lift
- Major weight upgrades: Sliders
- Changes that you have made in preload or spring rate and why: None
- A brief set of notes with your thoughts on your setup (firmness, ride height, etc): Bump stops helped with the stiffer ride at low speeds and parking lot bumps. Overall very happy

 

[honda250xtitan]

wow that's kinda surprising

now i regret not specing stiffer front springs now since i paired my coilovers with ICON 2" rear springs (15% stiffer)

itll be fine. my wheelers are 12% stiffer then stock and they match the stock king springs fine. stock rear springs are so soft to begin with.

 

[usdmej]

itll be fine. my wheelers are 12% stiffer then stock and they match the stock king springs fine. stock rear springs are so soft to begin with.

good to know, thanks!

 

[daytonaviolet]

- Year, model: 2016 Limited
- Compression Adjusters: no
- KDSS: no
- Spring rate: 600lbs
- Preload: 6 turns drivers 5 turns passenger
- Height increase: 23.5"
- Major weight upgrades: trd pro roof rack, predator steps
- Changes that you have made in preload or spring rate and why: added the 5 turns in hopes of getting ~ 3.5" lift
- Coming from TRD Pro Bilsteins and 2" Cornfeds, the Kings with 5 turns feels much stiffer. Also, trd skid plate is more visible as the radiator support spacers dropped it down 1/2".

 

[Skidmarcx]

- Year, model: 2020 TRD Offroad
- Compression Adjusters: yes
- KDSS: no
- Spring rate: standard 550lb
- Preload: left alone, standard adjustment which is no threads showing
- Height increase: about 2" up front, slightly lower on driver side, basically leveled the vehicle
- Major weight upgrades: no added weight
- Changes that you have made in preload or spring rate and why: none
- My thoughts on the setup: after a couple thousand miles I'm confident that things are settled and can give some good feedback, keep in mind I'm out in AZ where offroad you're in very rocky/rough terrain most of the time.

On and off road I feel every little bump at low speeds and gets better as speed increases, the compression adjusters offer 24 clicks from soft to firm and do make a difference to me and as of now I'm @ (street driving from softest 8 clicks up front and 0 clicks in back, off road from softest 12 clicks up front, 0 clicks in back), bigger bumps get soaked up WAY better than compared to stock, it's much more controlled especially when off road and in rocky terrain that's where I noticed it the most... I still notice the front end diving during a hard brake application, but I don't feel like it's excessive I honestly don't consider a big deal as it's still an improvement over stock.

I do have a concern though, I feel an imbalance between the front and rear as far as ride quality goes, the front feels nice and plush the harder you push it, but the rear feels very stiff/harsh no matter what the setting is on the compression adjusters, I thought it may be due to the rear of the vehicle being lighter, but I'm not entirely satisfied considering I'm on factory rear springs. I did contact King and their response was 'thats not normal' which from reading prior recent reviews I'm not alone here, they had asked me to check the nitrogen level in the rear reservoirs which ended up being at 125psi (not sure what's normal, they stated they start with 150psi when performing adjustments), I ended up relaying that info back to them and ultimately the issue is unresolved still as it sounds like this requires a more professional/experienced evaluation than I can provide myself. Perhaps I need to have them revalved I don't know.

Depsite my concerns it's still an amazing upgrade and is a vast improvement over stock while also giving me the abiltiy to adapt to accessories which I like.

 

[daytonaviolet]

How did you check the nitrogen levels in the rear reservoirs? I don’t have adjusters and also find the rears to be harsh. At least harsher then my trd pro Bilsteins. I know this because I ran the kings in the fronts for a few week as I waited for the rears to arrive. Once I installed the rear kings, I noticed the harshness right away.

I did contact King and their response was 'thats not normal' which from reading prior recent reviews I'm not alone here, they had asked me to check the nitrogen level in the rear reservoirs which ended up being at 125psi (not sure what's normal, they stated they start with 150psi when performing adjustments), I ended up relaying that info back to them and ultimately the issue is unresolved still as it sounds like this requires a more professional/experienced evaluation than I can provide myself. Perhaps I need to have them revalved I don't know.

 

[Skidmarcx]

How did you check the nitrogen levels in the rear reservoirs? I don’t have adjusters and also find the rears to be harsh. At least harsher then my trd pro Bilsteins. I know this because I ran the kings in the fronts for a few week as I waited for the rears to arrive. Once I installed the rear kings, I noticed the harshness right away.

Luckily I have a friend who’s proficient in this field and has the tank with manifold setup, it’s not that complicated to do, but not something I would try without knowledge on the subject... at least it kept me from paying a local 4WD shop to do this as I don’t own the equipment.

Fortunately, it will ride better as they ‘break in’ but it’s still a notable difference in ride quality between front to rear

 

[daytonaviolet]

Luckily I have a friend who’s proficient in this field and has the tank with manifold setup, it’s not that complicated to do, but not something I would try without knowledge on the subject... at least it kept me from paying a local 4WD shop to do this as I don’t own the equipment.

Fortunately, it will ride better as they ‘break in’ but it’s still a notable difference in ride quality between front to rear

Yes I’m hoping the rears will soften up a bit. I’m also debating if I should swap the rears to adjusters.

 

[mrblah]

2016, KDSS trail edition
- Compression Adjusters: yes
- KDSS yes, there was lean, but it was more likely to do with soft spring rates.
- Spring rate: stock kings 550lbs
- Preload (in turns / threads exposed): 8 turns both sides, to clear 285 tires and sag due to weight.
- Height increase (if available): a hair over 3 inches,
- Major weight upgrades: full aluminum skids, steel sliders, 250lb drawer system, fridge, dual battery system in cargo bay.
- With the added rear weight, I have a stink bug look going (cali lean)- Will address in the future w/ 650lb springs.
- No firmer than stock trail w/ KDSS. Found compression adjusters kind of gimmicky. Adjust it too soft, and you bounce all over the place, and adjust it too firm, you rattle your teeth. I left it in the middle setting (7 or 8 clicks).

UPDATE: (CHANGE SPRING RATES)
Year, model: 2016 trail edition

- Compression Adjusters: yes

- KDSS: yes

- Spring rate: Front: 700 (kings) Rear: 600-800 (Dobinson c59-328)

- Preload: (in turns / threads exposed): 1 or 2 turns, basically, stock or no preload.

- Height increase: front: 3 inches w/ no preload. rear: 3 and 1/2 inches (empty drawers)

- Major weight upgrades: slimline bumper, winch, sliders, aluminum skidplates (front/transmission/oilpan/gastank), steel diff, rear shock mount, and lower link skids. aluminum roof rack, drawer system, fridge. dual batteries.

- Changes that you have made in preload or spring rate and why: originally had 550 kings, and toytec superflex rear springs, and was hitting the bump stops on big hits, and vehicle wouldn't stop bouncing on moguls/woops. Also, suspension was sagging so much I had to do 8 turns on driver and 13 turns on passenger (blown shock).

- A brief set of notes with your thoughts on your setup: (firmness, ride height, etc) if you are running a full armored rig, just jump to 700 and be done with it. your spine will thank you for it, and no more guessing on preload. It will be firm-er..but you won't be bouncing around as much, and your spine will thank you since you won't be riding your bump stops on hard hits.

 

[Skidmarcx]

Yes I’m hoping the rears will soften up a bit. I’m also debating if I should swap the rears to adjusters.

I don’t know if I would if I were in your shoes being that all they do is get stiffer, I leave mine on the softest setting at all times and it’s stiff