Im thinking of installing an ome suspension kit that is supposed to give me 2" inches. I really want the lift, but im getting worried about how it will affect my day to day ride. Does anyone have any complaints? The truck is still going to be a daily commuter so i dont want to loose much of the natural softness of the stock suspension, which even with 100k miles I still think it rides great. So, is it a good buy? Will i loose too much confort on road driving? I would really apprecciate if people with the OME kit would answer based on their experiences. Thank you!
Old man emu suspension Stiffness
- Thread starter vicho09
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S p a r k y
New member
Run Down for what we have at my house.
2004 T4R, Owned for 12 years. have 5100's and OME 885's for I don't know how many of those years. toytec superflex's in rear.
2014 T4r Limited. owned 3 years. stock
2006 Tundra, owned 1.25 years. Started with Bilstein 6112's and 5160's Hated the ride. Went to full OME setup. So far this is the best for me. Prefer the OME shock over the 5100, no question.
Is your OME going to be "stiffer" yes it will. Stiff is not a bad thing. Anytime your getting lift from a spring its going to be stiffer. My 6112/5100 is stiff as well. The 6112/5100, mono tube is Harsher over bumps. OME shocks handles everything much smoother. A good analogy to me is a sharp knife vs a not so sharp knife. Both do the job and work well. The sharp knife just works smoother.
I think the OME gets a bad wrap when someone especially in a t4r, chooses the wrong rear spring.
Super happy with my OME setup over my Bilstein.
I read on tacomaworld somewhere. "You see people going from Bilstein to OME, but usually don't see OME going to Bilstein. That really made me think.
Again, moral is. If you want lift, its going to be stiffer. But most people like that better.
2004 T4R, Owned for 12 years. have 5100's and OME 885's for I don't know how many of those years. toytec superflex's in rear.
2014 T4r Limited. owned 3 years. stock
2006 Tundra, owned 1.25 years. Started with Bilstein 6112's and 5160's Hated the ride. Went to full OME setup. So far this is the best for me. Prefer the OME shock over the 5100, no question.
Is your OME going to be "stiffer" yes it will. Stiff is not a bad thing. Anytime your getting lift from a spring its going to be stiffer. My 6112/5100 is stiff as well. The 6112/5100, mono tube is Harsher over bumps. OME shocks handles everything much smoother. A good analogy to me is a sharp knife vs a not so sharp knife. Both do the job and work well. The sharp knife just works smoother.
I think the OME gets a bad wrap when someone especially in a t4r, chooses the wrong rear spring.
Super happy with my OME setup over my Bilstein.
I read on tacomaworld somewhere. "You see people going from Bilstein to OME, but usually don't see OME going to Bilstein. That really made me think.
Again, moral is. If you want lift, its going to be stiffer. But most people like that better.
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vicho09,
You will guaranteed loose the plush stock ride comfort with the firmer valved shocks & stiffer springs that Old Man Emu kits are known for. They are primarily designed for modified and heavily laden vehicles used off-road, but there are on-road benefits as well.
My 4runner is light weight and mostly stock... LT rated all terrain tires and rear drawers that weigh 240lbs. I run OME #2885 (medium) front springs w/ Nitrocharger Shocks, and OME #2895 (medium) rear springs w/ #90005 (heavy) Nitrocharger rear shocks. The body roll, lane-change stability and highway handling characteristics are *significantly* better than the stock XREAS suspension w/ 120k miles on it. I also ran the heavy #2896 rear springs on #90005 shocks.
The trade off is an overall stiffer ride over potholes, man hole covers, speed bumps and expansion joints when the truck is empty and has less than 1/2 tank of fuel. Once there's 400+ lbs of cargo drawers, water and camping gear - the ride quality is super compliant both on and off road.
If I didn't plan on ending up with a super heavy rig, I'd consider the Old Man Emu #2884 (light) front springs with corresponding OME shocks, and #2895E rear springs with the standard #90004 Nitrocharger shocks (which are 15% softer the the '90005's). If i planned on keeping a lightweight rig and I just want to clear larger tires without loosing ride comfort, I'd look at Toytech or Bilstein 5100's with OEM rated springs.
If you need pics for reference or additional details, let me know.
You will guaranteed loose the plush stock ride comfort with the firmer valved shocks & stiffer springs that Old Man Emu kits are known for. They are primarily designed for modified and heavily laden vehicles used off-road, but there are on-road benefits as well.
My 4runner is light weight and mostly stock... LT rated all terrain tires and rear drawers that weigh 240lbs. I run OME #2885 (medium) front springs w/ Nitrocharger Shocks, and OME #2895 (medium) rear springs w/ #90005 (heavy) Nitrocharger rear shocks. The body roll, lane-change stability and highway handling characteristics are *significantly* better than the stock XREAS suspension w/ 120k miles on it. I also ran the heavy #2896 rear springs on #90005 shocks.
The trade off is an overall stiffer ride over potholes, man hole covers, speed bumps and expansion joints when the truck is empty and has less than 1/2 tank of fuel. Once there's 400+ lbs of cargo drawers, water and camping gear - the ride quality is super compliant both on and off road.
If I didn't plan on ending up with a super heavy rig, I'd consider the Old Man Emu #2884 (light) front springs with corresponding OME shocks, and #2895E rear springs with the standard #90004 Nitrocharger shocks (which are 15% softer the the '90005's). If i planned on keeping a lightweight rig and I just want to clear larger tires without loosing ride comfort, I'd look at Toytech or Bilstein 5100's with OEM rated springs.
If you need pics for reference or additional details, let me know.
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Thanks a lot! I will look into the toytec lift kits, I think im more convinced with those
OME Coils
I can’t speak to shocks but I have found OME springs to be stiff when riding unloaded. In my 2nd Gen, I fixed this with a few sandbags behind the seat.
With my current 4th Gen Ltd., I have 2” coil spacers up front. My rear air suspension is shot so I’m replacing with 2” Icons. They are supposed to be softer when driving unloaded, but obviously are not as good as the OMEs loaded. I’ll take that trade off.
I can’t speak to shocks but I have found OME springs to be stiff when riding unloaded. In my 2nd Gen, I fixed this with a few sandbags behind the seat.
With my current 4th Gen Ltd., I have 2” coil spacers up front. My rear air suspension is shot so I’m replacing with 2” Icons. They are supposed to be softer when driving unloaded, but obviously are not as good as the OMEs loaded. I’ll take that trade off.
TotalAutomotiveLV
New member
OME Kits are a great option.
It really does come down to the coils for sure. If staying
at stock weight, medium load is a perfect fit for most.
Part #OMEKIT-001
_
It really does come down to the coils for sure. If staying
at stock weight, medium load is a perfect fit for most.
Part #OMEKIT-001
_
Justbuckstuff
New member
Ive got OME on my GX which is I believe the same system. I find those complaining about stiffness picked the wrong strength. Ive got a steel bumper and winch so heavy front, roof rack and gear so medium in the rear. Its perfectly comfortable and ive beaten the shit out of it. its miles better than my stock 4runner suspension which I hate.
As everyone has mentioned already, there will be increased “stiffness” but that doesn’t mean bad. I have OME 886 (heavy) w/the firm valved nitrocharger shock. With a v/8 and a bumper w/ no winch, I found the ride to be perfect. I recall old pot holes I’d hit and bounce around on my morning commute, but when I got my lift, I’d hit the pot holes but no more bouncing and swaying.. so that was the “see I told ya” moment to my longtime GF haha
AndroT100
Member
miller507
New member
Pretty much on the money here. I started with the heavy combo but over time decided I was gonna keep it as light weight weekend warrior.
Swapped 884's in the front and 80 series front coils in the back paired with 5100's all around to avoid the heavier valved OME, been this way for the past 3 years and no issues whatsoever and I wheel the crap out of her.
Will have to switch to a 885s or 886s if I decide to add a bumper/winch setup rear has about 200lbs of audio crap in the back and doesn't sag much atleast now enough for it to be noticeable.
