Requesting seasoned advise on choosing the right suspension components

[RockyRider]

I recently took a job in Central Oregon and before making the move I rushed out and bought a 2008 4Runner v8 4WD. I got the 4runner because I needed to get rid of my older car and I wanted something that was versatile and I could use for hauling my things out west. The 4runner did a great job of getting me across the country last month while pulling just under 12,000LB of weight total. I'm impressed that nothing broke and I got between 10 to 13 MPG which was not bad considering the weight.

Unfortunately the ride on my 4runner sucks. I can feel every road imperfection, and not in a refined connected to the road sports car kind of way. It's an uncontrolled shutter that shakes the body of the truck around at low speeds and gives me sea sickness at high speeds. It's not pleasant to drive on anything other than fresh smooth pavement. Right now I hate how it rides.

I've been looking over suspensions from Toyotech and ICON and I'm feeling lost. I want to build a truck remains as stable/flat on the road as possible but can also hand hauling ass down uneven desert roads without shaking the truck, or me, to pieces, maybe withstand a bit of jumping too?

In addition I hear people talk about different lift heights? What's considered the best lift/wheel/tire combo that gives the most versatility?

Hopefully you guys can put me in the right direction.

This bad boy has me drooling.
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/aDKxYMQ41EE" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Here is what were working with.

 

[BOFFROAD]

If you want to haul ass through the desert, Toytech isn't going to cut it. You'll have to go with Icon. That's what I've read, not experienced, yet. I just put ICON on mine and I wanted the same thing as you, good handling on and off road and I wanted something to be able to handle some hard hits. I have not taken it in the dirt yet, but on road I like it. It handles better than I expected in the corners. The rear is a bit firm but not bad IMO. I have the front at 3 inches of lift and I want 33" tires. I think that will be best for looks and offroad performance.

When I was researching in Icon I watched that video many times. I will go watch it now. Looks FUN!

 

[RockyRider]

I assume the most important thing needed for the type of high speed desert travel is a dual reservoir system. 5 grand seems to be the entry point for that type of system. The systems above that include milled suspension parts.

Stage 5 - Dual Reservoir

$4,955.69
Difference
Milled Upper Control Arm
2003-2009 Toyota 4Runner 0-3.5" Suspension System - Stage 5 | K53055

Difference
Tubular
2003-2009 Toyota 4Runner 0-3.5" Suspension System - Stage 5 (Tubular) | K53055T

 

[Morphyne]

Hey there RockyRider, hit me up when you do this. I might be interested in your old OEM air bags, which I assume you have since you have a V8 limited?

 

[Tooltime19]

Icon is top notch. You can also look up at Camburg.com, or Total Chaos.com. They too have long travel kits that work as well or better than Icon. There are some really great working high speed long travel kits out there, so take your time, do your research and make sure you purchase the right kit for your needs is what I tell all my customers. I personally love the new FOX DSC front and rear shocks. Thats whats going on my rig soon, along with other updated goodies. My current system is just ok for daily playing around. But the long travel kits take our rigs to the next performance level.

 

[Inv4drZm]

In addition I hear people talk about different lift heights? What's considered the best lift/wheel/tire combo that gives the most versatility?

I'd stick with a 33" tire for now, any taller, or more importantly on our vehicles, any wider, would create lots of trimming and bump stop extensions= limited wheel travel. One thing not often talked about on our rigs is the travel range of aftermarket suspension setups. The more lift you get, the less down travel is achieved due to the limited suspension geometry. This has a bigger effect at high speed "desert running" than low speed crawling IMO. So a 3" lift in front, 2" in back will get you the clearance to run these tires.

If you are serious about using your truck for these high speeds and want the best hardware, I would recommend Icon's S2 setup or a full-on long travel system. One thing you can look into are bypass shocks which allow much more adjustability for compression and dampening characteristics.

However, for a daily driver/ occasional weekend warrior, any 2.5" diameter rear shock/coilover system would be great but remote reservoirs with compression adjusters would be better.

My brother has Icon coilovers and 2" rear shocks on his FJ and it floats on dirt roads at high speed. I expect the Icon remote reservoir coilovers with CDC and remote reservoir rear shocks I haven't installed yet will be an improvement.