Ride Quality: Icon vs King

[DeepSea88]

A few update pics. The Spidertrax spacers have improved the handling slightly and of course her stance. Method race wheels are also new to the rig. Rear bumper is the last thing I'll need for her...for now!

 

[chrissurfr]

I wish I would have seen this thread earlier.

I have my Kings on the softest setting, and I must say, every little pot hole at 5-40 mph rattles the car apart.

I guess I may need to revalve them for street use.

Live an learn.

 

[Bill_B]

It seems like there is a lot of mixed reviews...


Is it safe to say that if you're doing high speed off roading (desert running) should stick with the Kings, and that if you're doing a lot of low speed off roading (90% 4LO through trails) you should consider the Icons?

I know anything I get is going to most likely be "harsher" on road than the current XREAS setup I have which is my absolute main concern.

 

[MrGainzz]

It seems like there is a lot of mixed reviews...





Is it safe to say that if you're doing high speed off roading (desert running) should stick with the Kings, and that if you're doing a lot of low speed off roading (90% 4LO through trails) you should consider the Icons?



I know anything I get is going to most likely be "harsher" on road than the current XREAS setup I have which is my absolute main concern.

Not necessarily. Ride quality is subjective ,there are people who replaced their Xreas with Bilsteins 5100s and they found the ride is better than before. There are also people who find Kings and icons are harsher and stiffer than the Xreas.
So the best way to find out what kit you should go with is to find a few local guys who have the kits you want to buy on their trucks and test drive them then you can decide.

Personally speaking,I don’t think you need high end coilovers. They require regular maintenance and ride will start to suffer if you don’t maintain them. Also ,you won’t fully maximize their “potential”.


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[Bill_B]

Not necessarily. Ride quality is subjective ,there are people who replaced their Xreas with Bilsteins 5100s and they found the ride is better than before. There are also people who find Kings and icons are harsher and stiffer than the Xreas.
So the best way to find out what kit you should go with is to find a few local guys who have the kits you want to buy on their trucks and test drive them then you can decide.

Personally speaking,I don’t think you need high end coilovers. They require regular maintenance and ride will start to suffer if you don’t maintain them. Also ,you won’t fully maximize their “potential”.


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Thanks for the advice. Perhaps I'll give a TRD Pro a test ride at my local dealership.. that could be a good start to see if I like how that rides.

 

[MrGainzz]

Thanks for the advice. Perhaps I'll give a TRD Pro a test ride at my local dealership.. that could be a good start to see if I like how that rides.

Try to get the new fox setup on the 19 Pros if you can,but they are like $2700.
Toyota engineers tuned those shocks for the 4runners.


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[T4DTRD]

For all you guys chiming in, this is a great comparison thread, but I'm wondering which stage Icon setup you guys are running?

Agreed great thread. I’m looking up icon haven’t heard of it. King most people I know use and are happy with.

 

[Waepek]

I'm ready to pull the trigger and get a full suspension lift kit but every time I read up on it the more confused I get. :banana: . I have somewhat narrowed it down to Icon Stage 5 and the King 2.5 with adjusters as they are only a few hundreds of dollars apart. Main goal is to keep the wife riding comfortably, achieve 2.5"-3" lift and trek through mountainous areas of the pacific northwest. Future upgrade will include underbody protection, sliders, roof rack, rtt and ladder. No plans for high speed desert runs, climbing over boulders or bumper swaps.
Do I even need these expensive coilovers? Is possible to achieve same goals with shocks n lift springs??

help?

 

[MrGainzz]

I'm ready to pull the trigger and get a full suspension lift kit but every time I read up on it the more confused I get. :banana: . I have somewhat narrowed it down to Icon Stage 5 and the King 2.5 with adjusters as they are only a few hundreds of dollars apart. Main goal is to keep the wife riding comfortably, achieve 2.5"-3" lift and trek through mountainous areas of the pacific northwest. Future upgrade will include underbody protection, sliders, roof rack, rtt and ladder. No plans for high speed desert runs, climbing over boulders or bumper swaps.

Do I even need these expensive coilovers? Is possible to achieve same goals with shocks n lift springs??



help?

You absolutely don’t need Icon stage 5 or King. Don’t overspend your hard earned money on something you don’t need.
You should look for shocks that don’t require maintenance.
Bilstein 6112 paired with Fox 2.0 is a very good combo for your wife and a lot of people who want to change the appearance of their trucks and comfortable ride,then you can spend the money that you saved on something else.


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[mtnbiker49]

Ugh why does everything have to be subjective?

The killers for me with coilovers are bridges, railroad tracks, and any road with frost heaves. For bridges, the road asphalt usually compacts or disappears where it meets the concrete bridge, creating anywhere from 1/2" to 3" of a sharp ledge to hit. Railroad tracks that are perpendicular with the road are not too bad, but if they are angled, it feels like death is imminent. Lastly, I think these are called frost heaves. Anyone that has been anywhere north or east of PA should know what I am talking about. Usually located on highways, they are bumps about a foot in width that stretch across a full lane. They start as a small bump and can eventually grow to upwards of 3-4" tall. Not uncommon to get them every 30' on the interstates.

I need to take test rides with both icon and king equipped 4runners. Apparently there is no correct answer as to what will smooth these bumps out.

 

[Morganl305]

seeking for some advice.

about to install my kings suspension and wondering what is the best lift height, 2.5 or 3'?

what are some pros and cons going either 2.5 or 3 inch lift

 

[Morganl305]

seeking for some advice.

about to install my kings suspension and wondering what is the best lift height, 2.5 or 3'?

what are some pros and cons going either 2.5 or 3 inch lift

 

[DeepSea88]

I went with a 3" lift. The biggest reason why is because of the amount of additional weight my 4runner would end up carrying. The front and rear after market steel bumpers, the armour underneath, the rock slider, the roof top tent, and everything else I ended up putting on the rig really weighed it down to when I essentially had a 2-2.5" lift overall. Thing will change slightly from rig to rig depending on a lot of variables. Can't really find any cons . Happy trails!

 

[NAHHT4R]

seeking for some advice.

about to install my kings suspension and wondering what is the best lift height, 2.5 or 3'?

what are some pros and cons going either 2.5 or 3 inch lift

I had this same question too before I got my Kings installed and I went with about 2.5 over the 3in lift, because I felt like going 3in might compress the springs too much and make the ride a little too stiff, since I didn't have adjusters.

 

[blackened_offroad]

mostly what I've gathered from this thread is that half the people thought their Icons were too harsh and switched to King, and the other half thought their Kings were too harsh and switched to Icon.

 

[Mudhorn]

I have the Kings adjustable on the 4Runner and enjoy them. Took some time to tune them in and find the settings for different road conditions.
On my old Raptor I had Icons. They were tuned in nicely for all conditions. I did a lot of high speed off-road in the Raptor and abused it. I got them after Icon rebranded and felt like they were good. The Raptor has a lot more travel for the suspension to soak up the terrain.
Can’t go wrong with any of the brands on here, how they are tuned will make or break.

 

[Morganl305]

I had this same question too before I got my Kings installed and I went with about 2.5 over the 3in lift, because I felt like going 3in might compress the springs too much and make the ride a little too stiff, since I didn't have adjusters.

if i was to go 3" lift, would you still get a 2" rear spring or 3" rear spring?

 

[Morganl305]

I went with a 3" lift. The biggest reason why is because of the amount of additional weight my 4runner would end up carrying. The front and rear after market steel bumpers, the armour underneath, the rock slider, the roof top tent, and everything else I ended up putting on the rig really weighed it down to when I essentially had a 2-2.5" lift overall. Thing will change slightly from rig to rig depending on a lot of variables. Can't really find any cons . Happy trails!

did you go with a 2" or 3" rear spring?

 

[NAHHT4R]

if i was to go 3" lift, would you still get a 2" rear spring or 3" rear spring?

You can go 2in in the rear to level or 3in to have a rake.
I was trying to level so I went 2ins, but also if you have a lot of weight in the rear then going 3in might level it out with the added weight.

 

[DeepSea88]

3" with an old man emu heavy duty rear spring. the reason I went 3" was because I knew I wanted to put on an after market rear bumper. the additional weight on a 2" rear lift would look like the 4runner was squatting. hope that helps!