Welcome to the asylum.
Bilstein finally steps to the plate…
- Thread starter DubDub
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It should feel close to stock on-road, the OEM suspension is pretty good. You should feel the most improvement off-road. I wanted to retain the OEM coils as they work great for my setup, the last thing I wanted was a very stiff coil spring that won't compress. The same can be said from being under sprung with a light coil spring rate. Since no one wants to tell us spring rates in comparison to OEM (only can carry x amount more load, etc), I'm not buying. This is so common and normalized in drag / race car applications, but in the 4x4 world it's as if we are dealing with internal trade secrets.
I don't do high speed desert off-roading or drive for hours on corrugations, if I did, I'd likely went to a 2.5" shock like the 6112's. Most of my 'offroading' is done under 20-mph, and I experienced no shock fade in Moab a few weeks ago, and we wheel for 6-8 hours at a time. There are a lot of people who should step away from IG and social media, many of those 'overlanding' builds perform far worse than stock off road. I carry the lightest kit that's practical to fix or solve 90% of the issues that we can solve on the side of the track. Use plastic containers instead of large, heavy drawer systems. Use a fridge that's low profile enough to open without having to add a track system.
IN SAYING THAT - if the rig is setup very heavy, full of gear and supplies (like the IG overland builds), I could see the benefit of external reservoirs and higher end shocks that may / may not need servicing every few years. For most people who do normal off-roading in stock / slightly modified vehicles, the money can likely be spent better elsewhere. They won't get you further down the track. When I start my Power Wagon overland build, it will have a lot more money tied up into suspension, being 8,000-lbs with a lot more flex and on a much, much larger tire.
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What spacer did you use in back? Post some pics!!
Ya this is what I was thinking. A small spacer wouldn’t worse ride quality at all? Purpose of me going this route was to avoid spacers. But since it’s so small probably wouldn’t notice. And agree .6” would allow me to jump to 1.5” upfront which would look like I actually did a small lift/ level. Worried 1.1” would not be noticeable.
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Let's be honest with ourselves, the difference between 1.1 and 1.5" of front lift is not going to be noticeable by anyone but you and the stock LC you park next to at the grocery store. Hell, I'd argue that 1.1" may not be super apparent to anyone.
A rear spacer will not hurt ride quality at all. Going too high and having your pan hard alignment incorrect will of course but there is no preload concerns out back and these Bilsteins are designed for the added height so you can lift with confidence.
I only got the 6112 for front was going to see how it was leaving read stock. (Not doing any hardcore off-roading) can I still use spacers with stock setup without affecting ride?
Absolutely, you're just limited on how high you can go. I would recommend something like the Peak 1" Rear Spacer.
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This is a decent question that isn't often asked. The rear system having separate shocks and springs is remniscent of the old leaf spring setups. I'd wager you'd lose almost nothing with a modest spacer, understanding that you are placing yourself in a different rest postiion in the rear shock's up/down travel range. You can always run the front 6112 in a stock or .7" setup without the need to adjust rear height, and still maintain a rake. I'm not one of those guys looking for any lift back there, but do want to address my static loading, so a spring is on my list.
I'm no expert on suspensions, but it seems like mixing shock series between front and rear would not be a good for vehicle dynamics. Is this commonly done?
I assume that Bilstien tunes the front and rear shocks of a series to work in harmony with each other. I could be 100% wrong.
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I would tend to agree. If @bremaj was going to push the capabilities of the 6112s I might throw caution, but they gave a use case of road driving and light off-roading. Bilstein doesn't even offer a spring to accomodate the range of the 6100 rears, so there's going to be some mix-matching happening regardless.
If you were switching entire personalities of the shock damping front to rear, it could lead to inconsistencies in feel. Both Bilstein and OEM Toyota shocks follow a relatively similar philosophy with the Bilsteins being a bit more digressive.
I would always recommend a full kit when it's in the budget but this kit is already designed to re-use OEM rear springs and the 6112/6100 kits are sold as halves to begin with so this would actually be well within Bilstein's intended use case.
I have an '08 4Runner that I put 5100's on (1.75" up front) with FJ coils and a 1" cornfed spacer on rear. I love this look and feel.
I don't have my LC yet but would likely lift it as soon as I got it. If I get 5100's again, is it reasonable to keep the stock springs? Or is there one that could provide some lift in the rear without a spacer? Don't go offroad much these days, and if I do, it would be gravel fire roads. Intend to put on 275/70/18.
Also - not sure if this happens to all vehicles or was worse on 4Runner, but the driver side sits a bit lower - probably at least half an inch - due to gas tank I think. I remember thinking if I did it again I'd have gotten a 0.25" thicker spacer on the driver's side rear.
I don't have my LC yet but would likely lift it as soon as I got it. If I get 5100's again, is it reasonable to keep the stock springs? Or is there one that could provide some lift in the rear without a spacer? Don't go offroad much these days, and if I do, it would be gravel fire roads. Intend to put on 275/70/18.
Also - not sure if this happens to all vehicles or was worse on 4Runner, but the driver side sits a bit lower - probably at least half an inch - due to gas tank I think. I remember thinking if I did it again I'd have gotten a 0.25" thicker spacer on the driver's side rear.
I’ve done “mixed” suspension setups on several different cars and really liked the results. My last car had Bilsteins up front and OEM in the rear. On another car I had KYB up front and KONI in the rear. I’m sure Bilstein will recommend you buy a complete set instead of half a set. In my experience on a daily driver, the only dynamic that is negatively affected is to OCD of having “mismatched” components. If you’re not going for maximum performance on a high end build, imo you can mix and match as much as you want. It makes sense to invest more up front than the rear, as the impact to handling and ride is a lot greater.
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It’s true no OEM like Toyota will likely ever share spring rate data, but in my experience, Radflo builds to order in the USA and is willing to discuss spring rates and options for their setups. They get a lot of positive reviews.
Absolutely. If you want spring with no spacer in the rear, I would recommend a Dobinsons or Eibach rear spring. These both pair well with the Bilstein rear dampers.
Neither of these offer exactly 1" of lift however so if you want to keep it at exactly 1", the Peak 1" Spacer is the best way to go.
There's nothing wrong with either route--since the rear is solid axle, neither route will affect travel and all 3 options ride fantastic. Good luck and let me know if we can help in any way.
If your only concern is a buttery smooth ride you need to look at progressively valved shocks. Bilstein's are digressive. Do some googling and you'll quickly learn the difference. Think Fox or King. There are also others. If you are really picky about ride quality and can spend the money Accutune Offroad does custom valving. I've had 6100's on my Tacoma for 60,000 miles and still love them. A little harsh on washboard, but that can be mitigated with proper tire pressure. They're nice and composed on the pavement but I wouldn't call them plush like a progressive shock. There is a tradeoff between tight handling and soaking up every bump. The only way you get around that is to spend $4,000 plus for adjustable shocks so you can have your cake and eat it too.
I had a 2015 4runner and did the exact same thing 5100 up front and a corn fed spacer on driver side rear. The Land Cruiser doesn’t have much for gas tank sag, I’m not going to mess with anything in the back for now. Going 6112 upfront at 1.1” and hope that solves floaty feeling, nose diving and help with stance. Love the look when it’s levelled
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