2016 Tacoma Suspension Lifts – What you need to know

The new 2016 Toyota Tacoma comes with a legendary reputation for off-road ability, reliability (besides the occasional frame replacement…), and crazy-high resale values. Yeah, you know all that. The real question is – what kind of lift will work on your new ’16 Tacoma and what size tire you can fit?

Thanks to some industry folks and on-the-ball 2016 Tacoma owners, we have some answers.

2016 Tacoma Suspension Basics – According to Toytec Lifts

Front Suspension:

• According to Toytec, the 2016 Tacomas have nearly identical upper/lower control arms, spindles, and coiler shock configurations as the 2005-2015 Tacomas. This means that, generally, the same parts from the prior generation are interchangeable with the new Tacoma.
• HOWEVER, all else being equal, Toytec’s ride-height measurement showed that the 2016 Tacoma rides 1” higher than the previous model (measured from the the center of the hub to the fender lip), and even confirmed it with a droop measurement. This basically means that for the new truck, the traditional 3” Toyota IFS suspension lift is really going to be more like 2”, unless you want to give up all of your down-travel and have a truck that rides like crap.

Rear Suspension:

• The new Tacoma’s rear suspension is identical to the prior generation. Toytec tested out their add-a-leaf and netted the a 2” lift, same as the prior gen Tacomas.

But can I fit 285s/35s/etc???:

• As always – an impossible question to answer and depends on what specific tire/wheel combo you are going with. Generally, it looks like the folks installing 2” lifts and 285/75/16 or 285/70/17 are either fitting these setups without rubbing at all or with rubbing at compression/lock that requires a little plastic liner trimming to eliminate. So, basically the same as the last Tacoma, current 4Runner, etc.

Bottom Line – All of the major Toyota Suspension players are in the game on the new 2016 Tacomas – since the stuff they already make for the 2005-2015 models directly bolts on! It remains to be seen if manufacturers will identify opportunities for unique 2016+ suspension hardware, beyond unique valving and spring rates.

First-Movers – Some of the first modified 2016 Tacomas

There are sure to be many more photos coming out in the next week or so with SEMA going on, but here are some early pics of some of the first modified 2016 Tacomas. They sure do look great!

Photo credits: Toytec Lifts, TacomaWorld.com members PNGO121, qnyla, and ARB USA.