Suspension upgrade, which one?

Hi Roy I have just done what you are going through, I have a 2006 Toyota and tow a 2500kg caravan. I got the OME 400kg springs on the rear and nitrous sports shocks front and rear and front torsion bars, all up it cost $1,860.00. when I picked up the car the mechanic said I will need to get a wheel alignment done. I was a little surprised when I spent this much that it wasn't included. The other quotes I had from other suppliers had it as a line item. So get heaps of quotes and ask allot of questions you will get many different responses.

I went for the OME product as a friend of mine has them on his cruiser and is happy with them. Also did goggle and Explore Oz searches and got some good feedback on their performance and reliability.

Good luck after you have it done you will notice a big difference in the setup of your patrol

Thanks Shaun

Roy

I am in much the same situation as you and i have asked a lot of questions on various forums and look at a lot of suspension kits available

When i go ahead i will probably use Koni 88 series Shockabsorbers (i would like 90 series Koni's but i might have trouble justifying them to my wife)

The reason for the Koni's over other brands is that with a lot of the others i have read a lot of positive & negative reports from users but with Koni's it seems to be all positive from people using them

If you want to give me a email address i will email you the phone number for a chap (in australia) who i have been told can supply Koni's at a very competitive price delivered to you door

Regards Don

Hi Roy, I would try Zordoes suspension, John sells all brands of suspension so he is not peddling any particular line. He can give you unbiased advice which you can't get at other places. I have the same setup as you and I went for Dobinsons springs with 45mm tough dog shocks. You con find Zordoes on the patrol forum.

Hi Roy

I don't know what use, or how rough your suspension is going to be used. I live in the Great Sandy Desert (Mulan Aboriginal Community), and have Old Man Emu shockies and steering stabiliser, front and rear, and I have Rockcrawler 400 kg springs on the rear. I own a 2000 Hilux.

I have never had a problem with them, and these roads where I am make most dirts tracks look like bitumen. Yes they are a bit more costly, but worth it in the long run.

Hope you do well with your eventual decision, whatever that may be.

Cheers

+3 for OME springs. Ive had them on for 10 years across all sorts of terrain, haven't had to replace the bushes either. There is still no noticeable sagging at all. Unbreakable, so they match the rest of my Hilux. :-)
I can't say the same for my Pedders springs on the front - they're as flat as a ruler. But they're about 15 yrs old.

EFS shocks seem to do the job too, they're a bit cheaper and I was suss at first but the 'new' set in my front seem to be hanging in there after 4 years. I checked them earlier this year after a particularly rough trip into the Duea where I shook out the bottom bolt and they are still good as new.

My rear shocks are foam cell (cant remember the brand) and again I was unsure but after 10 years they are still pretty good...but they definitely seem to work better under heavy load where they stabilise nicely.

hope that helps somewhat. probly not...
Rich