Towing a camper with a 3 inch lift.

hello all! New to this group, first thread. I have a 2016 SR5 currently with stock suspension. I have a 3 inch budget Rough Country lift waiting to go on. I have 3500 Lbs. Camper that I pull in the Midwest a few times a year. Even with the leveling hitch, It sags pretty good in the rear. I'm looking for some thoughts on improving the ride while towing, and not make it terrible without wight in the back. I've looked into stiffer rear springs, or helper springs. any advice would be great. These sound like they might help, but not sure if effective after the lift is on.
SumoSprings
https://www.etrailer.com/Vehicle-Suspension/Toyota/4Runner/2016/SS68DR.html?VehicleID=2016125882

 

Return it. Not very highly regarded. Seriously consider something like a Dobinson https://rocky-road.com/shop/dobinson-4runner-lift-kit-5th-gen/ set up with those SumoSprings or one of the many options from Dobinson. You'll be much happier. The guys at Rocky Road are very helpful and can advise you on which rear spring. For only towing a few times a year, you might have to deal with a little sag. That's why the nose down rake is engineered into the 4R. Not to mention, going anything above 2-2 1/2 inches is probably going to require new UCAs.

 

Welcome from Denver!

That's a lot of weight for a 4runner. You don't want to sag when towing. I tow my popup, its about 2200lbs. I plan to get these for my set up. Make sure to buy your upgrades on a holiday for the sale and save money

https://superspringsinternational.com/4runner/
https://rogue-offroad.com/REAR-SPRINGS_c_3865.html

 

Awesome! I appreciate the feedback! I went from an Expedition pulling the camper to the 4runner. the 4R is rated for 5k, but I feel pretty maxed out. Rogue has old man Emu 2889s for a reasonable price. this would give me some lift, paired with the sumos would be a good start for around $500. Corporate (wife) hasn't authorized my build budget for the year for any more than that. Dobinson kit looks great, but will have to go on the wish list for now.

 

more coin needed for good upgrades.

 

Personally, I wouldn't add the OME springs. Just do what you need to do to solve for towing that camper. But of course, you do whatever you want.

With $500, maybe you should consider the sumo springs and buying a newer set of stock takeoff shocks / struts. Being a 2016, the stock ones are probably a bit worn. If you want to eliminate the rake a bit, maybe some cornfed spacers for the front but I would definitely not go more than 1" (.5" spacer).

Then, if you really want, start squirreling away some cash for a higher end setup.

The rabbit hole is deep.

 

Are you carefully balancing the weight loafing of the trailer? 11% of total trailer weight (some think more) should be on the hitch.
Here is a clever DIY to direct measure the hitch weight. The internet provides details of math and construction details.

 

Welcome

 

As @Hungryhawk mentioned, make sure you're distributing cargo weight correctly in the trailer. You don't want to overload the tongue, but you also don't want to be too light on the tongue.

Make sure you have the correct drop on your hitch so that the trailer rides level.

I have no personal experience with them, but airbags seem like a good solution to being able to support extra weight periodically, while being able to lower the pressure for regular driving. Hopefully someone who has used airbags can weigh in on that.

 

You definitely want to upgrade your shocks. Eibach Pro Truck shocks or 5100 are budget friendly.

You can adjust the front with factory springs 0"-2.5". I'd also get rear springs with a heavy weight rating

 

What's the purpose of the lift? That'll help you figure out the correct height. Generally, 3" is too much lift for these.

2" front, 1" rear is pretty much ideal if you don't want to have to do other mods.

 

I had been working toward a 3 inch lift mainly because that seemed like a reasonable gain without having to do too many additional mods. What I'm getting here is 3 inches may be alot of lift to start with. I don't do a lot of trail/offroad driving with it, but we do take it to OHV park in northern Wisconsin at least once a season that allows non-full size trucks to wheel. i would like to do more of that, however the stock height and tires seem a bit limiting. the lift I have was actually gifted to me, so I feel a bit committed for the price.. I figured Id us it as my starter lift and go from there, but its a balance of function, form, my corporate's (wife) ability to get in it, price and use. I don't want to be the guy that just wants to jack it up to look cool. I would love to work into some overlanding and trails. I really do appreciate everyone's input here. Its given me a lot to think about.

 

Assuming what you were gifted are spacers and maybe some extended rear shocks. Putting it on will make it ride like trash (spacers + loss of caster) and there's a good chance you'll tear the front cv boots. It will end up costing you more than it's worth. A gift shouldn't obligate you to install it. Give it back. These rigs are plenty capable at stock height.

Also keep in mind that lifting it doesn't change the ground clearance of the rear diff.

For what it's worth, I just drove a bunch of trails in Moab with a 2 inch all around lift. No significant clearance issues. Note that even that 2" lift required UCAs to get caster in spec.

 

3" is fairly common. But, you'll most likely need aftermarket upper control arms to get the alignment in spec. At up to about 2 5" you can generally get it in spec with stock UCA's.

A bunch of us from here and Tacomaworld will be there this weekend!

FWIW; I've been through every trail in that park on a 2.5/1 5" lift. Armor is almost more important than lift in all of those rocks.

 

The thing to keep in mind that (generally speaking) an IFS lift doesn't really add any suspension travel, it just changes where the ride height is in the existing travel range. These vehicles only have about 4" of down travel, so a 3" lift eats up most of it.


Check out this video. He has a whole series on IFS Toyotas (this is #1) and should be required watching for anyone looking to lift.

https://youtu.be/_68Hc8GtLko?si=p-GxoJdaLW24PTrI

 

I've done some long distance towing of a 3000lb trailer and a fully loaded rig with this rear kit: https://eibach.com/product/AK31-82-071-03-02?epsid=2000. Granted it was paired with 2.5" shocks, but road manners were decent, and sag was pretty minimal. When the 4runner is unloaded, the lift is approximately 2.5", but it's adjustable.

 

Most importantly is how your load is centered over the tires and what percentage of the weight is on the tongue. 10%-15% is where you want to be. This video only shows light tongue weight sway problems, to heavy on the tongue will also cause unsafe handling characteristics.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9Dgxe584Ss

 

Ok, You must have started too low on your upgrade amount between you and corporate....
But that is in the rearview now.
Go back to corporate and advise to properly and safely upgrade your T4R for the upcoming travels', you will need an advance ($$$) from corporate and the make sure to tell (her) corporate how awesome the adventures are when its done right.....

 

I have airbags on mine.
I only pull a 5x8 utility trailer with an ATV mostly. Other times with other items on the trailer.
My AirLift1000s work and take the sag from the tongue. Air mine to max of 30 psi loaded, 5 psi when unloaded.
I'm not nearly adding the weight the OP is.......