Westcott Designs Collar Lift

Hey All,

Was hoping to get a review of the Westcott Designs 3/1 Collar lift from someone who has already installed it. From my understanding the design is functionally different than a traditional spacer lift and it should ride pretty close to stock? Would love to hear from someone who has it installed what the ride feels like.

 

Following....especially if this is with the Air Ride/AVS rear extended link

 

it's alright. Cruising on a road that's decent it doesn't feel too bad, almost like stock. On rough roads or big bumps it feels like im riding in a car with coilovers on the stiffest setting. I haven't gone off roading with the kit installed yet but i will this weekend so ill see how that goes.

 

I've had it for about a month now on my 2022 Limited TRD OF with the stock wheels/tires (hopefully my tires come in today). I think it does ride closer to stock than probably a traditional spacer lift, but the suspension is stiffer and for me it's just a temp solution till I get the aftermarket suspension I want.

 

After all it is a preload collar lift so it will stiffen up the ride

 

Yeah, kinda what I figured. I'm probably just going to wait for a full suspension as I'm not dying to get new tires on at the moment.

 

I'll preface this to say I've never run a pre-load collar. I've run 4 spacer lifts and 2 full suspension lifts over the years on various vehicles. All but one of those have been self-installed.

Honestly, it's been my experience with spacer lifts that they rarely change the actual ride quality. Spacers don't change spring compression characteristics of the coilover unit like a pre-load collar does. They just extend the mounting point to push the wheel hub down allowing for larger tires.

Also...yes the Westcott kit uses a pre-load system, but it also uses spacers too on the front & rear. So it's not that different.

That's the reason why I went with a $50 2" spacer for the front for now and will go a full suspension lift in the future.

My 2 cents.

 

Stiff. I’ve leveled a gen one with 5100s, a gen 2 with standard puck spacer, and a gen 2 with full old man emu and have never had a significant ride change. This has made the ride embarrassingly rough for what the truck is. I’ll be swapping into a coil over asap. Lots of people love this set up so maybe I’m too sensitive but it rides like a 1995 3/4 ton.

 

I’d save my money in hindsight and just do a cheap spacer.

 

You have the pre-load collar installed and your ride got stiffer? It usually makes them softer since the spring is already compressed slightly.

 

Well I've got my kit on order by now i might change my mind... Hoping for better experiences with these out there.

 

Pretty much what these gents said in my experience (running them nearly 4 weeks now)…especially if a speed bump or pothole catches me off-guard where I can’t anticipate and correct.

I also have 295/70/18 E tires so that doesn’t help either.

 

For me, with STOCK tires, the truck rode VERY similar to stock. It was the addition of the E rated tires that stiffened up the ride on mine more than the lift did at all.

 

Would a spacer lift ride better? I'm wondering if i should just consider the Rc1.75 spacer or the readylift 2 in spacer. I had ready lift in my old tundra for about 5 years.

 

IMO if I had to do it all over again I'd save the coin and just do a traditional spacer lift. For me, the Westcott is just a temp solution till I can get a real suspension lift.

 

appreciate the opinion. I'm gonna cancel my order for the westcotts and just get a front level kit, probably readylift for now until there are better suspension lifts available.

 

If you go spacer lift...especially to save money...I would NOT go with the Rough Country spacer.

I ordered the RC spacer. Had it in my hands and was surprised at the poor quality & design of it for the price. It's just multiple pieces of steel cheaply welded together. Don't waste the $160. PLUS with the RC kit you have to cut the factory bolts on the tophat, which is dumb and prevents you from ever going back to stock (if you ever needed to). I returned it immediately.

Just spend $40 - $50 and get a CNC machined 1-piece aluminum spacer off of Amazon. I went with something like this:

$45 Dynofit 2" Leveling Lift Kit for Tundra & Sequoia, 2" Front Raise Suspension Strut Spacers for 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 Tundra

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0796QDVBG. It's the same spacer that DrivenCompanion has used on his YouTube channel allowing him to run 35's. I installed it on my truck.

Normally, I don't poo poo on RC products like a lot of folks...but for $160 with that build quality/design....it was a hard pass for me.

My 2 cents.

 

I was probably gonna go with the readylift 2" spacer lift but its probably built the same but I had good luck with theirs on my 2014 tundra but ill check out that Amazon lift as well

 

Where are you located? I will have the front preload collar lift from Westcott Designs here shortly. Willing to sell it for cheap.
I originally installed the Front level from westcott.. pretty happy with overall ride quality. However, after seeing @bigjuice's set up with the full 3/1 kit, i got jealous and ordered the full 3/1 from them lol. Unfortunatley they dont sell just the rear. So I'm only using the rear out of that kit. So will part out the full front kit out of the order. Let me know if you're interested, or anyone on here and I can sell it to you. Prefer local, but can ship it if needed.

With just the front kit, you can net close to 3" if you install the full front, or you can net 2 1/4" if you leave off the top plate. Choice is yours.

FYI, I went with the non-anodized version for faster shipping.
Kit is also for the TRD red shocks, so please double check if anyone is interested.

 

yeah im actually up in bellingham. ive been following toyotagarage in bellevue but i dont really wanna lose my ride quality...how much would you sell for? i would much rather prefer a 3/1 lift but I dont know if the westcott one is the one for me.

 

Ill let it go for $150 bucks, $170 shipped.

It'll cost you close to $360+ after tax & shipped from westcott.

Be sure to validate you have the red shocks. otherwise it might not fit.

 

do you have some pics? maybe you can pm me so we dont hijack this thread....or is it too late for that already haha.

 

lol pm sent, but you can refer to how the front will look in the lift thread.

 

aaaaaaaaaaaaaand ordered the Amazon kit. I too bought the RC lift and do not want to cut the studs. Will be up for sale shortly

 

Does anyone have a pic of the pro comp lift?

 

What?

 

After a 2 month wait, finally got my Westcott lift in. Slammed it on today and my 35’s. Just a short drive after I finished the alignment but feels just as plush as it did stock, probably more so with the bigger tires. Love the look now.

 

why does the front always look higher...i wonder if you dont put the top shim in then its more level?

 

3/4 of an inch higher on mine and maaayyyyybe without the top spacer it’s more level, perhaps a little lower up front.

 

I think it’s a play on the eyes (we are all used to the rake).
I thought so too and then got the Westcott and the measurements confirm that it’s not higher in front than the back.