Brand New Race Series Suspension From Dirt King: 2.0 Internal Floating Piston (IFP) & 2.5 Dual Compression Adjuster (DCA) – Detailed Overview & First Impressions
Competition is a good thing. It drives innovation and provides us, the consumers, with opportunities to shop around and learn what’s best for us.
Speaking of competition… Dirt King just launched their own line of suspension lift kits!
This includes coilovers and shocks, not just for Toyota, but also Chevy/GMC. They build products for other makes and models as well, so I imagine they’ll expand these products as time goes on.
This brand new option adds a quality choice for several Toyota models (currently covering Tacoma, 4Runner, Tundra). Well known and trusted for their other components – long travel kits, control arms, etc. – Dirt King can only be expected to put their name on a part if it’s tried and true.
After years of research, development, and testing, I’m stoked to be covering this new lift kit for Toyotas. Let’s take a look the two different choices and explore the differences.
This time, I was lucky enough to get my hands on these before they officially launched. This allowed me to thoroughly experience them and assist with any final “real-world” testing.
Find It Online
- Dirt King Shocks
- 2.5 DCA Remote Reservoir
- 2.0 IFP
General Features & Specs
Quick Summary
- provide extra wheel travel
- valving and front rate are vehicle specific
- can be totally rebuilt and serviced, parts are easily available
- contain internal top out springs
- aluminum component construction, for efficient cooling and corrosion resistance
- black, gray, and yellow anodizing
- induction hardened shafts
Summary Continued
- up to 3″ of lift (front coilovers)
- adjustable preload for fine-tuning, threaded coilover body
- direct bolt-on application
- custom, low-friction synthetic oil blend, made for high temps
- high tensile, cold wound front springs
- rear shocks come with optional boots
2.0 IFP
- 2″ hard anodized aluminum body
- Internal floating piston (IFP)
- 5/8″ shaft
The 2.0 coilovers and shocks are the more budget-friendly option for the new line. If you were to break up shocks into three price categories (entry point, mid-level, race series), these shocks would be considered a mid-level choice. This could be called the perfect shock if you’re looking to invest ~$1500 into your front coilovers and rear shocks.
While the following 2.5s are certainly an upgrade, if you’re looking for a really reasonable suspension to invest into, at this price point, I think you’ll be very impressed. From preliminary talks with others who have been testing these (R4T aka Runnin4Tacos) – the feedback has been really solid.
2.5 DCA
- 2.5″ hard anodizing aluminum body
- Internal floating piston (IFP)
- 3/4″ shaft
- Remote reservoir
- Dual compression adjusters (high and low speed)
- 10 adjustments per clicker
And now for the 2.5s. This is what I currently have on my truck. This suspension represents a high-end, race series lift kit. As far as mid-travel setups go, there really isn’t much to explore beyond something like this. At least not without getting into the realm of long travel.
With the added size, remote reservoirs, and adjustable compression damping, this kit is built to take just about anything you can throw at it. From long days of slow crawling on the rocks, to longer distance high speed desert cruising – if you’re ready to max out your mid-travel – this one’s for you!
Initial Impressions
In 2023, I spent the half of the year essentially rebuilding my entire truck. Call it – Truck 2.0. The final version of my 3rd Gen build. With that came a big focus on a new suspension. So, given the opportunity, I jumped on this kit. I had gotten a few details here and there over the last year or so, so I was really excited to run everything. Especially with that colorway! Black… gold… gray… How can you go wrong?! So clean.
From the moment I opened the boxes, I was impressed. The packaging with Dirt King is always amazing. The gold REALLY pops – and fresh out of the box – I was smiling ear to ear. All the hardware you need is included. Reservoir brackets, adjustment tool, everything.
From the moment I took the truck for its first spin around the block, I was impressed. Not just with the looks at that point, but also with the handling. I got an alignment soon after the first drive and it only got better.
3,000 Mile Review
While I’ve only had these shocks on for a couple months, my truck is a daily driver and we made it all the way out to the Overland Ozarks event by Express Rally soon after install. I actually pushed super hard and rebuilt the entire suspension with all new components in preparation for the off-roading trip. The meant I truly got to experience an all-new suspension.
After I got a chance to play with the adjusters, I quickly saw that the drive on road was buttery smooth. This especially goes for cruising at high speed, like on the highway. I’m still dialing in the setting, but I’ve got my compression adjusted (for high and low speed) right around the middle, and they’ve been great.
Now focusing more to off-road, the shocks have done exceedingly well. In the Ozarks, we were met with not only a very wet but also very rocky and rutted environment. We crossed countless streams, rivers and puddles. After 4 days straight, it was safe to say we gave the new setup a good shakedown.
The system does really well on uneven terrain. The performance only seems to get better the faster and hard you use it. I drive my trucks pretty hard. These parts are built for abuse, so you better believe I’m not being nice to them. We also tend to have ambitious goals for the amount of ground we like to cover, so you have to keep it moving. The point is, the new kit responds really well to hard use. The quicker I drove, and the tougher the obstacles, the better the response was.
I can honestly say – it meets and exceeds all my expectations thus far. I look forward to more miles in the future!
Final Thoughts
There are a lot of options to choose from for suspensions and lift kits. We do our best to test and show our readers the best ones. I can confidently say that this is one of them.
Dirt King has a great reputation. They’re well known for great fabrication and awesome customer service. Having been personally running their products for the last 3 years, I’m looking forward to several more. I’ve recently seen them release and tease a whole bunch of new items as well. 2+ LT kit has really caught my eye…
Anyway, an excellent product, and I look forward to seeing more of these out in the wild. Just look at those colors! So dope.
If you made it this far, here’s a spoiler. In this post, you can see the newly updated Dirt King ball joints UCAs. They’re not ready for release yet, but with a few new notable features, these pair really well with a new DK suspension.
