There are a number of reasons why people choose to install leveling kits on their Tundras. Sometimes, the desired effect is aesthetic – some owners prefer a truck that’s horizontally flat rather than a truck with a slight forward rake (which the Tundra comes with out of the box). There are also those who have a heavy accessory on the front end – like a winch or bumper guard – that are looking to level out their truck to reduce front-end suspension sag.

There are also a lot truck owners that are looking to upgrade their tire size, and a leveling kit (a.k.a. front-end lift) is one way to fit bigger tires on your truck (without a lot of tire rub). No matter what you’re looking for, a leveling kit is an inexpensive accessory that won’t hurt your warranty. (For more info, check out our guide to Tundra lift kits and Tundra leveling kits).

Toyota Tundra leveling kit from RIZE Industries

Rize Industries has a leveling kit for both two and four-wheel drive, 2007-and-up Toyota Tundras. Much like the lift and leveling kits we’ve reviewed from ToyTec and Low Range Off-Road, the kit from Rize industries is made from CNC aluminum. We’re big fans of aluminum as a spacer material – it’s stronger than urethane and more resistant to corrosion than steel.

In terms of installation, this is an in-spacer leveling kit. “In-spacer” means that it replaces the top plate on the strut rather than sitting above the top plate (which is the one of the main differences between leveling kits). The in-spacer design means that you’ll need to disassemble the strut assembly in order to install the kit. Since safely dis-assembling a strut assembly requires the use of a spring compressor, you might want to consider professional installation.

Otherwise, if you’re going to install this thing at home, you’ll want to enlist the help of your local auto parts store or shop to get your struts taken apart and put back together. The “spring compressors” you can rent are usually poor quality and somewhat dangerous.

In terms of negatives, the big “knock” on in-strut spacer lift kits is that they hurt a vehicle’s ride quality. Since in-strut spacers pre-load the front springs, spring travel is reduced. Some argue that the spring rate is reduced as well, meaning the ride is stiffer. To counter this criticism, Rize guarantees that the kit will make absolutely no difference in the overall ride quality of your Tundra. This claim seems perfectly reasonable based on our experience with the similar kit from ToyTec.

Rize also guarantees the kit will align properly…which means that the alignment after installation won’t be outside of factory specs. This guarantee shouldn’t need to be made – a quality leveling kit shouldn’t cause alignment to go beyond spec. Still, it’s nice to see Rize talk about this aspect of installation. Rize also has a lifetime warranty on the kit.

Rize Industries says the front-end lift of their Tundra leveling kit is 2.4″…which sounds about right for level. Again, we haven’t installed or tested the kit to verify the claims, but most competitive leveling kits offer a similar amount of lift. Based on this number, it seems feasible to run 33″ tires underneath a Tundra with a Rize leveling kit.

The cost of the Rize leveling kit is comparable to the other kits we’ve reviewed – it’s available for as little as $220 on AutoAnything.com. While that’s not quite as inexpensive as the kits from ToyTec (especially if you use the TundraHeadquarters ToyTec discount code), but AutoAnything does offer free shipping.

Until we have tested a kit from Rize, we’ll reserve final judgment. However, based on everything we’ve seen, there’s no reason to think the Rize kit doesn’t perform as advertised.

Do you have the Rize leveling kit on your Tundra? Please leave a comment below – and be sure to review it here too.

Have you read our Toyota Tundra towing guide?