Most trucks at the SEMA Show are parked so you can admire the paint. The Tacoma in the MagnaFlow booth is up on a lift with its wheels off, so you can admire the suspension. That’s fitting, because nearly everything worth talking about on this build lives between the frame and the hubs.
The truck is a 2026 Toyota Tacoma TRD Off-Road that Camburg Racing bought as an R&D platform. The goal was to see how much of its race-proven engineering could be integrated into Toyota’s new design, improving performance, quality and durability while staying true to the truck’s factory parameters. The centerpiece is Camburg’s new KINETIK Series 3.2-inch Integrated Bypass front coilovers and rear shocks.
A Race Shop With Deeper Pockets
Camburg Engineering was founded in 1997 by Jerry Zaiden and Jason Campbell, who built parts for off-road race teams before moving into the consumer aftermarket. The MagnaFlow Group acquired the Huntington Beach company in December 2022, with both founders staying on to lead suspension development and racing.
MagnaFlow has been making big investments ever since, and the results are visible. A new Camburg 1600 Spec Unlimited race truck debuted at SEMA 2023, and driver Kyle Jergensen used it to win his class and finish second overall at the 2024 Mint 400. In 2026, the team won the Parker 400 and Silver State 300 in the inaugural American Off-Road Racing Championship, and Jergensen took the overall win at the Mint 400. Camburg also debuted a new AWD race truck design this year and launched its own aftermarket shock program.
That last move is the significant one. Camburg historically paired its control arms with dampers from outside partners, such as Camburg-tuned Bilstein 6112s. Building its own shocks is the clearest sign yet of the vertical integration MagnaFlow President Dan Paolone describes as core to the group’s strategy.
Bypass, Moved Inside
A traditional external bypass shock routes fluid through tubes mounted outside the shock body, letting tuners set different damping at different points in the stroke. It’s the standard on desert race trucks, but those tubes are hard to package on a mid-size IFS pickup.
Camburg says its patent-pending Integrated Bypass marks the first time the independent, position-sensitive control of a true external bypass race shock has been engineered into a compact truck coilover and rear shock platform. Instead of hanging tubes off the side, Camburg builds seven bypass circuits into the shock body. Each one provides the equivalent of a 9/16-inch OD race bypass tube.
The ports use a patented non-circular design with chamfered passages, which Camburg says reduces fluid friction, cavitation and wear.
Three Zones, Tuned Independently
The seven circuits are managed by three independent zone adjusters: one for ride compression, one for bottom-out support and one for rebound. Each adjusts softer or firmer from an optimized baseline, and the adjustments are precision-metered for consistent, repeatable tuning.
In practice, an owner can firm up bottom-out resistance for a hard day in the desert without stiffening the part of the stroke the truck uses on the highway. Conventional adjustable shocks generally force a compromise between the two.
Race-Derived Internals
The damping hardware comes from Camburg’s patented KINETIK race bypass shocks. That championship-proven spool valve technology has been reengineered for street trucks, using precision-ground linear spool valves that improve fluid metering, reduce noise and deliver predictable, repeatable tuning.
Inside is a full-size 2.5-inch tapered-port piston. Because the bypass is integrated, Camburg says the design preserves the full working piston area, and that larger piston area increases damping-force capability and control under demanding conditions. Jergensen torture-tested the system during the 2026 Vegas to Reno Legends Rally before it reached the show floor.
The shocks are currently offered for 2024-and-newer Tacomas.
The Rest Of The Corner
With the front wheels off, the supporting hardware is on full display. Up front, KINETIK Series X-Joint XL billet upper control arms replace the factory arms, joined by a Camburg Performance Slapper lower control arm. KINETIK 2.5-inch hydraulic bumps manage the last inches of travel.
Out back, KINETIK Series billet rear lower trailing arms locate the axle, and the 3.2-inch Integrated Bypass rear piggyback shocks handle damping. A KINETIK 2.5-inch hydraulic rear bump can kit adds a race-style safety net for big hits.
Factory Where It Counts
Above the suspension, the truck stays close to stock. Power comes from Toyota’s 2.4-liter turbocharged I-4, backed by the factory 8-speed automatic and 4WD. Sister brand MagnaFlow supplies its Overland Series Performance Exhaust.
Rolling stock consists of KMC Impact FFT wheels and Toyo Tires Open Country A/T III all-terrains. Baja Designs provides A-pillar mounts and lights plus fog lights, a CBI Offroad Fab Covert Low Profile Bumper covers the front, and a Superwinch handles recovery.
Race It, Then Sell It
When MagnaFlow bought Camburg, there was fair reason to wonder whether a large exhaust and emissions manufacturer would dull the edge of a race-bred suspension shop. Four seasons later, the race program is bigger, the trucks are newer and the company builds its own shocks. This Tacoma, lifted off the ground so its new hardware can do the talking, is the clearest case yet that the investment is paying off where it matters.
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