Lift guidance

Egadz

Egadz

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Joined
Aug 7, 2018
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37
Location
Calumet, MI
Hello TJ brain trust,
I spent some time looking for a prior thread with my specific lift question and no go. If I missed it, my apologies and please point me to it.

My 06TJ with 125# of full size spare hanging a foot off the rear gate is pretty squirrely above 45mph. Feels like it threatening to come around on me. And the ride is ROUGH Prior owner put a 2" hockey puck lift on it and what looks like not-OEM shocks. I think these two things are the cause. I'd like to replace current setup with new shocks/coils that would put me at 2-2.5" lift. And give me a decent ride on 150mile drive to the trails, to enjoy the 25miles of trail. ARB had a kit I was looking at that I thought fit the bill perfect, but looks like they don't support any JEEP lifts according to their website. I might try to call them tomorrow and see what they say.

My thanks to you all for any quick advice.
 
Egadz said:
Hello TJ brain trust,
I spent some time looking for a prior thread with my specific lift question and no go. If I missed it, my apologies and please point me to it.

My 06TJ with 125# of full size spare hanging a foot off the rear gate is pretty squirrely above 45mph. Feels like it threatening to come around on me. And the ride is ROUGH Prior owner put a 2" hockey puck lift on it and what looks like not-OEM shocks. I think these two things are the cause. I'd like to replace current setup with new shocks/coils that would put me at 2-2.5" lift. And give me a decent ride on 150mile drive to the trails, to enjoy the 25miles of trail. ARB had a kit I was looking at that I thought fit the bill perfect, but looks like they don't support any JEEP lifts according to their website. I might try to call them tomorrow and see what they say.

My thanks to you all for any quick advice.
Click to expand...

First off how is the spare mounted? Is it on the stock tailgate or on a swingout tire carrier?

Onto your Lift, What size tire are you attempting to clear? That is what decides the amount of lift needed. Once we know that more advice can be given.
 
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@Wildman his profile says 35's. Correct me if I'm wrong but the profile photo looks like a lot of clearance for 35's and only 2" lift?

@Egadz measure the springs on flat ground to figure out lift. Stock is 12 inches in front and 8 inches in the rear. That will change a little with weight but not drastic (Hard top, spare and gear I sag less than an inch). Shocks make a huge difference in ride quality, so do tires age. To avoid throwing a lot of expensive darts try the cheap stuff first. Google "dry testing steering" or search it on here. Loose end links can give you a scary ride. My tires were 12 years old when I bought me Jeep (4 digit code on sidewall next to DOT-last two numbers are manufacture year). New tires and shocks made a drastic difference for me. Take the tire off and test drive, make sure thats the actual problem?
 
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inkedrose said:
@Wildman his profile says 35's. Correct me if I'm wrong but the profile photo looks like a lot of clearance for 35's and only 2" lift?

@Egadz measure the springs on flat ground to figure out lift. Stock is 12 inches in front and 8 inches in the rear. That will change a little with weight but not drastic (Hard top, spare and gear I sag less than an inch). Shocks make a huge difference in ride quality, so do tires age. To avoid throwing a lot of expensive darts try the cheap stuff first. Google "dry testing steering" or search it on here. Loose end links can give you a scary ride. My tires were 12 years old when I bought me Jeep (4 digit code on sidewall next to DOT-last two numbers are manufacture year). New tires and shocks made a drastic difference for me. Take the tire off and test drive, make sure thats the actual problem?
Click to expand...

Looks like quite the body lift too. Definitely more than 1.25".
 
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inkedrose said:
@Wildman his profile says 35's. Correct me if I'm wrong but the profile photo looks like a lot of clearance for 35's and only 2" lift?

@Egadz measure the springs on flat ground to figure out lift. Stock is 12 inches in front and 8 inches in the rear. That will change a little with weight but not drastic (Hard top, spare and gear I sag less than an inch). Shocks make a huge difference in ride quality, so do tires age. To avoid throwing a lot of expensive darts try the cheap stuff first. Google "dry testing steering" or search it on here. Loose end links can give you a scary ride. My tires were 12 years old when I bought me Jeep (4 digit code on sidewall next to DOT-last two numbers are manufacture year). New tires and shocks made a drastic difference for me. Take the tire off and test drive, make sure thats the actual problem?
Click to expand...

I was hoping he'd clarify that was the tire size he's trying to run since we all know 35's & only 2.5" of lift isn't enough. And if he's got a 35" spare hanging off the tailgate we all know what's wrong there too.

Basically we still need more information to offer any type of advice and pictures will also help.

bbaldwin237 said:
Looks like quite the body lift too. Definitely more than 1.25".
Click to expand...

It does look like more than 1" or 1.25" of body lift. The donor Jeep I'd bought and took the Hemi out of had a 3" body lift on it

Edit: His profile says it's a 2" body lift.
 
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Wildman said:
I was hoping he'd clarify that was the tire size he's trying to run since we all know 35's & only 2.5" of lift isn't enough. And if he's got a 35" spare hanging off the tailgate we all know what's wrong there too.

Basically we still need more information to offer any type of advice and pictures will also help.



It does look like more than 1" or 1.25" of body lift. The donor Jeep I'd bought and took the Hemi out of had a 3" body lift on it

Edit: His profile says it's a 2" body lift.
Click to expand...

3" body lift 😱
 
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lBasket said:
3" body lift 😱
Click to expand...

His profile says a 2" body lift.
Used to be the norm.... Was also when body lifts got their bad name or reputation. If you did the body lift correctly it wasn't bad but most never did.
I had a 3" body lift on my Nissan truck along with a 2" suspension lift... Only way I could clear 36" tires.
 
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Wildman said:
His profile says a 2" body lift.
Used to be the norm.... Was also when body lifts got their bad name or reputation. If you did the body lift correctly it wasn't bad but most never did.
I had a 3" body lift on my Nissan truck along with a 2" suspension lift... Only way I could clear 36" tires.
Click to expand...

I had a 1985 Dodge Ram 50, Mitsubishi Mighty Max, with a 3" BL, to clear a 31x10.50R15. Good times!
 
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Wildman said:
Only way I could clear 36" tires.
Click to expand...

1750301243887.jpeg
 
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Wandering is most likely toe is incorrect and/or backspace too wide. 1/8" at 18" forward of axle centerline is about good. And shocks are ride quality.
 
Wildman said:
First off how is the spare mounted? Is it on the stock tailgate or on a swingout tire carrier?

Onto your Lift, What size tire are you attempting to clear? That is what decides the amount of lift needed. Once we know that more advice can be given.
Click to expand...

35s, now. Downgrading to 33s at the largest, might go down a little more. I almost need a ladder now with my gimpy knees. Tire is mounted on the rear gate with a reinforced hinge.
 
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inkedrose said:
@Wildman his profile says 35's. Correct me if I'm wrong but the profile photo looks like a lot of clearance for 35's and only 2" lift?

@Egadz measure the springs on flat ground to figure out lift. Stock is 12 inches in front and 8 inches in the rear. That will change a little with weight but not drastic (Hard top, spare and gear I sag less than an inch). Shocks make a huge difference in ride quality, so do tires age. To avoid throwing a lot of expensive darts try the cheap stuff first. Google "dry testing steering" or search it on here. Loose end links can give you a scary ride. My tires were 12 years old when I bought me Jeep (4 digit code on sidewall next to DOT-last two numbers are manufacture year). New tires and shocks made a drastic difference for me. Take the tire off and test drive, make sure thats the actual problem?
Click to expand...

You guys have great eyes! Yes, it has a 2" body lift with metalcloak fenders. Thanks for these thoughts. I'll take some measurements when I get back.
 
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Egadz said:
35s, now. Downgrading to 33s at the largest, might go down a little more. I almost need a ladder now with my gimpy knees. Tire is mounted on the rear gate with a reinforced hinge.
Click to expand...
Depending on your uses, for 33's you would have the best results removing the body lift and going with a quality 2.5-3" lift. Of course that may involve changing several other things that the PO may have done. You'll want to check the backspace of your wheels, bump stops, drive line angle, track bar bracket, etc. Really just depends on what has been done before and what you plan to do with it.
 
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