Unhappy 1st off road test trip with 2004 Jeep LJ. Where to go from here?

Bushfamily5

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Aug 30, 2020
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67
Location
Las vegas
Bought my LJ with a 3" spring lift (no idea the brand), 33" tires, stock control arms, Rancho 9000XL shocks and a T-Case drop. Suspension parts were pretty trashed so I replaced all 8 control arms (OEM style), tie rod, drag link, etc. along with all fluids

Went on a short 1st trip to a trail with lots of rocks to give it a shake down and I was pretty disappointed. Now I am wondering where to start:
- The ride was abusive like I had metal rods in place of springs
- We swayed back and forth uncontrollably due to completely worn out shocks
- Front tires rubbed on fenders I am pretty sure (Sway bar was still engaged)
- Gas pedal is crazy touchy. Like REALLY touchy. Could not apply throttle smoothly at obstacle
- developed what I think is a driveline vibration on the way home

Overall, not a great Sunday experience

I am not sure if I was expecting too much? Only wheeled a newer JK with Rock Krawler 2.5 Max Travel prior to buying the LJ.

My overall plan was to replace the existing 3" lift springs with the OME 2" (with spacers to net 2.5"), replace the shocks with Rancho 5000x and possibly the tires to a set of Rubicon take offs (32") but now I am wondering if I need to go a more aggressive route with maybe a Metalcloak 3.5"? Don't really want to as it will cost much more and the jeep just barely fits in the garage now.

I would appreciate some experienced input. I will never go on crazy offroad stuff. I just want the jeep to do low to low-medium off roading comfortably if possible
 
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the first thing that I would recommend is a hand throttle. Helps a ton when bouncing over obstacles.

Tires rubbing can be controlled with extended bump-stops.

driveline vibrations, just make sure that you didn't pick up any mud or stuff in your wheels, that will make it seem like it.

swaying back and forth, hmmm, what one person thinks is extreme might be just normal if you are new to off-roading, so maybe this?

Ride, new shocks will help, but also keep in mind, you are offroad,
 
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Also, maybe put gears on your list? Will let you go slower and more controlled over obstacles at higher RPMs where the power is.
 
If the shocks are worn, replacing them with Rancho RS5000x will help.

What pressure did you have in your tires? Leaving them at street pressure off road will definitely give you a rough ride. Try deflating down to about 10-12 psi for off road, 26-28 psi for the street.
 
The 9000XL’s are adjustable. What are they set at? I have them on my Xterra and the adjusters have a major effect on the ride?

What tire pressures where you running on the trail?
 
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If the shocks are worn, replacing them with Rancho RS5000x will help.

What pressure did you have in your tires? Leaving them at street pressure off road will definitely give you a rough ride. Try deflating down to about 10-12 psi for off road, 26-28 psi for the street.
yes, forgot to mention that! Definitely!
 
The few times I haven't aired down to go wheeling, I've felt the same as you with my Jeep wildly swaying back and forth until I wanted to walk.
 
Leaning your foot against the trans tunnel and rolling it onto the pedal helps with the touchy throttle. I added a stiffer throttle spring which helped me too.
 
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I have the 6cyl Auto. Tires are 33x12.50x15 Shock setting was at 3 (middle of the settings) I was going pretty slow in 4lo. If I should be running at 12-15lbs tire pressure while wheeling, I was too high. I was more like 22-25 lbs.
 
for some reason i didn't add sway bar disconnects to my TJ until after lifting it and tires etc. The sway bar disconnects actually ended up being one of the better mods for offroading. Even if you don't go extreme you can creep over most things. Kids are lot happier in their car seats also. i also learned to put my foot on the side and roll onto the gas pedal as someone mentioned earlier.
 
I have the 6cyl Auto. Tires are 33x12.50x15 Shock setting was at 3 (middle of the settings) I was going pretty slow in 4lo. If I should be running at 12-15lbs tire pressure while wheeling, I was too high. I was more like 22-25 lbs.
I usually run 25-26 psi on the road. Much more and my tires wear in the middle.
And then 10-12 psi off road.
 
Do you have an engine tuner? I don’t know a lot but my TJ has a superchips that was set to “fuel economy”. After my first wheeling experience I set it back to stock and it had taken the throttle sensitivity wayyyy down. It was so bad before I would almost have to engage the clutch and restart after every major bump because I felt out of control on the throttle.
 
Check out the Teraflex hand throttle. I was surprised how much nicer it made a trail ride.
Climbing a dried up creek bed, I set it at like 1100 or 1200 rpm in 4lo and the Jeep walks over the craziest of obstacles. If you need more throttle, step on it!
I will check it out!
 
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Yeah I wouldn't run any higher than 12 psi off road. Without really good shocks the ride is going to be brutal. I run 8 psi.