TJ handles like a boat after 3" coil spring spacer lift install

You want both upper and lower adjustable control arms to correct the pinion angles and to restore some wheelbase. Both the uppers and lowers do this together. However your handling concerns of rocking and swaying are not coming from the control arms. That is typically a shock problem and/or the sway bars aren't connected.

Mikey121 said:

Any recommendations on good shocks to go with my 3 inch lift? This is the lift I used.

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Other than guidance on sizing a shock, I'm not able to offer a bolt on shock recommendation.

You want something that divides the shock's up and down travel in half at the normal ride height. Though with a 3" spacer lift, you also want to be cognizant of coil bind at the compressed length of the shock and factor that into the shock sizing, if necessary. You don't want coil bind to happen.

Mikey121 said:

What do I absolutely have to get to fix the handling.

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While adjustable arms would be a great upgrade, I don't think they're absolutely necessary for a 3" lift.
More likely if you were trying to fix a vibration issue.
YRMV
Did you put on longer shocks or longer swaybar links?
Adjust trackbar to center axle?

Suspension lifts reduce the toe-in which will degrade tracking and handling. Resetting it requires nothing more than a wrench, big set of pliers, and a tape measure. With a modicum of care you can produce a toe-in as accurate as the latest laser guided alignment rack.

Here's how... https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/how-to-align-your-jeep-wrangler-tj.85/

Mikey121 said:

On a budget because being forced to move)

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We also make people move that install 3” spacer lifts and don’t re set their toe or dial in caster. Sometimes we help you pack.

Also connected sway bars don’t mean the links and bushings are up to the job.

Also your shocks are now working out of there operating range.

Not trying to slam you, a lot of us learned the same way- making a Jeep look cool comes with consequences that have to be dealt with to retain good drivability. Jerry is spot on. Set toe and go from there.

Mikey121 said:

I installed a 3" coil spring spacer lift blocks on my 97 Wrangler TJ 2 door and it is handling like a boat.

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Longer shocks, sway bar end links, DIY alignment and adjustable track bars or a rear bracket and redrilling the front is needed. I have 3" springs with stock control arms and mine handles like an agile yacht.

@TheBoogieman

John Cooper said:

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@TheBoogieman

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More like.......

p.s. That's me driving.

Yeah I'll echo everyone else and say there is a lot more that needs done to lift 3" than just adding those pucks. Moving is a crazy time and if you're on a budget too, my advice would be to take off the pucks and retry your lift when budget allows and you can piece together a more complete kit and take the time to align/adjust/etc. afterwards.

Well depends on your finances and just how much you’re willing to put into this thing but you’re going to have to either use some caster bolts - These go on your lower control arms and they will help you roll the axles backward and that will give you that heavy feel at the steering wheel- Another indicator is if your steering wheel does not return to Center you have little or no caster- The best way to accomplish what I’m describing is adjustable control arms.

Your axles are going to be off Center with 3 inches of lift because the because the track bars to pull the axles toward the passenger side- 2” keeps life simpler.


you likely have swaybar in links that need help and really just need some overall bushing work

You can get the toe pretty blame close with a tape measure

It may be simpler to remove the pucks until you’re ready to do everything-

We are glad you’re on here and we’ve all faced some scenario similar to this and we are happy to help you

Mikey121 said:

I installed a 3" coil spring spacer lift blocks on my 97 Wrangler TJ 2 door and it is handling like a boat. Rocks and sways back and forth at anything over 30 mph. I was told I need to get extended control arms but I was wondering, do I need upper and lower control arms for the front and for the back or can I get just lower for the front and back or just upper for the front and back or upper and lower for just the front etc. What do I absolutely have to get to fix the handling. (On a budget because being forced to move)

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3” may not seem like a lot of lift, but on a short wheelbase TJ it is. You could have saved yourself some grief by going with a 2” spacer lift and a small 1” body lift. As it is you’re driveline angles are substantially changed, axles are significantly off center, need longer shocks ideally with 50:50 split travel, a rear SYE and DC driveshaft and rear adjustable CA's (unless you do a TCase drop).

AndyG said:

We also make people move that install 3” spacer lifts and don’t re set their toe or dial in caster. Sometimes we help you pack.

Also connected sway bars don’t mean the links and bushings are up to the job.

Also your shocks are now working out of there operating range.

Not trying to slam you, a lot of us learned the same way- making a Jeep look cool comes with consequences that have to be dealt with to retain good drivability. Jerry is spot on. Set toe and go from there.

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but where do you send them ? every other state sends them to Alabama it's the bottom of the list, there's nowhere else to send them ! Even California sends their rejects to Alabama MAN I LOVE MESSIN WITH Y'ALL !!!! if it wasn't for @John Cooper y'all would still be trying to figure out how to fit a square peg into a round hole, he knew to get a bigger hammer !

tr21triton said:

but where do you send them ? every other state sends them to Alabama it's the bottom of the list, there's nowhere else to send them ! Even California sends their rejects to Alabama MAN I LOVE MESSIN WITH Y'ALL !!!! if it wasn't for @John Cooper y'all would still be trying to figure out how to fit a square peg into a round hole, he knew to get a bigger hammer !

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Georgia. Where else?

tr21triton said:

but where do you send them ? every other state sends them to Alabama it's the bottom of the list, there's nowhere else to send them ! Even California sends their rejects to Alabama MAN I LOVE MESSIN WITH Y'ALL !!!! if it wasn't for @John Cooper y'all would still be trying to figure out how to fit a square peg into a round hole, he knew to get a bigger hammer !

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Wait a minute, I put the square peg in lathe and turned it down till it was round, then used the bigger hammer on it

Lifting a Jeep turns out to be a much more involved process than adding spacers to the springs. Unfortunately, it also changes a bunch of things in the geometry under there that all have an effect on handling. If you can live with it temporarily, the adjustments mentioned above can help restore some critical functions. Overall, in order to do it the right way, and make the Jeep handle more like it did from the factory, and operate safely as possible, does require more parts than many new Jeep owners realize. Raising the Jeep highlights effects of some worn joints that were not a problem before, exposes some hidden faults with new angles and dimensions, and can require some patience to sort out.

Complete lift kits from a quality manufacturer can help, as they are fairly comprehensive. But also expensive.

As mentioned above, making sure your track bar is pretty parallel to your drag link, setting track bar length (may require a new adjustable track bar), and setting your toe-in are minimum mandatory. Correct length shocks are also critical, and you will need bump stop extensions to ensure you don’t get the aforementioned coil bind. That should get you by for a while as long as you don’t have any major new vibrations.

Read these threads voraciously. You’ll soon discover who gives good solid advice and who doesn’t really know what they are talking about. Make a list. You can piecemeal out your upgrades as many do. But it requires that you do more homework so the parts are compatible. Doing it piecemeal requires that you take responsibility for that compatibility. The tools are all here, using the search function.

Good luck, and at least get the basics done so your Jeep is safe to drive.

the OP never has said if he did/had a alignment done after installing the lift. like Jerry said it will affect toe-in and would make it handle exactly as described !