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Crashmymax

Crashmymax

TJ Enthusiast
Supporting Member
Joined
Jun 28, 2020
Messages
137
Location
South Dakota
I am not a jeep guy so forgive my complete ignorance on my new to me tj. Its actually my wife's that I just bought her because she always wanted one. It's a 99 sport 4.0 auto with a really clean interior but in serious need of TLC on the exterior. It has 109,000 miles on it and it rides terrible. Since I'm unfamiliar with jeeps I'm not sure how much is just the way jeeps ride and how much is abuse. Regardless my first goal is getting it handling and riding as best as possible. I'm thinking of jumping straight into a 4" lift and run 33's. This is the kit I'm considering
TJ JOHNNY JOINT® 4" SUSPENSION SYSTEM W/ ANTIROCK® & DOUBLE ADJUSTABLE UPPER ARMS FOR UP TO 35" TIRES

SKU: CE-9801HS
TJ Johnny Joint 4 Inch Suspension System W/Antirock And Double Adjustable Upper Arms For Up To 35 Inch Tires Currie Enterprises
Availability: In stock

$2,228.07

Is this a good kit? Should I consider others? What else am I going to need to complete this install? I assume drive shafts but I'm not really sure what else. From what I can tell I have Dana 30 front and Dana 44 rear with 3.73 gears. I'm guessing I will upgrade the front to a Dana 44 but what gears for the 33's? Suggestions on wheel and tire combos is appreciated as well. I know its alot of questions right away but I want to start getting a complete list of all necessary parts and get a good game plan before I start. Also if you can recommend vendors for parts I'll need it is appreciated. Thanks glad to be part of the forum.
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First, a big welcome to the forum and that's a nice clean looking TJ! This is really a great forum with lots of good info, and we're totally new Jeep owner friendly. A 99 Sport is an awesome year, it doesn't have the problems that some other years do. Plus that automatic transmission you have is an awesome highly thought of transmission. It's commonly described as one of the very best automatics to have ever come out of Detroit. Ford even tried to buy the rights to manufacture it but Chrysler wanted too much $$$ for it. I converted a previous TJ to run that transmission so you're both lucky there. Plus automatics are a great choice for offroading tougher trails.

Yeah it's not uncommon for a Jeep with a suspension lift to ride extremely rough, that's normally caused by having chosen the wrong shock absorbers.

And you pretty much picked the best suspension lift going, that'd be a great choice. Truly. That's pretty much what I'm running on my TJ and it has been trouble-free for 11 years now. Currie has the best reputation for suspension lifts so it's clear you did your homework. :)
 
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Welcome! I don't think a gear change is absolutely necessary. If you plan on interstate driving much I would not go over 4.10s. You might look at the Savvy lift kit. It is priced similar and I like the aluminum arms.
 
I will check into the savvy kit. Thanks for the replies. If I put a 4" lift in how would I modify the drive shaft? Is it the rear only shaft or both?
 
Crashmymax said:
I am not a jeep guy so forgive my complete ignorance on my new to me tj. Its actually my wife's that I just bought her because she always wanted one. It's a 99 sport 4.0 auto with a really clean interior but in serious need of TLC on the exterior. It has 109,000 miles on it and it rides terrible. Since I'm unfamiliar with jeeps I'm not sure how much is just the way jeeps ride and how much is abuse. Regardless my first goal is getting it handling and riding as best as possible. I'm thinking of jumping straight into a 4" lift and run 33's.
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Welcome. This is a great place to be.

I don't know which lift is good or great or whatever but Jerry and others will help you there.

The parts I bolded have me thinking that before heading towards any lift to correct any problem you may want to make sure you have a problem.

My mom and my brother would both be complaining before we left the neighborhood in my TJ and it's still stock, in great condition and drives fine. They are just too used to driving new cars on the road and worse yet, they prefer it that way.

I'm not saying your Jeep isn't terrible, it could be, but make sure it is before you spend too much time and money to replace/change a lot of stuff and end up with it still riding the same, which could lead to the need for a For Sale sign.
 
SYE = slip yoke eliminator and that plus a replacement double-cardan aka CV aka constant velocity driveshaft is only needed in the rear once you reach that 4" suspension height on the SWB (short wheelbase) TJ. The front driveshaft is so much longer that its angle is not nearly as affected by lift height as the very short rear driveshaft is.
 
That's a high quality lift with a lot of adjustability. Maybe pinpoint some of the driving characteristics, it's possible everything isn't dialed in correctly. I would also check out normal driveline wear for a vehicle that age, you'll surely need to start replacing ball joints, hubs, u joints, tie rods, bushings and whatever hasn't been addressed.

Nice looking jeep with some good potential that a lot of guys probably wish they started with.
 
Jerry Bransford said:
SYE = slip yoke eliminator and that plus a replacement double-cardan aka CV aka constant velocity driveshaft is only needed in the rear once you reach that 4" suspension height on the SWB (short wheelbase) TJ. The front driveshaft is so much longer that its angle is not nearly as affected by lift height as the very short rear driveshaft is.
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Thank you for the reply. I think I'm starting to figure it out . I'm going to move forward with a lift, SYE,and CV. Once I have these parts I'll make my next move. I'll have the wife loving this thing in no time. Plus ill get to do some off roading.😁
 
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Rubisohoe said:
That's a high quality lift with a lot of adjustability. Maybe pinpoint some of the driving characteristics, it's possible everything isn't dialed in correctly. I would also check out normal driveline wear for a vehicle that age, you'll surely need to start replacing ball joints, hubs, u joints, tie rods, bushings and whatever hasn't been addressed.

Nice looking jeep with some good potential that a lot of guys probably wish they started with.
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That's my plan to start replacing all the normal wear and tear items but since I'm going to lift it anyway I'll start there to make sure I don't replace things that the lift kit will eliminate. This is going to be a fun project! I've got a spare 5.3 in the barn and I'm doing my best not to start planning a swap. Have to remember it's the wife's not mine.😁
 
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Welcome aboard. Great looking TJ that sounds like it is bound for greatness. I have a 5 speed with 33" tires and 4.56 gears. I think I should have gone 4.88's at a minimum. Perhaps I still will, or better yet, get another Jeep. Moderation is for monks.
 
Welcome to the site. Nice looking jeep but I admit I'm kind of partial to white jeeps with a tan top. Looks like you've already got some really good advice on the lift kit so I was going to recommend some wheels and tires.

Here's my jeep with Black Rock Viper 900 series 15x8 wheels and Milestar Patagonia M/T 33x12.5R15 tires. I think gray wheels compliment the white with tan hardtop and the Patagonia tires are very quiet and ride smooth on the road. They are also an excellent offroad tire.

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Consider dropping your tire pressure to 26 psi , Look at Rancho 5000x shocks , find the sway bar links and evaluate the bushings . I’m fairly confident that TJ isn’t hurt too bad, and you can get it to ride enjoyable.

As far as the general market goes, most lifted TJs are messed up to some extent ...for a number of reasons.

They aren’t difficult to get right, there are just way more options available to mess them up, in addition to wear and tear and alignment

What you really need to know, you will find here. This isn’t a normal modern Jeep forum. We are the leftovers from the CJ and YJ era, carry tools, know more about them than most shops, run ‘em all over creation, and for the most part do our own mods, maintenance and repairs. Even JK owners list us as their emergency contact.
 
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I've got my 4" Currie ordered and want to order my advanced SYE and Adam's driveshaft. Does anyone know what length shaft will be needed with the 4" Currie? Or will I need to install the lift and SYE first then get a measurement? Thanks
 
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