2001 Sahara
- Thread starter Serbonze
- Start date
They offer a shock for a 3.5" lift.
http://www.gorancho.com/products/shock-absorbers?find=2003-jeep-wrangler-4wd-2074754&p=2
http://www.gorancho.com/products/shock-absorbers?find=2003-jeep-wrangler-4wd-2074754&p=2
I’m interested in the actual travel of the shock rather than one that’s marketed for a specific lift height. I’m also very lazy and don’t want to go back through the process of properly setting the bump stops because the shocks are not the same. 
Rocksport
Extended 27.4f 24.5r
Collapsed 16.2f 14.6r
Travel 11.2f 9.9r
Rancho
Extended 26.42f 24.688r
Collapsed 15.96f 15.063r
Travel 10.46f 9.625r
So if a Rancho rep has some, feel free to send them to me and I’ll do a head to head comparison.
Rocksport
Extended 27.4f 24.5r
Collapsed 16.2f 14.6r
Travel 11.2f 9.9r
Rancho
Extended 26.42f 24.688r
Collapsed 15.96f 15.063r
Travel 10.46f 9.625r
So if a Rancho rep has some, feel free to send them to me and I’ll do a head to head comparison.
After checking clearances I had 6 up and 5 down in front and 6 up and a hair under 4 down in the rear. So not perfectly split 50/50 but I would rather have more up than down.
The latest update was swapping out load range E tires for load range C. I kept the same 33x12.5 Cooper Discoverer STTs, but changed wheel size from 16” to 15” opting for 15x8 XD301s.
A thread discussing the difference in load range can be found here.
https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/swapping-tires-load-range-e-to-c.14034/
A thread discussing the difference in load range can be found here.
https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/swapping-tires-load-range-e-to-c.14034/
Current List
Metalcloak Control Arms
Metalcloak Track Bars F/R
Rocksport Long Travel Shocks F/R
4" Currie Springs
Metalcloak Rear Sway Bar Links
JKS Front Sway Bar Disconnects
Black Magic Brake Pads
Centric Rotors and Calipers
Warn VR8000 with synthetic line
33x12.5x15 Cooper Discoverer STT Pros
15x8 XD301 Wheels
Ground Pounder Fab Bumpers F/R
Dropkick Slyders
Skid Row Engine Skid
Skid Row Gas Tank Skid
Advanced Adapters SYE Kit
Adams Rear CV Driveshaft
Tatton's Front Driveshaft
ZJ Tie Rod Conversion
Corbeau Sport Seats
ARB Lockers F/R
Quadratec Stealth LED Headlights
Quadratec Stealth LED Driving Lights
Quadratec LED Taillights
Metalcloak Control Arms
Metalcloak Track Bars F/R
Rocksport Long Travel Shocks F/R
4" Currie Springs
Metalcloak Rear Sway Bar Links
JKS Front Sway Bar Disconnects
Black Magic Brake Pads
Centric Rotors and Calipers
Warn VR8000 with synthetic line
33x12.5x15 Cooper Discoverer STT Pros
15x8 XD301 Wheels
Ground Pounder Fab Bumpers F/R
Dropkick Slyders
Skid Row Engine Skid
Skid Row Gas Tank Skid
Advanced Adapters SYE Kit
Adams Rear CV Driveshaft
Tatton's Front Driveshaft
ZJ Tie Rod Conversion
Corbeau Sport Seats
ARB Lockers F/R
Quadratec Stealth LED Headlights
Quadratec Stealth LED Driving Lights
Quadratec LED Taillights
So it’s been an interesting two weeks.
Due to some family health issues, I have very little free time. Thinking that I would make my life a little easier, I arranged for a local shop to change the oil, install extended front brake lines, and do a brake fluid exchange while I was at work. I doubted that the brake fluid had been changed in the seventeen years if it’s life, so I figured why not. It is a very highly recommended shop by the local Jeep community.
I picked up the Jeep after work, and drove off. I noticed that the brake pedal seemed soft, but the brakes grabbed fine. Not knowing if it was possible that the new brake lines were the culprit and that’s just how it should be, I drove home.
Well I started to get a little anxious about it, and did some research and everything pointed to air in the lines. Ugh. I had no desire to take it back to that shop, so once I knew that I would have a day off of work (today) I brought it to the guys at my local Tire Kingdom that I’ve known for years, and explained what was going on. I asked them to do another full fluid exchange, and see if they found anything else wrong.
About an hour later they came back and said that there was still a lot of air in the lines, and the cap to the master cylinder was missing.
Ugh.
The good news is that the brake pedal is now back to where it was.
Lesson of the day: Just because the local off road shop comes highly recommended, always double check the work before you leave.
Due to some family health issues, I have very little free time. Thinking that I would make my life a little easier, I arranged for a local shop to change the oil, install extended front brake lines, and do a brake fluid exchange while I was at work. I doubted that the brake fluid had been changed in the seventeen years if it’s life, so I figured why not. It is a very highly recommended shop by the local Jeep community.
I picked up the Jeep after work, and drove off. I noticed that the brake pedal seemed soft, but the brakes grabbed fine. Not knowing if it was possible that the new brake lines were the culprit and that’s just how it should be, I drove home.
Well I started to get a little anxious about it, and did some research and everything pointed to air in the lines. Ugh. I had no desire to take it back to that shop, so once I knew that I would have a day off of work (today) I brought it to the guys at my local Tire Kingdom that I’ve known for years, and explained what was going on. I asked them to do another full fluid exchange, and see if they found anything else wrong.
About an hour later they came back and said that there was still a lot of air in the lines, and the cap to the master cylinder was missing.
Ugh.
The good news is that the brake pedal is now back to where it was.
Lesson of the day: Just because the local off road shop comes highly recommended, always double check the work before you leave.
The cap to the master cylinder was missing too? Wow... they must have had some high school kids work on that thing.
Sheesh... This parallels stories I've heard from some owners who have had 4 Wheel Parts work on their Jeep. It's hard to find reputable and trustworthy mechanics.
They put it on their RTI ramp while it was there. It’s basically meaningless, but kind of fun seeing it.
Yea, I trust only two people to do any major work. One is three hours away and one has been in Moab for the last ten days. I figured that these were simple things that could easily be taken care of. Clearly, I was wrong. I’m just glad that I brought it to another place for a second look.
Yeah, no kidding. I've only got two people in this state I trust too, so I know the feeling.
At least you caught it before something bad happened!
After reading a thread here about diff covers, and not being thrilled with the Metalcloak one, I decided to order a T&J Dana 30 front diff cover. It shipped yesterday, so should be here in a couple of days. I have a front axle seal that's leaking a bit, so I think I'll probably wait to install the cover until I tackle the seal.
I never added this...
Storage is always an issue in the damn TJ.
I was strapping my boxes and compressor down in the back, along with a cooler and backpacks. Then on top of that I’d have to load in the bag with the soft upper doors and windows (never know in Florida when it will rain).
I always thought that there had to be a better way. Then while I was in Maine, I saw that my father had an Olympic products storage rack and it dawned on me that I could put the boxes and cooler on the rack, and slip the bag of doors and windows underneath it. Duh.
I went searching for the best price, and I don’t know how it happened but the stars aligned and I found a crazy Amazon deal.
Regular price:
Crazy deal price:
I finally got around to start installing it last night. I removed the rear seatbelts, which will allow me to mount the rack very low, just above the fender wells. I can keep the braces that span the rollbar in all the time, and install the rack (just four bolts) when we go wheeling. I modified the rack a bit by drilling four new mounting holes on the spanned bars. This allows me to push it as far back as possible toward the tail gate, which allows room in front of it to reach backpacks or anything else that needs easy or quick access.
Storage is always an issue in the damn TJ.
I was strapping my boxes and compressor down in the back, along with a cooler and backpacks. Then on top of that I’d have to load in the bag with the soft upper doors and windows (never know in Florida when it will rain).
I always thought that there had to be a better way. Then while I was in Maine, I saw that my father had an Olympic products storage rack and it dawned on me that I could put the boxes and cooler on the rack, and slip the bag of doors and windows underneath it. Duh.
I went searching for the best price, and I don’t know how it happened but the stars aligned and I found a crazy Amazon deal.
Regular price:
Crazy deal price:
I finally got around to start installing it last night. I removed the rear seatbelts, which will allow me to mount the rack very low, just above the fender wells. I can keep the braces that span the rollbar in all the time, and install the rack (just four bolts) when we go wheeling. I modified the rack a bit by drilling four new mounting holes on the spanned bars. This allows me to push it as far back as possible toward the tail gate, which allows room in front of it to reach backpacks or anything else that needs easy or quick access.
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Also an update on the front diff cover. I finally had some free time to install it. I noticed that the top right bolt was very difficult to remove from the Metalcloak cover. I swapped them over, and couldn't get the bolt back in. The threads were jacked...another what should be a quick project turned into an ordeal. I had to get the threads cleaned up, which turned out to be easier than I thought and it went back together just fine.
I like this cover.
I like this cover.