Daily Driver, Go Where I Want To Build

Most of our builds wind up with the one under the grill and no others.

The issue with wanting to cut the frame and raise the back half is I use the shock crossmember to provide strength for the inside face of the shock towers so the cut would have to be in an unusual place.

I'll have to remember to take a look at what is happening back there when I get back. I'm 800 miles further away from the Jeep than I was this morning.
 
  • Sad
Reactions: rasband
I'll have to remember to take a look at what is happening back there when I get back. I'm 800 miles further away from the Jeep than I was this morning.
It is fairly fresh as well as embedded in my memory. We have to cut that crossmember out when we do rear coil overs, shorten the length, and then put it back in at the right spot and height to hold up the gas tank.
DSC_4780.JPG
DSC_4789.JPG
 
Can you show pics of the cut? I've thought about moving the old shock mount/crossmember up to raise the gas tank a little further up than it already is.

The funny part of this is that if I do everything I want to do, the only part of the body lift that would be left are the grill mount and supports!
Photobucket seems to screwed me out of progress pics but here’s a couple of finished pics I just took. If you want more detailel pics I can pull a wheel tomorrow and get some more

EF9B5428-1A7D-4C68-AF0D-7E6E4001C06B.jpeg
208D8F4D-D217-47C9-8845-01465E03DE3D.jpeg
 
  • Like
Reactions: jjvw
Put the 1.5” billet aluminum spacers on so I could give you some measurements on the stock rims from earlier in the thread. Pics below - these are 31575r16 (35”x12.5” essentially) on the stock rims - after removing my steering stop washers I have around 1” more to turn before the tire contact the control arms throughout the whole suspension cycle. My axle isn’t perfectly centered (I think I’m 1/8” off) but either directions is good - I’m really tempted to try the 1” you linked. Hope that helps for future use of the stock rims! PS this is like 3.75” of lift due to sagging springs. With the stock wheels an no spacers I was running about 1/8” of washers on both sides to prevent rub.

image.jpg


image.jpg


image.jpg


image.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: jjvw
Did not realize those JKS ones were *that* squishy. Are you doing anything else besides installing the savvy ones?
At the moment, no. I head back out of town in a few days, so the install will probably have to wait a while.
 
I know we discussed this a bit after I had just installed my JKS BL...and you posted your squished one. During my last post wheeling inspection, I noticed my BL pucks starting to squish...So..I'll be pulling the trigger on this too. I HATE buying shit twice. I might box them the old ones up and send them right to JKS's lead engineer (I don't know who he or she might b e but they should know about the problem).
 
  • Like
Reactions: jjvw
Who knew that a body lift could have so many fussy details and ramifications attached to it?
 
I appreciate what I see. I couldn't wait and needed to do the install.

Here is a comparison of the old JKS and the new Savvy.
View attachment 89816

View attachment 89818

View attachment 89817

View attachment 89819

Here are the old and new without any compression.
View attachment 89822

View attachment 89821

View attachment 89820

Thanks for updating on this, you saved me from a bad order on the JKS set (which was on my aging list of things to do post standard maintenance), updating that for the Savvy pucks!
 
  • Like
Reactions: jjvw
In addition to getting an actual 1.25" of lift, the amount of lift is even across the mounts. I went for a quick test drive and immediately noticed that the Jeep was quieter! One reason is because the extra fraction of an inch made room around my poorly done exhaust. There is less contact and less sound and vibration transfer into the body. The squeak from the broken spot weld on the driver's side door opening is also less noisy, I assume because the body is sitting correctly on the frame again.

I kept the JKS grill supports. When I find the factory ones, I'll change those out. I think it will be fine until then.

The ride quality seems to be unchanged. Those who would be concerned that an aluminum puck will transfer more road noise, need not worry. The stock mount already does a good job of providing isolation. The addition of the Savvy kit is no different than stock.

Another funny reason the Jeep is quieter is because I didn't notice that the fan now hits the fan shroud and won't spin! No damage that I can tell. I need to slot the mounting holes.

Unfortunately, I leave town again tomorrow. So fixing the shroud might have to wait.
 
Last edited:
Thanks for updating on this, you saved me from a bad order on the JKS set (which was on my aging list of things to do post standard maintenance), updating that for the Savvy pucks!

I can confidently now say that the JKS body lift is a bad product. Whatever height and brand you decide to go with, at least make sure to use a rigid puck.
 
Here is why a squishy puck won't work as well as a rigid one.

The stock isolator uses an inner sleeve that bottoms out against the lower half.
20190422_164717.jpg


20190422_164722.jpg


When tight, the two rubber halves will clamp evenly across all the mounts. The aluminum puck, being non-compressible, does not disrupt this evenly loaded clamping.

A squishy puck, like JKS, cannot be fully and consistently torqued. The loading will never be even. And the final heights will never be consistent.

20190422_164707.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: tworley
I discovered that the mount above the driver's side shock mount broke a bolt some time in the past. The lower isolator is long gone. I still put the Savvy puck in place. In the near future, I'll need to cut open the floor and remove the broken bolt. This might be another sign of the uneven loading from the JKS body lift.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: jjvw