Curious. Your bumper might look a little out of place in relation to the grill. Dropped pitman arm would have to lower track bar too which I'm sure your aware. Otherwise I dont see why it wouldn't work?
Daily Driver, Go Where I Want To Build
- Thread starter jjvw
- Start date
OP
Imagine for a second keeping the body at the same height and raising the whole frame 1.25" by removing the entire body lift. What do you need to change then? If you want to move the front and rear sections of the frame up 1.25" why not just raise the entire frame and drop the parts in the middle to where they are now? I mean it sounds kinda silly to raise the body, then raise the ends of the frame back to where they were. Just raise the whole frame back up and drop down the middle parts.
OP
Because of how the engine/drivetrain fit within the body and frame and how all of that sits relative to the ground. If I were to scrap the body lift and return the body and frame to stock, everything drivetrain will be disrupted from how it is now. And the tub would be full of large holes. The Jeep, as it exists now, cannot be recreated with a 5.5" spring lift and no body lift.
Last edited:
It would be easier to lower the other stuff than raise the ends. In fact you have parts that raise most of that stuff that you can just remove. Just think about the whole thing for a bit, that's all I'm saying.
OP
Trust me that I have thought this through well enough that I know that lowering things is both not possible and not an option.
Belly up and Gas skid are definitely 2 limiters here. I’d guess the outboard might come into play too.
I was thinking about the same thing this morning (bumping the front frame up), the added approach is intriguing and I haven’t thought of many reasons it shouldn’t be doable.
OP
That's the start of it. Both of our Jeeps are stuffed turkeys and are all the better for it.
Front to back if the body stays in the same place and the axles stay in the same place. If you remove the body lift the front bumper goes where you want it. The motor mounts are in the same place after you remove the mml. Drop the skid one inch and it's in the same place. Drop the gas tank and it's in the same place. Put 1" spacers front and back and the springs are exactly the same. 1" longer bumps and shocks and done.
Edit: I don't know the answer, this just seems pretty easy?
Edit: I don't know the answer, this just seems pretty easy?
OP
So... What kind of things do I screw up by raising up the front foot of frame? Is the possibly of a small front stretch even more difficult? Should this happen after hydro assist to reduce steering box stress from the dropped pitman arm?
Thinking more on it, the big downside to dropping all that stuff is adding hang up points and not addressing the existing ones - such as the body mounts. To get that same result with lowering the body back is you’d need to +2” on the suspension (which has side effects).
there’s no driveline changes (other than steering) by bumping the frame up differently in each segment.
there’s no driveline changes (other than steering) by bumping the frame up differently in each segment.
OP
OP
Steering box. This is a bit vague for me, but shoving the steering box too far backwards makes the same problems as moving the front axle too far forwards. The linkages need more room.
I had to run out at look at mine, I was misremembering how much it stuck out. Looks like you could only lose ~1/2” of frame rail, I’m not sure if that has a significant impact on the crossmember.
OP
Theoretically it would not be an issue to cut the frame there and lift that front foot. As long as your welder can penetrate enough and you fish plate the steel to a good extent that it can withstand winch loads and steering torque. Honestly at that point you'd be better off removing the savvy BL and welding up raised body mounts all over the Jeep. Why not consider fabricating a 1.25” raised track bar mount to match the raised steering box so you don’t have to buy a pitman arm with the exact amount of drop needed, and also not exert as much torque on the box.
Why not consider fabricating a 1.25” raised track bar mount to match the raised steering box so you don’t have to buy a pitman arm with the exact amount of drop needed, and also not exert as much torque on the box.
OP
Theoretically it would not be an issue to cut the frame there and lift that front foot. As long as your welder can penetrate enough and you fish plate the steel to a good extent that it can withstand winch loads and steering torque. Honestly at that point you'd be better off removing the savvy BL and welding up raised body mounts all over the Jeep.
The goal for certain is to raise the 6 side mounts and the rear bumper/frame. If I raise the rear shock mount crossmember, I can stuff the gas tank another 3/8" maybe more.
For the front, it makes sense to me to keep the drag link and track bar at a 4" lift rather than a 5.25" lift. That is how I came up with a dropped pitman arm and also suggested hydro assist. A pitman arm with the appropriate drop seems easier than messing with the frame side track bar mount. And hydro assist might be nice anyway.
I think that is how to remove the entire body lift!
Last edited:
It would certainly look cleaner (at least to my eyes) from the front. I can see the 1.25 inches making a difference on approach angle getting hung up vs not. But unless you’re constantly finding yourself in that situation, which I think you’re not so far, then would this be a distant future idea or something you’d like to get moving on?
OP
If it happens, it's lower priority than other things.