Family's First LJ - 2006 Rubicon Build
- Thread starter techster82
- Start date
OP
So unfortunately my Jeep sat at the place where we were going to be using the lift last week without being touched. I understand people's schedules can get messed up but I really need to make some progress on this build (for my own sanity) so I went back and picked it up Saturday morning to bring back home.
I spent yesterday afternoon installing the Savvy 1.25" body lift. The process was pretty straightforward but even after keeping one side loosely bolted while I worked on the other I ended up with the single body mount under the front grille being shifted around a 1/2" or so too far back. It puts the bolt in enough of a bind that you can thread it in to grip but not much past that. Any suggestions on a way that I can get it realigned?
I still need to pull the old 2.5" suspension lift and get the Savvy/Currie 4" setup installed but with the body lift on I wanted to see what the wheels/tires looked like. There isn't room to flex at this point but they're on there at least........
Looks totally different with the polished wheels and tires gone and I'm getting a little encouragement that I might actually get all of this done. The goal tonight is to install the motor mount lift from Brown Dog Offroad and to remove the flares for coating and the side rail guards to replace with the Mopar Sliders. At some point I'll have the entire paint buffed and polished as its in pretty good shape now and I'd like it to last.
I'm going to have to take a little more off of the cuts I made to the Mopar Rock Crawler bumper for the AntiRock system. Its close but needs a little more breathing room.
Lots and lots of little projects to complete but I'm trying to get something done whenever life allows. I've reached out to someone in the area that has done a lot fabrication and custom builds over the years about completing the suspension/tummy tuck/regear work for me as some of it I'm not capable of doing on my own and other areas will take forever with the time I have available. If I can get that all done and trace an oil leak that it has we may finally be on the downhill side of things.
I spent yesterday afternoon installing the Savvy 1.25" body lift. The process was pretty straightforward but even after keeping one side loosely bolted while I worked on the other I ended up with the single body mount under the front grille being shifted around a 1/2" or so too far back. It puts the bolt in enough of a bind that you can thread it in to grip but not much past that. Any suggestions on a way that I can get it realigned?
I still need to pull the old 2.5" suspension lift and get the Savvy/Currie 4" setup installed but with the body lift on I wanted to see what the wheels/tires looked like. There isn't room to flex at this point but they're on there at least........
Looks totally different with the polished wheels and tires gone and I'm getting a little encouragement that I might actually get all of this done. The goal tonight is to install the motor mount lift from Brown Dog Offroad and to remove the flares for coating and the side rail guards to replace with the Mopar Sliders. At some point I'll have the entire paint buffed and polished as its in pretty good shape now and I'd like it to last.
I'm going to have to take a little more off of the cuts I made to the Mopar Rock Crawler bumper for the AntiRock system. Its close but needs a little more breathing room.
Lots and lots of little projects to complete but I'm trying to get something done whenever life allows. I've reached out to someone in the area that has done a lot fabrication and custom builds over the years about completing the suspension/tummy tuck/regear work for me as some of it I'm not capable of doing on my own and other areas will take forever with the time I have available. If I can get that all done and trace an oil leak that it has we may finally be on the downhill side of things.
Looks great! Love these well built LJs they're beautiful
Really great build! I couldn’t agree more with your choices
Wish I could help with the body lift shift. I did have that problem with one the rear mounts. What I did was lifted the opposite side up enough to get the bolt sufficiently re-aligned. It was a bit of a pain. Just think where you could jack it up to shift it the way you need and what mounts you need loose to do that.
Wish I could help with the body lift shift. I did have that problem with one the rear mounts. What I did was lifted the opposite side up enough to get the bolt sufficiently re-aligned. It was a bit of a pain. Just think where you could jack it up to shift it the way you need and what mounts you need loose to do that.
OP
I got so fed up with it last night after working on everything all day I had to step away and try to get some clarity. The body mount that is near the gas tank on the driver's side initially wouldn't line up but after getting the passenger side done it came back in to alignment.
The problem I see with the front grille/radiator body mount is that its centered on the vehicle and me lifting either side didn't seem to shift anything forward a bit which is where I need it to go.
Now I'm gonna let you think about it the rest of the day so you can tell me exactly what to do!
Ok, yeah, my trouble was the first one you struggled with.
The other one, hmm...move one side of the grille forward. Are the other mounts loose? I’d start there. I’d hate to bend the grill by using some kind of ratchet strap, but if the other mounts are loose you might get some play.
Hopefully someone else has dealt with this.
I'm trying to remember how that lines up. With the Savvy you have the bolt that you fish in from the top, after you've removed the headlight, then you put it through the hole into the aluminum spacer which has the stock rubber snubber on it, right?
Are you saying you can't fish that bolt down through the hole because there is a misalignment there?
Are you saying you can't fish that bolt down through the hole because there is a misalignment there?
OP
OP
Try loosening the braces and fender bolts on the top of the grill shell. Put your body mount bolt in, torque it, then tighten the support rods and fenders. You have to let the shell float around a little. Right now, those components are bound by the tub being in a different relative position than the grill.
OP
I'll give that a shot when I get home this evening. Having the grille be movable separate from the body for installation is certainly the preferred way to go for me. Thanks!
OP
OP
Its been a little while since I've posted an update as anything I've gotten done recently tended to be little stuff. On the advice of @Ranger_b0b I ended up loosening the grille shell from the front fenders and it allowed me enough play to get the front center body bolt lined up and torqued down. With the body lift complete I planned next to install the motor mount lift but work and family obligations just didn't allow me a day or block of time in the evening to focus on larger tasks.
I really want the LJ complete (or mostly complete) to take with us down to the Smoky Mountain Jeep Invasion in less than a month. My father's birthday is 8/28 and a few days before then we'll be celebrating the one year anniversary of his double lung transplant (It happens to all coincide with the dates of the Jeep event in Pigeon Forge). If I wanted the LJ to get to a point where it is going to be done enough to take down for the weekend I really needed to find a shop to knock out the big stuff since my schedule and energy level just isn't getting it done.
So Friday afternoon I took the LJ to a local garage that has a long history with Jeeps and left it so they could start on it first thing this morning. I went by around lunch today to drop off some small parts I had forgotten to take and got to see it up on the lift.
As much as I wanted to (and enjoy doing) the majority of work myself, leaving it in their capable hands is going to ultimately having me and the family enjoying the Jeep a lot faster.
While its there they'll be installing all the suspension upgrades, motor mount lift and tummy tuck, fixing an oil leak and general maintenance, new brakes and rotors, regearing both axles and replacing ball joints, unit bearings, axle seals etc. Once all of this is complete I'll have the paint machine polished and waxed then start to finish the cosmetic upgrades, decals, rear tire carrier, front bumper etc.
I'm moving back towards the "excited" category versus the "anxiety" one. Stay tuned for more pictures hopefully soon!
I really want the LJ complete (or mostly complete) to take with us down to the Smoky Mountain Jeep Invasion in less than a month. My father's birthday is 8/28 and a few days before then we'll be celebrating the one year anniversary of his double lung transplant (It happens to all coincide with the dates of the Jeep event in Pigeon Forge). If I wanted the LJ to get to a point where it is going to be done enough to take down for the weekend I really needed to find a shop to knock out the big stuff since my schedule and energy level just isn't getting it done.
So Friday afternoon I took the LJ to a local garage that has a long history with Jeeps and left it so they could start on it first thing this morning. I went by around lunch today to drop off some small parts I had forgotten to take and got to see it up on the lift.
As much as I wanted to (and enjoy doing) the majority of work myself, leaving it in their capable hands is going to ultimately having me and the family enjoying the Jeep a lot faster.
While its there they'll be installing all the suspension upgrades, motor mount lift and tummy tuck, fixing an oil leak and general maintenance, new brakes and rotors, regearing both axles and replacing ball joints, unit bearings, axle seals etc. Once all of this is complete I'll have the paint machine polished and waxed then start to finish the cosmetic upgrades, decals, rear tire carrier, front bumper etc.
I'm moving back towards the "excited" category versus the "anxiety" one. Stay tuned for more pictures hopefully soon!
OP
Stopped in yesterday to check on the progress as she's just about finished up. This is her back on the ground for a bit before they centered the axles and adjusted the wheelbase/pinion angle. I didn't think it would be as tall as it is but I'm sure that will change a little once the bumpers, spare tire etc are back on. (Kinda makes you want 37s doesn't it!)
They ended up replacing the rear main seal and oil pan gasket so hopefully the garage floor will stay clean.
Of course there were a few hiccups along the way such as having to shorten the exhaust bend coming around the oil pan so it didn't hit the front upper passenger side control arm, dealing with some spinning skid plate nutserts etc.
I went ahead and had a rear Antirock installed along with the front. (It isn't set up properly in this picture but will be)
Axles have been regeared to 5.38 but I'm keeping the stock axle shafts at this time. When the pocketbook allows I'd like to change them out to the US made Revolution axles or a Revolution/RCV combo.
I did pick up a Rock Hard 4x4 HardHat front diff cover to give a little protection but allow me to keep the factory diff cover for clearance.
I called Tom Woods and ordered a new rear driveshaft today that should be here next Tuesday. In the meantime I'll probably bring her home this week to buff and wax the paint before installing the sliders, corner armor, flares, bumpers, decals etc. My goal is to have her running smoothly and dialed in so I can take it down with us to the Smoky Mountain Jeep Invasion at the end of the month.
They ended up replacing the rear main seal and oil pan gasket so hopefully the garage floor will stay clean.
Of course there were a few hiccups along the way such as having to shorten the exhaust bend coming around the oil pan so it didn't hit the front upper passenger side control arm, dealing with some spinning skid plate nutserts etc.
I went ahead and had a rear Antirock installed along with the front. (It isn't set up properly in this picture but will be)
Axles have been regeared to 5.38 but I'm keeping the stock axle shafts at this time. When the pocketbook allows I'd like to change them out to the US made Revolution axles or a Revolution/RCV combo.
I did pick up a Rock Hard 4x4 HardHat front diff cover to give a little protection but allow me to keep the factory diff cover for clearance.
I called Tom Woods and ordered a new rear driveshaft today that should be here next Tuesday. In the meantime I'll probably bring her home this week to buff and wax the paint before installing the sliders, corner armor, flares, bumpers, decals etc. My goal is to have her running smoothly and dialed in so I can take it down with us to the Smoky Mountain Jeep Invasion at the end of the month.
OP
I got the new rear driveshaft delivered today from Tom Woods so I headed out to the shop to drop it off. They've essentially gotten all of their work done so once they get it installed tomorrow and test everything I should be able to bring the LJ home to continue the build.
It was parked out front when I got there so I snapped a few pics to show the wife and kids.
So far I'm pleased with the UCF skid plate I used for the Tummy Tuck. Its not a flat belly but definitely a big improvement from the stock setup. This is the "extra clearance" model that has I believe a 2" drop. With the motor mount lift they said the install went fine.
I also went ahead and had them relocate the locker pump assembly to the engine bay. Mounting it inside the skid (even with the bracket I purchased from UCF) was giving them very tight quarters and the relocation allows me to keep them out of the way of mud and debris.
Everything seems to clear up front with the Currie steering and MetalCloak Trackbar.
Hopefully I'll have more feedback and pictures in the next day or so on lots of other new parts that were added.
It was parked out front when I got there so I snapped a few pics to show the wife and kids.
So far I'm pleased with the UCF skid plate I used for the Tummy Tuck. Its not a flat belly but definitely a big improvement from the stock setup. This is the "extra clearance" model that has I believe a 2" drop. With the motor mount lift they said the install went fine.
I also went ahead and had them relocate the locker pump assembly to the engine bay. Mounting it inside the skid (even with the bracket I purchased from UCF) was giving them very tight quarters and the relocation allows me to keep them out of the way of mud and debris.
Everything seems to clear up front with the Currie steering and MetalCloak Trackbar.
Hopefully I'll have more feedback and pictures in the next day or so on lots of other new parts that were added.