Forced into lifting my TJ

[LearningAsIGo]

THIS IS MY FIRST POST AFTER USING THIS SITE FOR YEARS. THERE IS UNEEDED BACK STORY PROVIDED TO EXPLAIN MY MENTALITY REGARDING THIS SPECIFIC SITUATION AND HOW I DEAL WITH MY JEEP IN GENERAL. FEEL FREE TO SKIP THE NEXT PARAGRAPH IF YOU JUST WANT TO GET TO THE PERTINENT INFORMATION.

I will start this off by saying when I first got this jeep damn near 7 years ago now, I had dreams of making it the badass lifted beauty that I had always wanted. Instead, I've spent most of my time (and more importantly money) maintaining this 25 year old car and simply keeping it running as it's my daily driver. It is from the north so rust is mainly what holds this thing together, and as my DD I haven't taken it off road very often because I can't afford to have something break. So the big beautiful lift ideas were superseded by replacing all the little things that would stop working and keep it from running, (alternator, starter, fuel pump, electrical shorts, sensors left and right, in addition to the normal maintenance and other miscellaneous things) all while learning everything I know about cars from trying to fix the problems I've had with this jeep. I've loved it, but have been weary to replace parts unnecessarily, especially after replacing my ac compressor (we literally welded a wrench onto one of the bolt because it was starting to strip, used a 3 foot steel tub around the wrench as a breaker bar as gently as possibly after 3 days and probably 3 gallons of PB blaster, only for the bolt head to break off and we had to end up drilling through the old compressor to break the bolts holding it on just get the damn thing off) so in addition to the cost monetarily, have not lifted it because who know how hard it'll be to deal with the rust as I believe it still has the original stock suspension. What is making me think about lifting it is pretty simple; I need new tires, and one of my friends who works at a shop gave me a full set of rims with damn near brand new new tires on them because apparently someone just left them there and never showed back up to retrieve them.

I still have the stock suspension with 31s on that are 100% in need of replacing. But now I got these new tires for free, with the only problem being that there 32s and I don't want to tear them up by putting them on and having them rub themselves to pieces because there isn't enough clearance if I go over a speed bump or something. I hardly ever take this jeep off road (I always enjoy when I can and that I can, but that is not what I use it for 99.9% of the time) so don't need a lift to improve off-road performance which is what I find the vast majority of posts to be talking about. I literally just need to fit these free tires on my jeep that I use as my DD, and know the shocks need to be replaced after all these years anyways so putting a small lift on makes the most sense to me right now. Keeping in mind my budget is in the "I can't afford this in the first place" range, but not wanting to completely cheap out on it my plan is to get the Rancho RS5000X shocks for a 2-3" lift with RC 2.5" coils because I'd still be focusing ride quality by getting at least decent shocks with the height provided by the cheaper RC coils. Here are my questions, coming from someone that has never lifted a vehicle before.

1. Is that a good idea in the first place? My understanding is that if I keep the lift small enough, I can keep it simpler and cheaper so that's my goal. What other parts/modifications would be needed to make this work?

2. Is highway driving more or less affected by the shock choice than off-road driving? I can save some money by just using RC shocks and it doesn't seem like it's worth it from what I've read, but a lot of what I've read has been talking about how it would perform off-road while I'm primarily focused on paved road driving.

3. Am I right in thinking that using lift spacers with the stock coils after installing the new Rancho shocks instead of just replacing the coils is a bad idea, or at least that replacing the coils would be worth the extra cost?

4. Lastly, speaking to those that have lifted a jeep with a lot of rust on it before, how much pain am I in for? Any tips or advice on how to go about it, or I am worrying more in the first place than I should be?

Sorry for the long post, I appreciate all the help I've already gotten from you guys. Thank you.

 

[JMT]

THIS IS MY FIRST POST AFTER USING THIS SITE FOR YEARS. THERE IS UNEEDED BACK STORY PROVIDED TO EXPLAIN MY MENTALITY REGARDING THIS SPECIFIC SITUATION AND HOW I DEAL WITH MY JEEP IN GENERAL. FEEL FREE TO SKIP THE NEXT PARAGRAPH IF YOU JUST WANT TO GET TO THE PERTINENT INFORMATION.

I will start this off by saying when I first got this jeep damn near 7 years ago now, I had dreams of making it the badass lifted beauty that I had always wanted. Instead, I've spent most of my time (and more importantly money) maintaining this 25 year old car and simply keeping it running as it's my daily driver. It is from the north so rust is mainly what holds this thing together, and as my DD I haven't taken it off road very often because I can't afford to have something break. So the big beautiful lift ideas were superseded by replacing all the little things that would stop working and keep it from running, (alternator, starter, fuel pump, electrical shorts, sensors left and right, in addition to the normal maintenance and other miscellaneous things) all while learning everything I know about cars from trying to fix the problems I've had with this jeep. I've loved it, but have been weary to replace parts unnecessarily, especially after replacing my ac compressor (we literally welded a wrench onto one of the bolt because it was starting to strip, used a 3 foot steel tub around the wrench as a breaker bar as gently as possibly after 3 days and probably 3 gallons of PB blaster, only for the bolt head to break off and we had to end up drilling through the old compressor to break the bolts holding it on just get the damn thing off) so in addition to the cost monetarily, have not lifted it because who know how hard it'll be to deal with the rust as I believe it still has the original stock suspension. What is making me think about lifting it is pretty simple; I need new tires, and one of my friends who works at a shop gave me a full set of rims with damn near brand new new tires on them because apparently someone just left them there and never showed back up to retrieve them.

I still have the stock suspension with 31s on that are 100% in need of replacing. But now I got these new tires for free, with the only problem being that there 32s and I don't want to tear them up by putting them on and having them rub themselves to pieces because there isn't enough clearance if I go over a speed bump or something. I hardly ever take this jeep off road (I always enjoy when I can and that I can, but that is not what I use it for 99.9% of the time) so don't need a lift to improve off-road performance which is what I find the vast majority of posts to be talking about. I literally just need to fit these free tires on my jeep that I use as my DD, and know the shocks need to be replaced after all these years anyways so putting a small lift on makes the most sense to me right now. Keeping in mind my budget is in the "I can't afford this in the first place" range, but not wanting to completely cheap out on it my plan is to get the Rancho RS5000X shocks for a 2-3" lift with RC 2.5" coils because I'd still be focusing ride quality by getting at least decent shocks with the height provided by the cheaper RC coils. Here are my questions, coming from someone that has never lifted a vehicle before.

1. Is that a good idea in the first place? My understanding is that if I keep the lift small enough, I can keep it simpler and cheaper so that's my goal. What other parts/modifications would be needed to make this work?

2. Is highway driving more or less affected by the shock choice than off-road driving? I can save some money by just using RC shocks and it doesn't seem like it's worth it from what I've read, but a lot of what I've read has been talking about how it would perform off-road while I'm primarily focused on paved road driving.

3. Am I right in thinking that using lift spacers with the stock coils after installing the new Rancho shocks instead of just replacing the coils is a bad idea, or at least that replacing the coils would be worth the extra cost?

4. Lastly, speaking to those that have lifted a jeep with a lot of rust on it before, how much pain am I in for? Any tips or advice on how to go about it, or I am worrying more in the first place than I should be?

Sorry for the long post, I appreciate all the help I've already gotten from you guys. Thank you.

Sell the 32’s and buy tires that will fit is the easiest solution.

1. Extended front and rear sway bar links, bumpstops, possibly SYE and rear CA’s and new rear DC driveshaft. Stay at 2” or a 1”+1.25” to avoid having to make the possible changes.

2. Highway driving is more noticeable. Get decent shocks.

3. Spacers are not a bad idea.

4. You never know about rust. Be prepared to cut bolts.

 

[Mike_H]

I assume your Buddy gave you wheels and tires from a JK or JL?

Your plan isn’t terrible, you’ll need to redrill your front track bar mount, you’ll need some longer sway bar links (front and rear).

Your rear shock upper mounts will break. Be prepared for that and have a plan, if this is your only vehicle.

Finally once you get it together, you’ll have to be prepared for driveshaft vibs. You might not get them, but then again, you might. If you do, you’ll need to lower your skid or install a slip yoke eliminator, double cardon driveshaft and adjustable upper links (minimum)

 

[Irun]

Don't build around a 32" tire, just because you got them for free. It's an odd size tire and the work needed to make them fit isn't worth it. If this is your daily driver, and you're not wheeling it, then sell the tires you got and keep things very simple.

• Replace the control arms (Moog)
• Replace sway bar links (stock)
• H&R springs (1+ inch lift)
• New shocks (your choice here)
• Stay with a 31" tire, but get a new all-terrain

https://www.tirerack.com/suspension...3!537118804928!!!u!293946777986!&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[Vtx531]

Is there some quote about cheap (free) being expensive?

I would not lift in your case. Every bolt will be a serious battle. That is way too stressful on you for a daily driver. You will be partially through and wishing you left it alone.

Already a nice looking Jeep in your profile pic.

 

[Gilaguy23]

We once had 5 horses, the truck, trailer etc, etc. Times got tough and we parted with everything. Forward about 10 years...the wife got a "free" horse. To date Id guess its cost us $12,000 in a truck, another trailer and some vet bills to have her checked out..the horse that is. Not to mention at $26 a bale for feed there goes my beer money. Moral or the story, aint no such thing as free.

 

[MikekiM]

I’ll second (or third? fourth?) the suggestion to sell the 32’s and skip the lift.

Don’t do RC shocks! I took out a set that were well under 5000 miles (installed by the PO). The were horrible for a DD.

With springs and shocks don’t you still have a ways to go to have a comfortable DD. Extended sway bar links, adjustable front track bar and rear bracket to get everything centered, SYE or transfer case drop to stop the driveline vibration and front lower CA’s to bring caster back into spec (not required but it makes a huge improvement.

Once you do this you’re going to expose the inadequacy of worn 20+ year old bushing… everywhere. You’ll be replacing them too. Once you start mixing new and old parts things get dicey.

I’m a NE vehicle running 33’s on a DD, but what I’ve listed above is exactly what I did. Bought it with RC 2.5 with RC N3 shocks. I kept the springs, but the shocks are history.

 

[Steel City 06]

With the 32s and stock suspension, you could get away with just a 1 or 1.25" body lift. No motor mount lift, no suspension changes. It would actually probably work pretty well.

It wouldn't be much better off-road than a TJ with no lift and stock tires, but the larger diameter will provide a small benefit in a few situations.

Add in a Savvy 1.25" body lift and maybe a cable shifter. Skip the MML, and it should work quite well. All in all, it would be quite inexpensive. No real effect on driveability, other than having to climb ~2" higher to get in. Maybe a few cosmetic gaps here and there.

 

[06lj]

With the 32s and stock suspension, you could get away with just a 1 or 1.25" body lift. No motor mount lift, no suspension changes. It would actually probably work pretty well.

It wouldn't be much better off-road than a TJ with no lift and stock tires, but the larger diameter will provide a small benefit in a few situations.

Add in a Savvy 1.25" body lift and maybe a cable shifter. Skip the MML, and it should work quite well. All in all, it would be quite inexpensive. No real effect on driveability, other than having to climb ~2" higher to get in. Maybe a few cosmetic gaps here and there.

X2.
A body lift would solve your problem, be inexpensive, and be able to be completed in an afternoon. If you don't need suspension work save yourself the headache and avoid it.

 

[NashvilleTJ]

X2.
A body lift would solve your problem, be inexpensive, and be able to be completed in an afternoon. If you don't need suspension work save yourself the headache and avoid it.

Agreed - with one big caveat: The OP indicated he has rust issues. If those issues extend to the body mounts, that can easily turn an easy body lift into a nightmare.

 

[Vtx531]

Agreed - with one big caveat: The OP indicated he has rust issues. If those issues extend to the body mounts, that can easily turn an easy body lift into a nightmare.

Ya this...

"Just a body lift" on a rusty old Jeep is a cruel joke!

 

[Mike_H]

Beware the body lift. It is inexpensive, but as soon as one of those bolts break or the captive nuts spin in the blind corners of the tub. You’re in a world of hurt

 

[LearningAsIGo]

Thank you guys for all the help. I'm thinking you guys are probably right in saying the lift is probably not worth the hassle, at least for right now. My tentative plan right now is to get a 1.25inch body lift (and a bolt extractor kit) and see how it goes. If it looks too rusted or if the bolts don't want to budge at all, I'll abandon that idea, return the kit and just get new 31s and sell the rims and tires I got for free. Might see if I can get some 31s to fit on the free rims because they look a lot nicer than the ones I have. If I did decide to lift it eventually, I'd probably follow your suggestions and get 33s instead of the 32s and do it when I have a larger budget and more time to deal with the problems that'll pop up. I still think I should replace my shocks sometime soon, but I'll figure that out down the line.

I'll let you guys know how it goes, and thanks again for all the advice!

 

[PRNDL]

Welcome from a fellow Flower Moundian. Let me know if you need an extra set of hands for anything - happy to help.