If your not hardcore offroader,
I would stay at a 2.5" lift. You've seen pics of Black Betty 1000 times I'm sure, That a 2.5", and "she" still gets full on hardcore.
That truck makes suggesting going any taller than that a difficult argument.
I see almost zero reason to lift further than that.
(i love the way you guys talk about the jeeps like they are girls, you've got me doing it now.)
Originally Posted by Rexx19
I agree with all this.
Ive had the 2.5 x-factor for 1.5 years, in rausch creek and moab UT, and have never wished i had more lift.
Articulation is the key. If you want to make sure you have maximum twist, you need misaligning control arms, lower...and upper. Thats 8 control arms replaced to squeeze the maximum value out of a 2.5 inch lift.
(and the jeeps are totally chicks, betty loves me back...LOL)
I like a 3.5" Lift.
You will get better twist than you will with the 2.5" BUT the 2.5 is the more "livable" lift.
Nothing worse than when you realize you dont fit in the garage anymore, Or when you hit a pipe in a parking garage.
THAT IS THE WORST.
Track Bars:
Track bars keep your axles centered on the Jeep. As you articulate your suspension the axle will shift from side to side. When you droop the front the axle moves to the driver side. The opposite happens on the rear. As you lift the track bar becomes more angled and due to that angle will shift more then a stock or level track bar. The track bar also determines your roll center. This is a line drawn thru the center of the front and rear track bars to determine how the vehicle will roll on its suspension from side to side. Think of a top heavy feeling from a low roll center. Raising the rear axle side track bar bracket will increase the roll center and make the Jeep feel more stable during off camber situations and on road cornering. The front track bar needs to stay parallel to the drag link for proper steering geometry and only should be raised when in combination of a drag link flip (done typically at 3.5”+ of lift). Many bolt on lift companies will give you an adjustable front track bar to re-center your axle and a raised rear axle side bracket that raises the track bar mount by the same amount as the lift which will center the axle with the factory track bar. Some of the manufacturers that make lower end kits will address the track bar issue by including a frame side lowering bracket as well as a drop pitman arm. While this will correct the steering geometry, it will lower the roll center of the Jeep making it less stable in cornering on road and more tippy in off camber situations. The drop pitman arm will also increase the stress load on the steering box and can lead to bent sector shafts as well as leaking seals on the steering box.
Adjustable Control arms:
Adjustable control arms allow you to re-center your axles in your wheel wells, regaining the loss of wheel base due to lifting and will allow you to adjust your caster and rear pinion angles. A full set of 8 arms are needed to move an axle vs using a pair to pivot it on the opposite control arm mounts. Some after market arms will have bends in them to provide for extra clearance mainly the front lowers for oversized tires. Most after market arms will have a fixed joint at one end and an adjustable end joint on the other. some will use a double adjuster on one end so you can adjust them while they are connected. This type is very handy to have on the upper arms to adjust for caster and pinion angles. If you are on a budget and will be buying arms a pair at a time I would do front lowers first followed by rear uppers then rear lowers and front uppers. Some manufactures of lower priced lifts will include cam bolts to adjust caster, while they will do the job on limited lifts they are prone to slipping and twisting when used hard on an off road vehicle. I would avoid the use of cam bolts. Some manufacturers will use a control arm drop bracket to correct the caster and to retain the overall factory suspension geometry. They do have the drawback of hanging down below the frame and cause a loss of ground clearance. For a Jeep that is on road most of its life and only sees mild trails the control arm drop brackets offer a good alternative to adjustable control arms.
Fixed Length Control Arms:
These are offered on some lower priced kits to keep the cost down while correcting suspension geometry (mainly caster) for the amount of lift in the kit. They typically use the same low priced clevite joint that the factory arms use.
Rod End Joints:
End joints are used to help comfort the ride from vibration and give it some flex in the connection point to allow for articulation. The more the misalignment built in the joint the more flex you can do without putting stress on the control arm mounts. Will some joints allow for more articulation then others? The answer is yes in theory but when installed on the JK factory brackets all aftermarket joints will perform about the same due to other constraints on the JK that limit articulation. This is one of the areas of a lift kit that can really bump up the cost. If a lift manufacture used 16 Johnny joints vs the factory style clevit joint the cost difference would be in the $500 range. A double adjuster on a control arm will increase the costs roughly $35 per arm. An overview of some different joints can be found here.
http://www.jkfreaks.com/forums/showt...son-and-review
Steering:
Steering linkages is another discussion for another day but will play a part in lifts 2.5” and taller.
Just for disclosure, I have never actually purchased a "lift kit" although I have installed them on others rigs.
These are just my thoughts on lifts after years of messing around with TJ’s and JK’s other people may have different thoughts and experiences and feel free to jump in the discussion. I would prefer the discussion to concentrate on bolt on kits for the JK and not suspension theory of rock bouncers and koth rigs.
that's a lot of info to process.
Yoinkers... READ IT ALL. DONT SKIM.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Connect With Us