RocketMouse

*** fricking auto correct... sorry... title is supposed to read "Shocks and rear leaf springs"....grr..
and didn't see where to edit that part.
It's that time.... my baby just turned 20 last month...and she now needs new shocks. And the rear leaf springs have definitely seen better days.

So.... I plan on keeping her stock height at least until she's no longer my DD. Which could be a while.
That being said, for now... I'm looking for personal knowledge/experience with decent but not over the top oem size shocks. And recommended leaf spring replacement.
Any good replacement brands? any I should steer clear of?
Should I just go with an OEM spec set or is there a better one that will give me good ride height? Are there ones that will give me a good ride height that will not mess up my stock geometry and maybe be better quality than OEM at a reasonable price point?
I want her sitting up how she should and not draggin' a**.....it's not horrible but they are kinda flat now and I have 235s under her.

Thanks!

PatHenry

If you can find a set of JK take-off shocks, I'd recommend them. I have the red rubicon takeoffs and they're nice, but a tad stiffer than I'd prefer. If I were to do it again I'd have gone with the black regular takeoffs. It's a little more work (you have to deal with bushings and bar pins) but worth it.

I used the dorman leafs with the bushings already installed. They've been nice.

The reports of difficulty with rusted bushing sleeves is true if you have any rust/winter salt... I got my old leafs off without breaking the welded nuts, but it was a time consuming, map torch and cutting tool filled experience.

Of course, I had the added joy of finding a lot of floorboard rot in the trunk while doing the springs, so my Jeep was on jack stands for a good couple weeks start to finish.

Dave51

Just finished mine, concur with Pat. The front bolts will be a bear if they're rusted (but you have an Arizona XJ?) Here's what mine looked like:



I used Crown springs and love 'em, but you have to install the bushings yourself, and if you don't have a hydraulic press it's a pretty big deal to get them in.

downs

I've used Crown springs on two XJs now and have been happy with them. I used moog bushings both times as well. This last time the local NAPA who I do a lot of business with pressed the bushings in for me for free. Both times I did go with the HD springs for the UpCountry clone look combined with MOOG front springs. Gave me about 1 to 1.5 inches over a non upcountry XJ.

For shocks I just went with Monroe OE Spectrums. They do their job. For the first month or so everything rode a little stiff but after that everything seemed to wear in and smooth out.

If it hasn't been done yet your front end probably has badly worn bushings as well so you might as well go in there while doing everything else and refresh the front end as well.

3Dog

I just did a full suspension replacement on my 2000, front and rear. I bought all my parts from Kolak, and went with the Upcountry setup which, as Downs mentioned, gives a nice 1" lift over stock. Crown leaf springs and bushings, new coils for the front. Ball joints, control arms, shackles, sway bar end links, u-bolts, the works. I went with Bilstein 5100 shocks on all four corners, but since I daily drive mine, I probably would have been just as happy with Monroe sensatracs, which I have used with good results on another daily driven '95 XJ. Kolak had prices good enough where I just went with the Bilsteins this time.

Over all very happy with my new setup. I'll try to post a pic below, nice ride height without being overly lifted.

You should email or call Nick at Kolak - he is in your back yard in Phoenix (no affiliation). I have bought a couple suspension set-ups over the years. Hard to beat the prices in my opinion.

papablista

https://www.generalspringkc.com/product_p/97-547.htm

They have a few choices all include bushings

RocketMouse

With another pressing issue on the XJ... I'm really having to decide if I want to continue this project. Just got word back on some other parts that need replacing and I don't have my own shop right now to do my own major projects.
I like the ride height on your 2000 setup. Looks good. The rear on mine are still several inches from the 235's, but they will need to be done in the not too distant future at best.
Thanks for all the info so I can have a better idea what direction to take.

PatHenry

What was the (seemingly bad) news?

RocketMouse

Pat.... it's the stupid gearbox again. I just put one in like 13 months ago which was a PITA for me to do by myself. And now this one is going straight South. Frickin' remans are a joke. And seemingly no great option for a more permanent repair as an option.
I know pretty much all Jeeps are rabbit holes that money falls into...but I guess right now, this one seems like it's the size of Texas.

RocketMouse

So it's even more money out since I moved to another state, I can only get the warranty on the box... and now I have to fork over to have a good 4x4 suspension shop do the box since I no longer have the garage to do it myself.

I do like that upcountry setup though. Kinda makes it look like it has a mild lift without truly lifting the rig. And since I never planned on lifting mine, that would be perfect. But I'd love to choke that stupid rabbit for robbing me right about now.

RocketMouse

Fortunately I've already replaced almost all of my front end components. Did that last season.

I am seriously considering the Crown HD 755lb springs on the back. Were the Moog front springs pricey? My front ones don't seem like they are really worn. My rig only has 100k on the clock and the original shocks are just now barely showing signs that they should be replaced soon. Which is why I want to do this whole deal all at once and be done with it.

PatHenry

That sucks man... The steering gear on my 95 leaks a little bit (not enough to even drop the reservoir level) and since it's fully functional and the steering is tight, I'm not touching that thing until it fully fails. With all the horror stories of steering gears on the Jeep forums, IF I ever have to replace mine, I'm just going to cough up the money for a Redhead and hopefully be done with it.
I had to do the gear on my last Jeep and the steering was never really right after.

TimmyD

Prior to changing out my rear leafs, I sprayed the bolts with PB Blaster at the end of every day for a week. That loosened the bolt. To remove the leafs though, I actually used a Dremel to first cut it off near the front bushing, I then used the Dremel to cut the metal of the front bushing in half. I destroyed the bushings but since I had new ones with the leafs it was no big deal. Took a few hours but really made a difference with the rear end. Shocks are going to be anothe story. The bolts/nuts holding the shocks to the frame are rusted real bad. I need to find a HD wire wheel to clean them up before I even attempt to change my shocks. I would hate to have to cut into the chassis because of bolts breaking on me.
Good luck with your repairs.

RocketMouse

I'm highly considering that myself. Mine doesn't leak at all... but it has developed a ton of slop in the steering. Feel like I'm steering an old dump truck down the road.

In retrospect I am pissed that I didn't have the time to find a place that would've been willing to rebuild my original one. It lasted almost 18 years. The remans are absolute worthless junk. I hate to fork out for the labor and a new box right now.... so maybe I'll just have another one put in and if it fails and pisses me off again, I'll save and fork over to go RedHat.

Dave51

If you're low on coin the Crowns can certainly save quite a bit of $$$, and you can make your own bushing installer using a couple of Grade 8 bolts. Buy/make big washers and spacers from stuff lying around the garage. This is a kit I (sans a couple big washers)used to install bushings on Caravan control arms:



I made the spacers out of large diameter pipes from a hammock. Cut a little from both pipes so nobody noticed.