I laughed really hard at that. What is the ratchet strap for..? Lol

 

Seriously! For that money u spend in fab I'd way rather plate the hole unibody and have it be strong as heck too

 

In general a body lift (wouldn't do more than 2" myself) is a cheap, easy way of getting more space for bigger tires without having to deal with other upgrades to the suspension, steering, ect. If I'm at 3" and want to run bigger tires a 1-2" body lift is a big deal because it keeps me from having to mess with an SYE, drive shafts, longer brake lines, ect.

It's really not as much work as it seems like to separate the body and frame for the most part. There was a good build thread for it over on Jeepforum for a while, but the guy abandoned the project for a new one.

There's also a lot less stress on the body and frame if they're not one piece. It's also really convenient if you start having frame issues, want to under coat, paint, ect. I'd much rather have a real frame than a unibody.

 

Your point is very conceivable after the unibody was just a cheap way of jeep makin a "downgrade" of the grand. But since i have got an xj i have been proud of the pure perfomance of a suspension lift. Plus a TC drop removes the need for a sye and kits come with the proper steering components alignments. I have 6.5" of lift with no vibes, wobbles, 100% flex, 6.5" over stock ride heighth and a much greater center of gravity than any extreme costs of body lift. Though the validity of a body lift for someone that has 3-6.5" of suspension lift and wanting more but dont want to salvage the lift already in place and consider reconstructing an xj to a proven frame to entertain the advantage of a body lift. But being an xj owner is being part of a LARGE minority of unibodies on the trail and proving the 4 wheel enthusiasts wrong every time an xj hits the trail. Or make it into a xwj, just my ten cents, i wouldn't do it.