Jeep Cherokee Forum

All depends on what your budget is and what type of driving you plan on doing. Give us that info and we can really steer you in the right direction.

Based on the limited info so far though, here's what I would suggest.

Since you're new to lifts here's a simple run down of the basic components for a smaller size lift.
1. Springs: Coil springs up front, leaf springs in the rear. Kits will come with either full leaf packs, or an add-a leaf set up.
2. Shocks: Due to the increased ride height and spring travel, longer shocks are needed.
3. Control arms: The front axle has upper control arms (uca's) and lower control arms (lca's). These keep the axle properly aligned fore/aft. Larger springs will push the axle towards the back of the vehicle, so longer arms are needed to push it back forward.
4. Trac-bar: The trac-bar keeps the front axle centered side-to-side. As the coil springs increase in size, the axle will be pulled to one side due to the steering component being pulled on. An adjustable/relocated track bar will allow the front axle to be centered again.
5. Brake Lines: As the spring size increases the brake lines must also be extended in order to keep them from being stretched/torn as the suspension components travel (i.e. "flex").
6. Shackles: Shackles allow for length changes of a leaf spring. A leaf spring positions the axle under the vehicle, and supports the weight of the vehicle. As a leaf spring flexes up or down, its length from eye to eye changes. Since one end is mounted solidly, and cant move, all the length change happens at one end, which has a shackle between the spring and frame to allow for movement.

The larger the lift, the more components get added, such as transfer case drops (tc drop), slip yoke eliminators (sye), long arms, pitman arms, etc. Since you're looking at a smaller lift, these most likely won't be needed.

Rough Country and Rusty's both make good lifts for those of us on a lower budget. Other companies, such as Rubicon Express and Iron Rock Offroad make really good lifts for a little more, but the parts are generally a little higher quality. If you don't have a budget limit, BDS is the way to go. They make amazing parts and everything is covered by a "no questions asked" lifetime warranty through them. I currently have Rusty's 3" Spring Pack lift kit and am using longer shackles and coil spring spacers to have a total lift of 4". I haven't had a single issue with any of the parts from Rusty's and would highly recommend it for a first lift.

Since you're only looking at 3", your stock control arms and trac-bar will be fine. The only things you will definitely need for a 3" lift will be the front coil springs, the rear leaf springs, a rear brake line extension (the fronts can simple be relocated), shocks, and the trac-bar relocated (simply drill out a new axle mount bolt hole .5" from the factory spot to recenter the axle).
Being that you have a 2001, there's a chance that you will need either a transfer case drop or leaf spring shims to remove potential drive line vibrations. A SYE is the best way to go, but at 3", it's kind of overkill. I would recommend the tc drop to correct any vibrations that may show up.

I would also highly recommend getting a lift that has full leaf packs. A lift with Add-a-Leaf's (an extra leaf is added to your existing leaf spring packs) will be cheaper, but getting the full leaf packs will keep you from having to replace the already used leaf springs sooner.