hpwrestler220

I have a 2" Budget boost on the XJ now. It's a 2" spacer up front and a 2" shackle on the rear. I like how it sits, but I can't stand how soft the front and rear spring rates are. It rides extremely soft, which is comfortable to most, but it does not work for my purposes. I can't even put friends or a few hundred pounds in the rear of the truck without the a$$ dropping 2-3" in ride height. Same with the front: When I put my plow on the truck, it sags nearly 3+ inches.


So I took it upon myself to do a lift for the meantime and see if things improve for me.


I purchased a 2" AAL which I know is not really the CORRECT way of lifting the rear, but it was cheap... The Jeep is my second vehicle so I don't care much about ride quality and for the $70 I paid, I'll take a chance on the AAL sagging... If they sag, then I will buy a full 3" leaf spring pack from Rusty's. I don't offroad and my stock leafs don't have a negative arch so it's worth a shot on saving a few hundred for myself.


I also purchased the 3" HD coils from Rusty's for $100. They look to be good quality and were made in America, too! Gets rid of the stock #150ish spring rating and bumps it up to a #180.


I coupled the springs and leafs with some Rubicon shocks (the red ones, not black). Guy at work took em off his 15' Rubi with 200 miles on em'. I picked em up for $50 and just finished pressing out the bushings.


Lift should be installed sometime in the near future. I'll need to press the stock bar pins into the lower shock mount on the fronts and it all should be a direct plug and play install.


I'm excited. Just thought I would share.


Does anyone know if I will need to install anything else? I have a transfer case drop ready to install if I get any vibes from the additional lift, which will correct any driveline issues until I can get an SYE. Will I need brake line extensions? Do I NEED an adjustable track bar? How about a steering stabilizer? I just put a new one in a few months ago so I'm hoping I don't need a new one. Any and all input is much appreciated guys.








My make-shift press





Here is how it sits now...





And here is a better pic to see how much lift the 30's and 2" BB gave me. Rear sits exactly 1/2" lower than front

JerNorm

Are you adding these to your BB lift for 4" of lift are are you replacing it? If you are adding them together to have 4" you are going to need more parts. Brake lines, adjustable track bar, you will probably want that t-case drop as well.

hpwrestler220

I am taking the BB spacers out up front and installing the springs. So that's going to be 3" total up front.


The rear I am adding the 2" AAL to the 2" shackle, but depending how much lift I gain, I may adjust the shackle and put the shackle bolt into the 1.5" slot instead of the 2" which will net me 3.5" altogether instead of 4".


So I should be lifting the front 1" from the BB and the rear 1.5" from the BB. 3" up front and 3.5" out back total lift.


I think Rusty's 3" kit with new leaf springs is actually a 3.5" rear bc they don't sell a 3" rear leaf spring. Their site says most jeeps with that size lift don't require any additional modification, but I don't know if anyone here has actual experience with a similar lift and needing additional modifications to run it properly.

gunmetal_nightrider

hpwrestler220

So I installed the front springs tonight and noticed that when I hit a decent sized bump, it feels like something is hitting the spring. Whenever I hit a bump, I can hear a "Boing" noise consistent with that of a spring. What is hitting it? The stock swaybar endlinks are 1"+ away from the spring at the closest point. Does the swaybar endlink articulate when the vehicle's suspension compresses, thus causing the endlink to contact the spring and make the "boing" noise? I just want to diagnose the issue so I can buy what I need and fix it.

hpwrestler220

Disregard. After some extensive searching I've learned that the issue is most likely that the stock track bar bolts needs to be re-tightened. Do I tighten them with the suspension loaded or decompressed?


Also, if extended or re-located front brake lines are REQUIRED on a 3" lift, how come I didn't need to do it? I had way more than enough clearance on the brake lines after installing the 3" springs. I can see if someone wants to remove the stock front sway and do some major flexing, but otherwise i feel more than comfortable that the stock lines are completely safe for driving with the sway bar mounted. They still have plenty of slack in the stock location


Also, i don't feel that the sway bar end links are REQUIRED either as per the above diagram. Sure my swaybar is probably at the very end of it's range, but it works.


The verdict is still out for an aftermarket track bar. I don't believe I will need one. I'm going to re-torque the bolts and see if it is within spec at alignment. As of now, I've observed no axle shift. Both wheels are in the same location.

gunmetal_nightrider

Yes it is possible your link is hitting your spring. The entire sway bar pivots on the two points it is mounted to on the frame. It moves up or down in tandem with the axle...because it is connected via the swaybar link. Take a picture of the link. There might also be telltale scrapes on the spring if they ARE contacting.

gunmetal_nightrider

The items NewKindOfClown listed are for a fully capable XJ. The extended brake hoses allow for full flex on either axle. The stock sway bar links are a limiting factor in axle droop in the front end. Unless you redrilled your trac bar hole in the axle mount i doubt your axle is centered.

hpwrestler220

I just measured the axles. Driver side axle is pushed over to the outside edge approximately 5/8" compared to the left side. So I do have axle shift. I guess I will have to re-drill or purchase new.


As for the springs, they still look brand new in the areas near the swaybar links. I'm not seeing any wear.