I want to put a 4.5" rough country lift on my 2000 jeep Xj. I don't have the money for an sye right now. Do you think a tcase drop will hurt anything? I know it puts extra stress on the motor mounts but other than that? Also has anyone done a 4.5" with a tcase drop, if so how did it work out. Thank you!

At that height you really need to just save up and do everything right. You do realize that you can't just put springs and leafs at 4.5 and call it good. Alot more is needed

yes I know like shocks,track bars,sway links, extend brake lines,ext

My father has daily driven a YJ with a 1" transfer case drop on it for a few years now. No noticeable adverse effects.

what size lift?

Was rated at 3" IIRC, but actually netted 5". Could have been worn out stock springs causing it to be more lift.

many companies like rubicon express sells a 1" t-case drop kit to use with their high end lift kits.

i used to run a rubicon express 5.5 inch extreme duty kit on my xj years ago, with a 1 inch drop. wheeled that for about 4 years before going long arm and no drop, so i'm sure you will get away with it for as long as you need.

i would suggest a sye once you can afford one tho. i was gonna go sye but decided to do a d300/231 doubler but haven't gotten to that quite yet.

And an sye haha

Don't forget.....that t-case drop that helps the rear driveshaft angle...hurts the front driveshaft by just as much where it bolts to the tcase, so keep an eye on it.

You already have a double cardan joint, so you may not notice it much.

thank you every one! Love these forms!

Mine has the RC 4.5" kit with the T-case drop and no SYE. I purchased it this way in the spring. I plan on installing an SYE eventually, but so far I have not seen any issues. Although it did grenade a U-joint back there, but I think that was the original one and it has 188k on it.

I've been running a one-inch drop with my (slightly larger than) 3" lift for over a year now. No issues.

Not saying it WILL be a problem, just to keep en eye on it.
On one of my trucks, I had to clearance the ears of the double cardan joint slightly, as they would hit just enough to give you a clicking noise when it 4wd.

Look in to a hack and tap sye,You don't have to open the t case and it uses a factory front driveshaft.

An SYE is a good idea with about any size of lift and in MO a must for over 3-3 1/2" of lift.