Welcome to the forum.

NICE!! yeah my rex was my favorite car as of now. I cant wait to own another one. Ive pretty much narrowed it down to either Rustys or RC. Both 4.5" kits seem really similar but the RC is $150 dollars more. I know that doesnt seem like that much when youre already paying 7 to 8 hundred dollars for a kit but it still could be a deal breaker for me. I guess i could always try it out without a sye and see what happens.

andddd.... im not really sure what rear is in it. it looks like a dana 35 but i dont see any markings on it. i thought there should be a 35C marked on it. haha really wasnt aware of all the dos and donts about xj's when i bought it i guess.

I dont think the rough country lift comes with and adjustable track bar and I'm pretty sure ya need that so it's like almost 200$ I think for one so rustys is definitely less expensive. My friend has a rustys an he loves it. It's so flexyy

Welcome to the site.Been out to Gettysburg a few times myself. That Mustang's pretty sweet.

I'll defiantly double that I love my rustys Trac bar it rides on and off the trail so much better

Welcome!!

Been there before! An XJ is ALMOST as fun to drive as a WRX. Anyways, welcome.

welcome to the forum!

wow~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What was your name on nasioc

C wentz the same as here

Yeah i absolutely loved my STI. Planning on buying another one and setting it up strictly for SCCA. Still debating if i want to keep it street legal so i can drive it around town or if i want to make it a purely race car and buy a trailer.

An axle swap is pretty easier, my first XJ has a 35 and i swapped out out for a 8.25. Its pretty easy to tell the difference. Google it for a picture and just compare the diff covers. Do you have ABS? If you have ABS then you 99% sure have a D35, unless someone did something customer to a 8.25 in order for it to have ABS.

Yeah its up to you, ive heard good things and bad things about both kits. I like Rough Country because i have received SUPERIOR customer service from them from questions, to replacement parts, to discounts, to ordering. Great company, great hours, easy to get ahold of, and theirs parts are really nice now. For the money IMO you cant beat what RC gives you.

That is actually incorrect information. Both the long arm and short arm Rough Country kits come with adjustable track bars. The Long Arm comes with the "heavy duty" adjustable track bar, the short arm comes with their "standard" adjustable track bar. And its no where near $200. Its actually $129.95 for their "heavy duty" adjustable track bar and that even includes the extended mount. The Rustys is actually more like $200, Rusty's is at $189.

I will say my RC track bar does make some noise because of a slight fitmant issue i noticed. I will most likely be switching to a JKS set up. But for $129 for the RC track bar and mount, you can beat what you get for the money.

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To help you out with this whol RC vs Rusty's debate. Ultimately its up to you, your preferences, and your piggy bank. For comparison purposes we will only consider short arm kits. Rough Country and Rusty's each have two 4.5" short arm kits available. Basically they each offer a add-a-leaf option and a full leaf option. Full leafs are IMO a better way to go so ill compare those two kits.

Rough Country 4.5" X-Series Lift Kit - $829.95 + Shipping
- Front 4.5" coil springs
- Rear 4.5" leaf springs
- Adjustable lower control arms
- Adjustable upper control arms
- Adjustable Track bar
- Sway bar discos
- U Bolts
- Transfer Case Drop Kit
- Brake line relocation Kit
- Front Nitro Shocks
- Rear Nitro Shocks

Rusty's 4.5" Spring Pack Kit - $669.99 + Shipping
- Front 4.5" coil springs
- Rear 4.5" leaf springs
- Fixed front lower control arms
- Front hydro preformance shocks
- Rear hydro prformance shocks
- Adjustable trac bar
- Front Sway Bar Drop Kit
- Transfer case drop kit
- Brake line extension kit
- Grade 8 U-Bolts
- 6 degree shims

PROS for Rough Country Kit
- Adjustable Uppers and Lowers: allows for more precise tuning of your caster and pinion angles and an overall better ride.
- Sway Bar discos included
- X-flex control joints: offers better flex

CONS for Rough Country Kit
- No shims: which could help with driveline vibration
- No extended brake lines, just relocation brackets

PROS for Rusty's Kit:
- Lower Price
- Extended brake lines
- Shims included to help reduce driveline vibration
- Options to customize kit: would raise asking price.

CONS for Rusty's Kit:
- Non adjustable control arms (this is an option but would raise asking price)
- No sway bar discos
- Does not include upper control arms
- Non-flex ends

As you can see, although the Rusty's kit is cheaper, it also comes with a lot less. In order to get all the options the Rough Country comes with you will have to add it on as options which adds money to the total. Here is a break down.

$669.99 - Price for standard Rusty's 4.5" Spring Kit
$080.00 - Additional Charge for Adjustable Flex control arm Joints.
$189.00 - Adjustable Upper control arms with flex joints
$69.95 - Sway bar discos (this is the price of RCs, because i couldnt find any made by Rustys)
$1008.94 - TOTAL to have similar qualities as the Rough Country

So ACTUALLY the Rough Country kit is better for what you get. For the money the Rough Country offers more. You can obviously still buy the Rustys for less as it comes from the factory but know it doesnt come with the same things as the Rough Country and in fact you are actually getting less for your money even though you are spending less.

Anyway hope this helps. Dont take any of this as fact. These are all my opinions and my research, if anyone doesnt agree with it then do your own research. Simply trying to help out a fellow member.

Will

Welcome and just to add my RC springs came with shims on the leafs. Sorry to nit pick. I will only buy RC or make my own.

Nice! Did not know that. Im a huge RC fan, their kits are well built and well priced.

Alright well I just checked out google and looked at rears. I definitely have the 8.25 and I don't have ABS. Thank you Will for the explanation of both kits. Its still kinda a tricky decision for me but Im not rushing it too much. I still need to save up money for wheels and tires too so I have some time. What do you think about the add a leaf packs? I would much rather have a full leaf pack but Im curious as to any pros or cons about the aal packs.