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Daystar 2" lift install and review on JL Sahara

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I just realized I didn't update with the wheels/tires mounted.

They're on, and fit great. No rubbing or any sort of interference. I haven't done any serious off-roading, but on light trails there's still plenty of room. I don't think there will be any issues, even if I flex it out.

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Wondering how much the shop charged you to install the kit? Understanding price will change based on location but just looking for a ball park number. I am trying to decide if I should tackle this myself or when in doubt sub it out lol. Could you post a picture of your Jeep, would like to see how it looks with the kit and tires.
Jay, I know this question wasn't directed to me, but I can estimate a ballpark until you hear back from Tom (JL18).
It took me roughly 7 hours, without working on it straight through. Obviously a shop will do it all in one shot, plus they've got lifts that they can work on to make it easier on them. With that in mind I would figure no more than 6 hours of labor, though I think a more realistic time for a shop would be 4 hours. As for price, it depends on where you take it (independent shop vs dealership) and where you live. A quick search shows between $75-$125 per hour. Using 5 hours to estimate the install, it would be around $375-$625.
 

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Jay, I know this question wasn't directed to me, but I can estimate a ballpark until you hear back from Tom (JL18).
It took me roughly 7 hours, without working on it straight through. Obviously a shop will do it all in one shot, plus they've got lifts that they can work on to make it easier on them. With that in mind I would figure no more than 6 hours of labor, though I think a more realistic time for a shop would be 4 hours. As for price, it depends on where you take it (independent shop vs dealership) and where you live. A quick search shows between $75-$125 per hour. Using 5 hours to estimate the install, it would be around $375-$625.
Winchell, pictures look great with the Rubicon wheels I am debating doing the same, how does it drive with that size tire, is it sluggish at all?

I've decided to wait until my tires wear down, then the lift and upgraded tires/ wheels will be added. Like you said you pay for the wheel package mind as well keep them for a little while. Also appreciate the info on install costs, I talked this over with a friend and he's confident we can tackle this ourselves, we lifted my 97 TJ so I trust him and your detailed step by step install review is a great guide.
 
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Glad to help. Yes, you and your friend can absolutely handle the install yourselves. The only reason I can think of someone paying to have it done are because they're not physically capable, or they don't have a place to do the work. I wouldn't even say having the required tools is an issue, because they're all basic hand tools. If you've done a TJ, you'll find this much easier to do. It's the easiest lift I've installed.

As for sluggishness with the new rim/tires. I don't notice any. The weight difference between my stock set and the new set is 17 lbs (from 66 to 83), and the diameter is only 5.3% bigger. Total weight that's only 85 lbs added to the vehicle, but the increased radius and rotational resistance is always the concern. That said, I did do some rough math on it. I'll spare you all that mess since it's rough, but I came up with approximately 1.5% more force needed to overcome the difference of the new tires. Under normal driving conditions this is pretty minor.
Acceleration feels the same, but I drive with the Jeep pretty much unladen. I've pulled my trailer with it (4 x 8 utility) and it still pulls that the same as before. I don't know if you'll notice the wheel/tire difference if you load the Jeep with gear, or if you pull a heavy trailer, but I suspect you probably would since you'll increase the force required to get the vehicle moving (by increasing the total vehicle mass). For daily driving, or a trip into the woods with a backpack it drives just like it did before though.
It's also worth noting that I don't drive very aggressively. Someone who drives more spiritedly may have a different opinion, but I didn't buy a Jeep for the hole shot. I just kinda cruise around and enjoy the wind and radio. I don't notice any lag off the line, no shifting issues, no maneuvering problems, or other ill effects. The Jeep absolutely has enough power to accommodate the increased load/resistance.
 

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Glad to help. Yes, you and your friend can absolutely handle the install yourselves. The only reason I can think of someone paying to have it done are because they're not physically capable, or they don't have a place to do the work. I wouldn't even say having the required tools is an issue, because they're all basic hand tools. If you've done a TJ, you'll find this much easier to do. It's the easiest lift I've installed.

As for sluggishness with the new rim/tires. I don't notice any. The weight difference between my stock set and the new set is 17 lbs (from 66 to 83), and the diameter is only 5.3% bigger. Total weight that's only 85 lbs added to the vehicle, but the increased radius and rotational resistance is always the concern. That said, I did do some rough math on it. I'll spare you all that mess since it's rough, but I came up with approximately 1.5% more force needed to overcome the difference of the new tires. Under normal driving conditions this is pretty minor.
Acceleration feels the same, but I drive with the Jeep pretty much unladen. I've pulled my trailer with it (4 x 8 utility) and it still pulls that the same as before. I don't know if you'll notice the wheel/tire difference if you load the Jeep with gear, or if you pull a heavy trailer, but I suspect you probably would since you'll increase the force required to get the vehicle moving (by increasing the total vehicle mass). For daily driving, or a trip into the woods with a backpack it drives just like it did before though.
It's also worth noting that I don't drive very aggressively. Someone who drives more spiritedly may have a different opinion, but I didn't buy a Jeep for the hole shot. I just kinda cruise around and enjoy the wind and radio. I don't notice any lag off the line, no shifting issues, no maneuvering problems, or other ill effects. The Jeep absolutely has enough power to accommodate the increased load/resistance.
Great to hear, makes me even more excited for the upgrade's, now its time to start saving my pennies :)
 

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Ha ha. If you're patient, you can do it somewhat reasonably. I got the Rubi rims from a guy near mid-Ohio for $500. They sat in my basement for a few months while I saved some money, and stalked craigslist, classified, forums, etc for a good set of tires.
Eventually I got the tires (4 of them anyway) from a guy closer to home off craigslist. He bought them for his truck, decided they were to small, and sold them so he could buy 37's, or 40's (I don't remember). They were basically new, and he accepted my offer of roughly half the new price. The only major expense was getting the spare, which I had to buy new. Discount Tire hooked me up, but it was still pretty expensive. I new they were expensive tires, and I knew I needed to buy 1 more, which is why I offered the guy so little.
Anyway. The point is, if you're patient, you can get it done for a "reasonable" price. Take your time and cast a wide net. I look forward to seeing yours.
 

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Ha ha. If you're patient, you can do it somewhat reasonably. I got the Rubi rims from a guy near mid-Ohio for $500. They sat in my basement for a few months while I saved some money, and stalked craigslist, classified, forums, etc for a good set of tires.
Eventually I got the tires (4 of them anyway) from a guy closer to home off craigslist. He bought them for his truck, decided they were to small, and sold them so he could buy 37's, or 40's (I don't remember). They were basically new, and he accepted my offer of roughly half the new price. The only major expense was getting the spare, which I had to buy new. Discount Tire hooked me up, but it was still pretty expensive. I new they were expensive tires, and I knew I needed to buy 1 more, which is why I offered the guy so little.
Anyway. The point is, if you're patient, you can get it done for a "reasonable" price. Take your time and cast a wide net. I look forward to seeing yours.
That's a similar approach I'm heading with now, unless I get to impatient either way I'll be sure to post back here when the search is over and she's nice and lifted.
 

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Were you able to fit those tires without the spacers? I know some people prefer the wider look, and was wondering if you added them for looks, or if the wider tire was rubbing the control arms when you turn to full lock.
The shop said they rubbed without the spacers, so they added them.
 

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Jay, I know this question wasn't directed to me, but I can estimate a ballpark until you hear back from Tom (JL18).
It took me roughly 7 hours, without working on it straight through. Obviously a shop will do it all in one shot, plus they've got lifts that they can work on to make it easier on them. With that in mind I would figure no more than 6 hours of labor, though I think a more realistic time for a shop would be 4 hours. As for price, it depends on where you take it (independent shop vs dealership) and where you live. A quick search shows between $75-$125 per hour. Using 5 hours to estimate the install, it would be around $375-$625.
I’ll have to look at the receipt again, but I think it was close to $1,000 to install the lift, wheel spacers, tire mount and balance, and alignment. I’ll check. Tomorrow.
 

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I just installed a Daystar 2" spacer lift on my JL Sahara. I figured I'd give some tips and review it since I couldn't find any when I was looking for them.
As many of you know I spent a lot of time looking for the lift that best fit my use. I wanted the lift more for looks than anything else. I like the stock ride, and I wanted to keep my stock rims/tires (I bought the optional set for a reason). After reading a LOT of product specs, reviews, etc I decided the Daystar kit was the best choice so here it is.

The install is pretty straight forward, and the kit comes with instructions. They're decent, and have a few photos. If I can figure out how, I'll attach a PDF of them. There are a few things I'd change about them though, and I have a few tips to add too.
INSTALLATION TIPS:
  1. The parts list tells you what you should have but doesn't tell you what anything actually is. This kinda sucks, but I only had one part that took a while to figure out. There are some flat washers in the fastener kit that didn't seem to have a designated use. As it turns out they must go to the lower bolt of the shock extension brackets, which I figured out while installing the rear brackets.
  2. Onto the install. First they have you remove the driver side front wheel, and support the axle. Then they tell you to replace the LCA. After this they tell you to remove the sway bar end link. Woo, back it up. Remove the swaybar links first. Do this before jacking it up. I don't know if the Wrangler is different, but the last time I tried to remove swaybar links from a vehicle that wasn't on level ground it sucked.
  3. After removing the swaybar links, you can jack it up, swap the LCA, and install the shock extensions.
  4. TIP 1: Don't bother jacking up the entire front end. Leave the passenger side tire on, and lift the driver side via the frame rail. Put a jack stand under it for safety and support the axle with another jack. This second jack allows you to raise/lower the suspension to line stuff up with ease. By jacking one corner at a time you can flex it and remove the springs A LOT easier. I struggled with the first spring until I figured this out. With it flexed, they all came right out with no effort.
  5. Tip 2: Don't install the bump stop extension before the spring. That's stupid, because then you have to get the spring over it. Instead, slide the bump stop extension into the spring, and mount the spring first. Then just drop the bump stop extension down to the perch, and install the fastener.
  6. The instructions have you covered for installing everything, but they don't give you any torque specs. What I found online was: LCA = 190 ft-lbs, shock mounts = 75 ft-lbs, swaybar links 60 ft-lbs.
  7. Once the driver side front is done, set it down, and repeat on the passengers side front.
  8. Tip 3: While installing the front passenger side bump stop extension, you'll notice the stud/nut is a bear to access. Save yourself a ton of work, and simply remove the bracket that's mounted to the bottom of the spring perch. It's held on by 1 bolt, and easily moves out of the way. See the attached photo of the bracket, and an arrow pointing to the bolt holding it in place.
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  9. Aside from this the passenger side is just like the driver side.
  10. Moving on to the rear. As with the front, unbolt the sway bar links first. I didn't completely remove them until the Jeep was jacked up because the bottom fastener was easier to access with the wheels off, but you can remove the top of them with it on the ground.
  11. Tip 4: Unbolt the rear track bar. You don't need to remove it (unless you're replacing it), but unbolting one end allows the rear suspension to drop a little more making spring removal much easier. I couldn't find torque spec for the JL when refastening the track bar so I used specs for the JK which was 125 ft-lbs.
  12. The instructions have you covered for the rear though like the front, I held off on installing the bump stop extensions. The rear can be done with them in place first as the instructions tell you, but putting them on after the spring simply gives you a little more room to work. Not a big deal either way.
  13. That's it set it down and check all the bolts for proper torque.
  14. The last part of the install that the instructions don't tell you, is to correct your steering wheel angle. This is a very easy task. First drive the Jeep to settle the suspension. Make note of how far off the wheel is turned when going straight. Park, crawl under the Jeep and loosen the 15mm bolt on the drag link. With that loose, twist the knurled nut which turns the wheel. Once the wheel is straight tighten the bolt back down. Drive it again to make sure you got the wheel straight and adjust again if needed.

That's it. It's a pretty easy install, and took me roughly 7 hours over the course of 3 days. I didn't work on it straight through, or I think I could have done it a bit faster. Plus I wasted quite a bit of time on the first spring before I figured out that setting the passenger side on the ground let me flex it better to easily remove the spring. I think if you take these tips, and work on it all in one day, you should be able to knock it out in 5 ish hours.

Bracket removal bump stop.jpg
I installed the same lift and love it!
 

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I've got the AEV 2" Spacer Lift. Been wanting to install it but have no garage. Finally found wheels and tires so I may pay the local shop to do the install and alignment. He said $400 for install and alignment. I've got Rubicon wheels and Toyo Open Country MT 315/70-17's to put on. Can't wait. Also ordered some spacers to move them out some.
 
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Sounds like a good price for the install. A lot of shops charge much more.
 
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Coming up on a year now with this lift installed. Still loving it, and still have had zero issues.
The tires fit great, and work well with the 2" lift.

I still haven't done any major off-roading but I doubt I ever will. Those days are behind me, which is why I bought a Sahara. FWIW, I've had no problems with rubbing or articulation on light/moderate trails. Doing it all again, I'd be more than happy to buy the Daystar kit with 34's again.
 
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I recently had someone ask how I felt about the lift now that I've had it for a while, so I figured I'd share here too.
I'm still absolutely happy with it. I've had it off road a few times now, but still nothing extreme. I've been on trails articulating the suspension (even with my 34's) and I haven't noticed any rubbing, catching or anything else. If you're looking for a little lift, and you're happy with the capabilities of the stock suspension it's a great choice. In short, I'm still happy with it and I'd definitely buy the same lift again if I was doing it all over again.
 

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Winchell, Thanks for your tips got my lift done yesterday.Took me most of the day but I wasn't in a hurry. 295/70/17 DC Trail country EXP tires 1.5" wheel spacers.

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