lightsout
Well-Known Member
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- #1
I have been looking for a new lift kit, I installed a 2" spacer lift within a week of new now 3 months later after adding 35" Tires, Bumper, winch, RV tow Plate, Go Rhino D6 Sliders-Boards that 2" lift is not doing much where my rake was once level now it is back to about 1" drop in the front. I am ready to lose the spacer lift and install a spring and shock lift and get a bit more clearance, fix the rake and add more travel.
My Use is 60% roads DD, 20% towed behind RV 10% back country roads and 10% mild to med trails. So daily driver ride is important. I am also joining a regional Jeep club and plan to join in on Trail events here in the NW...
Selecting lift kits is a mine field, to begin lift kits fit and lift Sports and Sahara's differently than a Rubicon so the actual lift height is subjective unless the lift discloses such information or is specific to either model. With that said what height do you want 2.5", 3", 3.5" or more again the variable based on manufactures info (Rubi vs Sport/Sahara).
Then which springs to chose: Progressive, single stage, 2 stage or now 3 stage springs which seems to be the most important factor in terms of ride as shocks only provide a smaller part of the influence on ride.
Control arms, should you buy new or get the extension brackets, again not hard core here which I think accounts for most Sport and Sahara owners
2.5" vs 3.5 (I am leaning towards 3.5), this is a big one as the 3.5 provides better clearance for a few extra dollars however how does the ride differ other than a tad more roll? will my 35'x12.5" tires rub at full articulation with a 2.5 and my +18 offset wheels. They do now with my 2" spacer but I also have alot of added weight up front. Then is the added articulation of the 3.5 useful in my occasional off road use.
Shocks: Everyone raves about Fox Shocks, however they are a premium $$$, how do they really affect the 60% of my driving or are they more useful off road. I have been leaning toward Teraflex but no one has anything positive to say about them at least so far.
Do I just go with a kit like Rancho (high on my list) JKS, Rock Crawler , Rubicon Express or do I build a modular kit. That brings up cost, I would like to stay under $1200 Springs-Shocks lift I have a track bar and added the Teraflex 2.2 steering stabilizer. I like the idea of the 3.5" lift but really do not want to replace the front driveline.
As you can see at least in my mind there is a lot to balance, however that is because I am also trying to preserve street ride which is very important and there is little advice on this available.
Here is what made it more frustrating...
I called 4WP.com to discuss purchasing the Rancho 3.5" Lift they insisted I consider the new 3.5" Rubicon Express lift with the Bilstein shocks (more $$$ of course). Then i hung up and called North Ridge they tried to instead talk me into Rock Krawler lift, then I called Quadratec who then pushed the JKS. I called another and they pushed BDM. What makes this so hard is each of the major aftermarket retailers are infatically pushing specific lifts and none of them promote the same brand almost like it is coordinated. Every one of them loosely claim that their recommendation is the best fit for me however they all or most sell all the lifts mentioned above. I was really hoping for experiences and advice as well as comparable facts.
Look, I do not want to make the wrong choice I have already installed a spacer lift I was not happy with and I want this to be the last lift. So I started this thread to help me with my decision as well as to hopefully help others with this same decision process.
Because of the added front end weight a Spacer lift is likely not going to fix the rake and maintain the ride quality as the springs are already partially compressed from stock.
Any advice, experience, pictures of lifts (with details), ride quality assessments is all greatly appreciated. Again Rubi folks are welcome to comment but prefer to keep the subject to Sports and Sahara's due to the obvious suspension differences.
Then again maybe I am just over thinking this...
Here is my current 2" lift
My Use is 60% roads DD, 20% towed behind RV 10% back country roads and 10% mild to med trails. So daily driver ride is important. I am also joining a regional Jeep club and plan to join in on Trail events here in the NW...
Selecting lift kits is a mine field, to begin lift kits fit and lift Sports and Sahara's differently than a Rubicon so the actual lift height is subjective unless the lift discloses such information or is specific to either model. With that said what height do you want 2.5", 3", 3.5" or more again the variable based on manufactures info (Rubi vs Sport/Sahara).
Then which springs to chose: Progressive, single stage, 2 stage or now 3 stage springs which seems to be the most important factor in terms of ride as shocks only provide a smaller part of the influence on ride.
Control arms, should you buy new or get the extension brackets, again not hard core here which I think accounts for most Sport and Sahara owners
2.5" vs 3.5 (I am leaning towards 3.5), this is a big one as the 3.5 provides better clearance for a few extra dollars however how does the ride differ other than a tad more roll? will my 35'x12.5" tires rub at full articulation with a 2.5 and my +18 offset wheels. They do now with my 2" spacer but I also have alot of added weight up front. Then is the added articulation of the 3.5 useful in my occasional off road use.
Shocks: Everyone raves about Fox Shocks, however they are a premium $$$, how do they really affect the 60% of my driving or are they more useful off road. I have been leaning toward Teraflex but no one has anything positive to say about them at least so far.
Do I just go with a kit like Rancho (high on my list) JKS, Rock Crawler , Rubicon Express or do I build a modular kit. That brings up cost, I would like to stay under $1200 Springs-Shocks lift I have a track bar and added the Teraflex 2.2 steering stabilizer. I like the idea of the 3.5" lift but really do not want to replace the front driveline.
As you can see at least in my mind there is a lot to balance, however that is because I am also trying to preserve street ride which is very important and there is little advice on this available.
Here is what made it more frustrating...
I called 4WP.com to discuss purchasing the Rancho 3.5" Lift they insisted I consider the new 3.5" Rubicon Express lift with the Bilstein shocks (more $$$ of course). Then i hung up and called North Ridge they tried to instead talk me into Rock Krawler lift, then I called Quadratec who then pushed the JKS. I called another and they pushed BDM. What makes this so hard is each of the major aftermarket retailers are infatically pushing specific lifts and none of them promote the same brand almost like it is coordinated. Every one of them loosely claim that their recommendation is the best fit for me however they all or most sell all the lifts mentioned above. I was really hoping for experiences and advice as well as comparable facts.
Look, I do not want to make the wrong choice I have already installed a spacer lift I was not happy with and I want this to be the last lift. So I started this thread to help me with my decision as well as to hopefully help others with this same decision process.
Because of the added front end weight a Spacer lift is likely not going to fix the rake and maintain the ride quality as the springs are already partially compressed from stock.
Any advice, experience, pictures of lifts (with details), ride quality assessments is all greatly appreciated. Again Rubi folks are welcome to comment but prefer to keep the subject to Sports and Sahara's due to the obvious suspension differences.
Then again maybe I am just over thinking this...
Here is my current 2" lift
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