Suspension Lift Question

[calemasters]

My wife and I recently upgraded from our 2017 wrangler JK to a 2022 JL Rubicon. We decided to lift the Rubicon (2 inch suspension lift) and put on new 35's. This is a new experience for us and not sure what to expect from the drive. In our first drive after the upgrades we feel as though the vehicle drives loose for lack of a better term. It seemed to want to sway back and forth. Having no experience with the larger tires we were not sure whether or not we might have an issue. Is movement likes this to be expected after a lift and larger tires?

I put 35" Falken Wildpeak A/T3W LT315/70R17 on my JLUR with no suspension modifications. Considering it is a Wrangler, it drives like it did with the 33" OEM tires.

Sponsored

 

[lalalofsky]

I am thinking of it in a different perspective, maybe simpler to think about.

When i put on rubicon suspension parts (coils and springs) on my sport, it added just shy of 2 inches, I remember my drive home from school, where i installed everything, and it felt different. It felt more like i was swaying back and forth, while handling at the wheel felt better, I was taller.

After many months i added 315/75/r17 so a 34.4 inch Nitto Ridge Grappler, and the shop that put them on aired them to 36 psi. I drove home and felt like i was about to fly off the road. The jeep sat significantly higher, and with that I noticed that the swaying movement felt increased. The tires felt different of course, and they grab the road in a different way from the all season tires that come stock.

With any lift, caster will Decrease. Too little caster will make the vehicle’s steering feel lighter. Too much caster will make turning the wheel harder and tend to pull the wheel back to straight.

I think of it like a shopping cart wheels. The rear wheels have positive caster, helping to keep the wheels stable and straight. The front wheels have negative caster which is less stable, but much much easier to turn and spin. Kinda like when you get the cart with a front wheel That while youre pushing it sways side to side and makes noise.

I hope this helps in some way.

 

[Adv_aw8s]

I'm running the AEV lift with 37's on our diesel Rubicon. Ours seemed to wander a little bit more after the lift too. It took more smaller inputs from the steering wheel to keep the jeep going straight. I run out tire pressures at about 31 psi. I just replaced our stock steering stabilizer with the AEV one and it made a huge difference. I would spend the 120 bucks on that and I think you'll be happy.

 

[Outdoor Oasis]

So after reading all the comments (thanks to everyone who provided information) I had to take our Jeep back in to the shop that did the work because the new 35 inch spare tire was causing my back up sensors to initiate the alarm whenever I was in reverse. As a side to the suspension issue, According to the shop owner they were not supposed to need an aftermarket bracket, but once they put the new spare tire bracket on, the sensors worked fine. As for the suspension issue or the Jeep tracking loosely, I lowered my tire pressure on the front tires to 32 psi and it helped immensely until I got up to 60 mph and then it got loose again. So while having the sensor problem fixed we had an in depth conversation about my lift (which was the AEV 2 inch spacer lift) According to the shop owner, this lift did not need the geometric brackets. However, we called AEV and spoke to them about what was happening. The AEV rep indicated that yes that type of lift on the JL needed the brackets installed....after watching a couple of youtube videos I fully understand the whole concept now. So they installed the brackets and guess what....the ride is back to the way it was prior to the lift. I still need to air my tires back up so hopefully nothing will change when I do that. Thanks again for everyones comments.

 

[TX_Ovrlnd]

So while having the sensor problem fixed we had an in depth conversation about my lift (which was the AEV 2 inch spacer lift) According to the shop owner, this lift did not need the geometric brackets.

We could've solved this quick with that info lol. Spacer lifts over an inch will throw geometry out of sync guaranteed. I view spacer lifts as temporary lifts until you get the whole kit. Glad they got you squared away.

 

[blnewt]

Glad you got it remedied, and your spare tire issue too!
Now see how important caster is now

Sponsored