Sinking Creek 4WD Association

You know me I am yota all the way and dont keep up with jeeps all that much so I thought I would ask here. I have a coworker who wants to lift his jeep a few inches mostly for looks but it does go offroad for hunting and outdoor activities. He asked me about doing a body lift but instead I told him to do a coil spacer lift. I have pulled a spacer lift from a TJ and installed a complete 4" system and it does not seem to be too big of a job. In my mind the benefits seem better than a body lift but am I leading him astray. What are the problems with each type of lift and what would you recommend?

I really like the BB on my XJ (body lift not an option obviously), mainly because I get more travel before hitting the bumpstops, and it allows a little bit more flex before bottoming out. The body lift does make it easier to clean between the frame and body and helps prevent rust by letting the gap dry much quicker.

Any brand of BB with the spacers will work good. Rubicon Express, TeraFlex, Rusty's, you name it. A new front track bar might be advisable as well, but that's only if he starts to notice problems from his original. V8 ZJ springs (paging Jonsey) will give a few inches as well (1.5" I think) and is an all spring lift. This also helps with brake dive and handling! The front ZJ coils in my XJ helped a tremendous amount with brake dive.

My take on his situation would be dependent on what size tire he would like to run. Obviously a body lift is somewhat limited on how far you can go. If he is only looking to gain a couple inches out of it then i dont see the harm in going with the body lift. allows him to get the extra clearance yet keep all stock suspension parts. just seems like the simpler solution to a certain extent..

Body lifts are harmful. I've never seen a body lift that doesn't cause wiring, cooling, and linkage problems. The ZJ coils or the BB would be the way to go. The only thing he may want to change is the tracbar and shocks. Other than that, no suspension parts have to change. BTW, a stock TJ will fit 31's w/o any lift and only very minor rubbing on the front LCA with stock wheels.

TerryD wrote:Body lifts are harmful. I've never seen a body lift that doesn't cause wiring, cooling, and linkage problems. The ZJ coils or the BB would be the way to go. The only thing he may want to change is the tracbar and shocks. Other than that, no suspension parts have to change. BTW, a stock TJ will fit 31's w/o any lift and only very minor rubbing on the front LCA with stock wheels.

Don't think it's the best idea, but often you can get away with drilling a new hole in the bracket (axle side) for the trac bar. Many xj 3 inch lifts tell you to do this in the directions and it saves on the cost of a new trac bar.

Ctrow wrote:

TerryD wrote:Body lifts are harmful. I've never seen a body lift that doesn't cause wiring, cooling, and linkage problems. The ZJ coils or the BB would be the way to go. The only thing he may want to change is the tracbar and shocks. Other than that, no suspension parts have to change. BTW, a stock TJ will fit 31's w/o any lift and only very minor rubbing on the front LCA with stock wheels.

Don't think it's the best idea, but often you can get away with drilling a new hole in the bracket (axle side) for the trac bar. Many xj 3 inch lifts tell you to do this in the directions and it saves on the cost of a new trac bar.

also have trackbar relocation brackets, pretty cheap. Mine held up the entire time I had the 30 and didnt bend or anything (did have a bit of weld on it but they bolt in)

Thanks for the input guys. What is the minimal amount of disassembly you can get by with to get the poly spacers in? When I helped a friend do his lift we took everything apart and it would be nice to avoid that much work.

If you use spring compressers you should be able to get away with just discoing the shocks and swaybar. You might have to jack up the opposite side of the axle to get the side you're working on to droop enough, but it shouldn't be too bad. You can do this w/o spring compressers, but they make it SO much easier. Just be careful, they can be ticking time bombs if not treated with respect.

When I put my ZJ coils in all we had to do was take the shocks loose. Add a spring compressor to help compact the springs and that should about do it. I will say to disconnect the axle end of the trac-bar, this will make it easier to maneuver the axle around under it. Also, loosen the control arm bolts. You do not have to take them out, just loose enought to let the bushing pivot on the bolts till you are done.

if he needs some more lift after th BB ... toss on some V8 ZJ coils ... gave me about 1.5 with a 4.0L

jonesy wrote:if he needs some more lift after th BB ... toss on some V8 ZJ coils to the front and put the stock front coils in the rear ... gave me about 1.5 with a 4.0L

EDITED for clarity.

I know nothing about jeeps, but some guy I knew wanted a BB on his TJ a few years ago. If I remember right I unbolted the shocks, flexed it out and slid the spacers in as the springs dropped out of the coil cups. Took maybe 30min. This was 4 years ago, and I dont remember back then real well

I would recommend the RE budget boost with the coil spacers and new shocks. Should be able to get it with delivery in the $250 neighborhood.

Take off old shocks, disconnect anti-sway bar, remove coils, install spacers, reinstall coils, install new shocks, reconnect anti-sway bar. Coil compressor is more trouble than it is worth when dealing with this small of a lift.

Would also be a good time to install quick disconnects for the anti-sway bar if not already installed and if possible budget wise.

Nothing should have to be done with the panhard rod for 1.5-1.75" spacers (sold as 2").

-Mike

Thanks for all of the help I will pass the info along.