Traveler III
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- Kelly
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- Herrin
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A recent survey revealed that 90% of Breast Augmentation patience wish they'd "gone bigger". My guess is, the same applies to Jeep lifts ;-)
Best lift HEIGHT to go with on a jeep for Overland build?
- Thread starter The JKU Kraken
- Start date
If you're having drivability issues then you definitely need to get it fixed ASAP. There are a brazillion lift kits out there so finding the right one is going to take some time. I have an AEV 3.5 kit and I'm happy with it and it drives much better than stock. With your goal of overlanding instead of mud bogging or rockcrawling, I'd stick with something that gives maximum travel with minimum lift to keep your COG low while providing good off road performance. You're definitely going to want something that has heavy capacity springs to handle the load of hauling around a ton of crap for long distances. I'd check out AEV's 2.5 inch XT kit. Give them a call and explain what your goals are and see if it meets your needs. Good luck.
Sent from my Moto G (4) using OB Talk mobile app
Sent from my Moto G (4) using OB Talk mobile app
Do you have an adjustable track bar up front? I have a Teraflex 2.5" lift, and after I installed an adjustable track bar it was like night and day in terms of drivability. Is the wobble speed specific? At around 45mph?
I do not. Like I was saying the current kit seems very basic and overall poorly thought out and out together I would say the wobble and vibration starts in the 45 mph range and increases as the speed does. My main reason for wanting to change out the whole kit is because I have no idea what it is and nobody can seem to tell me either. There's no ability to measure the quality of the parts I already have installed and I don't want to find out the hard way 1000 miles from home you know?
The wobble starting at 45mph is the start of death wobble. An adjustable track bar does wonders for that issue. The problem is, the longer you run it that way, the more parts that get wore out. Maybe try a cheaper track bar and see if it makes the drive better. If it does, you may decide you can live with the lift. Worse case you can always return the track bar.
I have the ARB/OME 2.5" suspension with HD springs in the front and regular in the rear on my 2-door. I had the HD in the rear also but it was way too hard. I have 35's and skid plates and will do medium rock crawling with it. I did put control arm relocation brackets on it as the caster was out by quite a bit. Bump stops and trimmed fenders keep the clearance for the tires. Once you go over 2.5" you need to think about a longer driveshaft, adjustable control arms/track bar, exhaust spacers to keep everything happy. If you don't you can end up with ride and steering issues.
Pioneer II
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- Kent
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- Reynolds
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Just wondering on the rear HD springs you replaced which ones were they the 300 lb or 660 lb?
Originally i had the p/n 2618 (300lbs constant load) but the rear was almost solid unless well loaded, i switched them out for the p/n 2617 and they were much better. This didn't make a lot of sense since i have the heavy springs in the front and they ride fine with the bumper and winch, skids etc. I figured with the heavier spare, hard top and tools i needed the extra. Maybe on the 4 door the experience might be different.
Pioneer II
- 5,737
- First Name
- Kent
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- Reynolds
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- Retired Firefighter
Thank you!! that is exactly the info I needed, I have a 4 door so Im probably going with the 2618 in the rear due to load.
I have a 3.5 Rubicon express with resivor bilstein shocks. I think it's right height. No wobble and with the weight of the bumpers and gear etc it's more like 3".
Sent from my SM-G935V using OB Talk mobile app
Sent from my SM-G935V using OB Talk mobile app
Some thing commonly forgotten in the upgrade phase is the weight rating of the vehicle it needs to be kept in mind.
A few hundred extra pounds in a bumper and winch, a few more on a spare tire carrier etc etc it adds up fast. Be careful not to exceed the axle weight ratings.
The JK only has a recommended cargo capacity of 1000 lbs including passengers and cargo.
https://www.quadratec.com/jeep_knowledgebase/article-103.htm
A few hundred extra pounds in a bumper and winch, a few more on a spare tire carrier etc etc it adds up fast. Be careful not to exceed the axle weight ratings.
The JK only has a recommended cargo capacity of 1000 lbs including passengers and cargo.
https://www.quadratec.com/jeep_knowledgebase/article-103.htm
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I'd recommend sticking with a 2.5" lift unless you're going to go with larger tires. The lift is really about clearing the tires you need on a Jeep. Any high quality 2.5" lift is going to have more than enough spring capacity to handle the increased weight of armor, gear, etc. because those lift mfr's actually EXPECT that you will have that stuff when they rate the height of their lifts. When I put my 2.5" Metalcloak lift on with pretty much nothing other than 80lbs of sliders on the vehicle I gained 2.75" in the rear and about 3.25" up front (partly because most aftermarket lifts also remove the factory rake). That was compared to factory 18/59 or 18/57 (can't remember offhand) springs which are almost the stiffest springs you can get from the factory so I was already sitting higher than some of the other stock Jeeps because going from the softest to stiffest factory coils is reported to give up to an inch of lift.
I've also learned the driveshaft issue is more about how much travel your suspension has. Sitting on the pavement I have no angle issues. However Metalcloak uses long travel shocks (listed as for 3.5-5.5 inch lifts on most sites). It took a couple years but I did finally blow out the factory CV boot on the front driveshaft. Thankfully one of my Jeep buddies had a low miles factory takeoff and I just swapped it in since I didn't have cash for an aftermarket shaft. Just to give you an example of what kind of travel I have with those shocks, even with exhaust spacers the shaft still barely rests on the exhaust crossover if I put the Jeep up on a lift so the whole axle droops down. It barely clears if I'm flexed with the passenger wheel stuffed.
I've also learned the driveshaft issue is more about how much travel your suspension has. Sitting on the pavement I have no angle issues. However Metalcloak uses long travel shocks (listed as for 3.5-5.5 inch lifts on most sites). It took a couple years but I did finally blow out the factory CV boot on the front driveshaft. Thankfully one of my Jeep buddies had a low miles factory takeoff and I just swapped it in since I didn't have cash for an aftermarket shaft. Just to give you an example of what kind of travel I have with those shocks, even with exhaust spacers the shaft still barely rests on the exhaust crossover if I put the Jeep up on a lift so the whole axle droops down. It barely clears if I'm flexed with the passenger wheel stuffed.
Oh, forgot to mention, anything from Rock Krawler, AEV, or Metalcloak is sure to have heavy duty springs that will handle the extra weight.
Now would you guys recommend I go with a short or mid alarm? Or will a standard coil lift with track bars do the job just fine?
If you're not crawling over rocks and don't need the clearance, something like AEV's 2.5" kit with the drop brackets for the control arms would be perfect. Otherwise you'll want at least one set of adjustable CA's up front so you can adjust the caster/pinion angle for better handling. New track bar either way. AEV doesn't like replacing the factory trackbars or CA's but I think aftermarket is just fine as long as you're not going cheap on it and I'd rather have the axle centered.
I never noticed until I put my new wheels/tires on a few weeks ago but my stock rear trackbar with Metalcloak's rear trackbar bracket (changes the roll center but not intended to center the axle) actually causes the rear axle to stick out like 1/2 an inch too far to the driver's side. Although without that bracket it would stick out on the passenger side instead. So an adjustable rear is still on my list.
I never noticed until I put my new wheels/tires on a few weeks ago but my stock rear trackbar with Metalcloak's rear trackbar bracket (changes the roll center but not intended to center the axle) actually causes the rear axle to stick out like 1/2 an inch too far to the driver's side. Although without that bracket it would stick out on the passenger side instead. So an adjustable rear is still on my list.
Benefactor
I will lead my comments with: it's your jeep, build it the way you want. If you are interested, I'm using the AEV 2.5' lift, with geometry correction brackets. This clears my 35' tires great. I get plenty of wheel travel to keep them on the ground for any technical stuff overlanders are likely to see. AEV are load rated coils, so the rear end will sit a bit hi, until you are close to max payload, then the jeep sits flat. I have wheeled this setup all over the US and in Central America. It drives great on the highway, and performs on the trail. The OME was the other lift I was considering. I have used OME on other vehicles, and know the engineering they do to perfect these lifts. I would avoid a lift that is too complicated. it's my opinion that, for Overlanding, AEV or OME is the way to go on a JK. Keep the lift in the 2.5' range and get out their. Most other lifts for a JK are oriented to playing in the rocks, and if this is what you want, then go for it. If you are building an overland vehicle, AEV or OME.
