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Future lift, need advice

N

Nhil90

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Canada
I've exhausted the search function and still have a few questions. Any info I found seemed to be at least a year old. Sorry I know you guys must get this all day.

Anyways, I'm looking to lift my jeep, it's a 1997 XJ sport, 4.0L, 8.25, 280K. I want to end up with 3" of lift and be able to run 31's on black steelies. It will be a DD/weekend warrior and deal with extreme cold/snow 6 months out of the year. I would like to avoid doing a SYE although I know its a possibility that I may need one, I'd rather drop the t-case.

I have it narrowed down to either a Rusty's 3" or an RC 3". I need the full leaf packs since the ones I have currently are shot. Now I can order the RC kit with or without LCA's, do I need them for a 3" lift? Also, is it worth running quick discos at this height? My current sway bar links look like shit so I'm inclined to replace them. Do I need an adj. trackbar? I'm leaning towards RC only because Rusty's shipping rates are outrageous. I've heard RC is having issues with bushings wearing out though? Would that affect the lift I'm looking at?

Whats the deal with RE? Are they out of business? I haven't been able to find a dealer that will ship to Canada.

I know these aren't the best lifts out there but these are the two that work within my budget and won't be a giant pain in the ass to get up north.

If there's any suggestions you guys have I'd appreciate it, thanks!

Oh and one last thing, steering stabilizer? yay or nay?
 
I am by no means a guru. but, i wanted a little lift- my suspension was going south quick in my 99. i didn't want to have to deal with a sye so it was recomended that i just go with a small lift. i knew that i wanted a good one and after reading, searching and talking to a few people ( some just said leaved it the way it is, just lock it) i went with a ome 2 1/2 inch. they said no sye needed. i got the quick discos becuase my ends looked like crap and new upper and lower control arms. had it installed, and holy s.h.i.t. i didn't realize how bad my other suspension was sagging. i thought it was a 3 1/2 inch or bigger. got in drove it about 20 feet before i realized something was way wrong. to make a long story short i got a sye and tom woods drive shaft. still does not feel like it used to. my drive line angles are within proper jeep specs. multiple jeep people in my area have confirmed this. i have had this for about 5 months now. it is better as the suspension has broken in a little. it handles pretty good but the ride is far from factory. (be prepared to get bigger rubber- looks silly with the 1 size up from factory tires) if i had it all to do over again i would have just put different gears in and locked them. it does look nice sitting up a little though. but, i do miss the factory ride- maybe when it gets broken in a little more it will be better. oh, i did have a new track bar installed, it was recommended and since i was there a new steering stabilizer. your jeep has alot of miles on it so new parts never hurt. but this is just my opinion. and like i said, i am no guru whatsoever. that is what i have done to mine.
 
I am reorganizing your post to form questions for me to answer

Nhil90 said:
Q1) I would like to avoid doing a SYE although I know its a possibility that I may need one, I'd rather drop the t-case.

q2) I can order the RC kit with or without LCA's, do I need them for a 3" lift?

q3) is it worth running quick discos at this height?

q4) Do I need an adj. trackbar?

q5) I've heard RC is having issues with bushings wearing out though? Would that affect the lift I'm looking at?

q6) Whats the deal with RE? Are they out of business? I haven't been able to find a dealer that will ship to Canada.


Q7) steering stabilizer? yay or nay?
Click to expand...

A1) you might need one on a 97... but I would try driving it for a little bit if it has mild vibes... they tend to work themselves out... then I would try new u joints in the rear... then a t case drop

A2) you do not need them, just shim your lowers forward...

A3) YES!

A4) not really... research track bar redrilling

A5) if you beat them hard enough, ANYTHING will break

A6) they are out till at least AUG of this year

A7) a properly setup Jeep does not NEED a stabilizer... I got mine (a Rancho) for only $5 used... that is how little they matter
 
the rough country lift you are looking at comes with the bare minimum you need to lift your jeep 3 inches. if you do end up having to do a t case drop i would suggest geting a different cross member that has the inch lower built into it. vendors here offer these. i cant for the life of me remeber which ones though. if you plan on running discos buy from jks or a reputable vendor. cheap sway bar discos suck and thats all there is too it. as far as the track bar goes when i bought my 4.5 inch lift from rc the instructions say to drill the hole 3/4 to the right. it works for now but a better track bar will be the first thing i do to my rig when i have the cash. the bushings you mentioned refers to rc's flex joints. i have the fixed rubber type busing arms and i dont have any problems. sure you wont get the flex most guys do but if you want it then you better step up to something above rc and rustys. and whatever you do stay away from rustys. guys here bash them all the time. ive had no experience with them but after all the bad posts i figured i dont need to. good luck.
 
Nhil90 said:
Q1) I would like to avoid doing a SYE although I know its a possibility that I may need one, I'd rather drop the t-case.

q2) I can order the RC kit with or without LCA's, do I need them for a 3" lift?

q3) is it worth running quick discos at this height?

q4) Do I need an adj. trackbar?

q5) I've heard RC is having issues with bushings wearing out though? Would that affect the lift I'm looking at?

q6) Whats the deal with RE? Are they out of business? I haven't been able to find a dealer that will ship to Canada.


Q7) steering stabilizer? yay or nay?
Click to expand...

thanks for breaking it down ericfx.
q1)sorry, no late model exp.
q2) many kits dont use an aftermarket lca, ideal length lca's adjust cator for the added lift... BUT... many cheap 3" lift kit's come with stock length lca's... just with fancy bushings.... either will work, dont be afraid to save funds here.
q3)quick disco's are nice if you do flexy wheeling... you could in theory run the swaybar all of the time, or none of the time... depends on your ride quality tastes, enviroment, and shock valving to suppress body roll... you could save money here too, by running static links, or no swaybar.
q4) i used to run the rc 3", at that height I RAN the stock unit... however it makes it wear quicker due to riding at a higher angle at ride height. plan to upgrade it once it starts clunking. you can do it later though, OR redrill a new hole 3/4 over or whatever.
q5) MANY suspension companies are having bushing problems.... its supplyside problems, i wouldnt worry with their customer service record.
q6) im running basically a 10 year old re lift.... its great! my lca bushings are 10 years old, and still FINE...their stuff from the last 2-3 years is questionable to me, due to what people are saying here on NAXJA. i would assume their quality will go way down once 4wp is in charge... its basically a clean slate with them, they gotta reprove their reputation to me, post bankrupcy.
 
mizzutgr said:
I am by no means a guru. but, i wanted a little lift- my suspension was going south quick in my 99. i didn't want to have to deal with a sye so it was recomended that i just go with a small lift. i knew that i wanted a good one and after reading, searching and talking to a few people ( some just said leaved it the way it is, just lock it) i went with a ome 2 1/2 inch. they said no sye needed. i got the quick discos becuase my ends looked like crap and new upper and lower control arms. had it installed, and holy s.h.i.t. i didn't realize how bad my other suspension was sagging. i thought it was a 3 1/2 inch or bigger. got in drove it about 20 feet before i realized something was way wrong. to make a long story short i got a sye and tom woods drive shaft. still does not feel like it used to. my drive line angles are within proper jeep specs. multiple jeep people in my area have confirmed this. i have had this for about 5 months now. it is better as the suspension has broken in a little. it handles pretty good but the ride is far from factory. (be prepared to get bigger rubber- looks silly with the 1 size up from factory tires) if i had it all to do over again i would have just put different gears in and locked them. it does look nice sitting up a little though. but, i do miss the factory ride- maybe when it gets broken in a little more it will be better. oh, i did have a new track bar installed, it was recommended and since i was there a new steering stabilizer. your jeep has alot of miles on it so new parts never hurt. but this is just my opinion. and like i said, i am no guru whatsoever. that is what i have done to mine.
Click to expand...
Are your driveshaft angles correct? When running an SYE you don't want to run the same angle as stock. IIRC, w/an SYE you want to point at the t-case output with your pinion. Double check that or hopefully someone will corroborate this info for me.
 
Darky said:
Are your driveshaft angles correct? When running an SYE you don't want to run the same angle as stock. IIRC, w/an SYE you want to point at the t-case output with your pinion. Double check that or hopefully someone will corroborate this info for me.
Click to expand...


iirc you are correct... I am getting ready to do mine and that is what all that write ups say
 
Is a perfect, smooth ride ever attained? Lots of people that I have talked to on the phone say yes. Everybody that has driven my ride say thats as good as it gets. Maybe it will get better when I can afford new tires. I would really like to find a local NAXJA guru to look at this.
 
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