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Rear end suspension

91xjtim

NAXJA Forum User
My 91 is starting to sag a lil these days. Especially when I tow anything. The leafs seem quite flat. What can I do? Replace them? Where can I pick up a set? TIA BTW it is stock.
 
My '94 was starting to sag as well. The best solution would be to replace the rear leaf springs. If you want to remain at stock-height (or close to it), you may want to invest in some springs from an Upcountry Off-road pkg model. The Upcountry springs won't sag nearly as much with a load, and they will maintain their ride height longer than the stock springs would.

In my case, I had the opportunity to purchase a set of good barely-used 3" Rusty's leaf packs from a buddy for a really good price...so I went ahead and bought new 3" Rusty's coils and JKS discos...and voila! My Jeep is lifted, and no longer sags! :) The Rusty's springs seem to hold a load quite a bit better than the stock springs too. If I were to recommend something, I'd say to put a lift on your Jeep - you're already there replacing the leaf pack anyway, it doesnt take much more effort to replace the front coils...

If you're interested, I have some pics of my XJ's lift here:
http://www.as.uaf.edu/~fsdaa1/XJlift

Hope this helps!
 
Wait till they sag so bad you get a negitive arc :mad: even an add-a-leaf wont fix. You could go to junk yard and try to find a good set ~$20 which you might have to pull yourself, or buy the stock replacements for ~$150
 
my 98 XJ with UpCountry is already sagging down in the rear. There have been some discusions on this problem on the board. Seem like the newer models have poor quality springs in them from the factory.

I was gonna just add a leaf from another vehicle, maybe a dakota, and see if I could level it out. I am probly gonna end up trading it for a cummins dodge first though......
 
andyr354 said:
my 98 XJ with UpCountry is already sagging down in the rear. There have been some discusions on this problem on the board. Seem like the newer models have poor quality springs in them from the factory.

Well.. my 98 UC springs died cause I had a short AAL..... but I'd say that they held up pretty good otherwise then that.... and I really put MILES onto my jeep (I'm already reaching 140K mark).

You might want to look into OME springs.... they will end up getting you a tad higher then stock, but probably will be better in the long run.. also if you're ever planning to lift, now is a good time to start doing so :D
 
Kejtar said:
Well.. my 98 UC springs died cause I had a short AAL.....
Yep! Take a good look at some toasted springs, from the back, looking level with springs. Shackle, swings up, swings down towards axle, swings up, and back down at spring mount. (Mine, have 2 rigs) The short aal pushes up in middle of spring (between the axle and the eye of spring, mine anyways) on both sides of axle. The long gets closer to the eye holes.
 
M. Lake said:
Yep! Take a good look at some toasted springs, from the back, looking level with springs. Shackle, swings up, swings down towards axle, swings up, and back down at spring mount. (Mine, have 2 rigs) The short aal pushes up in middle of spring (between the axle and the eye of spring, mine anyways) on both sides of axle. The long gets closer to the eye holes.

I understand that :D What I was saying was in reference to newer springs dying due to poor quality... I think mine lasted pretty long (3 years or so) with hard abuse due to the AAL :D
 
91xjtim said:
My 91 is starting to sag a lil these days. Especially when I tow anything. The leafs seem quite flat. What can I do? Replace them? Where can I pick up a set? TIA BTW it is stock.

The springs may seem quite flat because they are designed to be flat. Even new ones.

You cannot eye-ball XJ leaf springs for sag. You must measure. Measure from the center of the wheel hub or cap straight up to the bottom edge of the flare. The accepted baseline dimension for "stock" height is 17.0" in the rear (17.5" in front).

If your vehicle has actually sagged and all you want or need is to restore it to stock height, IMHO the cheapest route is a home-brew AAL. Get a pair of XJ leaf springs from a junkyard. Take them apart. Cut the eyes off the end just before they start to loop up to form the eyes.

You now have AALs. Now open up your existing springs and install these new leaves directly beneath the existing main leaf -- which you can leave in the vehicle. You will need new center pins (available at local spring shops, or through NAPA), and new clips to keep the leaves aligned.

I did this on an '88 recently. It was sagged about 1/2" below stock. When I had everything back together I was at 1" higher than stock. Ride was firmer than before, but very comfortable.

If you can't find the parts locally. contact Superior Spring in Hamden, CT at 203-248-6385.

Center pins are 5/16", part # CB516400 ($0.50 each, including nut)

Rebound clips are 2-1/2" wide, part # HC-11 ($1.33 each)
 
I can eyeball mine, look from one end and it looks like waves on the ocean. How can that not be seen? Plus the spring pack is seperating in certain points cuz it is so badly bent, they cant touch each other. They were at a negitive arc, and the stock wheels looked like the jeep had been lowered with them tucked inside fender. Bought it like that.

Or I am only looking at them when I'm drunk (2-3 times a year), not likely. :anon:
 
Kejtar said:
I understand that :D What I was saying was in reference to newer springs dying due to poor quality... I think mine lasted pretty long (3 years or so) with hard abuse due to the AAL :D
Rear springs are crap, should have come with coils in rear stock.
 
Stock springs on an XJ are almost flat when unloaded: so when you load her up they will sag.

My 90 XJ is also stock and I like to camp so by the time I am all loaded up with all my gear and 2 gas cans it goes into a negative arc.
My fix was to install air shocks this returned my XJ to a level ride height.
:patriot:
 
M. Lake said:
I can eyeball mine, look from one end and it looks like waves on the ocean. How can that not be seen?

The point is -- I have eyeballed NEW XJs on the dealer lot back when they were still in production, and the springs all looked like that. That's the way the XJ spring is designed to sit, so the fact that it has an 'S' shape is not an indication that it sagged.

You MUST measure.
 
So are there any helper springs out there in the market that can solve this without making the ride harsh or lifting the Jeep a lot? Maybe a full AAL to fix the sag, add more towing capacity, and NOT lift? :wierd:
 
Look in J. C. Whitney. Hellwig offers some helper springs that may not increase the height too much. You can get helper coils that mount to the shock absorbers for about $25 a pair. These can be set to give you no lift, or anywhere up to a couple or three inches, depending on where you place the clamps on the shock bodies.

I know of no AAL that gives no lift. The Rancho soft ride AAL is rated to give 2" to 2-1/2" in an XJ, and that's about the smallest aftermarket AAL I know of. The only thing offering less would be the home-brew version using another pair of XJ main leaves with the eyes cut off. That adds about 1-1/2" gross lift, but if your springs are sagged below stock the final net height would be about 1" or less above "stock."
 
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