Fire in the Hole

First I want to say I have gotten a lot of information from this site for my 1995 Cherokee Sport, so for those that have been there, done that, and have taken the time to write it up, I thank you. :cheers:

Now that I have that out of the way I would like to know the pit falls on using helper springs for my rear leafs. They are sagging very bad, and I plan on lifting the jeep in the near future. So I want to do the rear all at once, new leafs, shocks ect. I installed them last night and for now the jeep has stopped bottoming out when I hit the littlest of bumps. Yes I have searched and not really found what it is I am looking for, so can you please post with anything that I need to keep an eye out for. I will only be using this for my DD until I get the suspension work completed. Thanks in advance and once again :worship: .

The only problem I've seen with helper springs or add-a-leaf systems is that it's a band-aid. If your main springs are already sagging/shot, the Jeep will flatten the new leafs quickly....and you'll be at it again. I'm doing some research on replacing springs, possibly with ones out of a s-10 blazer or dodge van??

x2. hope you didnt dump a bunch of money for those helpers, cuz they will only last for a little bit.

A full length helper or add a leaf seems to work out OK (though it may stress the ends some). A center coil or air bag seems to work out OK, even air shocks.
Most other setups just move the stress points to another spot and depending on usage, may do more harm than good in the long run.
Check out Go Jeeps writeup on Air Lift. I've never done it on an XJ, but on numerous other vehicles (even my tow truck, the Air lift kit has been in there for about ten years now) and was always pleased with the adjustability and the ride.

Bored400 said:

x2. hope you didn't dump a bunch of money for those helpers, cuz they will only last for a little bit.

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I only spent $26 on then at the local Autozone, and I only plan on running them for the next couple months. Absolutely going to switch things over before it gets cold. Thanks for the advice.

how old are the shocks

oh and if it is a DD check around here for stock leafs or ebay - people mostly will give stock leafs away and sometimes w/ low miles because of a lift
thats what i would do and get it riding back to normal