Here recently I have been searching for a solution for the all too common rear leaf sag that plagues the XJ stance. My personal truck here is a 97 4-door sitting at ~4.5". The setup is made up from IRO radius arms, 4.5" IRO coils, RC 3" leaf pack and RC 1.5" shackles; with the rest of the stuff needed to sort this height. Naturally I had decided to then relocate the shackle angle and installed a set of HD engineering "no-lift" mounts. As a result, the rear actually sat a tad bit lower (maybe 1"), producing a negative rake and hence spurring on this search for what I thought were only options between another leaf pack and/or adding leafs. Now I suppose it should be noted that my suspension is geared more towards down travel rather than up. I have stock flares (and intend to keep them) and when loaded, the rear bump stops I've installed to prevent contact regularly would come into play all too often when loaded. This could be a couple buddies in the back seats to a 3000lb SeaRay. There is nothing more annoying than that crash from a sacked out suspension...
After what seemed liked endless forum searching and product browsing, I stumbled across the Active Suspension kit from Roadmaster while researching a simple under-the-leaf helper spring. To my dismay however, I then find out that they don't actually produce a kit for the XJ (any Jeep for that matter). So before giving up, I decide to give them a ring and open up a discussion about it. After a good many back and forth emails and phone calls, it became clear that when this product was developed back in the early 90's they had intended to outfit Jeeps but for one reason or another chose to move away from them. The product's intention doesn't really fall in line with typical Jeep use. This kit is technically intended for those hauling loads close to their vehicle's maximum hauling/loading capabilities. However, I believe the XJ is unique in Jeep world and so I pleaded with them to configure me a custom kit. I sent over numerous leaf measurements and pictures and before too long - BOOM! I had it! Now on with the pictures.
So here is the kit... As described, it comes completely assembled right out of the box.
This next shot is how my rear was sitting when loaded - tires off and vehicle weight supported under the axle. A couple quick notes here. Yes, I realize my rear up travel is a bit short. This is the challenge with keeping stock flares over 32's. Notice the rear shackle angle is at a desirable position but that leaf is far too flat. You can also see where I ended up cutting out a portion of my body side bump stops to gain a little more room. This ended up simply making the bottoming out more harsh.
Another shot of the setup at full droop - tires off and vehicle weight supported by the receiver. This isn't a tremendous amount either but this was a sacrifice I wanted to make in order to raise my axle side shock mounts. I'm sure before too long I will relocate the body side mounts for more travel and go longer, but all in time. This range actually articulates very well.
Now with the addition of the Active Kit installed at full droop and set to their 1mm (0.039") coil gap pre-load.
Now loaded with the Active kit at their specified 1mm preload (instructions that are typically included with an F250 install). This ended up being FAR too much preloading and raised the truck almost 2.5-3" inches from before. In the next pictures I had reduced that preloading down to 0.01" gap between the coils - netting about a 1" lift increase.
Before (bottom) and After (top)
I got out and cycled my suspension on the loading ramp yesterday evening. The kit didn't inhibit suspension travel but does provide extra ground pressure on the unloaded side - sort of like an anti-rock, which is nice.
After thoughts...
Basically I'm in love with my Jeep again. Not only can I adjust the rear height based on loads, I can haul my 3000lb boat with little more than a few inches of squat (which I could reduce if I wanted to adjust for a long haul). The truck unloaded drives better than it has ever. The rear finally feels as nice as the front - a more progressive compression. Since installing the kit I have done more than a few higher speed offroad "trials" and even a few jumps. I cannot say it enough, I simply cannot fault the setup now.
After what seemed liked endless forum searching and product browsing, I stumbled across the Active Suspension kit from Roadmaster while researching a simple under-the-leaf helper spring. To my dismay however, I then find out that they don't actually produce a kit for the XJ (any Jeep for that matter). So before giving up, I decide to give them a ring and open up a discussion about it. After a good many back and forth emails and phone calls, it became clear that when this product was developed back in the early 90's they had intended to outfit Jeeps but for one reason or another chose to move away from them. The product's intention doesn't really fall in line with typical Jeep use. This kit is technically intended for those hauling loads close to their vehicle's maximum hauling/loading capabilities. However, I believe the XJ is unique in Jeep world and so I pleaded with them to configure me a custom kit. I sent over numerous leaf measurements and pictures and before too long - BOOM! I had it! Now on with the pictures.
So here is the kit... As described, it comes completely assembled right out of the box.
This next shot is how my rear was sitting when loaded - tires off and vehicle weight supported under the axle. A couple quick notes here. Yes, I realize my rear up travel is a bit short. This is the challenge with keeping stock flares over 32's. Notice the rear shackle angle is at a desirable position but that leaf is far too flat. You can also see where I ended up cutting out a portion of my body side bump stops to gain a little more room. This ended up simply making the bottoming out more harsh.
Another shot of the setup at full droop - tires off and vehicle weight supported by the receiver. This isn't a tremendous amount either but this was a sacrifice I wanted to make in order to raise my axle side shock mounts. I'm sure before too long I will relocate the body side mounts for more travel and go longer, but all in time. This range actually articulates very well.
Now with the addition of the Active Kit installed at full droop and set to their 1mm (0.039") coil gap pre-load.
Now loaded with the Active kit at their specified 1mm preload (instructions that are typically included with an F250 install). This ended up being FAR too much preloading and raised the truck almost 2.5-3" inches from before. In the next pictures I had reduced that preloading down to 0.01" gap between the coils - netting about a 1" lift increase.
Before (bottom) and After (top)
I got out and cycled my suspension on the loading ramp yesterday evening. The kit didn't inhibit suspension travel but does provide extra ground pressure on the unloaded side - sort of like an anti-rock, which is nice.
After thoughts...
Basically I'm in love with my Jeep again. Not only can I adjust the rear height based on loads, I can haul my 3000lb boat with little more than a few inches of squat (which I could reduce if I wanted to adjust for a long haul). The truck unloaded drives better than it has ever. The rear finally feels as nice as the front - a more progressive compression. Since installing the kit I have done more than a few higher speed offroad "trials" and even a few jumps. I cannot say it enough, I simply cannot fault the setup now.
