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Need some help and feedback with lift - see pics

Tony_SS

Tony_SS

NAXJA Supporting Vendor
Location
Washington MO
Had a lift installed... 2" Rusty's springs and 2" AAL.

I think they send me a 3" AAL. Tires are 235-75-15. It looks way high in the back.

before
RTStQl4s.jpg


after
bNyvQl4s.jpg


zzqvQl4s.jpg


Here is the angle... how does it look? I get some vibes during low speed. Also going 30mph when I left on and off the gas there is a loud "clunk!"
3tcvQl4s.jpg


Here is what the front dif looks like too... lots of grease... not sure why?
MZgvQl4s.jpg
 
AAL concern:

The AAL will settle quite a bit after driving it on the road, especially with weight in the back. Thats what they do. I wouldn't split hairs over 2 versus 3". settling will take care of that. IN a few years it will probably settle down to 0" of lift.

Vibes and Clunk:
Clunk is either U joints, control arm bushings, leaf bushings or tranny mount, or all of the above.

Vibes are either shot U joints or bad angles. since you are not running a SYE, your rear pinion needs to come down a bit. Id worry about that after swapping rear U joints.

If it were me, id check all bushings, and replace the rear DS U joints and the tranny mount. I bet your rear pinion U joint was on its way out and increasing the operating angles on the thing made any journalling on the grunions even worse. thats just a guess.
 
The vibes and clunk are so bad I'm afraid to drive it really...

Just talked to tech at Rustys... He said that if the rear leaf bolt (bottom of the shackle) is over tight it will make it set high.. I'm going to check numbers on that AAL too, to see what I have.

Everything was very smooth before the lift. So I cant imagine it instantly going bad.

It does appear he took off the LCA's to install the springs.
 
Last edited:
Tony_SS said:
Everything was very smooth before the lift. So I cant imagine it instantly going bad.
Click to expand...

Don't be so sure. Change one thing and that affects a dozen others. It isn't uncommon for one "fix" to uncover more problems. I see it all the time in my own Jeeps. I can't tell you how many times I've worked on my wife's WJ and when she drives it she says, "well, whatever is better, but now there is a squeak (or pull or vibe or clunk)." Nah, that squeak or pull or vibe or clunk was always there, it was just masked by something else.

A lot of things were probably already bad, and the fact that you fooled with geometry of the Jeep simply unmasked them. I tend to agree with the other posters on this thread. You woke up a sleeping dog when you lifted it.
 
Tony_SS said:
Here is what the front dif looks like too... lots of grease... not sure why?
MZgvQl4s.jpg
Click to expand...

Likely the last person that lubed that shaft filled it too full. When the shaft expands and contracts the grease needs to go somewhere. There is an escape hole on the end of the yoke on the drive shaft. When it contracts, that grease is pushed out that escape hole and gets on your u-joint. Nothing to worry about.
 
Ya the grease is just from the shaft, no need to worry.
 
also consider popping the front shaft as well, as see if that helps. a bad front pinion U joint could do it possibly.
 
welcome to it....anyway if you want to keep the AAL first thing i would do is put 200LB of something in the trunk for a week to see where it will settle to.

After that I would decide if I was going to to a T-case drop.

After than I would decide if i was just going to do a mixed leaf pack and get a little less lift.

After that SYE or give up....

I would never buy a AAL but a set of used xj leafs or s10 will go a long way.....

Need any advice one way or the other drop me a line, done it multiple times......
 
Thanks for all the help so far... this is my first rodeo here.

I have confirmed these are 3" AAL
My front has settled to net 1.5" of lift.

I can have them send me the right AAL, or add a spacer up front... not sure what I want to do. The plan is to run 30" tires... so once I get that worked out, I'll work on aligning the pinion angles and replacing any bad u-joints.
 
As mentioned ... there are lots of different reasons for vibes and clunks after a lift. It's very common and most of us have dealt with it.

To truly get a smooth ride, you need to do the following:

1. Get good geometry and angles by installing adjustable control arms and either an SYE or TC drop.

2. Replace all your u joints.

3. Replace all your bushings.

4. Get an adjustable track bar and center your front axle.

5. Get an allignment.

Every Jeep is different ... but if you do these 5 things (yes, I know it costs a lot of money) your Jeep will ride smooth as glass.
 
Tony_SS said:
What do you mean popping? Taking it out?
Click to expand...

Yes to isolate vibes front or rear. With a little bit of work you can start to find out where the issue is.

We really cant go any further with speculation on helping you until you get out there and replace the rear DS u joints, check all bushings, replace all bad mounts and bushings, and go from there and get back to us. U joints are cheap and easy.

UNless you know for a fact all U joints are brand new. which they don't look that way. U joints are a wear part. just routine maintenance. Changing the operating angle to a steeper angle could have just taken a worn nd journal led U joint from near death to vibes now. I can bet money rear DS u joints are toasts.

make sure your tires are balanced.
 
Put a lot of stuff in the back, that should help it settle more.
 
Tony_SS said:
Just talked to tech at Rustys... He said that if the rear leaf bolt (bottom of the shackle) is over tight it will make it set high.. I'm going to check numbers on that AAL too, to see what I have.
Click to expand...

I see what he is trying to say here but it isn't very clear. Basically with any type of rubber bushing in the suspension, the vehicle should be sitting on its full weight and on the ground prior to tightening the leaf spring bolts. So, to verify if this is a problem or not, with the vehicle sitting on all 4 tires, simply loosen the front and rear leaf spring bolts and retorque them to spec.
 
Thanks all. I'm going to put in the 2" add a leaf's to sit it level. After this I'm replacing all sway bar bushings then ujoints. Next ill get the pinion angles done pop out the front drive shaft and go for a ride. Sound good? Tires are balanced and rode smooth before the lift.
 
Ok, so despite the box being the 3" part number, my actual leaf is the 2" part number and it gave me a solid 3" of lift.

So now I'm jumping up and down on the 2" AAL to flatten it out.. all 150lbs of me. Or I'm thinking of removing a leaf from my stock pack...

I just can't imagine getting the angles right for a lift that will sag in time and screw up the angles again.
 
Last edited:
I dont think you've been picking up what everyone is putting down: AAL are crap, and will be quick to settle- and then some. That "solid" 3" of lift is going to last you a week or two. I have no idea why you are so quick to expedite that process. They will settle soon enough.

+1 on Ujoints. I just replaced my front hubs and ujoints and I cannot believe how much smoother my jeep rides. Its incredible. In the same week I swapped in the durango steering box and Its like Im driving a brand new vehicle.
 
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