XJ lift question

hey guys i am new to this forum and this is my first jeep . 2001 XJ . i want to lift it 2" for now and later in the summer i will buy the rough country lift kit.

today i purchased 2" spacers for the front and 2 shackles for the back since 1 of my stock shackles broke in half from rust and needed replacement.

i read alot on lift blocks and i know its not smart. i dont go offroading at all its a daily driver and i just want it to look better with stock tires 225 75 15 .

so i was thinking of adding a 1" steel plate under the leaf spring kinda like a block lift along with the shackle to make up for that SAG that every XJ have in the rear untill i get a full lift kit. would 1" be safe? i heard blocks are a bad idea but everyone i see has 2" 3" or more blocks.. plus it wont be aluminum it will be a heavy steel plate.

any help is appreciated .

Welcome.
Lift blocks are much more common, and work well on full size trucks that use thicker, heavier leaf springs. XJ's have much thinner, lighter leaf springs, and often when you add a lift block to an old tired stock leaf pack, you will get increased axle wrap, and wear out the allready tired leafs at an even faster rate. Once you start to axle wrap you will get increased rear driveshaft ujoint wear.

It'll work, of course. You'll get lift from them, it wont explode if you use steel ones. Just be wary of ubolt torque, driveshaft ujoint wear, and rear axle wrap.

You won't get any axle wrap from a 1" piece of steel. When you get to larger sizes it would be a problem.

If you are only planning on running stock size tire, there are OEM replacement springs out there. A 2" lift will nicely fit 31" tires, the stock tires will likely look a bit out of place.

Remember, any time you loosen leaf spring bolts, you should replace them. For this reason alone, I wouldn't even consider putting in the 1" piece of steel. Cost vs effectiveness.

oh thanks for telling me that you can't re use the U bolts. how much are they usually for a Chrysler 8.25 rear axle?

BDS is listed for $9 if you find a dealer, NAPA has them for $15 each. Of course, 4 are required.

beware of the blocks! I first used blocks in the rear and after one day of light wheeling I broke both main leafs in the pack right at the rear edges of the blocks. Hate to say this but, an add-a-leaf would be better. I later found out that some of my other jeep buddies had the same thing happen to them or knew others that had. Just me experience.