New shock bolts and what else will I need/should I have?

I have a 1996 4.0 AW4 XJ, and I'm going to be installing an RE6160 kit with full length add-a-leafs, and Old Man Emu shocks next weekend.

I'm praying none of the shock bolts are going to break off.... I'll deal with them if I get there. However I am planning to replace all of the shock bolts. What size/grade/length/thread type will I need? Which bolts are the most prone to breaking? Any others I should have on handy?

Can anything think of anything else I will need? Or anything else I should include with my kit?

I will be getting it aligned afterwards, and am also praying for no driveline vibes. Should I get a t case drop kit, just in case? I will need to drive 3.5 hours later that night.

Thanks!!!!

90Pioneer said:

I'm praying none of the shock bolts are going to break off.... I'll deal with them if I get there. However I am planning to replace all of the shock bolts. What size/grade/length/thread type will I need? Which bolts are the most prone to breaking? Any others I should have on handy?

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IIRC they are 8mm metric, but you'd better run search cause I might be wrong. Btw you might come across two different sizes mentioned as older models had a different bolt then newer ones (yours is newer). Oh and start hitting the bolts with pb blaster about a week ahead of time (liquid wrench is also fine, but forget WD40 as it will not do anything for you).

I will be getting it aligned afterwards, and am also praying for no driveline vibes. Should I get a t case drop kit, just in case? I will need to drive 3.5 hours later that night.

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3.5hr drive after the install? hmmm I'd be kind of carefull with that. Every time I have a major suspension change I drive tops 15~20 miles then I crawl under to make sure everything s where it's supposed to be and that nothing got loose.

In regards to the vibes: first of all your rear will be sitting like rather high cause it will need to settle. When you first put everything on, get the rear pack bolts in all the way but not spec tight. Then take it around the block a few times and then torque them down. Also consider bouncing the rear of the vehicle a few times to get things to settle into right positon. Having the tcase drop handy might be a good idea but keep in mind that it's a bandaid and not a solution to the problem.

Good luck.

If the bolts break, there is an access hole (underneath the crossmember, about 4-5" from the shock mount nuts) to get the nuts out. Simply use an air chisel to break the nuts loose from the body, and replace them with shoulder nuts. The access hole is in just the right spot to put the nut on a wrench to hold it in place. They were 8mm on my '00.

Make sure you do at least a tape measure alignment, as 3.5" of lift is enough to change steering angles and cause tire wear (unless you are getting bigger tires and don't care about your current ones).

If you are going to do a t-case drop, start spraying the studs, because they can be a real pain also.

I will drive the Jeep a few miles and then re check all the bolts, have an alignment done, and then I'll be heading out.

What bolts do I need to worry about the torque spec on? What should it be?

Also what length shock bolts should I get? Thread type?

If you are changing out the shocks anyways I suggest getting bar pin eliminators. I’m running JKS ones in the upper rear and lower front (the whole bracket, not the pin style). They are only $20 a set and eliminated all of that clunking noise I was getting from my shocks before.

Prepmech said:

If the bolts break, there is an access hole (underneath the crossmember, about 4-5" from the shock mount nuts) to get the nuts out. Simply use an air chisel to break the nuts loose from the body, and replace them with shoulder nuts. The access hole is in just the right spot to put the nut on a wrench to hold it in place. They were 8mm on my '00.

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Exactly. Just changed mine this afternoon. Been putting it off for over a year! Anyway, I've been spraying them for a month or more and all 4 still broke. Wasn't really that bad getting new ones in though, as long as you've got an air chisel and some pretty small hands. BTW a small dab of RTV works great for holding the nut in the wrench while trying to reach the holes.

From what I've read you cannot use bar pin eliminators with Old Man Emu shocks...?

I use JKS BPE for front and rear OME shocks. No problem.

NorStar said:

I use JKS BPE for front and rear OME shocks. No problem.

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Same here.

OK, I'll guess I will order up a set tomorrow. I read that OME shocks used a different size something or other, and didn't need bar pin elminators. In fact I read that on Naxja.

hmmm...

Anyone how how long to get the shock bolts?

The shock bolts come with the bar pin eliminators. At least my JKS and Warrior products ones did. If you are feeling spunky you can swap out the front upper shock mounts. They allow you to use a standard style shock (EBD1, the kind with eyelets on both ends) instead of the factory rod with a nut deal. If you are lifting it a couple of inches its not a big deal. Once you go over 4” it starts getting hard to find that type of shock with the correct length, it’s much easier to get “standard” style shocks. I’m using Warrior Products, but JKS makes a little bit nicer set. They run about $25 for a pair (from local or online 4x4 stores) and look like this:

http://www.jksmfg.com/shock_conversions.htm

well, i dont know if this will help, but when i did my lift i just wrenched the nuts off and had no problems... mine is a 92 as well... CA rig tho - no salt rot.

check out GoJeep's steering and self alignment... or mine...
http://www.go.jeep-xj.info/HowtoAlignment.htm
http://www.geocities.com/[email protected]/Steering.html

also might look at the most extreme case of breakage - just so you have an idea of the worst that it could be -
http://www.rocklizardfabrications.com/broken_shock_mounts.htm

i found the rocklizzard idea cool and interesting, but un? fortunately i dindt have any problems...

XJ_ranger said:

also might look at the most extreme case of breakage - just so you have an idea of the worst that it could be -
http://www.rocklizardfabrications.com/broken_shock_mounts.htm

i found the rocklizzard idea cool and interesting, but un? fortunately i dindt have any problems...

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I disagree with cutting any unnecessary holes in a crossmember of a unibody vehicle, not to mention the pain of having to remove the carpet. It takes less than 20 minutes to do it the right way, using the factory provided access holes.

Give yourself plenty of time. I ran into way too many problems when I first lifted my Jeep...good luck.