Info on Trailmaster lift?

I am thinking of buying a Cherokee and I havent seen it yet. Its a 93 5-speed and it clears (barely) 32x11.50s. The guy says it is either 5 1/2 or 4 3/4 of lift. Can anyone tell me which and if Trailmaster is worth a damn?

Also, what will need to be replaced after 150,000 miles?

It's neither. Trailmaster markets their lift as a 3-1/2" / 4" lift. I'm not sure if that's because the final lift falls into that range, or if it lifts one end 3-1/2" and the other end 4". The lift includes 2 very beefy front coils, front control arm drop brackets, sway bar drop brackets, shorty rear AALs, and four VERY beefy shock absorbers.

I bought an MJ with a Trailmaster lift on it. IMHO the quality of the components is good, but the design of the lift is outdated. The shorty AAL and beefy front cols make for a very stiff ride, and the huge shocks don't help any. The control arm drop brackets maintain stock front suspension geometry, so I never had any problem with death wobble. However, running 31" tires at that height, the drop brackets weren't far enough off the ground and they were rock magnets on the trail. I eventually took the entire lift out and swapped it to an XJ owner for an engine and tranny out of a wreck.

FWIW the kit does NOT include an adjustable track bar. The track bar on my MJ had the axle end relocated to center the axle. The installer didn't get it quite right, and the hole was egged out anyway, so I bought a Rusty's adjustable and moved it back to the stock hole.

If the price on this rig is really right, I'd say go ahead and buy it. It's unlikely you'll break the components of the lift, but I don't think you'll like the ride if you use it as a daily driver.

Thanks for the info and advice Eagle. However, I am an extremely poor college student looking for a daily driver that will double for some medium-duty mud and snow. Stiff ride doesn't bother me too much (I'll drive it later just to make sure), but are there any real problem areas? He says its pretty much stock other than new CVs and it has 143k overall. Still an OK buy?

I'd be suspicious of buying an XJ from someone who would put a trailmaster suspension on it.

IF I were an "extemely poor" college student, looking for a daily driver... a cheaply lifted XJ wouldn't be my first choice for economizing.

i didnt say i was trying to economize, just trying not to get ripped off. What is a decent to excellent, reasonably priced lift for an XJ? Whats wrong w/ add-a-leafs?

It's not just "What's wrong with AALs?" This is a short, thick AAL. Aside from riding hard, it stresses the springs at the point where the AAL ends. A long (full-length) AAL is a better solution.

But aside from that, not many people buy Trailmaster lifts any more because there are better lifts around that sell for less money. Which suggests that he has had it for awhile, and he has probably beat up on the vehicle quite a bit in that period of time. My operative rule is that I would rather buy a Jeep that has never been off-road so I know it's solid and hasn't been too badly abused, and install my own modifications so I know it's done right.

I ignored that advice on this particular MJ, mostly because it's an MJ, and also because it's an MJ 4.0L 5-speed that has a/c from the factory and the full gauge package. I thought I was buying it right -- I paid $500.

By the time I got it legal and inspected and on the road, the total cost was significantly over $4,000 -- and there's still bodywork that needs to be addressed.

A completely stock XJ is a very capable trail vehicle. If you're really a poor college student looking for a reliable daily driver, do yourself a favor. Don't be blinded by the fact that this particular Jeep has a lift. Cruise the dealerships and find yourself a nice, clean pavement queen that just came off lease.

thanks ill look around

woody said:

I'd be suspicious of buying an XJ from someone who would put a trailmaster suspension on it.

IF I were an "extemely poor" college student, looking for a daily driver... a cheaply lifted XJ wouldn't be my first choice for economizing.

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I am not extremely poor, but still a poor college student, drove an xj, now have an MJ and I love them both. Both are extremely reliable (both of mine have over 160k on the ticker), and I haven't had any major problems. PM me if you have any questions or want to talk about if the price is right on this xj...

I have had a Trailmaster lift on mine for 10+ Years, well over 100K miles. I have replaced the rear springs for the reasons stated above. I have also replaced the shocks due to leaking after MANY miles, still went with Trailmaster shocks though. No other problems.

HTH

Rev

My XJ has the 4" Trailmaster lift. I got rid of the AAL and got spring packs, worked great, steered well, ride was rough, but it's not bad now that everything is broken in. I've since added another 3" and the springs are still holding up, no sagging even with a Warn bumper on the front.

woody said:

I'd be suspicious of buying an XJ from someone who would put a trailmaster suspension on it.

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True enough.

Down the road from my brother's house a few months back I saw a perfect example of why it's better to buy a stock vehicle and do it yourself. My brother lives in a small 'burb, near a 4-way intersection of two state "highways" -- not limited access throughways, but regular old state routes. There's a run-down independent garage at the intersection.

One fine day on my way to visit my brother I spied a clean looking white early 90s Cherokee on the lot with a For Sale sign on it. Naturally, I stopped to look. It had 31" tires on it, but they looked like they really filled up the wheel wells. Sign in the window said it had a Rough Country lift, but it just didn't look very ... lifted, ya know? So I started looking more closely. YIKES! The lift used a long AAL in the rear. And sure enough, this moron installed the AAL under the full spring pack. The original, factory spring wrap clamps were still in place, and the AAL was making contact with the original springs for probably half or less of its total length.

I repeat: BUY STOCK JEEPS. Do your own mods or have them done by a shop you know will do a decent job. Don't buy someone else's butchered heap, especially since the guys who do the worst work always think their butchery adds thousands of dollars to the value of the vehicle.

So lets see if I have this right. Buy a stock XJ and purchase a decent lift myself (pref. not Trailmaster) that uses full length AALs or spring packs. Then have a reputable shop install? Also, are there any reliability issues with an auto vs. manual trannys (post-93)?

senecka said:

So lets see if I have this right. Buy a stock XJ and purchase a decent lift myself (pref. not Trailmaster) that uses full length AALs or spring packs. Then have a reputable shop install? Also, are there any reliability issues with an auto vs. manual trannys (post-93)?

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Before even considering a lift take it off road a few times with people your own height, don't try to keep up with 10" lifted TJ's running D60's and 44's. Approach it like any other vehicle, look UNDER it at the floor including under the rear seats, they have a tendency to rust out, also over the cat/muffler area, specially if the heat shield is gone. As for auto vs manual all I have to say is 'whats an auto' my last auto was in 76 though my wife has one but I rarely drive it. Both my kids drive 5 speed TJ's and my 98XJ is a 5 speed. Look around on autotrader.com, lotta people list their stuff there and I've both seen and gotten good deals there though it seems that here in the NY/Philly area the prices are a bit more reasonable.
As for a lift the OME is nice, matched springs and shocks in a complete kit, tad pricey but a nice rider though. We are putting a 4" lift on my sons TJ while we're acquiring new fenders, hood, grill and windshield frame and he got it used from a bmja member who sold his TJ, $200 for a year old kit with all the parts so thats another option, keep an eye on the for sale section here for posters going UP...

I have a trailmaster and the problems are in the rear with the short add a leaf. It will continue to sag. Mine are flat as pancakes now and I'm going to have get a new leaf pack when money allows. The front to be honest with you is fine. Stiff , yes but no wobble when running with out sway bars, I have added a 1.75 spacer and still no problems. It put me at about 5" because I lost the other 3/4 with A Warn Bumper and winch. The articulation is great because of the brackets stated in the above post. Your approach and desent angle when wheeling will cut down drastically on the drop down brackets hangin up. Just be aware they are there. I'd do the deal if it is a decent rig and upgrade the rear leaf pack if it hasn't been already. It is easy to tell, just crawl under and it will be a short AAL , thicker then all the stock leafs.