Is This Right??!!

Went up to my local 4WD store, and was talking to the guys up there. and i was telling them about what i wanted to do ( 3" rustys coils, and 3" Rear Full leaf packs, basically the spring pack kit without the shocks) and one of the guys said sounds good. and i was asking them how they would charge to put it on for me, just to be curious, and then the other guy said well, we dont really like putting on lifts that dont come through us, because we can warranty them. So i was gonna see if i could ge the parts through them, and he comes up and says, that to lift my 88 cherokee 3 inches. i would need 3" coils of coarse, 3" leaf springs, NEW Sway bar endlinks, New Lower Control Arms, A t-Case drop, and would might wanna think about doin the driveshaft and SYE. and i was thinking " at 3 inches??!!" is this right? i doubt the driveshaft and sye part of it is right, but was wondering about the LCA's and Sway bar endlinks and the t-case drop, i just didnt think you HAD to do this at 3" but i think hes just trying to get more money out of me, or trying to get me to order through them, because i have never heard of someone having to get all that extra stuff to install a rusty's 3" lift on a XJ, but wanna know what you guys think. thanks

He is covering his arse. IF you lift 3" the swaybar links are gonna be at there limit, he doesnt want you to come back complaining so he is telling you you need new ones. You may get vibes so he is telling you to get SYE. The lower arms are just about maxed at 3" as well so technically to get the most from this lift he is correct. If you are going to have a shop put your lift on you probably won't find one that will do a mix and match type setup.

As of what I have heard the rusty's lifts run higher then advertised, so you might get 4" out of the 3" lift. That puts you into SYE/TC drop territory, either or, not both. It also depends on the XJ and the year.
I do not think you need LCA's but it would be nice to get the axle back where it is supposed to be and it will give you a better ride.

K

well, if you want to do it RIGHT, then....yes.

mack said:

well, if you want to do it RIGHT, then....yes.

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exactly!!

a shop wont make any $$$ of you by replacing a few springs. have you ever REALLY looked at and handled a stock control arm? if you have, you would understand why they belong in the trash. what he quoted you is a complete lift kit. and its what you should really take into consideration if you want to be happy with your XJ in the long run.

sidriptide said:

exactly!!

a shop wont make any $$$ of you by replacing a few springs. have you ever REALLY looked at and handled a stock control arm? if you have, you would understand why they belong in the trash. what he quoted you is a complete lift kit. and its what you should really take into consideration if you want to be happy with your XJ in the long run.

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x3

Do it right. I'm at exactly 3" with stock control arms and would never recommend someone else do it...

holly shit... wait BACKUP. A SMART 4x4 shop guy? Thats like... never heard of.. especially around here where i live.. the guy here is a jerkoff. Do what he says. Do it right as well with the sye. you will be thankful you did

ok i know that doing all the sye and driveshaft and new lower control arms and new sway bar endlinks or quick discos is prolly the best way to go, but i just dont have the money to do all that and get new tires and rims all at once, what im wanting to know is, if i was to get the Rustys kit whether it be the AAL which im trying to stay away form or the spring pack kit, can i put it all together and everything fit and be able to drive it all i wanna know.

Cherokeekid88 said:

ok i know that doing all the sye and driveshaft and new lower control arms and new sway bar endlinks or quick discos is prolly the best way to go, but i just dont have the money to do all that and get new tires and rims all at once, what im wanting to know is, if i was to get the Rustys kit whether it be the AAL which im trying to stay away form or the spring pack kit, can i put it all together and everything fit and be able to drive it all i wanna know.

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You will probably break the stock sway bar links during the install. Other than that you'll probably be ok at 3" with the stock arms and no SYE.

he is just trying to sell you all that extra stuff that away he will be able to warranty it and maybe make a few extra coins off you. i would advise you to put the lift on yourself they are really simple to do just take your time. also if you do the lift yourself you will understand how suspension works on your jeep. just my 2 cents. have fun.

Cherokeekid88 said:

ok i know that doing all the sye and driveshaft and new lower control arms and new sway bar endlinks or quick discos is prolly the best way to go, but i just dont have the money to do all that and get new tires and rims all at once, what im wanting to know is, if i was to get the Rustys kit whether it be the AAL which im trying to stay away form or the spring pack kit, can i put it all together and everything fit and be able to drive it all i wanna know.

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The stock control arms really are crap. Sway bar discos are a must if you intend to wheel it. An SYE seems a little extreme. A t-case drop will work just fine. With a t-case drop you do improve rear drive shaft, but you increase front drive shaft angles. You also may have trouble engaging and disengaging the 4wd. Part of the shift linkage is mounted on the body and the other part is on the t-case, so when you lower the t-case by one inch... Well you see what can happen. You don't have to do everything at once. I did mine a fiew pices at a time. Also try to find a friend or a member in your area to help you. You can get a lot more bang for your buck if you do it yourself or even pay someone to help you.

HTH.
Neil

take off the sway bars and avoid making sharp/ fast turns. ive been running without mine for a few months now on the rustys 2 inch bb. sure the rear inside tire picks up if i take a turn to fast but whatever.

Cherokeekid88 said:

ok i know that doing all the sye and driveshaft and new lower control arms and new sway bar endlinks or quick discos is prolly the best way to go, but i just dont have the money to do all that and get new tires and rims all at once, what im wanting to know is, if i was to get the Rustys kit whether it be the AAL which im trying to stay away form or the spring pack kit, can i put it all together and everything fit and be able to drive it all i wanna know.

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The answer to this question is YES.
Honestly though, and I know its not what you want to hear, but, if you dont have the money to buy the things you know you should have, why do you think you have the money to pay someone install it? Labor would be the first place I would want to save. If youre not willing to crawl under and put a simple lift on, then four wheeling may not be your bag anyway because if you four wheel, believe me, the lift wont be the last time youre under there.
The simple solution if you cant afford to lift it right is to slap some 30s (maybe a BB) on it, wheel the crap out of it and enjoy.

Cherokeekid88 said:

ok i know that doing all the sye and driveshaft and new lower control arms and new sway bar endlinks or quick discos is prolly the best way to go, but i just dont have the money to do all that and get new tires and rims all at once, what im wanting to know is, if i was to get the Rustys kit whether it be the AAL which im trying to stay away form or the spring pack kit, can i put it all together and everything fit and be able to drive it all i wanna know.

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Why do you need new tires and rims right now. Lift it and wheel it. Save money up again and then buy tires and wheels. OR buy just tires and use stock wheels. We all want to do it all at once but for most of us the money just isn't there.

Buy the tools, install the lift yourself, save some cash. In the long run if anything breaks you know how to fix it, saving more cash. Also, if you do the install on your own time at your house, and you run out of money, just wait. There's no hurry. Get it done when you can. Spread out how much money you spend rather than dumping it all at once.
Buy the kit, wait til you get some cash. Install it. Wait til you get some cash, buy tires and rims.


and have fun!!
Chris

I am not going to put my opinion in here, just because it has been covered.

But, 4x4'ing isn't cheap. Expect to spend about 1000$ for every inch you plan on lifting. Thats the general rule of thumb in my shop. And we install these things for a living.

i had a 3" lift on mine for 3 years and did plenty of wheeling....
i had a pro comp system:
coils
leaf packs
longer sway bar connects
lower control arms

no way you need a dropped t-case or another drive shaft.
i know people running a stock driveshaft with a 1" dropped t-case on 5.5" of lift...

^^ But remember every XJ is different. Some can go 6"+ with the stick d-shaft, others need a SYE and CV shaft at 3"

Meeks said:

I am not going to put my opinion in here, just because it has been covered.

But, 4x4'ing isn't cheap. Expect to spend about 1000$ for every inch you plan on lifting. Thats the general rule of thumb in my shop. And we install these things for a living.

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Since you're in Canada that's about $500/inch :us: just kidding!


The shop is covering their asses...and they want to make more money.

I suggest you install the 3" kit yourself, or find somone to do it on the side. It's very easy. Stock LCAs are fine with 3" of lift. All you need is the springs and shocks. Your axle will be a bit off center, but it won't hurt a thing. You might need the transfer case drop.

Do not remove your front sway bar! Lose the rear swaybar.

As you get more cash you can start upgrading other things like the trackbar, LCAs, SYE, etc.

i say do the instal yourself. as far as the parts go- LCAs, stock ones are crap. i took mine off and couldnt beleive those stood up against some winter pot holes, TC drop, helped eliminate most of the vibes in my 95 with a 4.5 inch rustys. i got slight vibes right now but i can tollerate them. if i want them gone then a SYE and a Tom Woods DS. (might go that route when i break the stock DS). as stated earlier, each XJ is different. put on what you find apropiate and keep some room in your budget for anything that pops up (replaceing all bolts, lca, sye etc) so you dont get caught with some pants vibrating accross the seat.