'99 Jeep Cherokee Suspension Issues

Hope this is the correct place to try to get some direction on this issue; have a '99 4-dr Jeep Cherokee Sport 4x4 5-spd, which feels like it translates every little crack in the pavement -- to say nothing of broken pavement, potholes, etc. -- right up into the "comfort of ride" location ... as in, even though I know Cherokees are known for a stiffer ride & such, I find the ride not only often uncomfortable, but even irritating. Had a '96 previously, so had some experience with this issue on that one too. On the '99, I've had Bilstein shocks put on, all the bushings in the front end replaced (which made a marked difference in handling and improved the ride somewhat); had an extra leaf put in the rear springs because I haul a 5x8 trailer occasionally, so I know that stiffened things up a bit back there -- but, the best way I can describe it is that the rear suspension particularly feels like it's "an old haywagon" most of the time, with hard, abrupt response to road surface conditions. Have I created this monster, is it just what I have to put up with in the Jeep, or is there some way to change the rear suspension so it soaks up the road problems more smoothly? Many thanks for whatever help or direction anyone can give.

do you have a lift? and when you replaced the bushings did yo use rubber or urethane?

you can soften up the ride a bit with a set of Old Man Emu springs and shocks. Rubber bushings will help a lot too. Might try new coil spring isolators as well.

edit: when you load the trailer, do you balance it out real well, or do you just throw everything on there and go. I try not to put more than about 50lb on the tongue of the trailer, it helps a lot with its road manners and hauling aspects.

Make sure your tires aren't overinflated.

If you are running Bilstein shocks I'm just going to guess you have a lift. Dude....once you lift it is just never the same. I'm on my second lifted XJ. My first was an 88 with a RE 3.5" and now my 99 with the 3" Old Man Emu. I went with OME because of what I heard about the ride quality. It is definitely not what it's cracked up to be. Certainly better riding than the RE, but I would only describe the ride as bearable...not comfortable. On both of them I did everything I could to improve the ride. My 88 rode like the lumber wagon you were describing. XJ's are just XJ's....4x4's that are just not known for having a comfortable ride lifted or not. If I had to do it all over again I would have not lifted...either that or bought a car and then eventually bought a beater XJ, something I didn't have to drive everyday.

Thanks --
1. Urethane bushings, not rubber; will see about the coil spring isolators.
2. Bilstein shocks, but no lift -- only the back-end difference of the added spring leaf.
3. Trailer hauling is no problem, as my 5x8 is always balance-loaded and it follows, as they say, "like a tail on a dog" ... (they do say that, don't they...?!); and, yes, the added weight when trailering does seem to absorb a fair amount of the shake-rattle-n-roll I feel when unloaded, so maybe it's just go-mit-what-ya-got, huh?
Again, thanks for your thoughts.

the urethane bushings transmit most of your vibration. A buddy shifted from rubber to urethane and saw the same thing happen

I too have a 99 XJ 5 speed that is set up very similar to yours. No lift, KYB shocks, and helper leaf springs on the rear. My ride is very rough. I think part of the problem now is the cold weather makes the shocks ride rougher since they are filled with a liquid. The helper springs definitely made the rear end ride rougher. The Jeep is almost choppy now, very similar to my old YJ. I've learned to just live with it. I can live with the rough ride for the increased load capacity in the rear. I've had almost 500 lbs of tongue weight towing a car on a tow dolly, and the rear end squatted only about 2 inches.

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned tires other than just overinflation. Your choice of tire can mean alot too. I have had a set of BFG all-terrains and BFG Mud-terrains and there is a difference between the way those two ride. If you want do some research and find a tire that fits your needs but rides better.

wolfpackjeeper said:

the urethane bushings transmit most of your vibration. A buddy shifted from rubber to urethane and saw the same thing happen

Click to expand...

no doubt. I made the mistake of replacing my tranny and motor mounts with polys... It was the worst upgrade I ever made my Jeep. The cabin vibrations were intolerable. I switched back to rubber mounts the following week.

My addcos sway bars were the opposite. The Jeep creaked like an old house with the rubber bushings, so I switched them to greasable poly mounts.

my buddy has poly control arm bushings, spacers, and leaf spring bushings. It transmits a few vibrations as well

I too went with the poly motor mounts and couldn't stand the vibrations they transmitted into the body while sitting at idle in stop and go traffic in Atlanta so I ripped them out and put the stock rubber mounts back in and was much happier.

don't get me wrong. His jeep handled great, and I like the poly stuff I have on my stroker. I just would not recommend it if comfort is what you are looking for.

as mentioned above about tires, check the air and maybe adjust, a couple of pounds will make a big diffference in beig bouncy, if u do not have a lift then i am assuming stock tire size, what ply are they? LT tires will have a stiffer sidewall than passange tires, might go with a 4 ply tire as it will have a softer sidewall and ride smoother when i changed the control arms they had poly bushings, i cahnged them to rubber because of the harshness, made a big difference in the ride, u could check into a suspension seat if it came down to it hth

Do much appreciate all the thoughts you guys are putting on here!! Thanks.

Jester99 said:

If you are running Bilstein shocks I'm just going to guess you have a lift. Dude....once you lift it is just never the same. I'm on my second lifted XJ. My first was an 88 with a RE 3.5" and now my 99 with the 3" Old Man Emu. I went with OME because of what I heard about the ride quality. It is definitely not what it's cracked up to be. Certainly better riding than the RE, but I would only describe the ride as bearable...not comfortable. On both of them I did everything I could to improve the ride. My 88 rode like the lumber wagon you were describing. XJ's are just XJ's....4x4's that are just not known for having a comfortable ride lifted or not. If I had to do it all over again I would have not lifted...either that or bought a car and then eventually bought a beater XJ, something I didn't have to drive everyday.

Click to expand...

Wow, Jester, are you really that unsatisfied with the ride quality of your OME setup? This thread has really made me rethink my plans (OME all the way). I hear you... it'll never be the same after a lift... makes sense. I had just assumed that NEW suspension would be better than OLD suspension. I think a lot of people drop over $1000 on their OME setup and then convince themselves it "rides better than stock!"... I like your honesty.
Oi... gotta rethink the DD plans now...

The helper spring in the back is not the way to go to maintain any ride. My favorite way on four different vehicles over the years is the Air Lift type bags. Summit has good prices on them. I'm too cheap for the on board air compressor, so I just use the little pumps that plug into the cig lighter. Let the air down to 5 pounds and your ride goes back to stock. Puff 'em up to 40 and it's solid as a brick. Better than air shocks.

Thanks -- rethinking whether I want to go back to air shocks.

My 3" BDS kit rode smoother than stock FWIW.