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shock problem travel questions with 5.5 inch lift

krawlingxj

NAXJA Forum User
Location
reno nv
how much travel are shocks supposed to have i just installed a iro 5.5 inch lift and went to put shocks on (doestech) and just sitting normal o n flat land they only have like 2 inches of travel for the front and rear. does this sound right?
 
There really is NO suppose to area. The best thing to do is go flex out the jeeep with no shocks on it and measure. Start by getting the left front up as high (stuffed) as it will go before the rear starts to lift and measure the collapsed length on the driver (from mount to mount) area and same with the rear right then go to the front right and measure the extended length(mount to mount) then do the same on the left rear. Then reverse the whole thing and get the average of the measurements. Then either call the shock places or look on the web for extended and collapsed measurements and get the right ones for your Jeep set-up not your lift companies suggestions although their suggestions are a good starting point.
 
If the shock can only move 2" then yes you got a problem. I am assuming you are referring to it only having 2" of down travel, then you need some longer shocks.

Take one shock off and measure it's collapsed and extended lengths. Compare these lenghts to shock websites for your size lift. Or go out a flex the xj with no shocks, measure want lengths you will need then buy shocks that match.

edit: c'mon no response for 2 hours . . . then one 2 mins before me. ha ha ha
 
whats a good length for shocks with a 5.5 inch lift? i cant really flex it out at all to measure. tcase is out then i need to drive it 200 miles back home
 
A good length is whatever length you need to acheive what you want, lots of uptravel? downtravel? bumpstopping? How long are your brakelines? How much will your set up allow you to droop?

If you don't want to take the time to measure it, call a company (bilstein, rough country, monroe) and see what they sell for your size lift. Most companies have a base idea
 
I do not mean to sound harsh but......If you are just driving it home throw the ones on there that you have then when you get home measure it up right and order the right ones... There is no right shock that fits every ones jeep with a certain amount of lift. Your Jeep could need a totally different length then another Jeep that has the same lift for a huge amount of factors. Some of those factors are listed in the post above mine .
 
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There is no right shock that fits every ones jeep with a certain amount of lift. .

You are correct, but if he's got 5 inches of lift then a 10" or 12" travel shock will work. I just might not perform like he wants it to. Like I said, I run 12" shocks. I like downtravel and have my bumpstops set for 3" of uptravel...


how much travel are shocks supposed to have i just installed a iro 5.5 inch lift and went to put shocks on (doestech) and just sitting normal o n flat land they only have like 2 inches of travel for the front and rear. does this sound right?

I have 5.5" of lift. I run 12" travel Bilstein 5150s on mine. I have about 3 inchs of up travel and 9 inches of down travel. In most cases you want a shock that will have about 1/4 - 1/3 of the 'chrome' shaft showing (to get you a ball park figure).

Take a picture of the shock, post it here and we will be glad to tell you if that will be safe on the road.
 
i still dont know what im going to do the shocks iro gave me allow just over 2 inches of travel (i only see that much silver) i dont feel confortable driving 200 miles on that. seems the more i read alot of people are using in the ~16 to ~27 range seems right as the coils are 22 inches uncompressed so they dont drop out every other flex. the doestechs iro gave me are somthing like 37" extended. low range do you know what the measurements are that you have for your blistines?
 
i still dont know what im going to do the shocks iro gave me allow just over 2 inches of travel (i only see that much silver) i dont feel confortable driving 200 miles on that. seems the more i read alot of people are using in the ~16 to ~27 range seems right as the coils are 22 inches uncompressed so they dont drop out every other flex. the doestechs iro gave me are somthing like 37" extended. low range do you know what the measurements are that you have for your blistines?


I am a little confused here,.... :confused: :confused: Are you saying your present shocks are too long or too short? I take it you are no longer using the OEM length shocks but instead some longer replacements. Am I correct? :dunno:
 
iro gave me shocks that are wayyy to long.


If the shocks are too long then you have 2 problems. They will bottom out every time you hit a bump. Their life will be short. The front like you already know may allow the springs to unseat causing major headache on the highway. Yea, the do need shorter shocks before you under take that high way trip.
 
after researching the shocks i got from iro they are 18.5-32 way wrong imo i got a part number from them and they should be 17-29.50 that seems much more resonable
 
3" lift. I am having issues with the bilstein's IRO sent me. Extended: 24 1/4". Collapsed: 16". With shock installed shock sits at 18.5" Only about 2.5" of shaft exposed. Shock is only 2" away from full compression. They told me the bpe's raised the shock up to much. It's less than an inch. It doesn't seem correct to me. I think the shocks are too long.
 
It is best to start your own new thread especially since this one is more than one year old, with no additional postings.


Below is a chart of some "typical" shock lengths for different lifts. You can use this to make a judgment about what shock length may be appropriate. As already suggested it is best to full extend and fully compress the suspension and take your own measurements.


IMO, at about 3 inches of lift is when you should consider extending the bump stops.


.

(Brand/Model #) (Extended) (Collapsed) (Travel) (Position)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Napa 37083 (Stock) 21.2 13 8.2 Front
Monroe 32252 (* Stock) 21.25 13 8.1 Front
Monroe 37193 (* 1-3 " Lift) 24.25 13.37 10.8 Front
Monroe 911524 (* UpCountry) 21.00 13.4 7.6 Front
Doetsch DT3350 ( 3-5" Lift) 26.5 15.5 11.0 Front
ES1000 ES124515 (* 3" Lift) 24.50 14.38 10.0 Front
ES1000 ES121515 (* 0-2" Lift) 21.52 12.72 8.8 Front
ES3000 ES324515 (* 3" Lift) 24.70 14.52 10.2 Front
ES3000 ES321515 (* 0-2" Lift) 20.24 12.45 7.8 Front
ES9000 ES921515 (* 0-2" Lift) 21.75 13.06 8.6 Front
ES9000 ES924515 (* 3" Lift) 24.70 14.52 10.2 Front
Skyjacker SJA-H7016 (* 1-3" Lift) 22.75 13.54 9.2 Front
Skyjacker SJA-H7025 (* 3-5" Lift) 24.75 14.54 10.2 Front
Skyjacker SJA-N8016 (* 1-3" Lift) 22.75 13.54 9.2 Front
Skyjacker SJA-N8025 (* 3-5" Lift) 24.75 14.54 10.2 Front
Skyjacker SJA-M9016 (* 1-3" Lift) 22.75 13.54 9.2 Front
Rancho RS5239 (* 3" Lift) 23.75 14.37 9.38 Front
Rancho RS5128 (* Stock) 20.87 13.00 7.8 Front
Rancho RS99239 (* 3" Lift) 23.75 14.37 9.38 Front
Rancho RS99128 (* Stock) 20.87 13.00 7.8 Front
Rancho RSX17317 (* 3" Lift) 23.75 14.50 9.25 Front
Rancho RSX13036 (* Stock) 20.50 12.87 7.6 Front
Bilstein F4-B46-1798 (Stock+Upcountry) 21.50 13.25 8.25 Front
Bilstein F4-BE5-6241-H8 (4" Lift)……………………………………….………….Front
 

(Brand/Model #) (Extended) (Collapsed) (Travel) (Position)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NAPA 37027 (Stock) 20.0 12.8 7.2 Rear
Monroe 32269 (* Stock) 21.50 13.37 8.1 Rear
Monroe 37194 (* Upcountry) 21.12 13.87 7.2 Rear
Monroe 911525 (* Upcountry) 21.50 13.87 7.2 Rear
Monroe 37029 (1-3" Lift ) 23.00 14.375 8.6 Rear
Superlift SLF-85112 (* 2-4" Lift) 24.00 14.50 10 Rear
Superlift SLF-84140 (* 3-5" Lift) 26.07 15.57 10.5 Rear
Superlift SLF-85080 (* 0-2" Lift) 21.57 13.32 8.25 Rear
ES1000 ES124509 (* 3" Lift) 24.86 14.84 10 Rear
ES1000 ES121515 (* 0-2" Lift) 21.52 12.97 8.5 Rear
ES3000 ES324509 (* 3" Lift) 24.84 14.82 10 Rear
ES3000 ES322509 (* 0-2" Lift) 22.58 13.71 8.8 Rear
ES9000 ES922509 (* 0-2" Lift) 22.58 13.72 8.8 Rear
ES9000 ES924509 (* 3" Lift) 24.84 14.82 10 Rear
Skyjacker SJA-N8058 (* 3-5" Lift) 24.84 14.82 10 Rear
Skyjacker SKA-H7058 (* 3-5" Lift) 24.84 14.82 10 Rear
Doetsch DT-3000 (* 2" Lift) 22.50 13.50 9 Rear
Doetsch DT-3000 (* 4" Lift) 24.50 14.50 10 Rear
Doetsch DT-8000 (* 4" Lift) 24.50 14.50 10 Rear
Rancho RS5194 (* 2-3" Lift) 23.25 14.37 8.8 Rear
Rancho RS5259 (* Stock) 21.50 13.50 8 Rear
Rancho RSX13037 (* 0-2" Lift) 21.12 13.50 7.62 Rear
Bilstien F4-B46-1799 (Stock+UpCountry) 21.50 13.25 8.25 Rear
Bilstein F4-BE5-6686-H6 (4" Lift) …………………………………………….Rear
 
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