Lowering?

[Lawn Cher']

Also you camber will increase this is not bad it is ok to have quite a bit, too much might wear your tires on the inside depending on on your toe.

SPOBI

Camber is only adjusted with offset balljoints on the XJ front end... castor angle will be changed by dropping the body closer to the front axle without adjusting the control arms.

 

[red91]

Umm, enlighten me... how is a 4-bar different from a 4-link? In the mechanical engineering world, the terms are used interchangeably to describe a linkage or mechanism.

:clap: Nice call. Welcome to the Wide World of SPOBI...Where's Howard Cossel ?

 

[John(XJ)Jeep]

I don't think the camber is adjustable on the axle. It's just made with a certain amount built in. When you twist the axle it will change the relative position of the king pins or joints (not sure what there called exactly) to the ground giving a change in the camber of the wheels. I've noticed that I get more camber when the axle gets twisted back.

The "caster" or "rake" angle changes because of the same reason but just a different motion. You'll notice on jacked Jeeps because when having the wheel that faces the direction that the steering is cranked to, the bottom the tire will be in farther in than the top. When its lowered beyond what most people see in a Jeep, the position is the opposite on the same wheel.

A 4-link usually is much bigger. Most of the time the back end needs to be tubbed out. 4-links have many adjustment positions, 3-4 per link end, located at the axle and the mounts at the frame for both the upper and lower links and also the links themselves are adjustable in length. The setup is also much beefier and the mounts at the axle usually go all the way around it and welded in and meant for high horsepower. These are really meant for drag racing.

4-bar setups are smaller and use less material. Also there are not as adjustable as the 4-link counterparts. Usually with maybe 2 or 3 mounting holes for the bars at the frame an maybe 2 at the axle. The bars are not adjustable either, although you can put adjustable ones in there but as a kit they don't come with adjustable bars.

 

[REDXJ4FUN]

:clap: Nice call. Welcome to the Wide World of SPOBI...Where's Howard Cossel ?

Well depending on your back ground a 4 "bar" is difrent than a 4"link". With a lot if street rosd and such a 4 bar uses pretty much equal length bars all paralel with each other and is easy and has no djustment nor is it set up with regards to trying to find opimum traction. In the same area a 4 link is a more enginered setup with adujstablity and is setup to get the most traction posible. Now not everyone sees it that way it all depends on where your from and who you learned from.

 

[Eagle]

I don't think the camber is adjustable on the axle. It's just made with a certain amount built in. When you twist the axle it will change the relative position of the king pins or joints (not sure what there called exactly) to the ground giving a change in the camber of the wheels. I've noticed that I get more camber when the axle gets twisted back.

If you get any change in camber, your axle is FUBAR.

CAMBER

The wheel camber angle (Fig. 1) is preset at ZERO DEGREES (0*). The angle is not adjustable and cannot be altered.

Zero is zero. No matter how much you rotate the axle the camber angle should not change.

 

[REDXJ4FUN]

If you get any change in camber, your axle is FUBAR.



Zero is zero. No matter how much you rotate the axle the camber angle should not change.

Well I normaly wouldn't argue with ya Eagle but the camber will change when you startrating the axle. the stock axle does have a little camber when it is where it is suposed to be stock but when you start to rotate it toget your caster right or work with you pinion angle(for those who have 4x4) the camer changes. I nevre thought it would happen untill I lifted my first XJ and at 3n with stock arms ii knowticed a change in the camber it wasn't much bu it does change.

 

[John(XJ)Jeep]

Yeah, it's not that noticable but you will see it. As far as I know all factory made vehicles are made with some setting of camber be it negative or positive. Not having it is just bad engineering. :laugh3:

The zero point your probably talking about is normal riding camber it need to become more negative under compression and positive when weight is transfered off. The reason is for cornering, the contact patch of the tire needs to be as square to the road as possible.

 

[gmars]

The easiest way to lower the rear on any XJ is by letting gravity do it for you. I'm probably 2" lower than "stock" on my 97.
I realize this is a sore point, but leaf springs are high on my vehicle engineerign suckage list.
They used them on covered wagons in the 1800s!

 

[John(XJ)Jeep]

Yeah I let gravity lower mine and I need to change the leafs. :laugh3:
The ass end of an XJ is not quite the same as a pickup. The shock mounts are closer to wheel on the axle. They also sorta "integrated" into the U-bolts for the leaf springs. It looks like the shock mounts have to cut off and welded closer to the center to clear the U-bolts if you want to do an axle over leaf system.

I think I said this allready... :|