Needing opinions on lift kits

[okie 1 ton yj]

I am looking for opinions on the best bolt on 4.5" lift kit for a dual purpose 90' xj. Its a daily driver / weekend toy. I mainly wheel on sandy river bottoms so I am wanting to be able to go fast with a good ride. I am mainly looking at either the rough country 4.5 long arm kit or the RE 4.5 super ride. Any opinions on either kit?

 

[9T3XJ]

What size tires are you looking to run and what's your budget like?

I have zero experience with rough country but I'm a pretty big fan a RE. I started out with their 3.5" lift as my first lift and now basically have their 5.5" short arm lift on the front. I've always been happy with their stuff.

 

[dirtbagXJ2103]

RE makes strong parts just stay away from there leaf springs

 

[Darky]

And shocks, but you'd want better shocks anyways if you want good performance running in the sand.

 

[okie 1 ton yj]

Im only wanting to run 33's. As far as budget I would like to stay below $1500 range

 

[crazyjim]

Im only wanting to run 33's. As far as budget I would like to stay below $1500 range

You'd be better off piecing a lift together then realistically.

Check out the local for sale sections for good parts. RE coils are a decent coil, it's what I run on the MJ, Deavers are better. Deaver rear springs. Bilstein's > *. Control arms are open, run drop brackets at least if not a long arm kit. And you should be good. You won't stay under 1500 for long if you plan on really driving it.

 

[dirtbagXJ2103]

yeah keep an eye on race-dezert craigslist used parts work too, the taller you lift the more stock parts are going to have to come off

 

[okie 1 ton yj]

Thanks for the info guys

 

[XJRunner]

RE makes strong parts just stay away from there leaf springs

whats wrong with their leafs?

 

[dirtbagXJ2103]

stiff, short, too tall? im sure theres more

 

[9T3XJ]

If you're gonna stay with 33's and wanna go fast, I would stick with around 4" of lift. Skip the drop brackets or long arms, and spend the extra money on quality shocks and rear leaf springs. Keep in mind that if you go with RE stuff it tends to sit tall, sometimes an inch or more that advertised, so you might wanna think about going with the next size smaller coil.

Also, set some money aside to truss that front axle. When you get into the fast stuff you'll be glad you did.

 

[silverslk]

If you're gonna stay with 33's and wanna go fast, I would stick with around 4" of lift. Skip the drop brackets or long arms, and spend the extra money on quality shocks and rear leaf springs. Keep in mind that if you go with RE stuff it tends to sit tall, sometimes an inch or more that advertised, so you might wanna think about going with the next size smaller coil.

Also, set some money aside to truss that front axle. When you get into the fast stuff you'll be glad you did.

I disagree. The problem with solid front axle is you need height to gain uptravel. I ran RE 5.5" long arm lift on 33's and it rode great, handled great and ran the fast stuff great. It even crawled ok (as good as open/open w/no rock rails can crawl). I installed the RC long arm upgrade on an XJ and the only thing I didnt like was it used the stock crossmember mounting points. Otherwise, it seemed stout enough. I am a huge RE fan though but at 4.4-5.5" of lift you need long arms or drop brackets. The control arm angles will be too steep without.

 

[boostamante]

You'd be better off piecing a lift together then realistically.

You won't stay under 1500 for long if you plan on really driving it.

1st bit of information given to me by Jim and actually took it. Good stuff!

I made my own bastard packs and it rides pretty good. I would do that if you were trying to cut down the costs. I got a lot of parts either really cheap or handed down to me from members who i helped wrench on their heeps. Good luck!

 

[9T3XJ]

I disagree. The problem with solid front axle is you need height to gain uptravel. I ran RE 5.5" long arm lift on 33's and it rode great, handled great and ran the fast stuff great. It even crawled ok (as good as open/open w/no rock rails can crawl). I installed the RC long arm upgrade on an XJ and the only thing I didnt like was it used the stock crossmember mounting points. Otherwise, it seemed stout enough. I am a huge RE fan though but at 4.4-5.5" of lift you need long arms or drop brackets. The control arm angles will be too steep without.

I don't disagree with the benefits of drop brackets or long arms but here's my reasoning behind what I said:

First off, the more lift you go with the longer the list of upgrades becomes; steering, SYE & driveshaft, long arms or drop brackets, etc...

Second, I think at 4"-5" or lift you can still get away without drop brackets or long arms. I know there are a couple of Jeepspeeds that still use the stock CA locations and are very competitive. This is all just my opinion but if you're not going to be crawling much and you do wanna go fast its much more important to have quality, controlled wheel travel.

 

[silverslk]

I don't disagree with the benefits of drop brackets or long arms but here's my reasoning behind what I said:

First off, the more lift you go with the longer the list of upgrades becomes; steering, SYE & driveshaft, long arms or drop brackets, etc...

Second, I think at 4"-5" or lift you can still get away without drop brackets or long arms. I know there are a couple of Jeepspeeds that still use the stock CA locations and are very competitive. This is all just my opinion but if you're not going to be crawling much and you do wanna go fast its much more important to have quality, controlled wheel travel.

I understand your intent but based on the "quality, controlled wheel travel" remark, I have to say nothing is more quality or controlled than a nice arc of travel for your front axle. Short arms with a lift cause too much swing and you end up with alignment issues with the bump stops (IMHO). Either way, I think with all of us, he is getting plenty of feedback which will help him make an educated decision. :cheers:

 

[srimes]

I know there are a couple of Jeepspeeds that still use the stock CA locations and are very competitive.

Really? Stock locations on the axle too?

 

[dirtbagXJ2103]

i have 4" of lift with lowerd shock mounts and 12" shortbodies i get 7" of bump and cannot fully droop my front axle(shocks) because of the stock LCA location. you will need long arms or drop brackets to pull more than 10" of travel.

 

[9T3XJ]

Really? Stock locations on the axle too?

Don't quote me on this but I think the rules say stock locations on the axle must be used, I'm not 100% sure. The specific jeep I'm thinking of is the 1714 car driven by Ray Griffith- 2008 Champion, I couldn't find any pics though.

And I really don't mean to turn this in to a debate, all I'm saying is that if I were building on the cheap, I would limit travel and spend money on quality, rebuildable shocks before I bought drop brackets. If you can afford both, by all means go for it.