V8 ZJ Tierod Upgrade

[outlander]

so the draglink angle on this mod will be the same as using stock xj components?Or does the zj steering tolerate a higher lift size?
I'm at 5.5" and need a cheap steering setup asap....

 

[mikegronholz]

I am at 6" and the tierod alone made the heep track straighter and it did less wandering. My tierod was bent and it had never seen the rocks ... jsut leisurly trail rides. You can watch the stock tierod bend with 32" or bigger. Just turn the wheels side to side.

 

[Harvo]

I did this months ago. I got mine at the junk yard. It was the easiest mod I did last year. I just knocked the old one out and put the new one in. I didn't even jack up the Jeep r pull the tires. I also didn't have to adjust the alignment (starngely enough). It was the most direct bolt in I have ever done. I'm on 5" of lift with 35's. If you have a front locker, you almost have to do this mod or some kind of $$ aftermarket steering.

 

[xtimmax]

Are ZJ draglinks any different too?

They will fit. I just took the whole assembly (tie rod and draglink) bolted it on and... voila!!

 

[MapleDitch]

How much clearance between the ZJ tie rod and the front diff cover? Is there still enough room for an aftermarket diff cover?

 

[blondejoncherokee]

i run the zj tie rod, its larger diameter and solid stock. talk about a world of difference!!!!! 15$ at the local picnpull yard!!!. way cheaper than other replacements, and way stronger. i run it with 33's and a lockright up front. way better than stock. the zj drag link is the same. i spend alot of time at pick n pulls and they are hard to find, but when you do, snatch it up for that 15$!!! i keep my old two stock tie rods as trail spares...

 

[blondejoncherokee]

i also run a dana 30 diff skid like the one at crustys, and it clears that just fine, and that sticks out further than any after market cover ive seen....

 

[ghettocruiser]

I did the ZJ upgrade a few years ago. It was a good choice because at the time I worked at Autozone, so it was CHEAP.

Another HUGE plus for the ZJ tie rod. The adjustment... Wow...so much easier to turn that bigger, shorter adjuster than trying to turn that hollow straw that came on stock. That thing is a pain in the butt. It twists 90 degrees before it breaks loose and just plain sucks.

The ZJ adjust is easy...you just stick a screwdriver in it and it turns easy as pie.

Gets my vote for a nice cheap ugrade...assuming you get the parts at a good price. Bet with the part numbers you could order them online pretty cheap at one of those discount auto sites.

Rockauto.com has good prices...

J.

 

[mikegronholz]

Bet with the part numbers you could order them online pretty cheap at one of those discount auto sites.

Rockauto.com has good prices...

J.

You'd think huh ? I just built it up on rockauto.com ... saved $3 on the sleeve and $5 each on the TREs over the above posted O'Reilly's off the street price (not counting any shipping costs). You can have O'Reilly's today by 6pm for $13 more and you also get "put in the puter" in case you need that lifetime warranty.

 

[tgoff]

Just to add a bit of info to this thread. The ZJ drag link will be an upgrade for the older XJ's (1984-1990) with the smaller tie rod end on the drag link (only 20mm). The newer XJ's (1991+) along with the ZJ's have the larger 22mm tie rod end so no need to swap drag links here.

 

[Timber]

Will this clear a Warn diff. guard?

 

[mikegronholz]

If you factory one does, this should. How much clearance do you have when you turn the wheels all the way to one side ?

 

[Timber]

I never bothered to measure it, so I'm not sure. I just wondered since the ZJ rod has a bend in front of the diff. just to clear it.

 

[outlander]

I did this months ago. I got mine at the junk yard. It was the easiest mod I did last year. I just knocked the old one out and put the new one in. I didn't even jack up the Jeep r pull the tires. I also didn't have to adjust the alignment (starngely enough). It was the most direct bolt in I have ever done. I'm on 5" of lift with 35's. If you have a front locker, you almost have to do this mod or some kind of $$ aftermarket steering.

How is your draglink angle?

 

[Raceghost]

The ZJ drag link will be an upgrade for the older XJ's (1984-1990) with the smaller tie rod end on the drag link (only 20mm).

So does this part need to be an addon to the parts list below, or is it included?

1 #DS1312 long tie rod, its solid not hollow
1 #DS1238 drag link
2 #ES3096L short tie rod ends(1 by pitman, 1 by outer driver side)
2 #ES2079S adjustment sleeves

 

[Timber]

It's not needed for newer XJs. Newer ones use the same part number as the V8 ZJs.

 

[mikegronholz]

It's not needed for newer XJs. Newer ones use the same part number as the V8 ZJs.

Drag link - correct. The tierods are VERY different.

 

[rstarch345]

Doesn't look like any of you thought about do a tierod flip while you were putting in the ZJ tie rod. Really moves the whole thing up and out of the way. http://www.soxja.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=292

 

[BADaXJ]

just to clarify, the drag link is still below the knuckle on that flip right? does anyone know how much lift a stock drag link under the knuckle will take? i've got the rock krawler 3-link kit going on soon and i'm thinking the drag link is going to bind up:wierd:??

 

[Timber]

Drag link - correct. The tierods are VERY different.

Exactly.