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body lifts hate?! open for discussion

sixstringsteve

sixstringsteve

Well-Known Member
Location
UT
And remember, just because I"m super vocal and active on RME does not make me the expert. I'm just a guy who loves chatting online and loves getting out on the trail even more. Don't mistake my hyperactivity posting on RME as me being the guru around here; I'm not. :D
 
jinxspot

jinxspot

~ Bush Eater's Offroad ~
Location
Salt Lake Utah
some of my body lift experience...

If your not using the mentality to use the body lift to fit bigger tires then the advantages to putting in upgraded poly/rubber body mounts in the 1" lift flavor I would considered these to be a good mod on vehicles that have their stock components worn out.... I've done two different jeeps with 1" body lifts due to installing new/upgraded body mounts, needless to say the ride quality was unbelievably better and a virtually unnoticeable gap between the body and frame. (81 Scrambler w/V8 and solid motor mounts, 89 YJ that had issues with old rubber mounts cracking & going bad)

If you talking cheap lift on a non functional crawler then its obvious where this works out well for some people... to one their own right. Even though its cheap it does need to be installed correctly!!!

Then I've also used 2" and 3" body lifts for hardcore off-road use in the past without any issues when their done right.... but we never scrutinized our COG values as much as we do today (times are def a-changin). Honestly this was only really used because it was easier to fit a custom body on a full-sized chassis by using different sized body mounts to keep the body perfectly level on the frame. (79 camaro on K5, S-10 on K5). :greg:
 
driver920

driver920

Active Member
Location
West Valley
well i would love to remove the body lift from the yoda but ................ as with anything on that truck one simple mod turns in to a fullblown rebuild. I have a full 3 inch body lift on it ...... and i didnt install it, bought it that way, but i fully see why they did it.

As it has a small block chev and dana 60 front end so to keep the up travel, as they put it on leafs, they had to make compromises on engine placement and until i moved the front end forward 2 inches the pumkin work still contact the oil pan even though just barely. now that being said yes there are ways to get around that part .... ie. a full tunnel and firewall rebuild but then you run in to the next problem which is the air cleaner contacts the hood ..... again just barely ......... now to remove the body lift and lower it 3 inches it would be

1. complete tunnel and fire wall rebuild which i will have to do anyway as soon as i get the 203/205 doubler to put in it as i plan on clocking it for a flat belly

2. fender trim amd possible tubbing to clear the 38's and deffinate tubbing to clear the 42's

3. cut out the hood and 3A. put a scoop on it or 3B. leave the air cleaner sticking out or 3C. go to a low profile after market injection of some sort. 3a limits visabilty, 3b is just cheesy and, 3c is just plainly not worth the expence to me

Now that being said they did compensate for the longer body bolts when they did the rollcage in the cab it has square tubes welded to the frame with mounting plates that contact the under side of the floor and the cage plates bolt to them with rubber inserts between so insted of 4 bolts holding the cab to the frame there are 20

Is a body lift a good thing most of the time i would say no, do they have their place, yes they do but that is usally detremined buy what components have been chosen for the complete build

just to put bigger tires on i would not consider a body lit because on say a chevy truck you put the body lift on through some 35 or 36 inch tires on and whola you are rubbing your steering box at full lock to the right and verybadly if the left tire is being pushed up in the fender at all

just my opion here
 
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reddman

reddman

Fabber
Location
SL,UT
skippy said:
Redd seems to always be right .............
Click to expand...

I'll always admit it if the facts say I'm not, but then I generally wont open my mouth unless I believe fact to be on my side already. I've been a fab shop whore for under a decade, and I'm certainly not the ultimate expert. That said, I have been around the block, and the country, building fancy junk, and I like surfing interweb forums and talking about this kind of stuff nearly as much as I like going out and doing it. Thanks everyone for keeping this discussion on track and friendly!



I totally appreciate what jinxspot said too, I would rather see someone on nice new polyurethane 1" lift mounts than on the old rotted-out factory rubber ones. Not every rig is going to be a purpose built, performance first, dedicated race rig. I don't look down on body lift owners (okay, maybe a little :p ), but I do know that the hardcore kids don't rock them! :D
 
N-Smooth

N-Smooth

Smooth Gang Founding Member
Location
UT
i put a 1" poly body lift on my buddies' tj cause the original bushings were 13 years old and it will help if we decide to flat belly it later. he hasn't swerved off the road into a pile of kitties, puppies and babies just yet. i think the kits that utilize the factory body mount bushing and an actual spacer are way more sketchy and stupid looking but the replacement ones with a 1" lift built-in are fine by me. frames are silly ;)
 
Donner

Donner

Isuzu junkie
Location
Weber County, Utah
I have never been a fan of body lifts. However I am considering one now and I'll explain why.

First off, I love my Trooper even with all it's limitations. It's fun to drive and you just don't see many 1st gens around anymore, particularly the 2 door models. If I wanted a bellybutton I would have already traded it off for a jeep product ( Sorry, jeepers :p you know you're loved) I'll probably end up going that route eventually just because of the availability of aftermarket parts. So, until my interest overcomes my stubbornness and the capabilities of the Trooper I'm stickin' with it. Doen't make sense, does it? Yeah, I know.

Having had a few bad bruises on the rocker panels lately, I'd like to add sliders but without sacrificing even that much clearance.

That being said, There are only 2 lifts I know of currently available for the ol'girl. 2' suspension lift from Calmini ( I installed this lift soon after the trooper followed me home - it gave me 1" :rolleyes:) It is comprised of new Torsion bars, 1.5" lift rear shakles, and (more or less) stock length shocks.

The other lift is Performance Accessories 3" body lift. Too much in my opinion. but that is what is offered. Fat bob also offers individual PA pucks in 1", 2", and 3".

As far as trimming goes, it really wouldn't help me. I have 245/75R16(31"s) on it. I tried 32's but it was too much tire for the little 2.3L. There are no aftermarket gears available that I am aware of ( Stock = 4.56:1) As well there are no lower gear options for the MSG5 transmission/transfer case (2.88:1) Also, the factory 8 bolt front axle and 10 bolt rear are fairly stout, but not generally accepted as the strongest combination.
The stonger running gear of the later 88-91 troopers will not swap into the '86

So unless I upgrade the engine to turn bigger tires, sas the front and swap in the D44s, and figure out a way to double up the transfer case, I don't plan to trim ( not that I am against these things). I have thrown around the idea of swapping the body onto a later model chassis to overcome some of this, and decided I would keep an eye out for a '90 or '91 as a candidate.


So, I am considering abody lift of 1" or 2" to fit in a tightly tucked pair of sliders. thats all.
 
irish1371

irish1371

Member
one other issue for jeeps anyways... You can fit a tummy tuck with some work with out using a body lift. The issue then turns into one of air flow at higher road speeds. The temp of the trans/xfer case tends to go up a lot as you go speeding down the highway with those close quarters when not using a 1" bl
 
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