XJ Lift

[rockstomper]

I'm hoping to lift my 87 Cherokee a few inches. I was reading that 3-4" would be ideal. I've got some 31's. I want something I can drive long distances so that i Can go 4wheelin. Any suggestions on types of lift, how much of a lift, and where to purchase one at?

 

[WayneXJ]

Rubicon Express has a good 4.5" lift that would work with 31 or 32" tires.

 

[jedijeeper]

Rubicon Express has a good 4.5" lift that would work with 31 or 32" tires.

Rubicon has that kit... and it is very nice... but,

For some reason it is really noisy. There isn't a lot of isolation from the axle to the cab due to the lower control arm bushings (at least on the kit I had), and road noise just abounds because of that. After talking to a couple of other Rubicon kit owners... the heightened noise seems to be a common theme.

So if you're driving a lot, the noise might drive you crazy. I guess you could always upgrade to different lower arms that use the full size stock lower rubber bushing... You can also upgrade to the radius style from arms from Rubicon... very nice. Teraflex has an awesome kit for your XJ, and they have a lower control arm upgrade that has all rubber bushings. There are also tons of other lifts out there for XJ's nowadays. I am sure others here have tried all the others and will chime in.

-JJ

 

[Fuller]

Well you didn’t give a price range that you were looking at, and those guys gave you the more expensive route so I will give you a cheaper route.

My first lift was a Skyjacker 3" lift with a Teraflex BB. I really liked this lift and it was perfect for my 31's relatively cheap also, they tuff country 3"kit is the same as the sky jacker and it may be a little cheaper also, you may want to think about looking to that kit. If you go that route I would get the full length AAL with the lift kit, and then when you add the shackles with the BB the ride will not be as rough. That set up will flex really well with a set off quick disconnects also.

 

[rockstomper]

Yeah, price is defintely a concern for me. I checked out the RE lift kits and they looked pretty nice. I'm looking to spend as little as possible. i was checking out Tuff country lifts for awhile, but i heard that they are not that great. Any opinions on this? Does everyone buy their lifts from the manufacture or are there places that sell them cheaper?

 

[mbryson]

Rubicon has that kit... and it is very nice... but,

For some reason it is really noisy. There isn't a lot of isolation from the axle to the cab due to the lower control arm bushings (at least on the kit I had), and road noise just abounds because of that. After talking to a couple of other Rubicon kit owners... the heightened noise seems to be a common theme.

So if you're driving a lot, the noise might drive you crazy. I guess you could always upgrade to different lower arms that use the full size stock lower rubber bushing... You can also upgrade to the radius style from arms from Rubicon... very nice. Teraflex has an awesome kit for your XJ, and they have a lower control arm upgrade that has all rubber bushings. There are also tons of other lifts out there for XJ's nowadays. I am sure others here have tried all the others and will chime in.

-JJ

My RE arms had a stock lower bushing (the same one M.O.R.E. uses in their motor mounts) and a johnny joint end on the lower arm and used the axle end stock bushing and johnny joint for the upper. Never noticed a lot of noise, but they were slightly noisier than the stock arms.

I'm very satisfied with most of the RE products that I've purchased (trackbar could use a little work and the disconnects SUCK). To each his own, though.

rockstomper: I'd do a little research and see if you can get some seat time in some rigs with the various lifts.

 

[chans]

They have a 3" Skyjacker lift in the Tribune thrifties today.

 

[sibeta]

I'm hoping to lift my 87 Cherokee a few inches. I was reading that 3-4" would be ideal. I've got some 31's. I want something I can drive long distances so that i Can go 4wheelin. Any suggestions on types of lift, how much of a lift, and where to purchase one at?

did the Rubicon 4.5" on my Bro's cherokee last night. Easy to install and flexes great. Good product and everything from new stainless brake lines to new keepers on the leafs were included. I was happy with the Rubicon product and not overly priced.

 

[onetuff76]

spend the money and do it right the first time, the skyjacker rock ready kit is awesome. My buddy has one on his xj it rocks offroad and has great onroad characteristics (he uses his as a DD). Yeah it is a 6" kit but its worth it.

 

[XJEEPER]

I'm stil running RE gear on my XJ and have done for about 5 years, I'm at 6" of lift currently and am very happy with their products. I've sold my RE 4.5 stuff as I've progressed to more lift and the new owners of this gear are happy with it as well.

Not sure about the longterm satisfaction of the Skyjacker stuff, heard a lot of beef about short heim life and such.........talk to someone that has acutally used their rig and had the product for a while......more money doesn't always buy you better hardware.

 

[Caleb]

I put the 3.5" Tuff Country kit on my cherokee that I used to have. At first I really liked it, but for some reason, over the course of the years its like the coils have hardened. I last drive that thing abot a year ago and I could have sworn the sxles were welded directly to the frame. I say skip the cheap stuff and do it right the first time. Rubicon Express kit will make you a happy camper

 

[rockstomper]

Thrifties Skyjacker lift is sold! Anybody know of any good used lifts? This jeep will be a budget Jeep.

 

[suwasucks]

lift?

The Rubicon Express 4.5" is a pretty good lift. I've had it about 18 months or so. I run 32x11.5x15 MTR's. As for the noise, I was never bothered by the sounds the XJ makes. The tires are more noisy than the suspension. Works great.

 

[rockstomper]

How much did you guys pay for your lifts? RE prices on a website i checked out were ranging from 1200-1400. This is my first jeep so don't want to get to much into it money wise. My ideal would be to find someone with a used lift and work from there. I'd loved to havea RE lift, but 1400 bucks is alittle hefty for my budget considering I have three other cars that take my money away.

 

[mbryson]

How much did you guys pay for your lifts? RE prices on a website i checked out were ranging from 1200-1400. This is my first jeep so don't want to get to much into it money wise. My ideal would be to find someone with a used lift and work from there. I'd loved to havea RE lift, but 1400 bucks is alittle hefty for my budget considering I have three other cars that take my money away.

I'll be selling some of my stuff in probably the next 30-90 days. Some of it is a little too used to be selling, IMHO, but the coil springs (RE 4.5"), Tera disconnects, and the shackles are still in good shape.

 

[rockstomper]

what else would i need to get? Some leafs springs?

 

[mbryson]

what else would i need to get? Some leafs springs?

upper and lower control arms, leaf springs (I'm using the add-a-leaf--cheap and works fairly well-kind of stiff), trackbar (I have one of those also) and your brake lines would need some attention.

 

[WayneXJ]

upper and lower control arms, leaf springs (I'm using the add-a-leaf--cheap and works fairly well-kind of stiff), trackbar (I have one of those also) and your brake lines would need some attention.

You can get front brakelines from a YJ fairly inexpensive. They are long enough for the 6" or so that I have on my Jeep.

 

[rockstomper]

Sweet, sounds pretty good. Can't you get away with the stock control arms?

 

[mbryson]

Sweet, sounds pretty good. Can't you get away with the stock control arms?

You can for a while, but the bushings will wear out and the axle is back further than it should be. It'll work temporarily, but plan on buying upper and lower arms.