So I've done my research on a lot of affordable lifts and every time I feel like buying one of these lifts like RE 3.5 shot arm and RC 4" SA kits, a lot of people say don't buy, its cheap quality and save for more expensive lift... But why? Is it the thickness of the metal, ride quality, flex, does the metal bend on a pebble, or are these the people automatically assume your going to a competition and smashing your peddle on every rock? I haven't found any reason why not to buy? Cheap quality compared to?.Yes I have heard of bushings going out on the RE and ride quality on the old RC, but it seams they've addressed those problems an fixed them... I can take a pair of cheap shoes and make them last but would I hike miles on a shoe that's made to walk around town, probably not..
I do listen to the negative feedback on products because its a good gauge for me to apply my thoughts on going about it. but i haven't found any logical explanation why they are bad... :crash:
I bought my LJ with a cheap lift already installed. The wheelbase has been shortened because they didn't use a long arm kit. The ride quality stinks. I am putting new shocks and smaller tires on to help rectify the situation. The tires are part of the problem also. Folk who make a nice jeep into a mall crawler really do it an injustice. I will either buy a JK and do it the way I want or perhaps put the right kind of long arm kit on. My cheap kit has cheap parts and any real abuse is going to break/bend stuff. I know what you mean, you can get a cheap 4" kit for 1600 or you can get a quality kit for $3200... Come to Idaho and drive mine and that will help you understand
The ride quality stinks. I am putting new shocks and smaller tires on to help rectify the situation. The tires are part of the problem also. Folk who make a nice jeep into a mall crawler really do it an injustice.
What tires are on it? Why will smaller dia tires help to rectify your situation? Have you determined the root cause for your poor ride quality or are you just stabbing in the dark?
Depends on what you want to do with your jeep. If you plan on taking her to the beach and light trails, or you want more clearance for snow and minor road flooding, do what i did. 1.5" rc bl and 31" a/t's. for about 1000$ installed. if you plan on rock crawling, or just generally have money to burn, you can do a more expensive lift. Keep in mind, if you go higher than 3" you will probably have to start modding the radiator, skid plates, etc. which can get pricey fast. Personally, this TJ is my first jeep, so I dont want to dump a ton of money into her. My next jeep, which will be a JK, will be a different story.
As of now, Lift for 33's without rub. Most of my off roading is done in Nothern California, Sierra Nevada side. I take my jeep to its limits and it is surprising for me where one locker can take you. That next step for me is traction and clearance. As much as I would like, I probably will never see a LM kit on my jeep.. If i must I have sYE and drive shaft in budget and I can do the SYE myself. Got a guy in West Sac that builds pretty beefy drive lines for $230 bucks for jeep tj
So I am going to 285/75's. The photo isnt the best I am on a hill with the drivers side higher so the Jeep is leaning to the right and I'm turned to the right. When I have an extra 3500 laying around I will put a quality 6" lift and then some 37 or 38 inch tires. and some 5.12 gears... Oh thats another issue it has stock gearing with those 315/75's so the 285/75's should help me down the highway.
Snooze,
It's the nature of forums in general there's bashers on all of them. Every time I read a forum I see poor advice and recommendations kinda sad really.
I recommend doing your research make comparisons with all the info you can find, talk to manufactures, installers and local Jeepers who actually sell , install or run the lifts your interested in. You'll get much better info talking in person or on the phone and you also start building a relationship with them if you need help in the future. After you've done all that base your decisions on what's in Your budget and what You feel fits your needs the best.
X 10x10 to the 10th, this is the most accurate statement on the forum
And to add my own $.02, I have been running RC lifts for 4 years with no problems, any lift will require a little basic maintenance, and any lift will require proper installation. A lift that not installed right or maintained will be a crappy lift to the person who owns it, that's just how it is.
As far as ride quality, a Jeep is a Jeep, it's short, narrow, tall, and not made for 'handling' or on-road performance, if your worried about rough rides, buy a car or, at the very least, leave your Jeep 100% stock.
I went through a similar debate myself... It culminated with purchase of a RC X-series lift, which gave me fully adjustable control arms all around. The ride is a little stiff, compared to a RE equipped Wrangler that a friend of mine has, though he is running Bilstein 5100s. I am happy with the lift overall, but likely will look at different shocks... Of course, it is only about 3 months old and most reviews have negatives after a year, so I may have a different opinion at that time, but it was more affordable than the other kits - by about $500...
The important thing to know is that if you want to get the best lift, spend the money for what imped suggests - he knows his stuff. If you can't afford that, buy what you can and accept the potential negatives with your eyes open.
Truly on the same path I em on. I got a response from a guy on YouTube with that same kit and told me the same about getting better shocks. It looked like a soft ride to me as i seen it on his vid.. I called RC to see if I could upgrade the 2.0s for the 2.2 + money of course, but they couldn't do it. Isn't really an issue I guess from the looks of what you get. Could probably sell the shocks on craiglist.. But yeah If you do get the 5100 and it changes the ride, let me know asap. I would hate to do that upgrade and find out it was the springs.
I guess the first thing to consider is what going to do with your lifted jeep. Like with anything else, you get what you pay for. You also may want to look into different manufactures for each component group.
So I've done my research on a lot of affordable lifts and every time I feel like buying one of these lifts like RE 3.5 shot arm and RC 4" SA kits, a lot of people say don't buy, its cheap quality and save for more expensive lift... But why? Is it the thickness of the metal, ride quality, flex, does the metal bend on a pebble, or are these the people automatically assume your going to a competition and smashing your peddle on every rock? I haven't found any reason why not to buy? Cheap quality compared to?.Yes I have heard of bushings going out on the RE and ride quality on the old RC, but it seams they've addressed those problems an fixed them... I can take a pair of cheap shoes and make them last but would I hike miles on a shoe that's made to walk around town, probably not..
I do listen to the negative feedback on products because its a good gauge for me to apply my thoughts on going about it. but i haven't found any logical explanation why they are bad... :crash:
most of the time I see this question asked. With the positive and negative feedback's I can evaluate on my riding style. I can only tell you that I dabble in all of it with a DD
Thanks for the input. Which lift was preinstalled on you Jeep? You haven't bent or broke them correct?. I've seen some lifts that looked very cheap and held up. good luck on getting the LM
I have Rancho Springs and Bilstein 5100 shocks. Rubicon Express adj control arms and R/E steering components. It rides and steers wonderful. 75+ mph on the freeway-no issues. Spend the money to do it right. It is worth it to have no issues.
When I bought my jeep new in 2005, I wanted to lift it. Not having the Internet where I lived, I had no choice but to trust 4 Wheel Parts. I had them install a 4" Skyjacker kit. I have already had to replace the bushings once.
I am currently saving up cash to fix my mistakes.
I plan on buying the Currie Currectlync steering kit.
And then replacing my transfer case lower kit with a SYE and Currie Johnny Joint adjustable control arms.
It's better to do it right the first time around...
Yeah I seen those bushings. they do look fail. I've heard nothing but excellent reviews on Currie's joints.. I used to look at joints for added flex until someone brushed me up on game on how its minimal flex gains and not noticeable, so I look into joints now for durability. Besides ride quality most of the other reviews are bushings failing and replaced.
X2 on the above comment from Imped that you don't need a long-arm suspension to have the correct wheelbase. I installed a Rubicon Express long-arm suspension on my previous TJ and now run the much better performing Currie short-arm suspension lift. That both have adjustable length arms mean the wheelbase can be adjusted to where it needs to be. Cheaper suspensions usually use non-adjustable length control arms so you get what you pay for there.
Also, cheaper suspension lift manufacturers don't put as much thought into their suspensions... probably a cost-issue but there you go. For example, the cheap first-generation Teraflex control arms I installed on my first TJ had such a limited amount of flex/articulation that once that TJ started doing more difficult trails, the arm joints couldn't move as much as required & they started tearing the control arm mounts off where they were welded to the axles.
Inexpensive lift manufacturers like Skyjacker cater to the masses & many of those masses normally just care about how tall they can get their Jeep & had bad-a$$ it looks on the street & to their buddies. Then when they start going offroad & doing more technically challenging trails, they discover the shortcomings of their low-budget lifts. Like the TJ getting tippy, having an unstable feeling, tearing control arm mounting brackets off the axles, inability to drive at a decent rate of speed over rough dirty roads without losing control, unable to do trails or get over obstacles as easily as those with better performing suspensions can, etc..
So in the case of suspension lifts, yes it's true that you do get what you pay for. Personally, I have owned the following suspension brands in my two TJs... in order... ProComp, Teraflex, RockKrawler, Rubicon Express, and finally, currently, Currie. And that is how I would rank them, from worst to best.
No matter what you have on the ends of your control arms, your shocks and bump stops will be the limiters to your travel.....not the arm joints. But that doesn't mean those ends aren't being pushed past their range of motion/misalignment boundaries. Any joint out there will have more misalignment than you can use. But only a very small group of joints are actually worth buying.
The main components you really want to think about for your lift (if your going with 4" +/-) are springs, shocks, control arms, SYE/CV shaft, and bump stops.
The few items I forgot about above are things you really want to think about as well, it helps your driveline angles to have a 1" motor mount lift, and you'll want a 1.25" body mount lift to keep everything in line, this also gives you room for tummy-tucks and gas tank skids with better clearance.
A really good 'out of the box' lift kit that is basically complete, or at least an excellent starting point that you can wheel while you build and add components, is the Zone 4.25" lift kit, it's a 1.25" body lift with a 3" suspension lift and 1" motor mount lift. The advantage to that lift is you may not need the transfer case drop if you don't have driveline vibrations, this gives you a chance to not lose ground clearance while saving for the SYE/CV.
With the Zone lift it gives you a chance to lift and be ok on your stock control arms until you can get ones you want, also gives you time to save up for and install a SYE/CV, at 4" suspension lift you start running in to problems if you don't have the SYE and control arms ready to go in.
Does anyone even know what size tires, type of jeep, and type of use the jeep will get yet in this thread from the OP? I perused it.......and its just a big can of spaggetti.........
Because they are hydraulic, the shocks won't extend on their own. You simply have to pull them apart with your arm muscles until they are the right length to install.
You have to unscrew them about a turn ... (never installed shocks before)
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