4" lift Q

hey

as i posted in my intro i am installing a 4" lift on my 79 cj5.
i would like to know the types of problems people have ran into while doing this.. also what affect will it have on a stock pitman arm in a non power steering jeep

thanx

 

Hey Cammer-
I only have a 2 1/2" Rancho lift on my '66 but I would imagine you might get a bit of bump steer with 4" and the stock pitman arm-you may want to go with a drop pitman arm-but someone with a 4' lift will be better to answer than me. Make sure all your steering joints are tight as this will help the on-road manners. A steering stabilizer(or a new one if so equiped) will help absorb the shock of the steering bumps.

 

Here are the issues I had with the 4" lift. Check for binding in the front upper driveshaft u-joint. Especially if you have dropped the crossmember with spacers to help with the rear driveshaft angle. If it binds you can take a little metal out of the yoke with a grinder so it will function or use castor shims to angle the pinion up a little. However you don't want to take too much castor out or you'll have a real wanderer on your hands. The other item was the rear shackles tended to flip forward because the overall length (eye to eye) wasn't quite long enough. I ended up cuting the pivot bracket loose and moving the entire axle back about 3/4" to get the shackles to have a slight angle to the rear. After all that, I love the suspension. Super flexy and rides nice on the rocky trails we have around here. I used a Skyjacker Softride spring set. Because the 4" springs have so much arc to them, they grow when flexed. Lots!! I don't have the exact measurements here, but say the springs measure 36" in a straight line from eye to eye. If you measure the length of the spring following the curve of the spring from eye to eye you'll get maybe 40". Your shackle has to be long enough to allow the spring to lengthen to near that 40" when it is compressed. That will be your minimum shackle length. Sorry this got so long, but I've got a lot of time invested in making mine work. You probably wouldn't experience any of these problems with a 2 1/2" lift.