Suspension ?

[Jay3aa]

Hi all...
I just purchased a 1999 xj my 3rd time owning the xj.
I was wondering if anyone might be able to offer any suggestions ?
I wanted to tighten up suspension which I will not b doing myself I
Have a good trustworthy mechanic but I'd like to only do necessary work.
Any ideas ? To get it back to its original feel? Ty!

[4.3LXJ]

To get original feel you need the rubber clevite bushings. You just have to inspect them and see how they look. The top ones give out before bottoms on the front links. Check the track bar bushing as well. They often fail. And then the sway bar bushings too

[Jay3aa]

Ty. It seems I'm leaning slightly to the right .. Any ideas for that? Ty!

[XJ Wheeler]

One thing for the leaning, check for the isolator that should be above the coil spring.

[Jay3aa]

Thanx will do... Strange how into this jeep i am. Lol

[bluedragon436]

I'm wondering though, while you are replacing all these parts to get a tighter suspension feel back.... do you plan on doing a lift down the road?? If you do, might be just as cost effective to just wait until you are able to pick up the lift that you were looking at, and see how you feel about the suspension then... Cause mine felt all kinds of spongy and nasty... and when I installed the 4.5" that became a 7.5" lift install.... my ride felt so much better.... almost like it would have from the factory... with all new shocks, coils w/ isolators, lower control arms, and track bar... and yeah in the end that install cost was probably quite a bit higher than what you are looking to spend right now, but I had quite a few other things done at the same time... But I think to wait maybe a little bit longer and save up money to pick up a lift to go ahead and do it all at once... would probably get you the tight suspension and handling feel you are looking for... if you were planning on doing a lift anyways that is.... if not.... then I would say look into the parts Steve mentioned to replace...

[Jay3aa]

Thanks James
I been considering that 1st I'm an electrician by trade. So although I'm pretty mechanically inclined I'm def no auto mechanic.2nd this is my 3rd jeep I never did any mod to the last 2
So this is all new to me ..but I def caught a bug to do stuff but not sure where to start I'd like to ride a lil higher but not crazy .. I pulled over and looked at an xj I liked the look of it had 31" tires they came out slightly . Basically I wanna beef her up a lil but keep her looking original also. I'm anxious but again I'm not a mechanic so I have to be calculated. Cause$. How about new shocks and spacers new tires???

[bluedragon436]

Yeah I know what it is like to want to do something with your Jeep and have to look into doing it on a tight budget... I built my XJ out of deals I found on different forums and local Jeep club sites.... It might take a little while extra to save up for it, but take a look at the RC 4.5" (http://www.roughcountry.com/jeep_xj_4x.html) lift setup.... for the money I honestly think it is a really good deal, and will give you a nice look and tighten up the suspension on your XJ.. It might take a little bit of time to save up for it, over having the local shop do what you were looking at originally, but think it would be a better option for you... Not to mention you can get up with a few of our vendors who carry the RC lifts as well as other lift kits for the XJ at great prices!!

[Jay3aa]

4.5" seems high. What r other lifts kits before 4.5". Thanks for the time man appreciated!

[Jay3aa]

Wow I'm looking at these lift kits( 3" probably more my speed)that don't look super hard to install ...question ...would it be cool if I bought the 3" kit and the recommended accessorys
And hand them to my mechanic and ask him to install? I don't think he has much exp with modifications like this ..but he's a good mechanic.. Or should I start searching for more jeep exp mechanic? Ty!

[Mudderoy]

4.5" seems high. What r other lifts kits before 4.5". Thanks for the time man appreciated!

Most people will recommend the 4.5" lift because that is about as high as you can go before doing a SYE (slip yoke eliminator). The reason most people recommend the 4.5" lift is it happens over and over again that someone will go into it with a 2, or 3 inch lift, only to go higher a year later.

Now not everyone does this but it seems more common that staying with the 3". It's cheaper to buy one lift than two. I went with a 4.5" lift because of the price and the cost of the SYE. Now that I have done the SYE and 33" tires, I'm ready to move to the 6.5"

I'm sure I won't go any higher than that.

There is nothing wrong with a stock Cherokee, a 2" lift, or a 3" lift if that is what you want. The nice thing about 30" tires is it doesn't change your gear ratio so much that you'll need to regear. I had to regear mine with the 32" tires. I run 4.56.

Bigger gets expensive.

[XJ Wheeler]

Wow I'm looking at these lift kits( 3" probably more my speed)that don't look super hard to install ...question ...would it be cool if I bought the 3" kit and the recommended accessorys
And hand them to my mechanic and ask him to install? I don't think he has much exp with modifications like this ..but he's a good mechanic.. Or should I start searching for more jeep exp mechanic? Ty!

If he works on suspension, he should be able to do it. But, someone experience in lift kits will probably have more tricks and specific knowledge to speed it up.

[Jay3aa]

With some intense consideration Maybe crazy but I'd like to start with wheel spacers and stock size black rims ... I would like for the wheels to protrude slightly. And get some decent tires. Can you recommend good spacers and affordable black rims stock size. Then I'm probably gonna beef up the stock suspension. Ty!

[4.3LXJ]

1.5" wheel spacers will get you just past the sheet metal if you remove the flares. You might do better with aftermarket rims.

[XJ Wheeler]

Yeah, 15"x8" wheels will be more versatile in case later you want bigger tires. And if you're going with aftermarket wheels anyway, just get less backspacing to move the tires out. Wouldn't need spacers then.

[Jay3aa]

I found wheels I like 15x8 with 3.75 back space should I go with less back space. ?
Can yo give me suggestions on tire siz with stock suspension?
Ty!

[XJ Wheeler]

I found wheels I like 15x8 with 3.75 back space should I go with less back space. ?
Can yo give me suggestions on tire siz with stock suspension?
Ty!

I run that same size wheel and backspacing. You won't need spacers with those.

Usually the biggest you can go without rubbing is 30", a little trimming and 31s should do alright.

[Jay3aa]

Thanks
I saw a jeep with 235/75/15 looked real nice with the same rims as me