Minimal/No Lift Suspension Upgrade

Hi all!

I'm currently rocking a stock suspension with over 130k miles for a 2004 Jeep Liberty Sport/Limited model (Columbian Trail). Having recently been traveling through West Virginia on 435 has highlighted a blaring issue I've been wanting fixed for a while now, but lacked the money for until now - bottoming out.

Having looked through a bunch of forums, I have gotten a general idea on what my needs are, but I am nervous/unsure. Recommendations have pointed me towards either getting OME or Ironman parts.

For OME I have been looking at 926 (2926) springs for the front and 947 (2947) springs for the rear, paired with N-132L and 90009 shocks/struts. The Ironman kit is their Jeep014KG.

Which of these would y'all most highly suggest. I'm prioritizing ride comfort/quality above all else (as I take the Jeep on 8 hour drives regularly), would prefer little to no lift over stock, and the best bang for my buck would be amazing.

I'm also struggling to find where to buy these parts, preferably being able to order online and have it shipped. Lastly, I am wondering if I need anything beyond the shocks/struts/springs, I don't plan on adding anything heavy to the Jeep (all stock) or lifting it any higher in the future.

YukimeS said:

Hi all!

I'm currently rocking a stock suspension with over 130k miles for a 2004 Jeep Liberty Sport/Limited model (Columbian Trail). Having recently been traveling through West Virginia on 435 has highlighted a blaring issue I've been wanting fixed for a while now, but lacked the money for until now - bottoming out.

Having looked through a bunch of forums, I have gotten a general idea on what my needs are, but I am nervous/unsure. Recommendations have pointed me towards either getting OME or Ironman parts.

For OME I have been looking at 926 (2926) springs for the front and 947 (2947) springs for the rear, paired with N-132L and 90009 shocks/struts. The Ironman kit is their Jeep014KG.

Which of these would y'all most highly suggest. I'm prioritizing ride comfort/quality above all else (as I take the Jeep on 8 hour drives regularly), would prefer little to no lift over stock, and the best bang for my buck would be amazing.

I'm also struggling to find where to buy these parts, preferably being able to order online and have it shipped. Lastly, I am wondering if I need anything beyond the shocks/struts/springs, I don't plan on adding anything heavy to the Jeep (all stock) or lifting it any higher in the future.

Click to expand...

Try offroadwarehouse.com for springs and shocks. You’ll need Teraflex bump stops in front, and two hockey pucks bolted to the lower spring plates in the rear. I did this last August, wound up at two inches over stock height, and the ride is like buttah.

klc said:

Try offroadwarehouse.com for springs and shocks. You’ll need Teraflex bump stops in front, and two hockey pucks bolted to the lower spring plates in the rear. I did this last August, wound up at two inches over stock height, and the ride is like buttah.

Click to expand...

I have been reading where if I use OME N132/60069 I do not need extended bumpstops/hocky pucks. Is this true? I am really trying to limit the amount of lift I will be putting on my Jeep. It will not be taken off-road due to other mechanical issues (water pump housing is held on by a clamp due to bolt being cross threaded and breaking off within the engine block).

Although I do intend to replace the bumpstops as they are falling apart from being on there for 18 years.

Edit: lost internet before being able to check for mistakes/errors

Okay, those are different springs than the ones I installed, but they will still give some lift from what I’ve seen.

My experience with my 07 Liberty and OME is:

JBA 4.5 UCAs with OME 2927 front shocks and 9009 springs resulting in FD 20 1/4" and FP 20" - a one inch lift in the front.

I don't know that the JBA UCAs were really necessary. I suspect they may make alignment easier as I've had no issues with that.

OME 60069 rear shocks and OME-940X (2940 I believe) springs resulting in RD 21 1/4" and RP 21 1/4" - a two inch lift in the back.

I may be misinterpreting your earlier post regarding isolators/bump stops, but they don't have an effect on lift per se, merely help preserve the integrity of those expensive shocks.

With an empty vehicle the ride is a little firm. Here in the low desert, the roads often suck and with an empty Jeep you do feel every crack across the lane. With a full tank of gas and a bunch of stuff loaded, I very much enjoy the ride. The Jeep does have a full set of SkidRow armour from the front of the engine all the way through to the rear.

The proportions preserve the look of the raked body which I prefer.

Decided to go with OME 926 coils in the front and 947 coils in the rear, matched with OME nitrocharger sport 90009s in the front and 60069 in the rear. Was a little to worried about topping out the 60069 shocks with 948 coils, so decided to play it safe and match up with the other popular combination here on the forums.

Got teraflex front bumpstops and extended rear bumpstops from AllJ's coming in too. I'm really looking forward to seeing how the ride will feel after being on OEM suspension at 130k miles...

YukimeS said:

Hi all!

I'm currently rocking a stock suspension with over 130k miles for a 2004 Jeep Liberty Sport/Limited model (Columbian Trail). Having recently been traveling through West Virginia on 435 has highlighted a blaring issue I've been wanting fixed for a while now, but lacked the money for until now - bottoming out.

Having looked through a bunch of forums, I have gotten a general idea on what my needs are, but I am nervous/unsure. Recommendations have pointed me towards either getting OME or Ironman parts.

For OME I have been looking at 926 (2926) springs for the front and 947 (2947) springs for the rear, paired with N-132L and 90009 shocks/struts. The Ironman kit is their Jeep014KG.

Which of these would y'all most highly suggest. I'm prioritizing ride comfort/quality above all else (as I take the Jeep on 8 hour drives regularly), would prefer little to no lift over stock, and the best bang for my buck would be amazing.

I'm also struggling to find where to buy these parts, preferably being able to order online and have it shipped. Lastly, I am wondering if I need anything beyond the shocks/struts/springs, I don't plan on adding anything heavy to the Jeep (all stock) or lifting it any higher in the future.

Click to expand...

Gee this looks exactly like my post.

The old man is on the Jeep! Only drove it home from the shop, and I can already tell it's loads better than the old stock suspension! Here's some pics of the after:

You don't need new bump stops if you aren't running over sized tires or wheels with more offset than stock. Not sure what tire size you have on there, but they don't look larger than 30" or so and they are on stock rims, so you can use factory bump stops no problem. Using extended bump stops stops the tires from hitting the fender flares when the suspension is fully compressed, which will rip the fenders right off the Jeep. I have 245/75R16 (30.5") with factory bump stops and I haven't had any rubbing issues.

Extended bump stops prevent the shocks becoming the bump stop on a lifted Jeep, running around without them you stand a good chance of damage. Tom Mudd posted lots about this if you search on here.

That is not true if you use the same length of shocks and lift using springs. OME 60069 is the same length as stock according to the OME/ARB fit chart. If you use a longer shock or spacers on the shocks or front clevis you absolutely need longer bump stops. If you have standard length shocks front and rear, and you don't have tires over 30" you will NOT need longer bumpstops. Spring lifts do not change the suspension's maximum and minimum positions. There is no sense in limiting your suspension travel for no reason. All that will do is reduce your bump handling ability and reduce the max articulation of your suspension.

WheelNut said:

That is not true if you use the same length of shocks and lift using springs. OME 60069 is the same length as stock according to the OME/ARB fit chart. If you use a longer shock or spacers on the shocks or front clevis you absolutely need longer bump stops. If you have standard length shocks front and rear, and you don't have tires over 30" you will NOT need longer bumpstops. Spring lifts do not change the suspension's maximum and minimum positions. There is no sense in limiting your suspension travel for no reason. All that will do is reduce your bump handling ability and reduce the max articulation of your suspension.

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Ah, I missed the stock ride height bit.

YukimeS said:

The old man is on the Jeep! Only drove it home from the shop, and I can already tell it's loads better than the old stock suspension! Here's some pics of the after:

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is there a difference in the rear in the before and after?
If so how much, looks to me if I replace my front springs I should be level

'Level' on a KJ is subjective. The front wheel openings are taller than the rear, and the body lines are not parallel.

u2slow said:

'Level' on a KJ is subjective. The front wheel openings are taller than the rear, and the body lines are not parallel.

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The way my front tires are worn tells me there is coil sag, so I would hope to go back closer to when new
I'm sure I can get that but not sure about buying medium or heavier springs

I finally put in the slightly heavier CRD coils. Up until then I used 2" conduit nuts as spacer shims.

u2slow said:

I finally put in the slightly heavier CRD coils. Up until then I used 2" conduit nuts as spacer shims.

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More info and pictures
I would like to buy these for my liberty but I'm not sure what the outcome would be

Old Man Emu 2927 Coil Spring Heavy Load To 50 KGS Coil Spring​

This thread discusses the OME springs and shows where the conduit nuts would be used

WheelNut said:

That is not true if you use the same length of shocks and lift using springs. OME 60069 is the same length as stock according to the OME/ARB fit chart. If you use a longer shock or spacers on the shocks or front clevis you absolutely need longer bump stops. If you have standard length shocks front and rear, and you don't have tires over 30" you will NOT need longer bumpstops. Spring lifts do not change the suspension's maximum and minimum positions. There is no sense in limiting your suspension travel for no reason. All that will do is reduce your bump handling ability and reduce the max articulation of your suspension.

Click to expand...

First of all: yes, and thank you
But to zoom in a little further: why would you need longer bumps with a spacer lift?
(I enjoy this debate because it appears so widely misunderstood, which you clearly agree with!)

If your new shock had a minimum length (fully compressed) greater than stock, then that could (maybe) become your first limiting factor on upward travel. That would be very product-specific and something we don't worry about with our KJ shock options. But with a spacer lift, the factors of upward travel are unchanged. The general limiting factors for any IFS are CV binding, shock compression limit, coil compression stack, swaybar ties, balljoint articulation, bumpstop, or wheel/body contact. But I dont think any of that is changed in the upwards direction even with a 3" rough country lift or similar. (We are completely avoiding the discussion of what happens in the downward direction, thank goodness.) So extended bumps would still not be required. Same with longer/stiffer coils providing more preload in the coilover assembly. The ONLY practical reason for extending the KJ bumpstops (in the realm of normal suspension lifts) is wheel size and fender/frame contact. Am I wrong? And I agree that 30.5" seems around the limit for that requirement, assuming that you have coils stiffer than stock. I have not tried large wheels with stock suspension but I'm quite sure you could contact the fender with a 245/75r16 tire with relative ease, so that wouldn't be good.

Also, just to throw this out there... the 927 coils have 2 extra rings beyond what stock and H&R have, at the same diameter. Thus, the 927 is more likely to become the first limiting factor in upward travel. Not that it matters when you run the super extended Terraflex bumps which very obviously become the first limiting factor in all applied cases.

You've got me thinking there, my gut says it's increasing the potential upwards swing so risking shock damage when it hits the end of travel.
I'm off shift today so I'm going to have a look and do some drawing when I get home, to see exactly what's going on when you shift the coil over down.