Common Sense 2" Lift/Level

[Steelman]

Newby here, I just bought a 100K 2004 Kj and the original suspension is sagging enough to bottom on road dips its got to be updated. Went to a local offroad outfitter and he said OME was not available (I am guessing he was looking for kit) and wanted to spacer it. I do not want that. 95% is road drive 5% medium offroad and I am looking to do about a 2+" lift with leveling. I dont know where to start, I have tools and can pull a head but never have I done suspension work. Any list of parts and maybe where to get them would be great. I am willing to spend reasonable money on this KJ because I am retired and intend to work on it/ drive it for years. It has to have a good road ride because I take long trips to Arizona, Rockies and now that I live in Arkansas I will visit eastern mountain double track. If someone has a recommendation of a good shop near Hot Springs/Littlerock that would be great too. I have read a lot of Tom Muds posts but I am short of knowledge to understand what is required.

Thanks

Kj 2004 4wd
5 speed manual
Limited Slip Differential
All Mopar Skid Plates
3.73 DRA, 8.25 DSA

 

[YukimeS]

Hi! Thought I'd chime in since you responded to my post and saw you were a new member.

As for my lift, I went for 2947 springs in the rear, 2926 springs in the front due to the fact, from what I could find, that it would be near level (still a little bit of a rake) and would allow for stock length shocks. Tried looking for 2927/2947 combinations, but couldn't find anything anywhere, so I do not know if this would result in a more level result. Additionally, the 2926/2947 combination, under the most recent ARB OME product guide, is for 0-50kgs of additional weight (instead of stock weight or over 50kgs, it's their middle ground setup).

As for shocks I went with their nitrocharger sports, which are 90009 and 60069. They are stock length. For the front, no matter the lift, you want stock length. As for the rear, if you go for a 948 spring or anything higher than 947, you want an extended length shock for risks of bottoming the shock out and causing damage. Going for OME's nitrocharger line, rather than the nitrocharger sports, result in a bit of a softer ride. But they are phasing those shocks out for the KJ, so they are increasingly difficult to find. Ironman's kit (comes with both the shocks and springs in one order) is the same ratings of springs, but an even softer shock. So in terms of softest to firmest it goes ironman → nitrocharger → nitrocharger sport. I also hear a lot of people claim that Ironman rides better than OME due to this, but they are not as well known and as proven as OME.

I could not find an OME kit for the Jeep, so you have to order all the parts individually. I got the shocks and springs from 4 Wheel Parts which was painless and easy to order online. I also got front bumpstops from Teraflex and rear bumpstops from All J Products, but I had to call them. You can find their numbers pretty easy through a Google. Everything came in within 2 weeks, but I haven't installed it yet as I had to go through a local shop in order to bring in my own parts. I don't have the tools to do any of the job myself, but I have an appointment for the 8th of September.

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask and I'll try to help!

 

[klc]

The part numbers are down in my signature. Try offroadwarehouse.com for OME parts. Don’t use spacers, they’re bad for the front end. I did my lift last summer, and I’m just an average mechanically inclined type. You’ll need to find a local shop to put the front coil over together for you.