Questions about Daystar 2.5 on 2002 kj

[twack]

I saw someone say that the 2002 liberty can only be lifted 1.5 inches and not 2.5 because of something with the control arms. can any one tell me more how bad is this and how do i fix it?

 

[Corwyyn]

Mostly it has to do with the amount of droop in the suspension after the lift and the fact that the factory UCAs will come into contact with the springs on the front suspension, which wears holes in the rubber boots letting the lubricant out and leading to an eventual failure of the upper balljoint (whew!). The best fix (not necessarily easiest or cheapest) is to purchase a set of aftermarket upper arms from Jeepin' By Al that are designed with enough added length to avoid the contact altogether. They also come with a balljoint that you can actually add grease to

Oh and the aftermarket UCAs also make it easier to get the front end alignment back in spec.

 

[twack]

so couldnt i just use the control arms from a 03 on up?

 

[Corwyyn]

so couldnt i just use the control arms from a 03 on up?

As far as I know the stock UCAs are the same design between years, so you wouldn't gain anything.

 

[twack]

so why would they say that the 02 is the only one that can be lifted 1.5 and that the other years can go 2.5? Im just wondering if it is possible to do the 2.5 lift on an 02

 

[twack]

just want to make sure before they dont fit

 

[twack]

Any last opinions or thoughts on this. Would it just be a smart idea to use some "lowered" springs from a 03 on

 

[tjkj2002]

You can lift a "pre-lowered" '02 KJ just as high as any other KJ.April 12th 2002 is when they lowered the KJ's by 3/4" via by shorter coil springs.Your '02,even if it is a pre-lowered,is sagging pretty bad now anyways and the struts/shocks are shot so it won't matter,you'll be lucky to get 1.5" with a 2.5" spacer.Just opt for new struts/shocks and new coils and be done.

 

[tan's2002kjlimited]

Your '02,even if it is a pre-lowered,is sagging pretty bad now anyways and the struts/shocks are shot so it won't matter,you'll be lucky to get 1.5" with a 2.5" spacer.Just opt for new struts/shocks and new coils and be done.

I'm curious to know just how much it would cost to do this. I'm not looking to run the Rubicon, but would like a decent lift more for ride quality than anything else. 2 1/2-3 inch would be great. Is the Frankenlift 1 still available? I'd rather go the springs, shocks, struts route than just pucks and spacers. Any suggestions?

 

[tommudd]

I'm curious to know just how much it would cost to do this. I'm not looking to run the Rubicon, but would like a decent lift more for ride quality than anything else. 2 1/2-3 inch would be great. Is the Frankenlift 1 still available? I'd rather go the springs, shocks, struts route than just pucks and spacers. Any suggestions?

Frankenlift 1 is still available or was just recently
or
OME springs 927 front 948 rears with Rancho shocks RSX 17505 front rear RSX 17004 along with 2 tear flex bumpstops for the front $650/$675

anytime you have one with over 35/40000 miles you are going to see a great difference if you just go ahead and replace everything , then you are good to go for several thousand miles ( mine has over 80,000 on the above setup)

 

[Spidey]

I just put the Daystar 2.5" kit on my pre-lowered '02 a week ago and love it, can't beat it for the price - of course I don't have any experience with any of the other lift kits, obviously it would be ideal to replace the springs and shocks altogether but for $150 you won't hear me complain. My '02 already sat at least an inch higher than my mom's '05, even with the smallest of the factory tires. Now, mine sits MUCH higher, I'll post some pics up here in the next few days, and I'll also be reviewing the 245/75 re-treaded MTs I put on at the same time.

 

[Treyz02KJ]

That has to do with the '02 being pre-lowered...

In a test a journalist rolled a KJ on a slalom course. That scared DC and so '03 and upwards they lowered the suspension around 1".

So... yours sits higher already then the '03+ ones. But I've never heared anything going bad with the Daystar 2.5" on an '02 so don't worry about it.

A little more information found from Wikipedia.com on this topic.


On April 12, 2002, DaimlerChrysler lowered the ride height of the Jeep Liberty suspension by 22mm (7/8") in the front and 19mm (3/4") in the rear. This change was made to improve road handling and perceived safety concerns. Many speculate that this is in response to the Autoweek Magazine Slalom test in which a Liberty rolled. Libertys built prior to April 2, 2002 are considered "pre-lowered", because they were made previous to the time when DaimlerChrysler lowered the Liberty. Libertys built after April 2, 2002 is considered "lowered", because they have a lower ride height than the pre-lowered. While a spacer lift will maintain the difference between lowered and pre-lowered, a spring replacement lift will render whether the Jeep was lowered or pre-lowered from the factory irrelevant.

Wikipedia

 

[twack]

Yup, i just got done putting it on. Wow rusty ball joints can cause problems. still have to get an alignment but it drives great.

 

[tommudd]

I just put the Daystar 2.5" kit on my pre-lowered '02 a week ago and love it, can't beat it for the price - of course I don't have any experience with any of the other lift kits, obviously it would be ideal to replace the springs and shocks altogether but for $150 you won't hear me complain. My '02 already sat at least an inch higher than my mom's '05, even with the smallest of the factory tires. Now, mine sits MUCH higher, I'll post some pics up here in the next few days, and I'll also be reviewing the 245/75 re-treaded MTs I put on at the same time.

so you have an 02 and did not replace the front and rear shocks only lifted it with a spacer lift ?

 

[twack]

so you have an 02 and did not replace the front and rear shocks only lifted it with a spacer lift ?

yup i did too, this is with no clevis lift

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[tjkj2002]

Tom, you say every time that the OEM shocks are done at around 30/40K miles...so does TJKJ...

But my stock shocks seem fine after 90k...even the rear ones seem to work fine, even after I battered them with the Daystar 2" 'upgrade'...

Maybe things changed later on? Maybe the first batch of KJ's had a better quality shock?
Funny enough, back in '02 you could get an upgrade right from the factory of...RANCHO shocks!

No upgrade to Rancho's from the factory(at least in the USA),I worked at a Jeep dealership when the KJ came out,early '02 shocks still sucked as bad a '07's,I know I have a early pre-lowered KJ that the OEM stuff was totally shot at less then 10,000 miles.

 

[HoosierJeeper]

Tom, you say every time that the OEM shocks are done at around 30/40K miles...so does TJKJ...

But my stock shocks seem fine after 90k...even the rear ones seem to work fine, even after I battered them with the Daystar 2" 'upgrade'...



Mine are still firm after 61k.....not going to replace anything for a while. Of course, mine was driven all highway before I got it, and I don't live in the "Rust Belt" so that probably adds life to it....

 

[twack]

i live in the rust belt, and i got just over100k on my system and it still feels great. not saying that they are good as new but they are not bad at all. but then again this car never saw anything bigger then a pothole

 

[tjkj2002]

99% of the time you will never realize your shocks are shot since it happens very slowly over a long period of time you get used to the worse ride and have no clue.I bet you anything if you replaced your OEM stuff with Rancho's you wouldn't believe the drastic difference it made.The OEM stuff "may" still feel good to you but you are used to it,trust me you will tell a major difference if you replace them with new stuff.

 

[Treyz02KJ]

You can lift a "pre-lowered" '02 KJ just as high as any other KJ.April 12th 2002 is when they lowered the KJ's by 3/4" via by shorter coil springs.Your '02,even if it is a pre-lowered,is sagging pretty bad now anyways and the struts/shocks are shot so it won't matter,you'll be lucky to get 1.5" with a 2.5" spacer.Just opt for new struts/shocks and new coils and be done.

^^

what he said. Save up $1200, buy new A-Arms, Coils, struts. Do it all the first time, and have a problem free suspension for many more miles. The Jeep being my daily driver, I can not afford my lift kit causing me not to get to work, cause a coil spring snaps.

I want a lift kit so bad for my jeep, but I love it way to much to do a 'puck' lift. IMO, Its best to hold out for a full-suspension lift. (Frankenlift I Premium + JBA Arms) = ~$1200 before install.