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Body Lift w/ broken stuff

807 views 7 replies 6 participants last post by  NaeKid 
#1 ·
Okay, I started on my body lift today... so far so bad, I sheered off the rear bolts that mount closest to the trunk, most likly due to weather, and the front one... like my friend said, monkeys cant climb on trees with arms like gorillas

Okay, then I got this other bolt thats giving me trouble, it is the closest one to the front on the passenger side... it turns and turns makes allot of noise, the bolt moves but no go on coming out, I beleive that the bolt has seized up on the nut, and is turning the entire thing around as one...

so here is my plan, drill out the front and back bolts then using a bolt extractor and some heat to make the bolt colapse. okay, maybe that will work... maybe not

then about the passenger side, I'm gonna cut the head off the bolt, then raise the body, then cut the rest of the bolt off and then drill what is remaining of the nut/bolt. then going to Rural King * dont ask its a Rural thing* and picking up some HUGE washers and then getting a longer bolt, then put the washers on then putting a bolt on.

with the passenger side bolt... its a pain, so if anyone has any other suggestions... PLEASE help, I hope I'm not the first one to break 3 1/2 bolts trying to do a lift on a 12 year old car...

wow, I wrote allot.
 
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#2 ·
Sorry to hear all that, but it is very common for the body mounts. Drilling out the others is a good plan. As for the spinning on, that probably wont work becuase the nut that is supposed to be welded to the body is spinning. Therefor if you by chance do get the bolt out, it will not tighten up when you put the new bolt in. This is very common, you will have to cut a hole in the side of the channel (in the tub) and remove the nut. Then you can either reweld it or put a new nut in it. Most guys go with a new nut, then weld back the piece you cut to expose the nut. It's a Pain in the A$$, but its something that seems to always happen.

Hope this helps,

Damon
 
#3 ·
IF the passenger bolt is the one right behind the wheel, I had the same problem. It was spinning round, I was able to reach in and feel that the cap that was supposed to hold the nut down had busted its tack welds. I ended up cutting the head of the bolt off with a cutoff tool and drove the remaining piece with the nut on it up into the body, breaking the last tack weld that held the flimsy cap on, and was able to remove the pieces. I used a new washer and nut when I put it back. HTH....
 
#4 ·
thanks for that help, I got them all drilled out, and looking good... but thats just the thing, it looks good... but I got a problem with the steering... I cant get the darn shaft off, I've read my manual like 20 times, no help, and the instructions for the body lift, are u kidding? one double sided page... okay, so, I need help on how to take that steering shaft out of a 1991 YJ WRANGLER!!
 
#5 ·
Take out the nuts from each end or the shaft. Spray alot of PB blaster into the slip joint in the middle of the shaft. Use a screwdriver to pry the shaft from the power steering box. You can also jack up the driverside of the BODY while you pry on the shaft.
 
#6 ·
I had the same problem.. i ground the head off.. loosened all the bolts in that same side, jacked the body up w/ a high lift.. high enough to slide the new body puck under the old bolt and lowered it back. The other bolts being tight is enough to hold the body down just fine. And the old headless bolt holds that one puck in place. In fact w/ the other bolts tight it pinches that one body puck down so tight you can't move it @ all. Hope this helps.. It works just fine and i did'nt have to cut and weld any thing. -Cat
PS.. this works in a 1'' BL any more and you might not be able to jack the tub up high enough.
 
#7 ·
well, thanks guys... but I had a big big problem

I had one of my buddies from school come over and help me with this, he did infact extend it... but, he didnt get the bolts on tight, so, I was heading over to my mechanic to pick up some new tailights and some more core flux. And I was on the HIGHWAY, and what happens?!?!?! yea, you guessed it, it slipped out of the steering box... had no control of my jeep, there was a semi right next to me, and she was steering right into the truck.... FLASH of entire life... followed my extreme braking and finally the semi high tailed it as I narrowly missed his trailer, and I rolled with brakes going into the median. stop'd! got out, lit one up... relaxed, looked at my jeep figured out the problem, and a tow truck for the highway emergency patrol came up, and him and I worked on the dang thing for about 3 hours, with a box end wrench and 85 degree weather, with the sun pouring down. when I got finished I didnt owe the guy anything, and he even gave me a number for a local jeep club! how about that...

well, its all fixed now, and those bolts arent going anywhere...

now, with my 5 inch total lift, I'm going with 33" BFG MT and some ar 767...

now as I reflect. I believe its better to have lived that to have lost my jeep...
 
#8 ·
Man - that is scary!!!

Glad you lived through it, and were able to tell us about it.

A good reminder to us all - any modification we do to our Jeep could cause a life-threatening situation - double-check everything!!!
 
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