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Un biased cheap lift review coming soon from a seasoned Jeeper

22K views 146 replies 45 participants last post by  shaggyjim 
#1 ·
Ok guys. I figured I'll help out the f12 crew and give a unbiased review of a entry level kit. In a couple of weeks I will be ordering a 4" lift for my 89 which is currently stock. I will be choosing one of the 3 following lifts

1. Rough Country
2. Zone
3. Superlift 3.5"

The tires I will be using are the 33x10.50 BFG KM2's off my XJ since my wife does not like them on road in snow and I am replacing them with Duratracs so there is no sense in wasting a set of tires with 10k miles on them. I will also be throwing in a set of 4 banger axles with 4:10's and possibly front/rear Spartans lockers.

Keep in mind I have run very good setups on my 95 so I will be giving an honest assessment asfar as bang for the buck

On my 95 I ran a 3.5" Rustys lift which failed after a month. It was replaced with a 4.5" Re lift W/ Bilstein 5100's. I ran that for years. Then I replaced the RE springs with a set of Alcan springs so I know what I can get out of a quality lift asfar as ride and performance.

If I could afford to go Alcan again I would but being a home owner, and having 2 kids with 1/2 the income as I made a few years ago I simply can not afford that anymore. This building the smurf on a ramen noodle and steel reserve budget. Vs a Filet Mignon and Top shelf Bourbon budget
 
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#70 ·
Ok guys, I took it out today the suspension performed flawlessly, Off Road it rode very nice Just as nice as my 95, It flexed well also. Now only if my distributer bolt didnt loosen and throw off my timing. I would have ran some more trails but w/o a timing gun on the trail to fix my timing I was miss firing while underload. I also found my transmission stabilizer stud was broken so the tranny started to bounce around :(

 
#71 ·
Here are some pics, and videos from yesterday. Nextime I wont take my son so I can really test it out on harder lines and trails for some reason he was freaking out all day and he usually doesn't freak out while wheeling. I did not get it to fully flex out the bowl that you can usually flex everything out it was filled in by BLM this winter while they were on the trail drilling for core samples



















 
#73 ·
It rides damn good Jeepin08 rode in it yesterday after his WK's 4wd motor stopped working he commented how smooth it was. This kit rides very nice its not stiff at all ! I woke up in no pain feeling great after a day of wheeling.

RC got their **** together for this kit. It rides Just as nice as my 95 did with ALCANS ! The RE on my 95 rode a little bit stiffer. you know it rides good if someone with a Grand cherokee with IFS compliments how smooth it is !
 
#75 ·
Overhead said:
How is it doing a few days out?
Still rides great, I had to re torque a few bolts but you need to do that on all new lifts after a few hundred miles anyway so it's nothing major I have about 350 miles on of so far. No creaking or anything. I'm still happy with the purchase. But I have to get other issues on the YJ straitened out and throw it on some harder lines and trails that I avoided during the shakedown run. Cause my son was with me and I was having ignition/ fueling issues ( distributer and carb need replacing )
 
#82 ·
You seem hell-bent to stand your ground that the only way, or the fairest way, to judge suspension is when it's new despite numerous cheap suspension companies' failures (i.e. sagging, sagging at uneven rates, etc.) at the two to four year mark.

I agree with the others - at this point you put them on, claim the ride is great (we're all fine with that), and now it's time to let the thread sit a year or two to get your follow-up measurements.
 
#79 ·
Tom95YJ said:
Here are some pictures of it in the light, I did measure from ground to bottom of the tub and got 6.25" of lift after taking in consideration the height difference of 235/75/15 to 33's once it settles we will see how tall it will actually sit. I am really anxious to see how it performs tomorrow offroad.
That is purdy!
 
#87 ·
Well the lift has been on the YJ for a total of 6 1/2 months now. I am still pleased with the purchase. The ride quality is still great , it flexes well and it has settled at 4.5". I am still pleased with the purchase and it'll fully stuff a 35" tire when the bump stops hit the extensions


 
#90 ·
Ok guys, It is time for a update The lift has been on for 8 months now. It's Seen some time on the trails and road. I am still impressed by the quality and performance I have gotten from this cheap lift. Last month I went to a jeep show and they had a forklift test articulation it would raise a tire 1-1/2" shy of 2-1/2' off the ground . Before any others lifted. It still has a nice plush ride on and offroad and every time out it flexes even better. It's also still sitting at 4.5"
 
#97 ·
Yeah, it is all highly subjective. Reminds me when I have family come in from out of town and I tell them about the local bar that's running a special for $5 drafts, and they panic about how expensive it is and I'm here thinking that's a deal :laugh:

Ride quality is no different, it is evaluated by what a person is used to. Does my Jeep ride like my '78 Eldorado? Hell no! That land barge floats down the road like a cloud, but the Jeep doesn't ride bad "for a Jeep" - as it were. I know what a light, solid axle, leaf sprung vehicle is like, and it isn't my daily driver so even if it does ride rough based on the majority opinion, I really don't mind.
 
#94 ·
Subbed!

I'll be putting a 3.5-4.5 lift on in the spring and I need to choose which route to go. I am trying to decide if it is worth it to pay an extra 500 bucks for something of better quality or try and save some money and go with the RC.

At least I have some time to think about it with winter just starting...
 
#95 ·
I put some pro comp 2.5" springs on my 95 4.0. I had the factory flat saggy springs on it an it road like a covered wagon. Compared to that it rides nice now, probably no where near as nice a OME but I got 4 springs for $67 each shipped an I had most of the hardware an shocks I got cheap off a part out with a bad frame.
 
#96 ·
All in All I'm shooting for 4" of total lift to fit 33" MTs under my daughter's 91. The review here from Tom, for me, means a lot. That said, I plan on attaining my lift using a combination of 2.5" lift springs, 5/8" lift shackles and a 1" BL. That combo, even done on the cheap, will run me roughly $800-$1000 without including the tire upgrade. Having read through this review, I think I would give them a shot on a YJ I needed a lift on to sell.
 
#98 ·
Still running the RC 4.5" it's been on for 10 months now still rides great , no squeaks or rattles. Over the next month or. Two my 8.8 will be in and the YJ will be regeared and locked f/r it's also getting a winch . The YJ is not my dd any more since we picked up a new dd for my wife and the XJ is now my dd. So once my gears are broke in. Expect some harsh use to really test it out as the YJ is now a Dedicated trail rig
 

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#100 ·
Took out the YJ yesterday. The suspension worked great. It's still holding up awesome the travel of the springs suprised some people with standard rc 4" lifts I am still very impressed. With this lift its still at 4.5" lift my only gripe is it didn't come with 4 9/16 x5 bolts for the frame end of the spring
 

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