George

[SW86]

how much room do you have before those leaf plates drag the ground? that should tell you how low you can go on the tires

 

it looks pretty good to me :thumbsup:

[earl*t]

:agree:

[Darren]

Okay, so I put a new thermostat in as well as a new idler pulley and harmonic balancer because the old one was starting to spit the seal out. While it was down I also scored some parts.

 

I picked up a set of Crown Vic Police interceptor wheels and tires. 235/55/R17. Got the set for $140.

 

 

The bolt pattern is the same but the Crown Vic has a smaller hub, about 2mm smaller so I had to open up the center of the wheels a little. Then I painted them because it's hard to pick up chicks if your rims aren't shining.

 

 

The fronts cleared everything fine but the rear didn't clear the MJ frame rail so I needed spacers. The Gresham Boys happened to have some they were willing to part with.

 

 

While I was in Gresham I also traded NW-ZJ-SCOTT my MJ shackles for a 5.9 ZJ swaybar and poly bushings.

 

 

A big thanks to the Gresham Boys for all the help and the parts. Even though they are completely evil and total jerks, they've been a big help getting my truck squared away.

 

Sitting on its new shoes. A before and after.

 

[Darren]

Then I loaded up the only girl that will ride in the pile and took it for a spin to try out the new parts.

 

The truck handled awesome and the thicker swaybar sure helped keep the front level. Ride quality is as good as stock which is what I was going for. After driving it, I'm really happy with how well the truck works. I went a little easy on it though because it was wet out and I had my daughter in the truck, but I can't wait to take it for a spin when it's dry so I can push it a little harder.

 

Some pictures from our drive today.

 

[earl*t]

The wheels kinda give it a gangster look. :thumbsup:

[Darren]

Thanks Earl. I'm really happy with the look. It's subtle and not flashy, which works well on a 20 year old Jeep truck. Chrome 20's would have looked way out of place.

[Darren]

I searched the ends of the earth for a decent bench seat, but no luck. So I picked up some XJ seats from a naxja member up in Auburn. They're a little dirty but I think they'll clean up pretty good. I took the covers off to run them in the washing machine. Then I got started with the process of removing the seat brackets from the sliders on the XJ seats and the MJ bench. Then put the MJ bench brackets onto the XJ sliders. I figured it would take me about 2 hours. Ended up taking about 4. What a Pain in the @$$.

 

Everything had to be completely disassembled.

 

The MJ brackets on the XJ sliders.

 

My assistant

[reson46]

I just came across two MJs with bench seats at the Tacoma Pick 'n Pull this past weekend.  I didn't look at them too closely since I wasn't looking for seats.  Might be something to consider if you still really want a bench.

 

Willy

[randomguy310]

love the crown vic wheels nice...

[BPB]

Looks good!!!

[Darren]

Thanks Ben.

 

Got my seats in and I'm pretty happy with them. I didn't realize just how bad my bench was until I drove this with the buckets. They're a lot more comfortable to ride in. I also washed it and threw an old deck in it so I can have some tunes.

 

[RockMJ]

Ive thought about doing something like this to an MJ. I don't think I have seen it done before but overall I am digging it. Its got a proper stance to it, not too low, but just right. Congrats man, what are the future plans?

 

RockMJ

[Darren]

I let a friend pull a few sensors to test against his to help pinpoint his throttle issues. This is how he left my engine bay;

 

 

FML

[onlyinajeep726]

I would not be his friend anymore... lol.

[64 Cheyenne]

This is cool. I have a stock 2dr XJ, 2 lifted MJs, and a dropped S-10.

I can so totally relate. I really like the pic of the MJ between the XJ and the fullsize.

Thats exactly how my S-10 looks in perspective to a fullsize. Cool...

GLWS

[Pseudosport]

Do you have a part number or application for the front shocks?

[Darren]

I do not. I just went into Napa and had them lookup a pair that were about 3" shorter on the compressed length.

[Burntoast914]

Hey do I have to do all that welding n cutting to the front to have my jeep dropped ?

 

Btw my ideal mods are to air bag my jeep for super low any ideas ? Btw great looking jeep

[Darren]

If you have to ask that question, then this probably isn't the project for you.

 

An MJ is a very difficult vehicle to lower. A solid axle up front, very wide "frame" rails, and a really tall motor make lowering this truck a real nightmare. Plus zero aftermarket support for lowering an XJ or MJ.

 

All the work I did to the front axle got me about 1.5" lower than if I didn't do it. A 2" drop is about all you could do without relocating your control arms. Even then you would have to leave your bumpstops at factory height so your passenger upper didn't contact the oil pan. Which would leave you ~1" of up travel. I'm down about 3.5" and have about 2.5" of up travel thanks to all the axle modifications.

 

I would have really liked to lower the truck a lot more but any further would require MAJOR modifications to the unibody and bed. I didn't want to modify the body or spend that kind of time and money on this truck.

[Burntoast914]

Ok now could I get the drop u got with just a suspension lowering kit ? For the front

[Darren]

No. Did you even read what I wrote?

[SW86]

:rotfl2:

[reson46]

No. Did you even read what I wrote?

 

You have more patience than I.

 

Willy

[johnny quest]

:doh: 

[RescueDuck33]

What would you say the lowest coil trim and rear block you could go without doing the cutting of the front? Also have you had any problems with your blocks breaking since you trimmed them to the curve of springs?