Burntoast914 Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 Just bought my first truck n I'm so happy to have a jeep now and what I have always wanted It's a 87 I believe RWD 5 spd tryna find info ok this n it's like it's never been done before. I understand the Front and suspension but what do I do with the rear leaf springs? I'm planning on going super low please someone help me out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coyote kid Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 why would you lower it ?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burntoast914 Posted August 13, 2013 Author Share Posted August 13, 2013 Why cause I'm not a lifted type of guy n I love my boxy cars to be low I came from owning 7 old school vws n I always wanted a caddy pick up vw but I couldn't find one so this is my poor mans Vw caddy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ComancheKid45 Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 Check out this fellas build thread, he lowed his about 3".....Idk how to achive a full "slammed" look but I'm sure someone can help ya out. http://comancheclub.com/topic/36999-george/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave92cherokee Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 The rear is the easy part it's the same as any pickup truck that you want to put airbag suspension on like s10's or rangers. There's no kit for it so it will have to be pieced together with various parts but could be done easily. The hardest part is the front, it's a solid axle with traction bar not and IFS. With that trac bar a constant length when you change the height of the truck the axle will shift from side to side which is why nobody makes a kit for it and not many if any on here have done it as mechanical physics would be a nightmare to work out properly. There are a few that have done it though and lowered them around 3 inches but any further than that and the front axle, even if it's a 2wd beam axle, will be very close to punching a hole in the oil pan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burntoast914 Posted August 13, 2013 Author Share Posted August 13, 2013 The rear is the easy part it's the same as any pickup truck that you want to put airbag suspension on like s10's or rangers. There's no kit for it so it will have to be pieced together with various parts but could be done easily. The hardest part is the front, it's a solid axle with traction bar not and IFS. With that trac bar a constant length when you change the height of the truck the axle will shift from side to side which is why nobody makes a kit for it and not many if any on here have done it as mechanical physics would be a nightmare to work out properly. There are a few that have done it though and lowered them around 3 inches but any further than that and the front axle, even if it's a 2wd beam axle, will be very close to punching a hole in the oil pan. Ok so basically it might be my impossible but hard to air bag it n costly aswell right ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimoshel Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 You want a Caddy P/U do like I did. Took a '68 Coupe DeVille, Cut the back half out. Welded in the back panel from a Cevy P/U and had a 68 Caddy P/U. And it showed it as a P/U on the title and registration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burntoast914 Posted August 13, 2013 Author Share Posted August 13, 2013 You want a Caddy P/U do like I did. Took a '68 Coupe DeVille, Cut the back half out. Welded in the back panel from a Cevy P/U and had a 68 Caddy P/U. And it showed it as a P/U on the title and registration. Sorry to confuse you but I mean a 1986 Vw rabbit pick up called caddy aswell Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neohic Posted August 14, 2013 Share Posted August 14, 2013 why would you lower it ?? Because it's cool!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dasbulliwagen Posted August 14, 2013 Share Posted August 14, 2013 There is a sticky thread called Worlds fastest comanche and in there are a couple pics about building a drop beam front end using another 2wd front beam.... involving cutting the ends off one and the middle out of the other and welding them one on top ot the other, thus keeping oil pan clearance but giving the effect of a dropped spindle. Yeah its a lot of work, but the only way to get any real drop in the front end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ComancheKid45 Posted August 14, 2013 Share Posted August 14, 2013 why would you lower it ?? Because it's cool!! Ok ill admit, that lowered truck is cool! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren Posted August 14, 2013 Share Posted August 14, 2013 I'll say it for you again; 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.I thought about running air bags in the rear, replacing the leafs, but I couldn't see a way to do it that would give me a drop of over 4" without modifying the bed or "frame" rails. The stacked beam axle thing on the Worlds Fastest Comanche is, in my opinion, a very bad idea and its poorly executed too. Without front axle modification you're limited to around a 2" drop. With front axle modification you can hit 3-4" of drop. If you want to lower your MJ anymore than that, you're looking at a very involved and complicated project involving unibody modification and designing new suspension systems front and rear. There is no kit for any of this. Several people including myself have modified front beam axles to allow for a lower ride height, but there is no kit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMCJeepMJ Posted August 14, 2013 Share Posted August 14, 2013 You want a Caddy P/U do like I did. Took a '68 Coupe DeVille, Cut the back half out. Welded in the back panel from a Cevy P/U and had a 68 Caddy P/U. And it showed it as a P/U on the title and registration. Sorry to confuse you but I mean a 1986 Vw rabbit pick up called caddy aswell I'm sure he was aware what you meant. Besides, there's already Cadillac trucks: flower cars from the funeral industry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mvusse Posted August 14, 2013 Share Posted August 14, 2013 Instead of modifying the front axle, how feasible is it to modify the truck to work with IFS, like off an S10 or something? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neohic Posted August 14, 2013 Share Posted August 14, 2013 Instead of modifying the front axle, how feasible is it to modify the truck to work with IFS, like off an S10 or something? Just as easy as swapping the whole frame! :yes: http://comancheclub.com/topic/13854-update-3/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Incommando Posted August 16, 2013 Share Posted August 16, 2013 You want a Caddy P/U do like I did. Took a '68 Coupe DeVille, Cut the back half out. Welded in the back panel from a Cevy P/U and had a 68 Caddy P/U. And it showed it as a P/U on the title and registration. Sorry to confuse you but I mean a 1986 Vw rabbit pick up called caddy aswell I'm sure he was aware what you meant. Besides, there's already Cadillac trucks: flower cars from the funeral industry. Not to mention that Escalade EXT thing. Hey it has an open bed and is far more of a truck than a VW Rabbit would ever be... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crash Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 Not sure how it would work lowered, but an IFS D30 frame from an AMC eagle would be your ticket to IFS in the front. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burntoast914 Posted August 17, 2013 Author Share Posted August 17, 2013 Not sure how it would work lowered, but an IFS D30 frame from an AMC eagle would be your ticket to IFS in the front. What's ifs mean ? N is it a straight up bolt back on? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mvusse Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 Independent Front Suspension Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oyaji Posted August 18, 2013 Share Posted August 18, 2013 Not sure how it would work lowered, but an IFS D30 frame from an AMC eagle would be your ticket to IFS in the front. I like the way you think. To carry this train of thought a bit further, the Eagle IFS D30 had the differential bolted to the engine. I wonder if that saved weight on what would otherwise have had to have been a heavier diff sub-frame? What do you think? In any case, I presume something could indeed be cobbled up, perhaps even by looking for substitutes from other IFS 4WD trucks... If going 2WD only, the Ford Twin I-beam IFS might be worth a peek - it is rugged and does a much better job of maintaining compliance (and thus traction) than would a beam axle... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glundblad Posted August 18, 2013 Share Posted August 18, 2013 Adding an air bag is easy. Just ask your wife to come along. You may need to turn up the radio though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOrnbrod Posted August 18, 2013 Share Posted August 18, 2013 Or your mother-in-law. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zebvance Posted August 18, 2013 Share Posted August 18, 2013 In any case, I presume something could indeed be cobbled up, perhaps even by looking for substitutes from other IFS 4WD trucks... If going 2WD only, the Ford Twin I-beam IFS might be worth a peek - it is rugged and does a much better job of maintaining compliance (and thus traction) than would a beam axle... Idk how that would work. It would take a trmemdous amount of fab and lift. The twin beam set up is bolted to the frame by three points. The left and right radius arms and then to a crossmember under the engine. I'm not sure how you would be able to create a cross member under the 4.0 and attach it to the unibody. Much less do it with a neg amount of lift. Clearance would be a huge issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpace6a Posted August 18, 2013 Share Posted August 18, 2013 Basically, what it seems like everyone is saying to me, if you really want a slammed truck, go buy an s10 or a ranger. Early models are plenty boxy looking, and would be alot cheaper than trying to slam an mj. Nothing is going to be a direct bolt up to drop it, its going to require alot of fab work and alot of fab work usually translates to alot of $$ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zebvance Posted August 18, 2013 Share Posted August 18, 2013 Yes you could say that. Manly because know body buys a jeep to lower it and make it non Offroad capable anymore. Not that there is anything wrong with what you are wanting to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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