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Xj lift kit on mj


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I picked up a 88 mj a few weeks back and have been slowly working away on it, but it needs new suspension desperately, a buddy of mine picked up a 6” xj Cherokee lift kit but sold his Jeep before it arrived and has had it sitting around for awhile. I was curious if I could make his lift fit on my Comanche?

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On 3/24/2022 at 7:14 PM, WranglingManche said:

The axels have been swapped to d35s front and rear during the 4x4 swap

 

I hope you mean D30 for the front.

 

If all you have in the rear is a Dana 35, do NOT lift it and DO NOT run tires larger than 31s.

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On 3/23/2022 at 9:41 AM, WranglingManche said:

I don’t know the exact specs on the kit at this time but should have more information soon, curious what size tires I should run for the 6” lift?

I also found a 4.5” Comanche lift for sale nearby and was curious of the size of tires would be recommended on this lift?

 

Respectfully, IMHO you are approaching this backwards. As a rule, for a lot of reasons, the goal is to run as little lift as possible while getting where you need to go. The cost of lifting increases exponentially -- meaning that a 4-inch lift doesn't cost twice as much as a 2-inch lift, it costs four times as much. Also, bigger tires and more lift mean worse fuel mileage, and gas prices are going through the roof right now.

 

The proper approach (again, IMHO) is to figure out what size tires you need to run ("need," not "Gee those 44s will look cool I gotta have 'em"), then work out the least amount of lift you'll need to run those tires. On factory Jeep rims, you can run 31x10.50-15 tires on a Comanche with NO lift.

 

Take a look at what's included with these lift kits you are considering, read some of the build threads on this site, and figure out what's NOT included in those kits. Then start looking at how much more you're going to have to spend to make those lift kits work.

 

And then price tires. YIKES! :crazy:

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*If* you want to keep the D35 rear axle, there are some practical suggestions that, with a bit of time and money, will make that axle handle 33’s or even 35’s without issue. Just an alternative to the sea of praise you will hear about the ford 8.8. 

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4 hours ago, ghetdjc320 said:

*If* you want to keep the D35 rear axle, there are some practical suggestions that, with a bit of time and money, will make that axle handle 33’s or even 35’s without issue. Just an alternative to the sea of praise you will hear about the ford 8.8. 

 

True. Truss, and chromoly axle shafts. And a brake upgrade would be advisable with big tires. It can be done, but it costs money.

 

Which comes back to the basic reality that the cost of lifting (or going big) increase exponentially.

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I think the important question is what do you want to do with Tre truck? Off road? Mud bog? Camping? Or just like the look?

Nothing wrong with gping to 33s if you like that look. Just be aware it can open a can of worms. A gently driven truck with a d35 on 33s won't necessarily self destruct. 

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12 hours ago, WranglingManche said:

I understand your point about not lifting it to much but when I say it needs suspension desperately, I mean it has no suspension, no shocks, the springs are old and worn, and I Seem to be missing a leaf in the back

 

There are ways to upgrade the suspension while giving it a little lift without all the headaches. I used ACOS spacers up front on mine to level out the rake, the rear you can use XJ shackles to get a little more lift. You can also get new coils at stock height or up country coils which provide a little lift. You can replace your control arms or get WJ arms for a little benefit or go full short arm. A stock jeep is really capable. Traction is going to be a better upgrade over clearance any day but not everyone needs to spend the money on it.  

 

Based on what you said above I'd refresh the suspension and steering with new parts keeping the lift to a minimum and drive it. From there you can start adding things as needed. 

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Just for reference, you would need an XJ lift shackle to provide any lift on an MJ. The stock MJ shackle is 4 3/8 from eye to eye. Stock XJ shackles are much shorter. Most XJ lift shackles are 5” eye to eye and provide about 5/16” lift on an MJ. There are many other lengths available though

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On 3/29/2022 at 8:40 PM, WranglingManche said:

I plan on just using it to commute to work, and take on the odd off-road camping trip

 

Post a photo of your rear springs. If they are factory, it's virtually impossible to be missing a leaf because of the way they are made.

 

Measure the height from the center of the axle/hubcap straight up to the bottom of the fender flare. Better yet:

 

Having driven a Comanche with a 4-inch lift on a regular basis, I predict that you won't like driving it as a commuter with a 4-inch lift, and you'll hate it with a 6-inch lift. Mine had the lift when I bought it, and removing the lift was the single best "modification" I made to the truck.

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