Want to remove lift and go stock

[J33ps]

I bought a 1990 Comanche that’s mostly solid.  One thing that bothered me is the 3” rough country lift.  I’m very confused because he sent me the link of what he thinks he installed but I’m definitely looking at stock control arms.  He has RC shocks (can only find the ID number stamped on it) and probably springs.  The rest of the kit I do not see installed.  I have no idea what he did.  It drives alright but when weighed down it’s a bit squirrelly.

 

i have experience installing a top of the line lift for my TJ about 10 years ago.  I know all the details and important pieces and this was clearly a crap brand and crap job.

 

I would like to bring it to stock height or as close as I can go and do quiality parts and never look back.  It’s my daily and will never see off-road (that’s what my wrangler is for 😃)

 

Brands and kits are underwhelming for the MJ.  For TJ I settled with metal cloak with savvy/currie being a close second (was sold out at the time).

 

Best I can see is OME or Rusty’s off-road.  The rest are pretty lame but I was curious if anyone good makes close to stock height.  Or should I just go rock auto stock parts?

 

Also I’m new to leaf springs, how can I tell if they’re sagging,  and how do I know if this guy modified the leafs for the lift?

 

Thanks!

[watchamakalit]

There are dimensions on here somewhere for stock ride height, I would start there and see just how much lift you have.  If you want stock height I would just go back to stock parts. I'm sure there are probably even some members with stock stuff laying around they are willing to part with. Hard to say what all was changed without seeing it. Got any pictures of the current setup?

[Salvagedcircuit]

I did the same thing to my MJ. Previous owner lifted it 2-2.5in using front spring puck spacers. Stock original control arms. Stock swaybar with no lift blocks. I achieved stock comanche ride height according to the dimensions listed on comancheclub / MJ manual. Here's what I did:

Front:

1. MOOG K160039 Coil Spring Insulator
2. Moog CC782
3. Bilstein 24185622
4. MOOG K3171 for stock MJ swaybar diameter
5. Dorman lower and upper MJ/XJ control arms
6. New front axle bushing
7. moog swaybar links

 

Rear:

1. MONROE 58484
2. hilman bronze bushings from tractor supply
3. Moog K150405

 

Front:

I removed the pucks and went with two new MOOG K160039 Coil Spring Insulator and a set of moog CC782 front coil springs. These springs are for a cherokee with an upcountry package, but they were the cheapest and quickest springs I could get at the time, and my brother used the exact ones on his XJ. I went with bilstein 24185622 shocks for the front because the monroe and rancho shocks I purchased locally and online were defective. I tried four sets of monroe and 2 sets of rancho front shocks. They were all incredibly underdamped out of the package. Even after priming them and leaving them sit upright, the rebound time was measured in minutes. no car shock should take minutes to rebound. The bilsteins were far more responsive and well worth the money. I went with dorman control arms because they were like $26ea at the time and I didn't need to press anything. I did notice there was some sample variation between control arms and needed to purchase 4 sets. Dorman changed the design at one time and the metal was thicker on the left side vs the right. after choosing between 4 sets, I got a set that matched. I returned the duds. Folks here like going with the WJ control arms because they are fully boxed in. The dorman ones can be fine, just be picky. Or get some bushings and press new bushings into your old contol arms. I would highly suggest replacing the front axle bushing as this is usually original to the vehicle, 35+ years old and rotting. It's a doosy of a job but it's well worth it. no wobbles here! You will need to rent a bushing press tool from advance/orileys. Now is also not a bad time to consider grabbing a ZJ or WJ control arm for the front. They are larger diameter than XJ/MJ and a lot of folks on here are happy with the results. Also, get new swaybar links or a swaybar link bushing kit. Do not get it locally. The one I originally grabbed from advance failed in 2 weeks. The rubber cracked while being torqued to specification. I went with a moog kit and was ok. Mevotech also makes some nice stuff.

 

Rear:

I went with MONROE 58484 helper shocks in the back. Other folks on comanchclub used these with success. I also happened to use this same series on my astro van with great success. You will need to use bushings to make these work as the ID is different than the OD of the shock post on the comanche. I also upgrade my rear leaf springs, but it was likely unneeded with the helper shocks. I ended up using XJ rear leaf shackles since I did not want to press in new bushings into the old shackles. I did not have a press. I think there is about a ~1.25in height difference between the readily available XJ leaf shackles and the stock MJ shackles. Because my leaf springs ended up being some weird custom package from st.louis spring, the XJ leaf shackle ended up providing me the perfect stock ride height.

[J33ps]

9 hours ago, watchamakalit said:

There are dimensions on here somewhere for stock ride height, I would start there and see just how much lift you have.  If you want stock height I would just go back to stock parts. I'm sure there are probably even some members with stock stuff laying around they are willing to part with. Hard to say what all was changed without seeing it. Got any pictures of the current setup?

Yep I can snap some pics tonight if needed.  I'm somewhat confident in stock vs not...I'll post em if I have any issues.

 

 

 

 

1 hour ago, Salvagedcircuit said:

I did the same thing to my MJ. Previous owner lifted it 2-2.5in using front spring puck spacers. Stock original control arms. Stock swaybar with no lift blocks. I achieved stock comanche ride height according to the dimensions listed on comancheclub / MJ manual. Here's what I did.....

 

Thanks for the detailed response.  This is exactly what I was leaning towards.  I see no reason to spend big bucks to get stock height.  I will inspect my bushings and see what's what.  For the price I'll likely go your route and just rock auto all the parts you suggested.  Btw I read your build, it looks similar to what I'll be diving into, it's in decent shape but floor panels are not great.  Not as bad as yours but 2 holes patched by the PO and not really done right.

 

I'm curious...why not go with bilsteins for the rear shocks?  I used bilsteins for an XJ I had years ago and agree they're top notch and worked beautifully.

[Eagle_SX4]

Here is the how to measure ride height and what the stock measurements should be. 

7 minutes ago, J33ps said:

I'm curious...why not go with bilsteins for the rear shocks? 

I have Bilsteins on my truck front and back and they are great.

[watchamakalit]

15 minutes ago, Eagle_SX4 said:

Here is the how to measure ride height and what the stock measurements should be. 

I have Bilsteins on my truck front and back and they are great.

+1 for the all Bilstein crew here. Don't think I would buy anything else. Very pleased with mine.

[Salvagedcircuit]

24 minutes ago, J33ps said:

I'm curious...why not go with bilsteins for the rear shocks?  I used bilsteins for an XJ I had years ago and agree they're top notch and worked beautifully.

No problem! I went with the monroe ones because they were made in the states and at the time was ~$97 for the pair. That's hard to say no to. Also, one of the shocks in my first set of 58484's was leaking so I had rockauto send me replacements. Monroe quality has really, really went by the wayside lately.

[M.T.Hands]

Another vote for the Bilstein's, I put Monroe struts on the misses old ride (exploder) and had one that required replacement pretty quickly after installation top bearing was bad, Rock auto was easy enough dealing with on a return and replacement, but I really don't need extra "practice" putting struts in, I have always had the best luck with the Bilstein's 

[J33ps]

I looked up this Bilstein 24185622 part number provided and it suggest it's for a truck with 2-3" lift.  I can't seem to find one for stock height.  Also, is the front the same as the rear in terms of shock p/n?

[ghetdjc320]

4 hours ago, J33ps said:

I looked up this Bilstein 24185622 part number provided and it suggest it's for a truck with 2-3" lift.  I can't seem to find one for stock height.  Also, is the front the same as the rear in terms of shock p/n?

The rear shocks are a different part number as they have different mounts and extended/collapsed lengths than the fronts.