Suspension solution for a very heavy 2007 JKU

[ventura911]

Thanks for the feedback. Your weight distribution is similar to mine but you're a bit heavier. Do you have a heavy front bumper or winch? OME has suggested I run the 2620 rear spring and the 2617 (which is usually a rear spring) up front. How does your Jeep sit loaded and unloaded? Also, how is the unloaded ride?

Did you use OME shocks or something else?

Thanks again!

Sorry for not responding sooner. Congrats on the Shrockworks rear! I've had mine for several years and still believe it's one of the better ones out there. Of course, I'm also running their front stubby and sliders, so I'm a little biased!

I haven't had mine totally unloaded in so long that I can't recall how it was unloaded. In addition to the front bumper, I've got a Warn Powerplant, so there's a bit of weight up front. Oh, and yes, I've got OME long travel shocks and JKS ACOS spacers.

Im thinking of going to the Jeep meet in Orange County on the 28th (http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/127554-So-Cal-Jeep-Meet-Valiant-Brewing); you're welcome to check it out in person, if you'd like.

 

[OpenTrackRacer]

Back from the dead. I still haven't pulled the trigger on a lift. SuperSprings was nice enough to send me some coil spacers to try. They actually worked quite well. Pretty much a direct replacement for the air bags (without the issue of them popping). However, they're still marginal with all the weight.

I was all set to go for an OME setup but Dave at Northridge 4x4 thought the AEV 3.5" SC would work better. He felt the OME springs were too stiff unloaded. He also said he steers people away from the 600 pound springs because the unloaded ride is poor and they gain quite a bit of lift when unloaded as well. I told him that AEV had concerns about the rear weight and he thought they were being over cautious. He's got an Unlimited setup with that suspension that's just loaded with weight (including a rooftop tent) and he said it handles it fine. My only possible issue remains the front being so light but the only way to know is to try. He also suggested that air bags with the AEV lift (if needed) would probably work much better than with the stock suspension since they'd be carrying much less of the load.

I think I'm gonna go for the AEV 3.5" SC and cross my fingers.

Thanks for all the feedback and advice!

 

[OpenTrackRacer]

Got the AEV lift installed! Everything looks good. Gotta figure out new brake lines (for the front at least) because the drop brackets won't work with my hard lines.

As I suspected, my front and rear are about the same height. That means my rear is going to be lower when I load up. I'll probably end up installing a 1" spacer and see how that works. Too bad ARV won't sell me the 4.5" lift rear springs.

Thanks for all the feedback and advice!

 

[Jeep or Tacoma]

I had a similar problem

my front bumper alone was 155lbs without winch add the winch and the steel cable and I had 1/2 inch of travel in the front. I went with Ome heavy-duty springs I would also use their shocks. ( when I did mine there were no shocks available so I need up with Bilsteins) now I have a full 4 inches roughly of travel and the ride is fine. be sure you get heavy duty control arms and the right components. I have use ome on my old fj 100 sieries and was impressed with them for that application as well/ these are before and after pictures

 

[wADVr]

I would give it a try before considering the spacer. My JKU can be pretty heavy on family trips and it sits level when loaded. Even with my snowmobile trailer loaded up it sits well. Suprisingly the static height doesn't change much loaded or not.

 

[OpenTrackRacer]

I put my Shrokworks rear bumper system on last weekend. Right now, based on suspension measurements from a stock JKU Rubicon, I've gained about 4" of lift up front and 2.5" of lift in the back. I had two friends (about 500 pounds combined) stand on the rear bumper and the suspension dropped another 1.75".

AEV was nice enough to sell me a pair of 4.5" rear springs to help out. I'll put those on and see where I end up. I'm thinking I still might need 1" spacers.

 

[onebuilder]

I'm amazed at the sag you are getting. My '13 JKR with the AEV 3.5 lift and Poison Spyder Rock Brawler II rear bumper, 35 BFG KM2 on Method wheel and a full 2 gallon Rotopax hanging on it, sit level fully loaded. I also have the PS front bumper with no winch hanging off the front. Did you do the install or have someone else do it?

 

[aristobrat]

I had two friends (about 500 pounds combined) stand on the rear bumper and the suspension dropped another 1.75".

Wow, that's crazy. I had easily 500 pounds of bags of fill dirt and mulch loaded into the back of my JKUR last weekend at Home Depot and noted how I didn't notice any sag in the rear. I'm sure if it went down .25" or .50" I probably wouldn't have caught it, but I know I'd notice 1" of sag or more.

I had the rear seats down and the bags loaded evenly in the rear, though ... didn't put all the weight on the bumper. Wonder if that makes a difference.

 

[OpenTrackRacer]

Yeah, I think Jeep slipped a singularity into the frame of my Jeep during assembly!

The Shrockworks rear bumper is really heavy. My front end is abnormally high since I have a stock bumper so that doesn't help either. I'm still surprised to only get about 2.5" of lift out of a 3.5" spring. It'll be interesting to see where the 4.5" springs end up. I didn't measure the stock ride height (I'm using average stock height measurements someone else made) so my numbers may be a little off. I'm taking my measurements from the bumpstop cup to the axle on both sides, front and rear. Measuring from the receiver to the ground (which I did do before the lift) suggest I gained a little more but that is also further back and exaggerates the distance.

Any way you cut it, my rear is lower than my front and I don't like that so it needs to be fixed. I did the installation myself and it's definitely done right.

 

[OpenTrackRacer]

The Shrockworks bumper system is kinda crazy...

 

[kojackJKU]

Mine does not sag like that stock. I had 2 sets of hockey gear, 4 duffle bags of clothing, 2 160 lb teenagers in the back seat and my wife and I in the front. I did not notice any difference in handling and maybe a 1/4 inch of sag.

 

[OpenTrackRacer]

Put the AEV 4.5" lift springs on today and gained 1" of lift as expected. I now have 3.5" of lift unloaded in the back and 4" of lift up front. I'm guessing the back will settle some. Right now if I measure along the body the back is slightly higher than the front (~.5"). I'm sure when I load up it'll sag 1-2" and then the front will be pointed somewhat skyward again.

With 3.5" of rear static lift, is there any reason I can't put on some 1" spacers to end up somewhat level when loaded?

 

[kojackJKU]

why not lower the front. Instead of trying to keep gettying that *** higher, drop the nose a bit.....

 

[OpenTrackRacer]

I'd love to but there's not really any practical way to do that without adding weight (like a bumper and winch) and I certainly don't want to do that. My Jeep is too darn heavy as it is!

why not lower the front. Instead of trying to keep gettying that *** higher, drop the nose a bit.....

 

[kojackJKU]

change springs and sell the others. easy peasy. there is a point when a jeep is too high 4" without a bumper/winch combo to weigh it down is borderline.