so i finally got something to play with

burley

New Member
Joined
May 31, 2005
Location
Wilmington
i got an 88 xj the other day

im looking to lift to fit 35's, gear it, lock it, and daily drive it. ive been studying other peoples builds and curious as to what kinda of lift i wanna do. i have about a $2000 budget for it all, so im not trying to go over. anyone running a similar dd setup that you have no complaints with?

im new to jeeps... any and all input is appreciated
 
2k will be tough to get 35's. since your going to be DDing it and your on a budget i would go 33's.

gears -800.00 (at a shop)
lift - 400.00 (doing it yourself)
tires - 350.00 (without mounting and ballancing)
rims 150.00
locker in front - 250.00 (without labor install)
= 1950.00

if you go 35's you will need SYE and etc... you can wheel a xj cheap but getting up to 35's and they get pricey. and even if you can get the above cheaper you still need sliders and a few more odds and ends.
 
Even then, $2000 isn't really enough to run 35's on an XJ. You're going to have to go real big or chop a whole lot. Then you're going to put a SYE on the rear shaft which alone would cost you about $300.
 
alright so we take away 500.00 for rims and tires since you have them.

sye--------200.00
new DS for sye---300.00

still no slider,diff armour or skids


















go 33's and cut the fender neatley regear throw on so sliders and then your pretty ready for alot of trails and you will have a nice capable XJ
 
If you cut you will need at least 6" and then they will still most likely rub on 35's. I have 6 with 33's and I get a little bit of rubbing here and there. trying to get the lift gears and lockers for 2k will be tough. You will need a 6" and that is costly in it's self. Good luck and post as you buy things. Are you going to do the work yourself?
 
if he cut he could run 4.5 packs and a shackle with 5.5 coils up front and trim and he could tuck 35's easy. im not trimed at all on 33's and rub like a mofo. but with minumal cuting i could tuck.

how do you rub 33's with 6inch's??????????????????????/
 
yes im going to work on it mostly myself and consider money isnt an option... i wasnt trying to hear you cant do it for that price. but i probably will end up running 33s... so what would be my best bet for a lift kit?

im not trying to break the bank but im not trying to jerry rig it either...
 
Heck, I paid $2200 for my yota. I DD and wheel it stock around here. My budget for building a rig is pretty much zero except for what it NEEDS to keep DDing. As something breaks or wears out I upgrade. Case in point the tranny had no first gear when I bought it. I drove it till it needed a clutch and put a W56 (stronger) tranny in it. The rear end is noisy so when I get a nice weekend, I'm putting in a V6 third with a lockright that I bought from my neighbor. I guess what I'm saying is no need to spend it all right now. Do a little bit at a time and wheel it in between so you can see exactly what each mod does for the rigs capability.
 
x2 ^^^ plus unless you buy a complete kit, the small things will add up on you fast!.
I've put 3k in my SOA so far.. and there are a few more things that I need to do to get it to DD status
 
burley said:
yes im going to work on it mostly myself and consider money isnt an option... i wasnt trying to hear you cant do it for that price. but i probably will end up running 33s... so what would be my best bet for a lift kit?
im not trying to break the bank but im not trying to jerry rig it either...
Click to expand...
As for lifts for an XJ, I really like the Rusty's kits.
Some people don't and say Rubicon Express or don't bother whatever.
:)
If you want the "best ride" than the Old Man Emu are the way to go, but if you're going 33s, then well I'd do the rusty's.
If you are willing to trim the fenders some, you can save quite a bit and not need as much left.
I would DEFINITELY look to get rock sliders of some sort in the "initial" build up portion.

The other issue is going to be what rear axle does your XJ have?
If it's the dana 35, you won't want to spend money on gears etc on it anyway. Pick up either a 8.25 or 44, (Preferably the 44, but they are a bit pricier)

It also depends on what you want to drive this for. If it's just going to be around the beach etc, then protections not that big a deal, and you can get around the rubbing issue with lack of suspension travel. If you want to take it places and play on rocks, you'll want the travel and DEFINITELY the protection.
 
I don't have any bump stops. Thats why mine rubs. Flexs like mad too. I have done the piece by piece thing. I started with 3 then 5 and now 6. I am getting ready go full width. I could have save a lot of money if I would have done it all one time. I had a wise off road builder once tell me think about what you want and do it once and do it right. Well the option to do it once didn't work for me since I don't have a lot of cash so I did the inch itis thing. Once I finish this next suspension I am done.
You can also get an 8.8 for the rear with disc brakes as an alternative to the 35 rear. I like Rusty's stuff too but like hscrugby said a lot of people don't. I also like the RK kit and claytons long arms. If you want to run 35's I would plan for a long arms build. I have RK 6" front springs and spacers for the future and may go to 8" springs. I have to wait and see how my axles sit when I am done. For the future rear build I have Rusty's 6" springs and some 2" shakles. I forgot about needing a slip yoke for him too. I just got the AA SYE and will get the DS once the lift is done. I am going to cut and extend the front.
 
$300 for a driveshaft???? yikes! cj shaft or front xj shaft shortened, courtest of me for $0 and balanced at FleetPride for about $40...... so.... driveshaft for SYE will cost about $40.....

i'll see what kind of stuff i can find tomorrow when i'm up at CF4X4..... i'm sure they have some things laying around for sale that you could use or could order some things if need be....

hell, talking about long arms.... get danny to build you some. you should see the green XJ he built long arms for... it rides awesome, flexes great, and the price was better than buying some off the shelf stuff.

see ya at the bar tonight... drive it!

-Erik <--- says if you don't run 35's your a pussy
 
sorry about last night, everyone bailed and i started feeling like crap... we will just have to go to the bar tonight too.. :flipoff2:

ill call you in a little erik, i wanna e-build this before i go make a withdraw... see what you can find out at masonboro and we can go from there
 
errrr, i been drunk since 8am and i think it's bed time so i can sober up befo rei drive the heep to topsail tonight.....

next sunday...
 
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