One person first time lift install experiences
05-16-2015, 04:40 PM
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One person first time lift install experiences
Hi all,
A while back I started this thread. Well, today i started the install am going to document how it went for a first-timer doing it 100% solo. I'm posting this in case there's anyone else out there like me who wants a lift, but has very limited resources... no garage and nobody experienced to help.
0) Background
I recently moved to the Boulder, CO area and got a great price for a Mopar lift kit on CL. I've worked on my 2007 Carmax JKU X some (electrical and body work) but have never done anything to its suspension, nor do I have any hands-on experience with vehicle suspensions in general. Although I probably could have lured someone from work to give me a hand in exchange for beer, I wanted to see what I could do on my own, knowing full well I could probably produce disastrous results. I've got a decent set of tools that I've collected over the years, but all general purpose. For this project, I picked up two 6-ton jackstands and a floor jack.
1) Day 1 -- Front
So I started at around 0900 and finished for the day at 1500. I followed the instructions. First was removing the track bar. This was actually the hardest part and my biggest mistake. More on that later. Anyway, I got the damned thing off eventually. Next I removed the "stabilizer bar links" which, as far as I can tell, is Mopar for sway links and the shocks. No problem there. Then there were some hoses and electrical lines that need to be diddled, but that was straight forward and presented no problem. Then came unbolting the driveshaft. Didn't happen. Once my sockets and the nuts started wearing away, I give up and tied it with paracord for support as I was supposed to do after disconnecting it... I'm not sure that made much difference, though, but I was very observant during the rest of the install of it's state and made sure to keep it supported and try not to stress it. Then the instructions said to loosen the axel links. Again, they weren't loosening. Period. So, based on what'll say under "lessons learned" I moved on. Springs... came off very easily.
Onward to installing the new parts. The instructions said to attach "compression travel dampener pad spacers" to the surface the lower end of the springs sit on. Not fully sure what they do, but I did it. The "self tapping screws" didn't self tap at all, so I may be throwing nuts on them since the threading is accessible. Shocks went on real easy, track bar was easy enough (just had to move the front axle around a little with the floor jack) and the other miscellaneous hose/wiring movements and reattachments were cake. I didn't move the rear sway links from the rear, as the direction said, since weather was rolling in and it was time to stop for the day.
I drove it back into my building's garage and everything felt good.
1) Day 2 -- Rear
So the rear install was very straight forward. Taking all the old stuff off was easy. The bolts that attach the shocks to the frame are awkward to deal with, but that was just a matter of patience. Everything else just seemed easier after getting the swing of it doing the front.
And then things got difficult:
The finishing up section of the instructions is pretty time consuming. Don't get me wrong, I did read the instructions before beginning the install. I guess not knowing what I didn't know, the final tightening and parts steps just didn't seem to be as intensive as they turned out to be. Anyway, with patience, I got things tightened up according to the instructions EXCEPT for the front track bar. It's an adjustable one with a heim bolt on the end where it connects to the axle. I started a oh shit! please help me! thread about it here. Anyway, the heim bolt just wouldn't--and won't-- budge. So, I've got two know front track bars coming tomorrow; I'm going to return the one I like less. I really need to get this thing driveable soon, so I wanted redundancy: one of them better work! It's in the garage under my apartment now on hold waiting for a front track bar.
3) Day 4+
Wednesday (started previous Saturday, worked Sunday and Monday, took Tuesday off waiting for my front track bar to arrive): So I got the two track bars today. The one I was hoping would work is the RK Bombproof overnighted from 4WP. I unboxed it and left the other one untouched. It installed relatively easily: I jacked up the front so the suspension was at full extension, as directed by the instructions, and began work. The fitting was very tight. The frame end went in with minimal effort as the axle end rested in its bracket. The axle end was extremely tight and took some grease and careful pounding with a fiberglass mallet to get in place. Lining up the holes requires sub-millimeter precision, so it took some T&E and an hour's worth of patience. But, I got it in place and took it for a spin around the neighborhood and it felt good. If it's still good after a few more miles, I'll send the other back and call that part done.
Next up is the steering. Somehow I got the steering wheel goofed up, so I need to re-align it, but that's OK since the kit came with a new steering cylinder and instructions on how to realign. I don't need to go more than 3 miles at a time for the rest of the week, so I've got time to get that part installed.
4) Lessons learned (so far)
a) I spent WAY too much time trying to get the track bar disconnected on the passenger side. My wife was out running errands, my Jeep was in no state to be driven, and I needed a 21mm wrench. I tried for a while to get things going with adjustable wrenches, but no luck. To make matters worse, there's very little room to work on those bolts. So, I finally gave up and found that I could get the driver's side disconnected pretty easily. And, looking at the next steps, I realized nothing actually depended on the track bar being fully removed until installing the new one. Anyway, the point is, I didn't look at the big picture and got caught in an excersize in futility. When my wife came home, we ran over to near-by Napa, and I got the 21mm wrench and the thing came right off. I could have saved myself a good 30-45 minutes.
b) I missed the step (one of the first) to grease the inside of the front track bar and thread in the heim bolt. I suppose had I bought it knew, the track bar would have been disassembled. I didn't check to see that I could lengthen it by unthreading... so now I'm waiting on the new track bars. I suppose, not knowing what I do now, I might have pressed forward anyway and wound up with an undriveable jeep, but who knows. Anyway, in the future, I will make sure that anything that should move/turn/wiggle/whatever actually does!
c) Metric wrenches. Big ones. I didn't have all the ones I needed.
d) Powertools. My 18-volt drill was only good for drilling, not torquing. Same goes for the impact driver. I'm sure I could have bought beefier powertools, but considering I bought the kit on CL... you know where I'm coming from. I suppose it's either air-power or manual and I didn't have air. So everything hurts, but that's OK since it's a reminder I actually used my muscles for something useful.
more to come
5) Observations by a first-timer
a) JKU X springs feel like rubber compared to the new mopar ones. I understand now why people buy take-offs from JKURs.
b) Same with shocks
c) Unless something horribly wrong tomorrow, it's very possible for to install a simple, but not spacer-only, lift kit for the first time solo. This was a big concern for me... that I'd ruin my suspension without a second set of hands and brain to help.
d) With regard to c) (this is an edit several days after the fact), THE TRACK BAR.
e) This was really worth doing. I know so much more about how things work.
f) Looking around under the frame, I now have an urge to start replacing other parts. Things are rusty/dirty/look worn out. I think I'm going to gradually, along with plenty of research, replace many of the suspension parts.
more to come
A while back I started this thread. Well, today i started the install am going to document how it went for a first-timer doing it 100% solo. I'm posting this in case there's anyone else out there like me who wants a lift, but has very limited resources... no garage and nobody experienced to help.
0) Background
I recently moved to the Boulder, CO area and got a great price for a Mopar lift kit on CL. I've worked on my 2007 Carmax JKU X some (electrical and body work) but have never done anything to its suspension, nor do I have any hands-on experience with vehicle suspensions in general. Although I probably could have lured someone from work to give me a hand in exchange for beer, I wanted to see what I could do on my own, knowing full well I could probably produce disastrous results. I've got a decent set of tools that I've collected over the years, but all general purpose. For this project, I picked up two 6-ton jackstands and a floor jack.
1) Day 1 -- Front
So I started at around 0900 and finished for the day at 1500. I followed the instructions. First was removing the track bar. This was actually the hardest part and my biggest mistake. More on that later. Anyway, I got the damned thing off eventually. Next I removed the "stabilizer bar links" which, as far as I can tell, is Mopar for sway links and the shocks. No problem there. Then there were some hoses and electrical lines that need to be diddled, but that was straight forward and presented no problem. Then came unbolting the driveshaft. Didn't happen. Once my sockets and the nuts started wearing away, I give up and tied it with paracord for support as I was supposed to do after disconnecting it... I'm not sure that made much difference, though, but I was very observant during the rest of the install of it's state and made sure to keep it supported and try not to stress it. Then the instructions said to loosen the axel links. Again, they weren't loosening. Period. So, based on what'll say under "lessons learned" I moved on. Springs... came off very easily.
Onward to installing the new parts. The instructions said to attach "compression travel dampener pad spacers" to the surface the lower end of the springs sit on. Not fully sure what they do, but I did it. The "self tapping screws" didn't self tap at all, so I may be throwing nuts on them since the threading is accessible. Shocks went on real easy, track bar was easy enough (just had to move the front axle around a little with the floor jack) and the other miscellaneous hose/wiring movements and reattachments were cake. I didn't move the rear sway links from the rear, as the direction said, since weather was rolling in and it was time to stop for the day.
I drove it back into my building's garage and everything felt good.
1) Day 2 -- Rear
So the rear install was very straight forward. Taking all the old stuff off was easy. The bolts that attach the shocks to the frame are awkward to deal with, but that was just a matter of patience. Everything else just seemed easier after getting the swing of it doing the front.
And then things got difficult:
The finishing up section of the instructions is pretty time consuming. Don't get me wrong, I did read the instructions before beginning the install. I guess not knowing what I didn't know, the final tightening and parts steps just didn't seem to be as intensive as they turned out to be. Anyway, with patience, I got things tightened up according to the instructions EXCEPT for the front track bar. It's an adjustable one with a heim bolt on the end where it connects to the axle. I started a oh shit! please help me! thread about it here. Anyway, the heim bolt just wouldn't--and won't-- budge. So, I've got two know front track bars coming tomorrow; I'm going to return the one I like less. I really need to get this thing driveable soon, so I wanted redundancy: one of them better work! It's in the garage under my apartment now on hold waiting for a front track bar.
3) Day 4+
Wednesday (started previous Saturday, worked Sunday and Monday, took Tuesday off waiting for my front track bar to arrive): So I got the two track bars today. The one I was hoping would work is the RK Bombproof overnighted from 4WP. I unboxed it and left the other one untouched. It installed relatively easily: I jacked up the front so the suspension was at full extension, as directed by the instructions, and began work. The fitting was very tight. The frame end went in with minimal effort as the axle end rested in its bracket. The axle end was extremely tight and took some grease and careful pounding with a fiberglass mallet to get in place. Lining up the holes requires sub-millimeter precision, so it took some T&E and an hour's worth of patience. But, I got it in place and took it for a spin around the neighborhood and it felt good. If it's still good after a few more miles, I'll send the other back and call that part done.
Next up is the steering. Somehow I got the steering wheel goofed up, so I need to re-align it, but that's OK since the kit came with a new steering cylinder and instructions on how to realign. I don't need to go more than 3 miles at a time for the rest of the week, so I've got time to get that part installed.
4) Lessons learned (so far)
a) I spent WAY too much time trying to get the track bar disconnected on the passenger side. My wife was out running errands, my Jeep was in no state to be driven, and I needed a 21mm wrench. I tried for a while to get things going with adjustable wrenches, but no luck. To make matters worse, there's very little room to work on those bolts. So, I finally gave up and found that I could get the driver's side disconnected pretty easily. And, looking at the next steps, I realized nothing actually depended on the track bar being fully removed until installing the new one. Anyway, the point is, I didn't look at the big picture and got caught in an excersize in futility. When my wife came home, we ran over to near-by Napa, and I got the 21mm wrench and the thing came right off. I could have saved myself a good 30-45 minutes.
b) I missed the step (one of the first) to grease the inside of the front track bar and thread in the heim bolt. I suppose had I bought it knew, the track bar would have been disassembled. I didn't check to see that I could lengthen it by unthreading... so now I'm waiting on the new track bars. I suppose, not knowing what I do now, I might have pressed forward anyway and wound up with an undriveable jeep, but who knows. Anyway, in the future, I will make sure that anything that should move/turn/wiggle/whatever actually does!
c) Metric wrenches. Big ones. I didn't have all the ones I needed.
d) Powertools. My 18-volt drill was only good for drilling, not torquing. Same goes for the impact driver. I'm sure I could have bought beefier powertools, but considering I bought the kit on CL... you know where I'm coming from. I suppose it's either air-power or manual and I didn't have air. So everything hurts, but that's OK since it's a reminder I actually used my muscles for something useful.
more to come
5) Observations by a first-timer
a) JKU X springs feel like rubber compared to the new mopar ones. I understand now why people buy take-offs from JKURs.
b) Same with shocks
c) Unless something horribly wrong tomorrow, it's very possible for to install a simple, but not spacer-only, lift kit for the first time solo. This was a big concern for me... that I'd ruin my suspension without a second set of hands and brain to help.
d) With regard to c) (this is an edit several days after the fact), THE TRACK BAR.
e) This was really worth doing. I know so much more about how things work.
f) Looking around under the frame, I now have an urge to start replacing other parts. Things are rusty/dirty/look worn out. I think I'm going to gradually, along with plenty of research, replace many of the suspension parts.
more to come
Last edited by kodiak bear; 05-20-2015 at 06:27 PM.
05-16-2015, 06:09 PM
#2
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Join Date: Oct 2012
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Great write up.
Just some simple info.
Mopar lift kits are actually Terraflex kits with Mopar stickers dropped in the box.
I was able to do mine in about 11 hours (with all the right tools) front and rear. The easy way to realign the track bar in the front is to have someone turn the steering wheel while you start the bolt.
Great job !
Sent using smoke signals
Just some simple info.
Mopar lift kits are actually Terraflex kits with Mopar stickers dropped in the box.
I was able to do mine in about 11 hours (with all the right tools) front and rear. The easy way to realign the track bar in the front is to have someone turn the steering wheel while you start the bolt.
Great job !
Sent using smoke signals
05-16-2015, 07:02 PM
#3
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Great experience to do it yourself. It's nice knowing what's going on under you when you're out in the Jk. Remember that there are always people willing to help even if it's just over the phone/ text message tips and advice!!
05-16-2015, 08:09 PM
#4
My lift took me 5 hrs split in 2 days due to crap directions on one part. haha had to wait until the following day to hit up 4wp as I could not find anything online. I work at a body shop so I had Air tools and a lift for help but I never did a lift or lower a car before but I can take something off and install. If I get something in pieces I will have no clue how to get it back together.
That is a great write up proper tools help. so far I have a list of tools I need for my jeep so I do not carry extras for no reason.
That is a great write up proper tools help. so far I have a list of tools I need for my jeep so I do not carry extras for no reason.
05-20-2015, 01:19 PM
#5
JK Enthusiast
Great write up.
Just some simple info.
Mopar lift kits are actually Terraflex kits with Mopar stickers dropped in the box.
I was able to do mine in about 11 hours (with all the right tools) front and rear. The easy way to realign the track bar in the front is to have someone turn the steering wheel while you start the bolt.
Great job !
Sent using smoke signals
Just some simple info.
Mopar lift kits are actually Terraflex kits with Mopar stickers dropped in the box.
I was able to do mine in about 11 hours (with all the right tools) front and rear. The easy way to realign the track bar in the front is to have someone turn the steering wheel while you start the bolt.
Great job !
Sent using smoke signals
To the OP: Glad you were able to get the lift on this weekend! It's been way too wet for any work outside lately!
05-20-2015, 05:19 PM
#6
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Great write up! Thank you. Going to try to install my first leveling kit this summer, but reading all I can about lifts before I start. I'm at your Step-0 Background now, buying the jackstands and floor jack. Also metric wrenches, 15 through 21 mm from what I've read so far (already have a couple of 10 mm).
05-20-2015, 06:13 PM
#7
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Great write up! Thank you. Going to try to install my first leveling kit this summer, but reading all I can about lifts before I start. I'm at your Step-0 Background now, buying the jackstands and floor jack. Also metric wrenches, 15 through 21 mm from what I've read so far (already have a couple of 10 mm).
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05-21-2015, 03:18 AM
#8
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I have accumulated all those tools over the years, now just have an excuse to go buy some more wrenches and a floor jack!
05-21-2015, 04:01 AM
#9
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Guys, if you're not replacing any of the control arms. The bolts must be loosened and re torqued at the new ride height. The jeep must be on the ground or jackstands under the axles. Not doing so well leave the rubber bushings in a constant state of bind. Possible alignment/handling issues and premature wear.
http://youtu.be/OOZ9v2M-Iz0
http://youtu.be/OOZ9v2M-Iz0
05-21-2015, 06:22 AM
#10
Sponsoring Manufacturer
Great write up.
Just some simple info.
Mopar lift kits are actually Terraflex kits with Mopar stickers dropped in the box.
I was able to do mine in about 11 hours (with all the right tools) front and rear. The easy way to realign the track bar in the front is to have someone turn the steering wheel while you start the bolt.
Great job !
Sent using smoke signals
Just some simple info.
Mopar lift kits are actually Terraflex kits with Mopar stickers dropped in the box.
I was able to do mine in about 11 hours (with all the right tools) front and rear. The easy way to realign the track bar in the front is to have someone turn the steering wheel while you start the bolt.
Great job !
Sent using smoke signals
