Hey guys, I am wondering if there is any way to improve ride comfort on the jeep jk. I have a 2008 Jeep X, it is a 2 door and everything is stock except I have a 2.5" rough country budget boost and 35" Good year wrangler duratrac tires. I am open to any suggestions that you guys may have. I was thinking that better shocks and springs would be the first major change I should make, and with the new springs and shocks, should I dispose of the budget boost and just get larger shocks and springs? Am I headed in the right direction? Also my steering is very loose, is there a way to tighten it so there is not as much play? Once again I am open to ANY suggestions. Thank you for your help it is much appreciated!

Thanks,
Matt

 

I would say go with a soft tire, but I've had the Duratracs and they are actually pretty soft. Are you running a high PSI in them?

I'm thinking you will get a lot of people recommending the EVO plush coils. Apparently they ride really nice. I've heard really good things about the Metal Cloak coils as well. As for shocks, if you contact Old Man Emu they can customize your order for a soft ride or for heavy loads. They are great shocks and very fair priced.

 

Thanks for the quick response. The duratracs are a nice tire and I am currently running them with 32psi. Also would a regear benefit me as well? Could it help with mpg?

Thanks!

 

Are you running the stock shocks with extenders or RC shocks?

I ran an RC kit on my TJ and upgrading to Bilstein 5100 shocks and it made night and day differences.

 

I am running the stock shocks and springs with the extenders. Did your tj ride nicer than stock with the shocks?

 

If you upgrade to 3" coils and shocks, You will need to address the pinion and caster angles. The EVO plus ride coils are very soft, we do have these available in 3"

 

Is the pinion and caster angles a hard issue to fix and will the evo plus ride coils make a huge difference in the ride?

 

You need a set of lower adjustable front control arms, Upper rear adjustable control arms. Its easy to adjust. On the two door its very important. I've rode in several jeeps with different coils. IMO its the smoothest ride.

 

I'm sure that there are some things you can do to "improve" the ride quality in a Jeep. But if you want a plush ride, you will have to start taking away things that make this vehicle a Jeep. Take away the solid axles, big tires, heavy duty shocks and suspension for starters.

 

I lived in Long Beach, CA for a while-- with an '03 TJ nonetheless, and if you're driving on the 710, 405 or any of the other major freeways around there, the rule is, if you can hold the wheel, you can drive it! I remember feeling particularly unsettled, flying along in the left lane next to the Jersey barrier with all the dips, ruts, holes, drains, etc. There were times when I wasn't entirely certain the Jeep was on the ground all the time.

A true suspension lift may be in your future...better shocks/springs would help settle the ride a bit, although you're in for a bouncy ride, no matter what, with 35's and having a 2-door Jeep.

I'm putting an AEV suspension lift on my JK....I'm going with it because of the rave reviews of on-road ride quality and also replacing the control arms at the same time for more optimal caster angles. I'll do a writeup with pics when all the parts arrive and it gets installed.

Wear might also be an issue...those freeways really beat up a car after a few years. Ball joints, bushings, etc all wear and contribute to loosey-goosey steering. If you haven't already, it would be worth crawling under and having a look, shaking the wheels etc and checking for play where there shouldn't be any.