Adjustable pan hard rod?

[MOAK]

Hello all, I've been doing a lot of research about our new to us 96' 450, and have found little definitive information about the necessity of installing a rear adjustable pan hard rod to complement the 2.5" OME suspension.. I installed the same lift on my old Rubicon and used the supplied bracket.. On the 80/450 there is about a 1" offset of the rear axle, so my question is, do I need the adjustable rod?

 

[coastal616]

Sounds like it or you need to make some sort of a drop bracket to level out the PHB.

 

[Chi-Town]

I plan on it when I install mine this weekend. I'm going to do front and rear panhard bars and the 2 degree caster bushings.

The bushings in the stock bars are usually pretty wore out and can contribute to the infamous 70mph shake that a lot of 80 series suffer from. The panhard bars aren't that expensive and will keep your axles where they should be.

 

[concretejungle]

If you want the geometry to be "perfect" then yes. I feel that the best way to adjust is with a bracket to lower the mount on the body or raise the mount on the axle. i'm not sure if one is available. I think 4plus at Man A Fre used to sell one, but i didn't see one on their page. So, an adjustable one is the option you have.

Just FYI, i ran that lift for about 8 years and never adjusted mine. I did adjust the castor, and dropped my sway bars, but did not adjust the pan hard rod. I felt that it was so minor that it wouldn't make a difference.

Now, i'm sitting on the slee 4 inch lift and i'm thinking now is the time to adjust them.

 

[kbahus]

Agreed that with a 2.5" lift it's not necessary to bother with.

 

[concretejungle]

think about it, if it's offset just one inch then adjusting ½ inch is so small. Even slee said the same, he basically said why bother with it at that small of a change.

 

[MOAK]

Thanks every one. I'm just not going to bother with it. I even spoke with Amory out at Slee and he confirmed my thoughts about the need. which is, that the 1" offset created by the 2.5" lift, just isn't enough to be concerned about. In the jeep wrangler world that offset was a bigger deal because of the short wheelbase. Owning this 80 after not being in the Cruiser world for over 35 years is a large learning curve for me, which I hope to overcome very soon.. Thanks again..