Yeah, elka's are butter. If your running loaded most of the time, teraflex has an expedition lift for carrying heavy weights. its a 3 inch lift, and has everything you need, 8 arms, shocks, springs track bars, the works. its a very very nice lift. If I was running loaded 70 percent of the time, I would run it for sure. I have the teraflex leveling kit with Monroe reflex shocks and I really like this setup, but after reading more about the AEV lifts, I am really leaning towards getting one of their 2.5s with the drop brackets after hearing about the cure for the wander.
Suspension solution for a very heavy 2007 JKU
- Thread starter OpenTrackRacer
- Start date
expedition4x4
Explorer
I will be in San Diego first week of June time frame if you wold like ot ride in my jeep, 2012 jk with 3.5" AEV SC. I will also be at the expo.
Idahoan
Adventurer
I have a stubby Olympic bumper without winch. Aluminum rear bumper pods. I have a slight rake to the front.
aristobrat
Observer
FWIW, you can run the AEV brackets on pretty much any brand 2.5-4.5 lift.
I know. I just picked up a rock krawler expedition suspension with 1.5" springs. but from what we are seeing, its 2.3" of lift. I can't wait to get it on the rig. I will then measure the space that AEV suggests to measure on the front to see if I have enough to run the brackets then....Im hoping so. I am very close with my teraflex leveling kit. I like the RK kit as it gives me extra weight carrying capacity. But I want to run the brackets too.
cornfedksboy
New member
You might consider the Rock Krawler 1.5 or 2.5 Expedition lift. Also, without weight in the front, you might consider a small rear leveling kit.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Good shocks and a lift kit with progressive springs will solve the vast majority of your problem. Look for a company that has a lift that you can upgrade over time. You will also want to look for a company that doesn't introduce low hanging brackets that will actually reduce your clearance.
I would look into Rock Krawler for price point, quality, and the items mentioned above. There are a number of quality manufacturers for shocks. Find the one that matches what you like to do. Shocks for rock crawlers will be stiffer, you may not want that. If you do long stretches of off road activity, you may want to look for a shock with a reservoir. That will help with shock fade caused by overheating.
I would look into Rock Krawler for price point, quality, and the items mentioned above. There are a number of quality manufacturers for shocks. Find the one that matches what you like to do. Shocks for rock crawlers will be stiffer, you may not want that. If you do long stretches of off road activity, you may want to look for a shock with a reservoir. That will help with shock fade caused by overheating.
aristobrat
Observer
Personally, I've run these brackets on my JK for going on five years now. While my JK spends the majority of its time on-road, the off-roading I do includes a fair amount of rock crawling on some of the more difficult trails in PA, VA, NC and SC.
On-road, these brackets have added some noticeable benefits: better front impact ride quality (i.e. expansion joints/cracks in the highways aren't nearly as jarring) and virtually no front-end dive when doing an emergency stop (i.e. nailing the brakes).
Off-road, these brackets have never posed any issues for me.
To your point, there is a loss in clearance where the lower control arms mount to the frame. The only way to reduce the angle of the control arms is to mount them lower than their stock position.
In the rock crawling that I do, the lack of clearance hasn't been an issue. it's unusual for me to get a tall rock that far back in the first place (with the front tires still flat on the ground). When it does happen, I just slowly slide across. I've never been stuck because of this, and I've never damaged a control arm because of this (and I'm still running stock control arms). From years of watching others wheel, seems like everyone occasionally runs into an situation where they don't have enough clearance under the control arms, using these brackets or not.
I guess my point is that these brackets add two positive handling features on-road, and the one negative (lack of clearance) hasn't caused me any issues. Therefore I'd not hesitate to recommend these brackets to most folks.
If you are considering drop brackets, take a look at the Rancho control arm drop brackets. They are a boxed fully welded bracket vs. the AEV plates held together with bolts.
http://www.quadratec.com/products/16031_1000_07.htm
Here is my 2013 JKUR with Rancho drop brackets, 2.5" AEV springs and Fox 2.5" shocks.
http://www.quadratec.com/products/16031_1000_07.htm
Here is my 2013 JKUR with Rancho drop brackets, 2.5" AEV springs and Fox 2.5" shocks.
OpenTrackRacer
Observer
Sorry for being out of the loop! I've been swamped and had to put this project aside for a bit (plus I wasn't getting notifications on new posts).
Right now I have a Body Armor rear bumper and tire carrier. It was cheap and it works (with some modifications). However, one downside is that the spare tire is 15" from the tailgate since the gas cans mount behind it. That's a lot of weight far behind the rear axle. However, I just bought a Shrockworks rear bumper and carrier. It weighs more but the weight is all much closer to the back of the Jeep. I still expect my rear axle load to go up slightly.
My biggest concern remains the 660 pound linear rate OME springs being too stiff when I'm unloaded. That plus worries about the front end being sky high since I have the stock bumper and no winch.
Right now I have a Body Armor rear bumper and tire carrier. It was cheap and it works (with some modifications). However, one downside is that the spare tire is 15" from the tailgate since the gas cans mount behind it. That's a lot of weight far behind the rear axle. However, I just bought a Shrockworks rear bumper and carrier. It weighs more but the weight is all much closer to the back of the Jeep. I still expect my rear axle load to go up slightly.
My biggest concern remains the 660 pound linear rate OME springs being too stiff when I'm unloaded. That plus worries about the front end being sky high since I have the stock bumper and no winch.
thedjjack
Dream it build it
I ask the question what is you max gross vehicle weight on the Jeep (I suspect around 5500lbs??)?
you can change all the springs and suspension parts but you should not exceed the GVWR... in BC they will pull your plates if you exceed it (yes our commercial inspectors carry portable scales and 4x4 can be a target for stops) and I would think in the USA you would open up civil liability issues if you crash..
You going to be pushing the stock 1/2 ton suspension parts in my mind.... DIET time
you can change all the springs and suspension parts but you should not exceed the GVWR... in BC they will pull your plates if you exceed it (yes our commercial inspectors carry portable scales and 4x4 can be a target for stops) and I would think in the USA you would open up civil liability issues if you crash..
You going to be pushing the stock 1/2 ton suspension parts in my mind.... DIET time
aristobrat
Observer
That topic came up in another thread. The term didn't pull up much of anything when searching around for examples in the US, in terms of non-commercial vehicles.
OpenTrackRacer
Observer
That chances of being caught overweight in a non-commercial vehicle are slim. Liability could be a concern but I've never heard of exceeding GVWR being an issue in non-commercial crashes and lawsuits. The D44 is plenty stout enough to hold the weight and I'm not worried about the frame or suspension pickup points. The suspension itself can't handle the weight, hence the need for an upgrade.