XJ Suspension question for experienced overlanders

[TOI]

by all means im no expert, but i like to think of myself as a prophet of LOG and keeping it simple. and over the years ad owning 5 xj's and an MJ (guess it wouldnt count?) with varying lifts and set ups. from stock to 6" of lift long arms and locked front a rear, and my favorite has been my 00' XJ with my budget lift. all stock saggy suspension with spacers up front and a toyota leave subbed in the rear with some JK shocks. it rode like a charm, was comfortable, handled well off road. i plan on building my next XJ the same way, but with a bit more beef.

as for highspeed handling with out swaybars (is possible if your not a hooligan) wasnt too bad, tons of body roll. but i could drift it with out falling over.

-Ian

 

[MCObray]

Old Man Emu all the way! I replaced my suspension last August with OME Coils, OME 10mm Spacer, OME Leafs, OME D-22XL AALs, and OME Shocks. The ride is much better than stock. I went this route because I wanted to replace the suspension, I wanted to get in the air just a little, and I wanted the best ride quality out there. For now I am 90% on-road, and 10% off-road due to being consumed with college and working five days a week. I have taken this Jeep up in the Cascades in the snow and it performed great with the suspension and 30x9.5 BFGs. In hard packed snow I get stuck a few times, but the last time when we were in the powder, I did not get stuck once! I cruised out to Central Oregon for a few days. Majority on the roads that I traveled out there were gravel and washboard roads. The suspension handled great and exceeded all my expectations. Because of these numerous reason, I will never buy anything but OME suspension for my 4x4 vehicles. With AJ's SuperRails , JKS Disconnects, Front skid plate, T-case skid plate (next to purchase), and Gas Tank skid plate (next to purchase) I feel like I have a pretty capable XJ that can traverse numerous different terrains.
Couple of pics:



(AJ's SuperRails not pictured)

 

[JCMatthews]

A lot on this topic has been said in 4 pages. I will say this. Too tall and your Jeep will want to wander some. Anything over 4 inches starts to put drivelines and steering at bad angles. I drove an XJ for 13 years in several different configurations. If I were to do it again I would go the Rocky Road way. http://www.rocky-road.com/xjtrailblazer.html Their lift is an Old Man Emu that is spaced to 4". This will give you the room to comfortably fit 31" tires and give them room to flex. Also you will not be so tall as to put things out of correct geometry. The kit includes the correct brackets and spacers to put things in line. Here is a pic of mine before I let it go. I was running a Rusty's 4.5" spaced to 5.5". Would not recommend Rusty's or going that high.

 

[Logans91XJ]

You can pretty much fit 31's stock

 

[bobDog]

You can pretty much fit 31's stock

Yeah I've been thru some nasty stuff w/ 31's stock ratio but I can 'feel' that lower gearing would be better.