Testing Mopar 2” Lift and Spacers on the Trail.

DAY ONE

So I’m out for a couple days of “field testing” with the Mopar 2” lift with 1.75” spacers wearing Cooper STT 37”x 12.5” tires on stock Rubicon 17” wheels. I aired down to a conservative 15psi.

(Sorry, no pictures. It was cold and very muddy and I was lazy. Tomorrow I’ll try to grab some, but I’m no Cindy.)

Day one I wanted to ease in to test my install prowess or lack thereof, so I took it slow. No earth-shattering articulation, but it wasn’t trivial either. No rocks yet—mostly mud, and boy there was lots of it.

My observations in no particular order of intelligence:

Spacers: The wheels didn’t fall off. But with the tires out from the flares, I noted awesome mud patterns in every conceivable direction. I felt like a tie dye artist.

Mudding: Holy crap! The combination of the JLUR and the STT 37’s is astonishingly capable in mud. I started out conservatively because I was alone with my winch in the garage awaiting a winch plate. But by the end I confess to feeling adulated by the watching masses. One guy said to me, “I just pulled a Bronco outa there. I wouldn’t.” Now, not exactly a daunting warning, lol, but still, they were stunned I made it through. I tried not to get cocky, but . . . I tried everything that wouldn’t get my butt wet (from outside water getting in, anyway).

Rubbing: I didn’t really push this, but I wasn’t even close to hitting the flares. I crawled over some moderate twists and didn’t break a sweat. So, while jury is still in debate, moderate off roading with this setup doesn’t seem to be a deal-breaker.

Steering: One thing for sure, the factory steering damper isn’t up to the 37s. Maybe Eddie or another experienced wheeler can chime in, but I attributed my inability to keep
my line to the damper. I mean, I stuck my head out the window while turning hard left in pitted mud tracks and watched the tire turn from almost straight to full left. Either the stabilizer is made of a hypodermic syringe, or there’s something wrong with my steering. Or I suck at installing a lift.

Power: I never once noticed any reduction of power with the 37’s pulling the 8-speed. Wow, very impressed with the stock JLUR. Who knows how long my Cs, axles, gears and underwear will hold out, but so far it’s all creamy.

Tomorrow I will get my butt out of the seat and take some pics of an empty Jeep sitting in stupid locations. I will try my hardest to rub but not destroy the flares, and I will now be sure to hit manual shift when I’m in 4-lo (Thank you eddie [emoji1303])

If I don’t reply tomorrow, send someone after me with a winch, and a post-it note with the word “manual” on it.


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Last edited:

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
Thanks for posting up this thorough review, although, some pics would have been nice. ;) :crazyeyes: :D

Regarding the steering stabilizer, I'm not sure I'm understanding what the problem was for you. So that we're on the same page, it's just a shock that is supposed to help dampen bump steer and kick back and not something that should help hold your line.

Looking forward to see pics tomorrow :yup:
 

Thanks for posting up this thorough review, although, some pics would have been nice. ;) :crazyeyes: :D

Regarding the steering stabilizer, I'm not sure I'm understanding what the problem was for you. So that we're on the same page, it's just a shock that is supposed to help dampen bump steer and kick back and not something that should help hold your line.

Looking forward to see pics tomorrow :yup:

Well, that’s what I thought, but I wasn’t sure how else the steering would flex that much and drive fine on the road. How far does the stabilizer articulate?

The tie rod and drag link look ... well, like they’re a tie rod and drag link. Do I need to take this in?


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13_gecko_rubi

New member
Well, that’s what I thought, but I wasn’t sure how else the steering would flex that much and drive fine on the road. How far does the stabilizer articulate?

The tie rod and drag link look ... well, like they’re a tie rod and drag link. Do I need to take this in?


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I'm confused by what u stated. U are saying you held the wheel straight and the tire you saw out the window moves from straight to fully turned without the steering wheel moving at all?

Sent via....
 

I'm confused by what u stated. U are saying you held the wheel straight and the tire you saw out the window moves from straight to fully turned without the steering wheel moving at all?

Sent via....

Yup. It was the strangest thing. I was incredulous so I tried it again to make sure I wasn’t hallucination or not noticing the steering wheel turning, but it happened every time. I’m actually quitting early for day 2. I’m taking it back very slowly home, then right into Jeep. The steering assist is failing, and it’s not saying in 4-lo.


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And I hadn’t hit rocks before I stopped, but I did get more aggressive. The only thing I noticed was that the rear tire was kissing on the lower-rear plastic profusion that Eddie melted back with a heat gun. I think I will do the same.

IMG_0064.jpg


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13_gecko_rubi

New member
Yup. It was the strangest thing. I was incredulous so I tried it again to make sure I wasn’t hallucination or not noticing the steering wheel turning, but it happened every time. I’m actually quitting early for day 2. I’m taking it back very slowly home, then right into Jeep. The steering assist is failing, and it’s not saying in 4-lo.


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Your tire cannot move without the wheel turning unless your sector ahft sheared, your drag link broke, or your tie rod broke. We're aren't talking slop, I'm talking total break and you wouldn't be driving it any more. Those parts are all physically connected and have to move 3+ inches for what you are describing. There cannot be that much play. Were you aired down and perhaps your tire was just moving on rim? That's possible.

Why do you think your assist is failing? U have no steering at all?

Sent via....
 

Thanks for your help all. I appreciate the responsiveness.

Yeah, it’s not impossible I’m reading things wrong. But I was watching the rim, and it looked like it was physically turning. The tie rod and drag link look fine. That’s why I went to the stabilizer as the culprit. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Maybe you’re right and it was the tire moving on the rim. I’m doubting myself completely.

As for assist, it was like the power went off. I could heft it with great effort to turn, and sometimes it seemed like it wouldn’t respond at all—I assume it was just stuck in a divot or some such.


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They didn’t even look at that, or the transfer case disengaging. Said they couldn’t duplicate it. But both happened on the trail today again. Over and over.

And the wheel is definitely turning on it’s own.

I don’t know what to do. They will never see it happening in the dealership as it’s off road.

But they did replace the ABS box for some reason lol.


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ocrejects

Member
They didn’t even look at that, or the transfer case disengaging. Said they couldn’t duplicate it. But both happened on the trail today again. Over and over.

And the wheel is definitely turning on it’s own.

I don’t know what to do. They will never see it happening in the dealership as it’s off road.

But they did replace the ABS box for some reason lol.


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Make an appointment with the tax and take them someplace where you can make it happen while you’re driving


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RCM3691

New member
I'm really interested in seeing how this looks. I'm looking at doing the same lift/tire combination but without the wheel spacers. I've never been a fan of them. I'm curious, did you try the wheel/tire combination without the spacers?
 

I'm really interested in seeing how this looks. I'm looking at doing the same lift/tire combination but without the wheel spacers. I've never been a fan of them. I'm curious, did you try the wheel/tire combination without the spacers?

Yeah, I ran it first without the spacers and it rubbed pretty badly on the control arm. The spacers seem to be working well. The only issue is how far the wheel sticks out past the flare. Kicks a lot of crap up.

I worked out a couple issues with my transfer case so I will try to hit the trails tomorrow and try to get some pictures.


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RCM3691

New member
Yeah, I ran it first without the spacers and it rubbed pretty badly on the control arm. The spacers seem to be working well. The only issue is how far the wheel sticks out past the flare. Kicks a lot of crap up.

I worked out a couple issues with my transfer case so I will try to hit the trails tomorrow and try to get some pictures.


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I would really like to see the pictures. I was hoping to run the stock wheels for awhile as i really like the look but obviously it has to clear correctly. Maybe i can find some narrower spacers...

thanks for the reply!
Craig
 

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