MOPAR 2" Lift Review (on-road) -- IMPRESSIVE

B

Back In Black

New member
I thought I would share my thoughts with you folks on the kit... I have driven about 100 miles thus far (on-road), really really impressed!

The spring rate tuning , along with the Fox shock valving feels just like the stock Rubi. Trust me I'm fairly critical, I have run (2) AEV kits and ended up with a 4" Long Arm Teraflex kit with Falcon shocks on my old JK. This MOPAR kit is much nicer than all of those previous kits (on-road) IMHO. I hope I'm as impressed come Moab time this March. Worth noting - I live in Michigan and we are in "Pot Hole" season, so my evaluation is not on smooth roads. We have potholes this year that would completely ruin any ordinary sedan's entire front end, let alone blow out tires or break wheels.

Lastly I'm still running the stock 285 KO2, as my new tires needed a week to deliver - this enabled me to really focus on the lift without introducing another variable into the equation. Many times when we evaluate a kit, we confuse our evaluation because we added the new larger tire at the same time. Having worked for Continental/General tire for 5 years I realize how critical tires can be in the overall NVH of a vehicle - which is why I pulled the trigger on 315/70/17 'Load Range C' BFG KO2. Between the impressive MOPAR kit and the new KO2 (35"), this thing should be very similar to what Jeep engineered it from the get-go.

I'm selling my original Rubicon KO2 tires - anyone interested send me a PM

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wayoflife

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
I hope you don't take this the wrong way but the coils that TeraFlex use were about the harshest I've ever run and kinda hated the way their long arm kits rode and handled. AEV kits handled great but the overall ride was on the firm side for my taste too. Heck, I was never really that impressed with the way a stock JK rode so there is that. That being said, I REALLY LOVE the way the JL's ride stock and if the Mopar 2" kit feels the same, that's great news. I appreciate the initial review.

:thumb:
 

Elickzer

Elickzer

New member
wayoflife said:
I hope you don't take this the wrong way but the coils that TeraFlex use were about the harshest I've ever run and kinda hated the way their long arm kits rode and handled. AEV kits handled great but the overall ride was on the firm side for my taste too. Heck, I was never really that impressed with the way a stock JK rode so there is that. That being said, I REALLY LOVE the way the JL's ride stock and if the Mopar 2" kit feels the same, that's great news. I appreciate the initial review.

:thumb:
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You mentioned going 37’s how are you planning that feat?


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PaulNY

PaulNY

New member
wayoflife said:
Our good friends over at EVO assure us that we can clear 37's with their 2.5" coil spacer lift and so that's what we'll be trying first. :yup:
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Which EVO coil spacer lift are you going with? I just looked on their website and they have quite a few available for the JL. I was considering the Mopar lift, but there appears to be a large number of JL owners who have the lift installed, and the springs have a bow/bend in them. Therefore, I am considering other options and really wanted a full suspension kit. The EVO looks appealing though as I have heard nothing but good things about them.
 

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wayoflife

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
PaulNY said:
Which EVO coil spacer lift are you going with? I just looked on their website and they have quite a few available for the JL. I was considering the Mopar lift, but there appears to be a large number of JL owners who have the lift installed, and the springs have a bow/bend in them. Therefore, I am considering other options and really wanted a full suspension kit. The EVO looks appealing though as I have heard nothing but good things about them.
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If it's not too much to ask, would it be cool if you could just share what you've heard without actually saying where you heard it from? I mean, unless it's absolutely critical to help make some kind of point, my wife and I would be grateful if you could please leave any mention of competing forum out of the discussion. Unlike million dollar corporate forums, this is a ma and pa operation that's paid for by us and out of our pockets. Thank you.

With that said, a little spring bow is normal and really, not that big of a deal. Unless the bow is causing the springs to catching on suspension components and cause noise, I personally wouldn't give it a second thought.

For our purposes, we'll most likely go with one of the kits that come with all the adjustable control arms. More likely than not, the coil spacers will just be a stepping stone but the control arms will be something we can still use in the future.
 

PaulNY

PaulNY

New member
wayoflife said:
If it's not too much to ask, would it be cool if you could just share what you've heard without actually saying where you heard it from? I mean, unless it's absolutely critical to help make some kind of point, my wife and I would be grateful if you could please leave any mention of competing forum out of the discussion. Unlike million dollar corporate forums, this is a ma and pa operation that's paid for by us and out of our pockets. Thank you.

With that said, a little spring bow is normal and really, not that big of a deal. Unless the bow is causing the springs to catching on suspension components and cause noise, I personally wouldn't give it a second thought.

For our purposes, we'll most likely go with one of the kits that come with all the adjustable control arms. More likely than not, the coil spacers will just be a stepping stone but the control arms will be something we can still use in the future.
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@wayoflife I sincerely apologize Eddie, and please know that as a Jeep newbie, I am naive to forum etiquette and expectations. Not only do I REALLY appreciate the great forum that you and your family provide, but love the insight from watching your very educational Youtube videos. Please know that I will never mention a competing forum again, and your request is duly noted.

I am glad to hear that a little spring bow is not really a big deal. Honestly, I am currently scheduled to get the Mopar 2" lift installed Monday. However, I have been hesitant due to the aforementioned issues I have read about. You seem VERY knowledgable about Jeeps, so may I ask why you are not installing the Mopar lift? Now that I know a slight bow is normal, it positively reinforces my initial decision to go with the Mopar. But, as a good friend of mine said, this is your first Jeep and your SICK lol. Meaning, I have the mod sickness and I am wanting to get the lift, wheels/tires, winch, etc. all instead quickly instead of just being patient and seeing what all of the aftermarket vendors come out with. I understand his logic, but it's hard as I want to do what you and many others are doing, which is immediately start modding our rigs. Would you simply recommend that I wait for other vendors suspension options, rather than pull the trigger on the Mopar 2"? I trust your opinion and advice, more than you know :D

Thanks so much for this great forum and all that you do to help Jeep owners like myself stay informed and educated. Oh, I have since deleted the competing forum from my original thread.:thumb:
 

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B

Back In Black

New member
wayoflife said:
I hope you don't take this the wrong way but the coils that TeraFlex use were about the harshest I've ever run and kinda hated the way their long arm kits rode and handled. AEV kits handled great but the overall ride was on the firm side for my taste too. Heck, I was never really that impressed with the way a stock JK rode so there is that. That being said, I REALLY LOVE the way the JL's ride stock and if the Mopar 2" kit feels the same, that's great news. I appreciate the initial review.

:thumb:
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Haaa
I found your post quite funny how you talked yourself into the fact that each of the kits, along with the JK not riding very nice. I couldn't agree more. I will tell you that the Teraflex 4" Longarm with the adjustable Falcon Shock was the best riding kit I have experienced on a JK. I liked the adjustability of the shock to go from the dunes in Western Michigan to rock crawling out West (not to far from your home state).

I am just so happy to see that the kit rides just as it did with the stock Rubi stuff underneath it. I have a bit of a bow although I'm not overly concerned, if it's a serious issue Jeep will correct it and replace the spring.
 

wayoflife

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
PaulNY said:
@wayoflife I sincerely apologize Eddie, and please know that as a Jeep newbie, I am naive to forum etiquette and expectations. Not only do I REALLY appreciate the great forum that you and your family provide, but love the insight from watching your very educational Youtube videos. Please know that I will never mention a competing forum again, and your request is duly noted.
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It's all good and we sincerely appreciate your understanding.

I am glad to hear that a little spring bow is not really a big deal. Honestly, I am currently scheduled to get the Mopar 2" lift installed Monday. However, I have been hesitant due to the aforementioned issues I have read about.
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I should clarify that a little spring bow is totally normal and not a big deal on coils that have a soft spring rate. It's difficult to make a coil that is soft and doesn't bow. You remember old school ink pens that had a button you clicked on to extend the ball point quill? You ever take one apart so that you could get to the spring? It was a long skinny spring and if you tried to collapse it by squeezing the ends of it together with your index finger and thumb, it would bow. That's because the spring rate was so soft and on a Jeep, soft coils will give you a nice comfortable ride. Of course, the easier thing to do is to make a stiffer coil as that would give you lift and won't have any bowing but then, they also provide a harsher ride.

For me personally, I prefer a soft spring rate as I like my ride to be as comfortable as possible. Caster on your front axle will cause a bit of bowing as will the pinion angle on the rear. It's no big deal.

You seem VERY knowledgable about Jeeps, so may I ask why you are not installing the Mopar lift? Now that I know a slight bow is normal, it positively reinforces my initial decision to go with the Mopar. But, as a good friend of mine said, this is your first Jeep and your SICK lol. Meaning, I have the mod sickness and I am wanting to get the lift, wheels/tires, winch, etc. all instead quickly instead of just being patient and seeing what all of the aftermarket vendors come out with. I understand his logic, but it's hard as I want to do what you and many others are doing, which is immediately start modding our rigs. Would you simply recommend that I wait for other vendors suspension options, rather than pull the trigger on the Mopar 2"? I trust your opinion and advice, more than you know :D
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I'm sure there's nothing wrong with the Mopar kit and more now than ever before, I would trust the lift kit Mopar offers if only because they're the ones who designed and manufacture it. Years ago, they used to re-brand products made by other companies and many of which, I didn't care for.

Cindy and I are going with the EVO because we've worked with them for a long time and have found their products to be some of the best money can buy. Also, the owners are personal friends of ours and there are few people we trust more when it comes to off road racing experience and parts that are developed for it. Again, some of what we'll be running are just stepping stones until more and better products become available.
 

wayoflife

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
Back In Black said:
I will tell you that the Teraflex 4" Longarm with the adjustable Falcon Shock was the best riding kit I have experienced on a JK. I liked the adjustability of the shock to go from the dunes in Western Michigan to rock crawling out West (not to far from your home state).
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LOL!! It's great to hear you enjoyed the quality of your ride. Nothing would suck more than to hate it especially after paying good money for it. All I can say is that over the last 11 years, I have personally installed and tested a myriad of JK lifts including TeraFlex and of them, I found their coils to ride among the harshest. But then, ride quality is 100% subjective and perhaps, you just like a firm ride. Of course, it annoyed me to no end how many times my control arm bushings blew and then there were all the guys I knew who had their control arm brackets tear off. But, I digress.

I am just so happy to see that the kit rides just as it did with the stock Rubi stuff underneath it. I have a bit of a bow although I'm not overly concerned, if it's a serious issue Jeep will correct it and replace the spring.
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I'm glad to hear it too! The fact that your springs have a bit of a bow to them tells me that they probably have a nice soft rate to them. Being that a majority of ride quality comes from your springs, that's a good thing and that would explain why you're so happy with your ride. :yup:
 

1

13_gecko_rubi

New member
PaulNY said:
Which EVO coil spacer lift are you going with? I just looked on their website and they have quite a few available for the JL. I was considering the Mopar lift, but there appears to be a large number of JL owners who have the lift installed, and the springs have a bow/bend in them. Therefore, I am considering other options and really wanted a full suspension kit. The EVO looks appealing though as I have heard nothing but good things about them.
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They have a bow ya. Is it on purpose, yes :)


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O

offcamber

New member
13_gecko_rubi said:
They have a bow ya. Is it on purpose, yes :)


Sent from my iPad using JL Wrangler Jeep Forum mobile app
Click to expand...

I actually had purchased the Mopar kit with my JL that I picked up Wednesday. I hadn't picked up the kit yet but was going to today. Friday night a buddy of mine called. He has an offroad shop here and a customer had brought him his Jeep JL with the 2" Mopar kit for help.( It may be one of the one the poster above mentioned (or not). The customer had originally tried to install the kit himself but the drivers side front spring was bowed out so badly that it didn't look safe. Thinking he had done something wrong, he put the stock stuff back. He took it to the dealer to have the dealer install it. The dealer ran into the same issue and called Mopar for assistance. Mopar told them to grind the ridges off the spring mounts and the dealer wanted to charge the customer an additional $200 for it. He told them not to do anything, he would pick the Jeep up. They did it anyway, but didn't charge him. He took the Jeep to my friends shop where he spent 3 hours trying to figure out the problem. He tried everything, and in the end could not improve the situation. He called me Friday night and recommended I stay away from the Mopar kit and wait until something else comes along. I trust his opinion and I went by this morning and got a refund on my order. I've seen pictures of the bow in the spring and it didn't look safe to me. Anytime a spring is doing something like that, it's redirecting potential energy. No thanks.

My friend said in his opinion, it's related to the spring perch. The outside edge of the spring has almost no support and he thinks that is why the spring is bowing out. He also said that springs appear to be much thinner than expected. I think I'm leaning towards tie EVO kit as well now once Fox releases some shocks you can get outside of the Mopar kit.
 

P

Principal Skinr

Member
I've got a bit of a bow on the driver's side on my Mopar 2" lift. So far, it looks like it won't contact the bump stop. The ride and handling on the thing are PERFECT. (I have 315/70/17 KO2's with C load rating, to stay as close to stock ride/handling as possible.)

Eddie, your feedback on the bow is critical. You've got LOTS of experience with lifts and springs, so I'll post a pic and if you would, please tell me if you think it is within your experience as normal.

Thanks!

55ylIns.jpg
 

JTCO

JTCO

Meme King
Principal Skinr said:
I've got a bit of a bow on the driver's side on my Mopar 2" lift. So far, it looks like it won't contact the bump stop. The ride and handling on the thing are PERFECT. (I have 315/70/17 KO2's with C load rating, to stay as close to stock ride/handling as possible.)

Eddie, your feedback on the bow is critical. You've got LOTS of experience with lifts and springs, so I'll post a pic and if you would, please tell me if you think it is within your experience as normal.

Thanks!
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How's the passenger side look? I bet an adjustable track bar would fix the bow but if you aren't having any issues, I wouldn't mess with it myself.
 

P

Principal Skinr

Member
WJCO said:
How's the passenger side look? I bet an adjustable track bar would fix the bow but if you aren't having any issues, I wouldn't mess with it myself.
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Straight. I heard from someone a couple days ago that said they played with the track bar and it didn't do anything. I'd still like to see for myself, though. The axles are perfectly aligned on both sides, so the lift didn't change anything there. I'd hate to adjust the track bar and fix the spring, then discover my tire sticks out 1/4" or so more on one side than the other.

I've also seen another with the 2" lift whose driver side is straigt, but the passenger side has a very slight bow. Most appear to be on the driver's side.

I'm sure there will be a thread for this issue, soon, as people get the lift installed. This appears to be a widespread issue among early Mopar lift adopters.

I still want to hear from Eddie. His earlier comments made me feel a bit better about it.
 

wayoflife

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
offcamber said:
I actually had purchased the Mopar kit with my JL that I picked up Wednesday. I hadn't picked up the kit yet but was going to today. Friday night a buddy of mine called. He has an offroad shop here and a customer had brought him his Jeep JL with the 2" Mopar kit for help.( It may be one of the one the poster above mentioned (or not). The customer had originally tried to install the kit himself but the drivers side front spring was bowed out so badly that it didn't look safe. Thinking he had done something wrong, he put the stock stuff back. He took it to the dealer to have the dealer install it. The dealer ran into the same issue and called Mopar for assistance. Mopar told them to grind the ridges off the spring mounts and the dealer wanted to charge the customer an additional $200 for it. He told them not to do anything, he would pick the Jeep up. They did it anyway, but didn't charge him. He took the Jeep to my friends shop where he spent 3 hours trying to figure out the problem. He tried everything, and in the end could not improve the situation. He called me Friday night and recommended I stay away from the Mopar kit and wait until something else comes along. I trust his opinion and I went by this morning and got a refund on my order. I've seen pictures of the bow in the spring and it didn't look safe to me. Anytime a spring is doing something like that, it's redirecting potential energy. No thanks.

My friend said in his opinion, it's related to the spring perch. The outside edge of the spring has almost no support and he thinks that is why the spring is bowing out. He also said that springs appear to be much thinner than expected. I think I'm leaning towards tie EVO kit as well now once Fox releases some shocks you can get outside of the Mopar kit.
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First off, allow me to say once again that Cindy and I will be going with the EVO kit because it retains the factory coils and shocks and will retain the factory ride - something we both love. Not saying that the Mopar 2" kit won't offer as nice of a ride but we also like the addition components we will be getting with the EVO kit. Granted, what we're wanting will cost a bit more.

Second, it's clear to me that you've never had a set of custom coils made before. In spite of what you choose to believe, there is NOTHING wrong with what you might consider to be a "thinner" coil. The amount of lift a coil provides and its spring rate will determine how thick of a wire is used, its diameter, it length and of course, the number of winds it will have. Likewise, a coil that is bowed does NOT make it unsafe. If you ever get to the point where you install an aftermarket rear drive shaft, you will NEED to set your pinion angle so that it sits in line with your drive shaft. When you do this, your rear coils WILL bow and on a 2-door, by quite a bit. THIS IS NORMAL. Sure, it can be addressed but it really isn't necessary to do so.
 

wayoflife

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
Principal Skinr said:
I've got a bit of a bow on the driver's side on my Mopar 2" lift. So far, it looks like it won't contact the bump stop. The ride and handling on the thing are PERFECT. (I have 315/70/17 KO2's with C load rating, to stay as close to stock ride/handling as possible.)

Eddie, your feedback on the bow is critical. You've got LOTS of experience with lifts and springs, so I'll post a pic and if you would, please tell me if you think it is within your experience as normal.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

WJCO said:
How's the passenger side look? I bet an adjustable track bar would fix the bow but if you aren't having any issues, I wouldn't mess with it myself.
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Okay, looking at the pic, I'm gonna have to go with what WJCO is eluding to.

The JL utilizes a 4-link suspension and the track bar holds the axle centered under it. See diagram below to help understand what I am talking about:

20180212134411-91176809-me.jpg


Being that the track bar is mounted on the frame on the driver side and the axle on the passenger side, lifting your Jeep WILL cause your axle to shift to the driver side if by only a bit. This is NORMAL and nothing to be concerned with - the position of your axle will ALWAYS shift depending on how much gas you have, how many people you're carrying and how much crap you have in the back of it. It's just the nature of the beast when it comes to 4-link suspension with a track bar. With that said, the Mopar kit does NOT come with an adjustable track bar or track bar relocation bracket with a drag link flip and so again, your axle will shift to the driver side. This shift could easily cause what I'm seeing in your photo and so long as the coil isn't catching on the bump stop cup and making all kinds of noise, I wouldn't give it a second thought. But then, that's just me.
 

PaulNY

PaulNY

New member
wayoflife said:
Okay, looking at the pic, I'm gonna have to go with what WJCO is eluding to.

The JL utilizes a 4-link suspension and the track bar holds the axle centered under it. See diagram below to help understand what I am talking about:

20180212134411-91176809-me.jpg


Being that the track bar is mounted on the frame on the driver side and the axle on the passenger side, lifting your Jeep WILL cause your axle to shift to the driver side if by only a bit. This is NORMAL and nothing to be concerned with - the position of your axle will ALWAYS shift depending on how much gas you have, how many people you're carrying and how much crap you have in the back of it. It's just the nature of the beast when it comes to 4-link suspension with a track bar. With that said, the Mopar kit does NOT come with an adjustable track bar or track bar relocation bracket with a drag link flip and so again, your axle will shift to the driver side. This shift could easily cause what I'm seeing in your photo and so long as the coil isn't catching on the bump stop cup and making all kinds of noise, I wouldn't give it a second thought. But then, that's just me.
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Amazing illustration Eddie, and THANK YOU. So, based on what you're saying, if I do the Mopar 2" lift, I could at some point install an adjustable track bar or track bar relocation bracket with a drag link flip to alleviate or potentially eliminate the spring bow? There again, based on your comments, if the coil isn't catching the bump stop, it doesn't even sound necessary. There again, most of the technical talk you are referring to is a foreign language to me and it's frustrating as I want to ensure I make the right moves regarding lifting my new addition to the family :crazyeyes:
 

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