J-Lift gone wrong?? (1 Viewer)

[Manuelsv]

So I did an OME J-spring and L shocks all arround lift!
I thought I had all my bases covered and read many treads trying to gather all the information, but I obiously missed something:whoops: The truck handles horribly, I'm affraid to take it on the freeway even with the caser correction installed, both front and rear DS are grinding, but that's to be expected I guess, I am taking it to Arizona Driveshaft and having them give me their diagnosis for both, I already tried to diagnose each by removing and locking the the CDL, both do grind badly!
My issue is more with the handeling, still very much wonders all over the place, much better after the yellow caster correction bushings, but still very unacceptable, rear end wonders a lot And it feels tippier turning right than left, I am hoping the install of the Rear Panhard Rod Drop Bracket Kit will fix this??
Under braking, the steering wheel will turn counter clockwise if not held, And well overall the truck is scary to drive!
Info:
97 FZJ80, 230K miles
Weight wise: Roof rack + Cargo Box (Heavy in rear) + M1 Battery + Stock front and rear bumpers, ARB Winch bumper + winch in near future + Rear tire carrier in the works.
Lift Wise here is what is installed and what I have ordered but no installed yet!:
MAF
4+Plus Proportioning Arm Bracket (installed)
4+Plus Rear Panhard Rod Drop Bracket Kit (Installing this weekend)

IPOR
Front Sway Bar Drop Kit (installed)
Front Bump Stop Drop Bracket (installed)
Rear Bump Stop Drop KIT (installed)
Rear Sway Bar Drop Bracket, PAIR (installed)
Staniless Steel Extended Brake Line Kit (installed)

eBAY
2" Alum Wheel Spacers (installed)

ToyTec Lifts, LLC

OME-850J HD front coils (installed)
OME-863J HD rear coils (installed)
60070L Front shocks (installed)
60071L Rear shocks (installed)
SD24 Steering dampener (installed)
CA77B caster kit (installed)

MAN-A-FRE
REAR SHOCK ROCK PROTECTORS (installed)
4+Plus Proportioning Arm Bracket (installed)
30mm Coil Spring Spacer Front (not Installed)
4+Plus Rear Panhard Rod Drop Bracket Kit (Installing this weekend)

Please help me set this lift straight!
What am I missing to make this drive right???
Can I add MAF Caster drop brackets in addition to the OME yellos already installed to help with the caster?

Before anyone asks, nop I was a dumbass and forgot to take before and after lift measurements, but it looks like I got at least 5" of lift on the J's as compared to my 13 yr old OEM coils!

 

[sleeoffroad]

Have you spoken to any of the vendors where you bought the parts from? What is their advice? Someone along the lines should have advised you that you are going to run into the problems that you have now.

 

[kidglove13]

Not enough castor that is why it is handling poorly
The castor bushings are not enough
You need castor plates
What do you mean by drive shafts are grinding?

 

[Manuelsv]

The Drive shafts are making a Grrrr... sound on deceleration front one was worse than the rear, all the joints are good, when I took out each shaft they all swiveled freely, so they are not binding I think, they are just running a bit too lenghtened I think???

 

[Dave 2000]

Without wishing to sound rude but I have no idea of your wrenching skills. When tightening everything up was the weight of the vehicle on the ground or still on jacks/stands?

If the latter then loosen it all up and drive back and forth applying and releasing the brakes to settle everything and then get back under with the spanners/torque wrench.

If that does not help what about the castor bushes are they in the right orientation, your's would not be the first I have seen installed incorrectly, the front panhard rod is it an adjustable version to allow for the lift?

Have you replaced ALL the old bushes that were not part of the lift kit?

Perhaps the propshafts are not grinding but the front is rubbing on the anti-roll bar?

Did you check the U/J's for wear before installing the lift?

Did you buy the entire kit from one vendor if so they should have some answers? If from multiple vendors then you could be in for the runaround my friend.

Are any of your brake pipes stretched hence closing them off?

Best I can do at the moment but something for you to think about.


regards

Dave

 

[busmup808]

Heres what i have on my rear.
863J OME sprigs
N74L OME shocks
ajustable panhard bar SLEE
extended brakeline SLEE
homemade proportioning valve extender. I measured it to stock degrees prior to lift & set it to the same when lifted.
No problems with mines

 

[kidglove13]

There are 2 reasons why your shafts are doing this I believe:
The angles of the shaft are steep which happens with a lift
Your ujoints are not as good as you think
How old are the ujoints?
I replaced all my ujoints after the lift and most of what you talk about went away for the most part.

 

[inkpot]

Howdy! I have nearly the same setup, but I also have aftermarket lower control arms. Those also help with axle position/caster. Have you tried greasing the ujoints and slip joints on the driveshafts? John

 

[OverLand Cruisers]

My rig is probably much heavier than yours but I'm running a similar set-up with no issues. Js in front with 863s in the back, yellow CC bushing, ext. SLEE brake lines and swaybar drops. My previous 80 had the same setup but with 863 Js in the rear and as well had no issues. The yellow CC bushing are probably not enough CC correction for the Js but with how heavy my rig is they appear to work well in my case.

I made sure to grease the UJs and SJs an bunch and made sure they were in good shape before I installed the springs.

Out of curiosity why the wheel spacers?

Good luck getting the kinks worked out of this, keep us posted.

 

[Manuelsv]

I should have called one of the vendors.. I know.. But I thought I could do my reading here on mud and make a good choice from reading up on other members lifts. Live and learn!
Now I am sure I have to drop a bunch more money into fixing it right... But I am sure it will work out fine in the end!

 

[Manuelsv]

4+Plus Rear Panhard Rod Drop Bracket Kit

Heres what i have on my rear.
863J OME sprigs
N74L OME shocks
ajustable panhard bar SLEE
extended brakeline SLEE
homemade proportioning valve extender. I measured it to stock degrees prior to lift & set it to the same when lifted.
No problems with mines

Interesting.. !!! Will the MAF 4+Plus Rear Panhard Rod Drop Bracket Kit do the same as what you have? If I understand correctly this is just another method to acheive the same thing.

 

[Manuelsv]

Few Questions at once!

Have you tried greasing the ujoints and slip joints on the driveshafts?
Yep that was my first thing on the list.. No difference.
Your ujoints are not as good as you think
front DS had ujoints replaced and DS balanced 8-9 months ago.. Rear looks and feels good but I am taking it to a driveshaft shop to get them done. So I am mostly concerned with the handeling,. I'll let the DS shop deal with the DS's
How old are the ujoints?See above
Without wishing to sound rude but I have no idea of your wrenching skills. When tightening everything up was the weight of the vehicle on the ground or still on jacks/stands? I'm not the greatest weekend mechanic.. But I tightened everything to FSM specs, and double checked with the truck on the ground after I'll re-check
bushes are they in the right orientation
Absolutely.. there was a very noticeable improvement after the install! I think it's just not enough So how do I add more caster correction after the install of the OME yellows? Can I stager it with MAF drop brackets? Is that going to give me too much caster? Is that bad?
Perhaps the propshafts are not grinding but the front is rubbing on the anti-roll bar?
No rubbing on the roll bar, I got the drop brackets on front and back which should be good for a much higher lift than mine
Did you check the U/J's for wear before installing the lift?
Nop they where not making noise so did not check them before the lift, but have since checked both front and back and greased them up. I also drove the truck with one than the other off both are making noise.
brake pipes stretched hence closing them off?
I replaced the brake lines at the same time as the lift with the extended stainless steel lines.. It breaks fine, just pulls to the side so I am thinking it's a suspension alignment or a bad bushing?

 

[Nay]

J's give a ton of lift without extra weight - you are probably well out of caster spec (not that this is necessarily a big problem), toe alignment may be exacerbated by the lift. Your driveshafts are definitely misaligned now.

So...as Slee pointed out, you have all of the nice conditions of a lift of that size. That's why Slee sells all the extra bits when people go big - you are gonna need them and generally speaking there aren't many shortcuts.

You might consider dropping the lift - I run 37's on less lift than you have, and keeping it as low as possible for what you need is always a good idea.

 

[Manuelsv]

J's give a ton of lift without extra weight - you are probably well out of caster spec (not that this is necessarily a big problem), toe alignment may be exacerbated by the lift. Your driveshafts are definitely misaligned now.

So...as Slee pointed out, you have all of the nice conditions of a lift of that size. That's why Slee sells all the extra bits when people go big - you are gonna need them and generally speaking there aren't many shortcuts.

You might consider dropping the lift - I run 37's on less lift than you have, and keeping it as low as possible for what you need is always a good idea.

I agree, but I am getting a rear tire carrier an ARB front + winch and sliders within the year, so that will weigh me down a bit!

 

[busmup808]

Interesting.. !!! Will the MAF 4+Plus Rear Panhard Rod Drop Bracket Kit do the same as what you have? If I understand correctly this is just another method to acheive the same thing.

Yes it will achieve the same thing. The only thing that will be different is my panhard bar is ajustable and your is not.
I went with a adjustable panhard bar because the Manafre drop brackets are great/cheaper, but get hung up on stuff.

As far as your front goes. You might want to get caster plates to correct the front caster. I have a OME 419 coils that are 4" and some guys are running the SLEE front control arms. I wanted to go that route, but didn't have the funds. Good luck

 

[inkpot]

I agree, but I am getting a rear tire carrier an ARB front + winch and sliders within the year, so that will weigh me down a bit!

The extra weight on mine is about the only difference between our rigs. Mine behaves great. Maybe we need to put them side by side for a comparison check. John

 

[Manuelsv]

PM'd Ya

The extra weight on mine is about the only difference between our rigs. Mine behaves great. Maybe we need to put them side by side for a comparison check. John

Sent you a PM.. Any time.. seing it in person will probably be best!

 

[Manuelsv]

My rig is probably much heavier than yours but I'm running a similar set-up with no issues. Js in front with 863s in the back, yellow CC bushing, ext. SLEE brake lines and swaybar drops. My previous 80 had the same setup but with 863 Js in the rear and as well had no issues. The yellow CC bushing are probably not enough CC correction for the Js but with how heavy my rig is they appear to work well in my case.

I made sure to grease the UJs and SJs an bunch and made sure they were in good shape before I installed the springs.

Out of curiosity why the wheel spacers?

Good luck getting the kinks worked out of this, keep us posted.

I've had the wheel spacers for a while now.. It's the only way to make the sequoia wheels look right and also fit the hubcaps on.. Also levels the wheel edge flush with the flares.. I like how they made the stance wider also! So I guess not lift related really..
I keep hearing everything is the same except for the weight!!! Should I go "borrow" a couple of cement sacks from Home Depot and ride arround with the extra weight to see if it rides good after..?? I mean if this extra weight fixes everything,.. then I can just wait till I get the ARB front, sliders, and rear spare tire carrier.. and call it a day???

 

[landtank]

sounds like you have pinion angle issues along with not enough caster correction. Nothing that more money won't cure.

 

[gahi]

post up a pic of your caster bushings installed. Just curious if they are installed backwards? Doesn't seem like you should be having these issues. The driveshafts ya, but the handling shouldn't be terrifying even without enough caster correction.