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Most first time Jeep owners have several questions with when it comes to lifting their vehicle. In this post we will discuss some things that need to considered BEFORE you decide on which lift kit will suit your needs best. We will also discuss the various types of lift kits that you have to choose from.

Believe it or not, lifting a Jeep isn't always as simple as just bolting on a lift kit and then driving off into the sunset. Most every lift kit, no matter what type of vehicle it is installed on, will alter the suspension and/or steering geometry from they way it was originally engineered to work. This is not a problem if the installation of the new lift kit is performed correctly utilizing the proper components.

Why would you want to lift your Jeep?: There are basically 2 primary reasons why people decide to lift their Jeeps. Some do it just for the looks while others want to accommodate larger tires and improve off-road performance.  While a stock jeep is a very capable off road vehicle, a lifted Jeep, depending on the type of suspension lift you choose, can dramatically improve the vehicle’s off-road capability. The added height can allow for greater articulation (a vehicle's ability to flex its suspension), ground clearance and approach angles for negotiating extreme terrain and climbing or straddling large obstacles.

DRIVING HABITS: Be realistic about how you plan to use your Jeep? Will it be used mainly as a daily driver commuting to and from work, trips to the mall or hauling the kids to soccer practice? Maybe it will be transformed into an unstoppable, rock crushing off-road monster.  Quite possibly, it will be a combination of both. These are the questions that need to be answered before you can determine what parts and accessories will be necessary to achieve your goal while staying within your budget.

BUDGET: How much are you willing to spend? You can spend as little as a few hundred or as much as several thousand dollars on the lift kit alone. However, don't forget about other items that you "may" end up "needing" or likely just "wanting" down the road such as: adjustable control arms, longer brake lines, adjustable track bars, slip yoke eliminator (SYE), new drive shafts, bigger tires and wheels, lower gears, stronger axles, better steering components, winch, auxiliary lighting, etc. For some people, $500 - $1,000 will get the job done, while others may have much higher expectations and may need to wait until they can save up a little more cash. Be certain that your expectations are in line with your budget and that you are doing your modifications with mechanical performance and stability as the top priority.

DO SOME RESEARCH: There are numerous options when it comes to "lifting" a Jeep. Therefore, it is a good idea to do your research regarding what choices and costs are involved with lifting it correctly. Nobody wants to be stuck on the side of the road or on the trail due to an improperly engineered or installed suspension or steering modifications.

TIRE SIZE: All types of lift kits allow for the use of larger tires.  Lifting a Jeep to make room for slightly larger tires can be simple and inexpensive. Lifting a Jeep properly for reliable off-road use or to make room for a dramatic increase in tire size can be very pricey. If you simply want to run a little larger tire, you might not actually need a lift kit at all. Unlike most light trucks and SUVs, there are ways to fit larger tires on a Jeep without adding a full suspension lift kit. Minor fender trimming, major fender trimming, adding aftermarket high clearance or flat fenders or just adding coil spring spacers might serve your purpose.

Not all Jeep parts and accessories are created equal: There are likely more aftermarket parts and accessories available for Jeeps than any other vehicle on the planet.  As a result, there are countless manufacturers of Jeep lift kits, parts and accessories. There are many manufacturers that offer high quality, well engineered and rigorously tested products while some sacrifice quality and/or even necessary components in order to make their products more affordable. When it comes to altering the suspension, steering, brakes, and/or other crucial components on your vehicle, it important to understand that you will most often get what you pay for.  Sacrificing quality and safety to save a little money is never a wise choice. There are some manufactures whose products we refuse to sell or install. They are big sellers simply because they are inexpensive but, if we wouldn't install it on our own vehicle, we won't install it on yours.

Types of lift kits available for Jeeps:

BODY LIFT: Many people will tell you that a body lift is an inexpensive and effective way to lift a jeep. Body lifts typically range from 1 to 3 inches and can usually be purchased for just a few hundred dollars without new shocks.

Body lifts work by providing taller spacers and bolts that are installed between the frame and body of the vehicle.  Sounds pretty straightforward right? Not so fast. Depending on the height, some body lifts will also require you to install extensions and/or new brackets for things like the radiator, transmission and transfer case shifter, fuel filler tube and possibly your steering linkage. These extensions are necessary to ensure that your Wrangler’s normal functions are not impaired. New brackets are required to keep your radiator in the correct position to allow for proper function and air flow and to allow for re-installation of the fan shroud (which must be removed prior to installation). Because the body was raised while the transmission and transfer case stayed in place, the shift and transfer case linkage must be extended to allow it to fully engage into the correct position. Your fuel filler tube must also be extended because you have increased the distance between the filler cap and the tank. In some cases, you may also need to install an engine mount lift kit. Your steering linkage support may also have to be lifted to correct altered steering angles. Without a taller linkage support, you may experience stiff steering.

In our honest opinion, this is certainly NOT the most favorable approach to lifting your Jeep Wrangler or any vehicle for that matter. A body lift is mainly cosmetic and will not actually add any additional ground clearance from the kit itself. It provides zero increase in wheel travel. A body lift will only allow for the installation of larger tires. A budget boost is likely a much better option.

ECONOMY/BUDGET BOOST: A budget boost or spacer lift is a basic .75" to 2.5" suspension lift that is achieved through the installation of inexpensive .75" to 2.5" thick polyurethane coil spacers which are installed on top of your Jeep's stock coil springs. Some kits feature spacers that are taller up front and shorter in the rear to help eliminate your Jeep's factory rake. Some budget boost lift kits include  longer aftermarket shocks or shock extensions, longer sway bar links, brake line brackets and even track bar brackets. Some kits just include the spacers.

If you simply want is to give your Jeep a more aggressive look by adding a little bigger tire... then a budget boost may be the right choice for you. If you want to slowly ease your way into the whole "lift kit" thing and are not certain how high you want to go.... a budget boost may be a good starting point but, we recommend that you skip the shock extensions and go with new taller shocks.

Aside from price, budget boosts are popular because they don't require many modifications to the suspension (drive shafts, alignment, etc). Like Body lifts, they are mostly installed for clearance of larger tires (typically up to 35") and/or for very light off-road driving. If you are going to get the taller shocks anyway. You might be better off spending just a little more and step up one more notch to the coil spring lift kit which, unlike the budget boost, will slightly increase wheel travel.

COIL SPRING LIFT KIT: A Coil Spring Lift typically includes stiffer, or longer coil springs which offer you 1.5" to 3.5" of suspension lift. Depending on the manufacturer, these kits may also include components like new, longer shocks, brake line extensions, bump stops, track bars, track bar brackets, and sway bar links.

Where a Budget Boost is basically used to allow clearance for larger tires, a Coil Spring Lift is where you truly start seeing the benefits of lifting a jeep because the taller coil springs provide increased articulation which will result in improved tire contact with driving surfaces.

Some Standard Coil Spring Lift Kits include an adjustable front track bar but most do not include any adjustable control arms. Control-arms are the links in the suspension that connect the axles to the frame and locate them fore and aft. The stock JK Wrangler has 8 fixed length (non adjustable) control arms for longitudinal axle control and 2 track bars (non-adjustable, front and rear) for lateral axle control.

The length of the OEM control arms and track bars are designed specifically for the stock height and travel of the suspension. If you lift your jeep too high and don't replace your stock control arms, your wheelbase will be shortened and you may get vibrations in the drive line from improper pinion angles. The taller the lift, the bigger the issue you will have using the stock control arms. To avoid problems, we do not recommend installing a coil spring lift kit taller than 2.5 inches.

SHORT ARM LIFT KIT: A quality Short Arm lift kit will typically include everything found in a coil spring lift kit, with the addition of longer, adjustable control arms front and rear. The adjustable control arms allow for lifts from 2" to 5" and even taller. The short arm lift kit offers even more articulation than the coil spring lift, without getting into cutting, welding, major fabrication or suspension modifications. The adjustable control arms will also allow you to correct things like wheelbase and pinion angle to avoid drive line vibrations.

Most quality short arm lift kits will also include adjustable track bars which will allow you to re-center the axles under the frame after the vehicle is lifted. A complete Short Arm Kit in excess of 3" will also include brackets and other components necessary for steering geometry correction. Short arm lift kits that exceed 4 inches will usually require aftermarket drive shafts but usually, they are not included in the kit.

Aftermarket control arms and track bars are almost always adjustable and can be used with a number of different lifts heights. So, if you want to lift your ride even higher in the future, you won't have to replace every component.

We would recommend a quality Short Arm Lift Kit over most all other lift methods due to the fact that they are a complete suspension system. They generally include all of the necessary components required to lift a Jeep safely while maintaining proper steering and suspension geometry. In many cases, Jeep owners find  that they eventually end up with all of the components of a short arm kit anyway after they have successfully correct issues that resulted from installing less complete types of lift kits. If your budget allows, it is often less expensive to just start with a short arm kit than it is to build a short arm kit one piece at a time.

LONG ARM LIFT KIT: The Long Arm lift kit for a Jeep is definitely not for everyone. They are usually the most expensive lift you can buy and usually require a quite a bit more labor to install them. A Long Arm Lift Kit typically requires some amount of fabrication and/or welding. They offer lift heights from 3" to 6.5" or more. Most long arm kits utilize longer control arms (usually 10" longer), which require installation of new, heavy duty aftermarket control arm brackets. You will also need to remove (cut off) the stock brackets from the frame. Due to the extreme axle articulation achieved with a long arm lift kit, new drive shafts will usually be a requirement.

The advantages of a Long Arm kit is pretty straightforward.... crazy articulation and as a result, insane crawling ability. If you do not intend to do some serious wheelin', a long arm lift kit is probably overkill.

RIDE HEIGHT INCREASE: It is important to remember that all ride heights increases listed on lift kits are approximate and will vary due to vehicle specification (Engine size, factory options, addition of heavy aftermarket accessories like bumpers, winches, other trail equipment, etc). Coil spring spacers are often used to compensate for the added weight of aftermarket parts and accessories.

CHANGING GEARS: So, why change the axle gears? Your vehicle was originally engineered for the tire size that came on it from the factory. Think about what happens when you increase the tire size. A larger tire will go farther down the road than a smaller tire before it makes one complete revolution. So, if you increase the tire size without changing the axle gears, your drive shaft will be turning slower when you're driving down the road. As a result, your engine will be turning slower. If your engine is turning too slowly, it won't be creating enough power and your performance (and even fuel economy) will likely suffer. So, to get that power back, you need to change the axle gears (or add an expensive supercharger). Bigger tires means higher numbers for axle gears. Installing axle gears to match the tire size change increases the engine speed back closer to what it was when it came from the factory.

SPEEDOMETER CORRECTION: If you increase the tire size, and/or re-gear your axles, you will need to let your vehicle's computer know about the changes. It will be necessary to purchase some sort of programmer with the ability to correct the speedometer and gear ratio. If the speedometer is left uncorrected, there can be a major degradation in the performance of the Electronic Stability Program (ESP), transmission shifting, and engine performance. In some cases, not correcting your computer with regard to speedometer and gear ratio can force your Jeep into "Transmission Limp Home Mode".

TRANSMISSION LIMP HOME MODE: On 2007+ Jeep Wranglers, the transmission function is monitored electronically for abnormal conditions. If a condition is detected that might result in transmission damage, Transmission Limp Home Mode is activated. In this mode, the transmission remains in 4th gear regardless of which forward gear is selected. PARK, REVERSE, and NEUTRAL will continue to operate. The Malfunction Indicator Light (MIL) will usually be illuminated. Limp Home Mode allows you to "slowly" drive the vehicle home or to a repair shop for service,without damaging the transmission.

ELECTRONIC STABILITY PROGRAM:
If you own a Jeep manufactured after 2007, you have computerized technology installed in your vehicle called ESP (Electronic Stability Program). It is intended to improve a vehicle's stability by detecting and reducing loss of traction (skidding, oversteer, understeer). When ESP detects loss of steering control, it automatically applies the brakes to help "steer" the vehicle in the direction that the driver intends to go. Braking is automatically applied to wheels individually, such as the outer front wheel to counter oversteer or the inner rear wheel to counter understeer. Some ESP systems also reduce engine power until control is regained.

The Electronic Stability Program works pretty well. It is designed to save your skin on slippery surfaces as well as other situations and often does it so well that you don't even notice that the program is intervening. The Elevtronic Stability Program also includes the Traction Control System (TCS), Electronic Roll Mitigation (ERM), Brake Assist System (BAS) and Anti-lock Brake System (ABS). ESP can be "turned down" and even "turned off" on many vehicles but, it is there for a reason and it is also there by law.

The point I want to make here is that when you decide to make modifications to your vehicle such as a lift kit, larger tires etc., you need to be confident that whatever aftermarket parts you install or alterations you make are not going to interfere with or even unnecessarily trigger the Electronic Stability Program. You really dont want steering, braking or acceleration corrections being made when they are not actually needed. Be sure that any lift kit, or other accessories you decide to add, have been tested and that you have confirmed that they will not interfere with the vehicle's electronic stability program.

If you decide that adding a lift kit is the right choice, contact Texas Tire Sales at (817) 598-0333. We offer most top brand lift kits in heights up to 6.5" for Jeeps. We provide expert installation and four wheel alignment at a very competitive price. We also offer all of the aftermarket accessories from tires, wheels and steering stabilizers to auxiliary lighting and winches.