spoa - or - spring lift

[sand junky]

hi all...
to get a suzuki samurai trail and on-road worthy is new to me and i'm wondering if anyone can steer me in the right direction...?
spoa or spring lift??? and why???

thanks
:)

[Orionn]

A SPOA will get you lift and flex for the least amount of money.

Using lift springs in a SPUA will get you lift as well, but less flex.

you need to decide which one is right for you according to how your going to use it and your local lift laws.

the suspension is just the tip of the iceberg as well.....there is alot to be done to make it work well and be safe other than just lifting it.

At least your not considering a body lift (I hope)

Oh, and let me be the first to say:

:flipoff2: Welcome Ya NOOB :flipoff2:

[Orionn]

Here are some reasons most go with a SPOA configuration:

Flex :D Flex :D Flex :D

You reuse your old springs saving that cost (alot of $$$) to be used for the other things that will NEED to be done.

The ride actually will Improve some :eek:

The minimum lift of a SPOA with stock springs is about 5", using lift springs the most you get is about 3", and the ride will be rough.

Did I mention Flex:D

[sand junky]

...At least your not considering a body lift (I hope)

Oh, and let me be the first to say:

:flipoff2: Welcome Ya NOOB :flipoff2:[/QUOTE]

thanks...
unfortunately, the previous owner had body spacers and taller shackles installed... those will be coming off soon as i raise funds for spoa...

thanks again
:)

[Orionn]

thanks...
unfortunately, the previous owner had body spacers and taller shackles installed... those will be coming off soon as i raise funds for spoa...

thanks again
:)


Shudder :barf:

I hope that helps you out, dont be afraid to ask questions.

[Billyjones454]

Hey, I'm another newbee.

So are you saying that if I put YJ springs on my sammy, and it lifts it 3" that it will have less flex and a rougher ride compared to a SPOA?? Please forigive me, but SPOA is just moving the pirch to the top of the axle right? I don't really see how that would make a HUGE difference in flexability. I am about as green as they come guys, so I'm more than welcome to corrections and insite.

While we are on the topic, I have an old 79' toy for axles. The springs seem ok, and a buddy of mine said they are basically the same as YJ springs. Whats your take on that, are YJ and Toyota springs equivalent?

[supazuk94]

moving the pearch to the under the springs adds levrage thus increasing flex...

[TruckTrader]

Boy, where to start on this one. First off, how will you be using the rig? This is the first question you have to ask before building anything. What size tires do you plan on running? This will rule out spring under if you're going to run more than 31 inch tires. The picture below is of a spring under sammy running 32" MT's. It still has stock steering, stock shock mounts, stock brake lines and drive lines, stock R&P gears with a 4.1 transfer case. It has the rear springs moved forward with a missing link setup from Petroworks. The rear is a custom lift pack made from jeep cj lift springs with Petroworks missing links. It rides pretty good on road and has decent flex off road. I wheeled it at TDS with 31x10.5's and did not rub or have any issues, but I haven't wheeled it with the 32's. I imagine that will rub a little and some adjustments will need to be made. You will also get slight bump steer with this setup on the road. This rig was running a 16 valve and I did not have any weird handling issues with the missing links like I thought I was going to have.

It's cheaper to go the route I just described, but with that said I like the SPOA lift for a final solution if you're going to spend a lot of time wheeling. You just won't get the flex you need off road for the harder stuff with a SPUA. You can PM or call me if you want more info on the setup above. Oh yea, and welcome newbie! :flipoff2:

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c166/TruckTrader/86%20Hardtop/rightrear2.jpg

[chrissybf86]

do what i did and just get a set of yj springs.. it's the best for the buck and they flex great and ride good

[TruckTrader]

do what i did and just get a set of yj springs.. it's the best for the buck and they flex great and ride good

YJ springs flex great, ride good, and are free or cheap in and of themselves. BUT don't over simplify it - it's one of the more expensive SPOA kits to purchase. Or you can make your own brackets for the YJ's if you have the ability and the tools. So don't think you can just go out and buy some YJ springs and throw them under a zuk. There's a whole lot more to it than that to do it right (extended shock mounts, shock mounts for the axle, longer shocks, longer brake lines, crossover steering, drive line spacers or long splines shafts, spring perches, spring mounts for the body, etc.). Add all that up plus bigger tires, the lower gears you need to turn the tires, a lower geared tcase, lockers and your into your new project over a few grand pretty quick and you still don't have a cage, sliders, bumpers and so forth. Do your homework first and figure out how you're going to use it, how much lift you want and what your budget is.

[Billyjones454]

Does anyone have a link to a thread where someone installs yj springs WITHOUT a kit? Fabricating everything and all that.

[TruckTrader]

Does anyone have a link to a thread where someone installs yj springs WITHOUT a kit? Fabricating everything and all that.

I don't know of any threads that show step by step how to make one. But it's not that hard to do - especially if you have a kit to copy and make templates from. You're basically just moving the spring eye mounting point to allow for a longer leaf spring on the body side, probably about 3" from what I remember. The front is a little trickier to copy if you don't want to run missing links. The rear can be made to work with the modified mount and a longer shackle if you don't want to run missing links. Take a look at the vendors websites and you will get an idea of what's involved. Also, see my post above for all the other things you will need to address with this lift.

I have a kit here that I would be happy to let you copy, but you're probably not local to me. Maybe you can find someone in your area that has a kit and you can take the measurements and make templates. Good luck.

[zukidave]

Some folk's make it sound simple to do yj's but it turn's out to be more work then just mounting the spring's you've got steering ,brake line's, drive shaft's, shock's. As far as lift I've got yj's in one truck and stock sammi spring's in the other both spring over and the liftis not that much diffrent