My First Jeep ZJ

[Chevy4Life]

well i just picked up my first jeep yesterday, '93 grand cherokee limited and i want to get a small lift, bigger axles and bigger tires. ive been on this forum going through posts and the newbie section but dont know where to start looking for parts or how-to's for this stuff.... is there a beginners forum out there for this sheit

[heeps4ever]

well now that you own a jeep, you'll soon realize that you prefer jeeps to chevy's
anyways, if a small lift is all you want. then check out rubicon express. dont worry about axles yet. do the lift, get some decent rubber on it, then wheel it. as the money comes in, you'll wheel more and learn more about how to wheel. then modify your ZJ along the way. way more fun then dumping 20G right off the bat and not even know how to wheel it. start small is what im sayin.
have fun!
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[Chevy4Life]

well what rim and tire combo should i get for it? its mainly used on the road but id like to take it off road once in awhile. its my winter ride





couple stock pictures before the fun begins

[jeeperak]

i think the limited v8s have a aluminum 44 in the rear and a 30 up front. they will hold up good for a dd and occasional trail rig with 33s but that will require a good sized lift or a smaller lift and lots of trimming. how big yo want to go??

[Chevy4Life]

well my limited only has the Inline 6. how far can u take the stock axles tire size wise before they break? i dont want to max them but i need to know what i can work with

[Chevy4Life]

i found this in the pics thread, but this is my idea stance and tire combo i want to get at for now. to start off

[heeps4ever]

look for a 4 inch suspension lift. i mention earlier about rubicon express. they have many options for ZJ's. also check out rusty's offroad, a few good options there as well. start at four inches. change to a 15X8 wheel, with a 3-4inch backspacing. the axles you have will not hold up to hard wheeling and any tire bigger then 33"(dana30 front, dana35c or dodge 8.25 rear). with a 4inch lift you might be able to fit 33" tires with some fender trimming.
if you want add a lockingdifferential to the rear, that will help traction even if you stick to a smallish 31"-32" tire. get a good allterrain if you spend more time on road.
there are many other combinations to look at, but this is the jist of it all. maybe stop in at a local 4x4 shop and see what they think. or email/phone a few shops too see what works for them.
e

[heeps4ever]

oops, make sure when you find a suspension system it comes with as many parts and pieces as possbile. 4 new coils, 4 new shocks, longer brake lines, adjustable track bars, all the hardware. a kit with longer control arms is a good idea too, but that will be for taller lifts. look into getting a short shaft kit for your transfer case, and a longer rear driveshaft(wwwjbconversions.com). better to do it now.

[Chevy4Life]

what kinda prices am i looking at for lift kits? im parking the jeep in the summer and only taking it out to do some off roading. id eventually like to make it a part time 4x4 instead of full time, is that a possibility? also, the rear differential leaks a tiny bit of fluid out of the plug in the middle of the cover... i plan on changing the fluids thursday, do i need a new cover or can i seal the plug?

[gunmetalxj]

Shoulda gone with an xj

[Chevy4Life]

Originally Posted by gunmetalxj

Shoulda gone with an xj

ya thanks for the help

[heeps4ever]

hey, ZJ's are cool too! coil springs at each corner, crazy flex! the plug leak is no big deal. its just the fill plug. happens on most dana35's. just to be sure. make sure your breather tube on the rear axle isnt plugged. good time to move it up higher away from water. as for lift prices, that up to you. check some websites, make some phone calls or emails. once you've done a good lift and a set of tires. probably lookin at a couple grand. but again, depends on the quality of tire and lift you choose.

[Chevy4Life]

before the lift and tires im going to swap out the NP249 transfer case to the NP242 so i can have the choice of 4wd full time or 2wd full time. plus the VC is going out and it would be wiser to go with the tc swap. just gotta find one for a good price

[Gonecheenin]

If you wanna go cheap for now

-buy a set of used front coils to put in the rear for 3"s of lift
-add a 3" spacer above the front suspension to gain 3" all around
-throw on some NAPA shocks for cheap (look through their shock book & you'll find longer ones from different applications that will work well for you)
-redrill your front track bar bracket
-leave the rear alone & leave it a track a little crooked, buy an adjustable rear track bar, cut & weld an extension in to recenter it, or install a shade tree braced track bar bracket (highly suggest you DO NOT use the track bar bracket without bracing)
-crank your front lower control arm caster adjusters to max
-throw some 31-10.50's on 15x8 rims with 4" BS
-reset your toe (I've done it with a tape measure before in a pinch)
-trim the very bottom lip of the front bumper cover & your done


I did almost exactly this on my 96' Limited that I street drove and it worked very well on road and on the milder trails (got a locked & geared 93' Grand on 4.5" RE with 33" TSL's that I trail run on the harder stuff, but that one doesn't stay near as pretty - LOL)

[Chevy4Life]

id still like to get a locker eventually or at least a posi for the rear..but the problem is, its still going to be mainly for street use