Has anyone used the rough country lift?

05Renegade · **Posted:** Sun Nov 06, 2005 2:15 pm

2003-2005 Jeep Liberty KJ 3" Lift Kit - Rough Country

Lift Kit includes: front strut extensions, rear coils and rear Heckethorn shocks.

jg45 · **Posted:** Mon Nov 07, 2005 12:43 am

I've got that lift installed. Had it on for about 2 months. There will be UBJ contact at full extension. I made some bumpstops to help soften the blow. The rear springs on mine only gave me about an inch of lift. I called them and they sent me some 2 inch poly spacers for the rear which gave me 3 inches of lift all around. I am on stock tires and the lip of the rear fender flare is 36 inches off the ground. The front is 35 inches. Getting the clevis bolt back into the lower control arm was a real PIA. I can't say that it is a bad lift. It's probably not the best out there either. The ride is comparable with stock. Hope this helps.

dynokj007 · **Joined:** Mon Aug 01, 2005 9:12 pm **Posts:** 43

stay away... i had mine for about 2 months, nothing but trouble. i had car algined 6 times and it still doesnt hold. The struts blew out, the caster couldnt be centered and corrected. Nothing but problems with this kit. CV joints and boot covers had to be replaced... spent well over 4G's on it and finally i just got it off and send it back to Rough Country for a refund.

My recommendation stay away. I am looking at Sky Jacker its 2.5 and a bit pricy but i have heard good things so far about it.

Oh if you want more info search for "Rough Country Dilemma"

Dhammbone · **Posted:** Thu Nov 10, 2005 7:46 pm

I have a rough country Lift kit on my 05 Liberty. I hated it at first. It says that it only takes an hour to install and they lie. i had a company do it for me. they were worse than i putting it on. had to take it to the dodge dealership and have them fix it for me. then 2 months later blew out my shocks. so i put rancho shocks on it. i love my rancho shocks. the kit also told be that i could put 265 tires on their. that was a lie. I had to do a bunch of cutting in the front to make it work. and in the back when i go on a trip with 4 people and lugage, the back rubs like crazy. my gas milage droped to 12-16 depending on how i drive. Over all it was a big pain. it took about 7 months and 1000 dollars to get it within reason. But i like the way it looks lifted and with the big tires. it gets alot of looks and is great in the mud.

dynokj007 · **Joined:** Mon Aug 01, 2005 9:12 pm **Posts:** 43

I spent 2 months and 4000 dollors and now i am waiting on my refund from them.

tniverth · **Posted:** Fri Nov 11, 2005 8:48 am

Well I guess with the previous posts explaining the problems they had, I'll just say mine wasn't good for my jeep and had to be changed

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kj in a tight spot · **Posted:** Fri Nov 11, 2005 11:57 am

Dhammbone wrote:

the kit also told be that i could put 265 tires on their. that was a lie. I had to do a bunch of cutting in the front to make it work. and in the back when i go on a trip with 4 people and lugage, the back rubs like crazy.

Well that is some bunk info. I have 265s on my Skyjacker and I had to do plenty of trimmin. That is expected though. I dont see how it is possible for it to rub in the rear though, I have had mine lift for over a year and on numerous occasions my KJ has been fully loaded (I'm talkin 5 people including myself, fully loaded trunk, and fully loaded roof rack) and have had not a single rubbin issue...may want to check on that...I never have had to trim in the rear wheel wells, only up front.

Dhammbone · **Posted:** Fri Nov 11, 2005 6:44 pm

it has 3 inch lift in the front and like 2 in the rear. i was thinking about seeing if i could put a 1 1/2 inch or 2 inch spacer in to lift a little bit more to prevent the rubbing. i also have after market wheels. so im sure that that is some of the problem to. what do yall think about putting spacers in the rear to lift it up alittle more to prevent the tires from rubbing even more in the rear?[/code][/quote]

chefdab · **Posted:** Fri Nov 11, 2005 6:49 pm

I'm suprised he hasn't chimed in yet but I'm pretty sure this is the lift Speleorelic has. He had sagging issues when towing his camper. He called them up and they told him they forgot to ship a poly spacer for the rear. They turned around and sent it and he installed it along with a set of air bag helper springs. You could tell immediately that the missing spacer was what was causing his problem. And when he inflated the air bags, it plumped up a little more. You might want to call them and see if there is supposed to be a spacer along with the springs for the rear.

backwoods · **Posted:** Sun Nov 20, 2005 3:54 pm

I've had a rough country lift in my KJ for 10 months now and had NO problems. I have 245/70/16 on stock wheels, and do carry extra weight(tools etc) no rudding as of yet.

Tokyojoe · **Posted:** Sun Nov 20, 2005 4:30 pm

kj in a tight spot wrote:

Dhammbone wrote:

the kit also told be that i could put 265 tires on their. that was a lie. I had to do a bunch of cutting in the front to make it work. and in the back when i go on a trip with 4 people and lugage, the back rubs like crazy.

Well that is some bunk info. I have 265s on my Skyjacker and I had to do plenty of trimmin. That is expected though. I dont see how it is possible for it to rub in the rear though, I have had mine lift for over a year and on numerous occasions my KJ has been fully loaded (I'm talkin 5 people including myself, fully loaded trunk, and fully loaded roof rack) and have had not a single rubbin issue...may want to check on that...I never have had to trim in the rear wheel wells, only up front.

Your lift is not the same in the rear AND if a company advertises that you can put tires for a specific size on, you should not have to mod your vehicle to make them fit without rubbing. If they say that with minor modification, you can fit this/that size tire on your vehicle with that lift, then that is okay. Rough Country does not do/say that.
The question for the others with the 265's is: Are your 265's a 70 or 75? They recommend 265/70/16 tires. If you had to modify with that size to get no rubbing, then the company needs to change it's sales info.

ManicMechanicJoe · **Posted:** Mon Nov 21, 2005 6:43 am

why wont the rough country lift fit the 2002's? what is so different? no other lifts show a difference.

Neatus · **Posted:** Mon Nov 21, 2005 5:15 pm

Quote:

Rough Country does not do/say that.

Rough Country's add in 4x4 and SUV says in big letters "Fits 265s"

scottslibby · **Posted:** Tue Jan 10, 2006 1:31 pm

did install rc last march.no prob right away but 7 months later was getting some knoking from pass. side cv.rc says they tested the 3' and no probs. well not true . cv,s are at to much of an angle,but they said they never had any complaints thats BS :roll:

.Was told the only way to fix the prob is to have cv,s rebuilt to accomadate for angle.and as far as the rear being lower than front,rc said they just came out with new springs that are slightly taller and stronger and offered to exchange at no charge.I also ordered air bags witch should help with load probs.By the way ask for ben at RC thats who I talked to :evil:

speleorelic · **Posted:** Tue Jan 10, 2006 8:33 pm

The Rough Country lift is not the best lift out there, but it is one of the least expensive. The kit was $360 and the install was $125. They did not provide the rear spacers until I called about the rear only getting 1 inch of lift. The rear spacers corrected that problem, and I added air bags because I tow a camper which pushes the rear down too much. If you're doing it for the first time,, I would recommend getting the Rancho struts because you will wear out the OEM struts pretty quick. The ride is good on the highway and it performs well offroad. The only rubbing issues are in the front at full turn,, just a little, no big deal. Before I installed the rear spacers I had lots of rubbing. I run Cooper Discoverer S/T 265/70R16 on stock renegade rims. No trimming or cutting at all. I would suggest that,,, if money is no object,, buy the biggest most expensive lift on the market. But if you are skimping pennies, trying to mod your jeep at the lowest possible cost, and you mostly drive on the road anyway, the Rough Country lift is fine. I've only ever had it aligned once right after the lift install. As for install time,, it took a jeep dealer well over a day to do mine. I think the one hour to do install from Rough Country is not true. I've had the lift on for a year now.

Good luck

George

ManicMechanicJoe · **Posted:** Tue Jan 10, 2006 10:20 pm

$360 is an aweful lot of money for a spacer lift

scottslibby · **Posted:** Wed Jan 11, 2006 11:57 am

how are your cv axles holding up?Are you getting any binding with your cv,s.I'm getting a lot of thumping from the right front.How easy is it to install those air bags because I have some orderd.I tow about 2500-3000lbs daily so I hope these will help whats your opinion?

ManicMechanicJoe · **Posted:** Wed Jan 11, 2006 9:23 pm

are you talking about the bags that fit inside the rear springs? or the ones that sit next to the springs?

scottslibby · **Posted:** Thu Jan 12, 2006 12:58 am

who George or Scottslibby?Scottslibby is putting them in the springs.Idon't know that they make them to fit outside

ManicMechanicJoe · **Posted:** Thu Jan 12, 2006 1:57 am

Scottslibby-The ones that fit outside are usually only on leaf springs, the ones that fit inside the spring are fairly simple (put em on my Dad's Suburban), just pop out the spring like you would do a lift, insert bag, run the lines (easier to do with the spring on a workbench) then reinstall. Should take all of two hours.

Has anyone used the rough country lift?

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