Fact checking and some questions...

Lucky · **Joined:** Sat Mar 26, 2011 7:36 pm **Posts:** 28

Background info:
-I have an 07 liberty
-I'd like to lift (no intentions of going past 3")
-First venture into lifting
-Not totally green in car/suspension knowledge (also have a drifting hobby)
-Jeep will be used as main transportation (lots of highway driving) and occasional off-road fun
-Looking to do things right the first time!

I've been doing quite a bit of research (mostly through this forum), and I wanted to check my info and make sure I've got everything right.

It looks like the best way to go is OME springs and Bilstein shocks. What I would like to go with is the OME 927's in the front and 948's in the rear. For struts/shocks, the part number for the fronts should be "F4-BE5-D916-H0", and the part number for the rears should be "F4-BE5-6458-H7".

It looks like the rear bilsteins stated above are made for a lifted liberty, however the fronts are considered to be a stock replacement (correct me if I'm wrong). I was under the impression that in a lifted application, the shocks need to be lengthened in order to compensate for the increased wheel travel when flexing. My question is this: Will the front bilsteins I listed above be compatible with a lift of about 2.5" or so? In other words, are they longer than the stock front struts? And just to check, will the rear shocks listed also work?

Some other things I've noted that can be done for extra lift/leveling purposes are a clevis lift and extra strut plates in the front, and extra isolators in the rear. I was thinking I would do a clevis lift, 1 extra strut plate, and maybe 1 or 2 extra rear isolators.

Many suggest using the "TeraFlex" bump-stops in the front and just some simple hockey puck stops in the rear. Will 1 teraflex bump-stop cover the lift in the front? Would 2 hockey pucks cover the lift in the rear?

I will be doing tires around the same time as the lift. For tires I haven't gotten to a definite choice, but from what I've read a 31 inch tire should be able to fit with a 2.5" lift and some trimming/pinch-weld pounding. So, will a 31 fit or should I look for something smaller?

Along with tires, I'd like to do wheels as well so I can have a larger offset/rear spacing for a wider stance to have a sure footing considering the lift (I know you can do spacers but I don't want to fool with the possibility of breaking studs and what not). I'd like to go to a 15 inch black steel rim and many have suggested the cragar soft 8's. What would be a comfortable offset/rear spacing for those wheels? I'm thinking a 4" or 4 1/2" and some number of negative offset?

Lastly, as I stated, I'm going to be doing lots and lots of highway driving to and from college when visiting home. I would hope to be able to still run over-drive, but I'm not sure if I would have any trouble pushing the bigger tires round and round at high speeds. Should I be looking at a gear change? What's the biggest tire possible while maintaining the stock final drive?

In advance, I appreciate any help you guys give. This seems to be a great community, and I hope to be more involved in the future.

Phew, that was one hell of a first post.

ATXKJ · **Posted:** Tue Jun 28, 2011 9:42 pm

Howdy Lucky Welcome to LOST

I don't know the numbers - but you're basically looking for Liberty front shocks (don't think anyone has a taller version) and Durango rears. That fits the normal lifts.

1 Teraflex is all that will fit in the front and it should be enough - Front's really limited due to CV angles.
You might consider the Jeepinby AL A-arms if you have too many alignment issues - but you should get pretty close with stock arms.

Not a big fan of increased wheel offsets - it's a good way to tear off the fenders = not much clearance in the wheel wells, although a little in front keeps you from hitting the sway bar.

and 245/75/16's are the biggest that work well on stock gearing.

long_tall_texan · **Posted:** Wed Jun 29, 2011 11:30 am

x2 on what ATX said.

KJ uses stock length shock up front even when lifted. The stiffer springs give it the lift up front, then additions like the top spacer plate and clevis lift do not have an effect on the shock travel. In the Frankenlift setup, or Daystar spacer lift, the OEM top plate of the coil-over assembly is replaced with a new one that in-effect lengthens the shock shaft.

Teraflex bump stops cannot be stacked. One pair will do you just fine. 2 hockey pucks in the rear is common.

31" tire is a great fit on the KJ and as large as you want to go before re-gearing. 245/75-16 or 265/70-16 if you want wider, but roughly the same diameter. Trimming is pretty easy and straight forward on the 07 model, especially for 31" tires.

15x7 wheels with 4" - 4.5" of backspacing will work just fine. I ran the Cragar Back D Window wheels in that size (4" BS) with 31x10.50 and 32x11.50 tires.

Oh yeah, Welcome to the forum, and nice job researching. Sounds like you put all the pieces together very easily and straight to the point. Wish more would follow your lead.

At The Helm · **Posted:** Thu Jun 30, 2011 12:40 am

KJ uses stock length shock up front even when lifted. The stiffer springs give it the lift up front, then additions like the top spacer plate and clevis lift do not have an effect on the shock travel. In the Frankenlift setup, or Daystar spacer lift, the OEM top plate of the coil-over assembly is replaced with a new one that in-effect lengthens the shock shaft.

This paragraph has sprung an idea for me. Right now i am running the daystar on my kk. If I were to remove the lower poly spacer and replace the springs for ome 927s while keeping the daystar top plate in, i should be able to still use my stock front shocks by keeping them closer to normal stroke range, right?

dieselenthusiast · **Posted:** Thu Jun 30, 2011 2:17 am

Do you have OE 17” rims on your 2007? I’m running 245/70R17 and it works well. You would still need to re-gear to 4:10’s to enjoy highway mileage and regain power loss. WELCOME TO LOST :mrgreen:

long_tall_texan · **Posted:** Thu Jun 30, 2011 9:14 am

Atthehelm wrote:

KJ uses stock length shock up front even when lifted. The stiffer springs give it the lift up front, then additions like the top spacer plate and clevis lift do not have an effect on the shock travel. In the Frankenlift setup, or Daystar spacer lift, the OEM top plate of the coil-over assembly is replaced with a new one that in-effect lengthens the shock shaft.

This paragraph has sprung an idea for me. Right now i am running the daystar on my kk. If I were to remove the lower poly spacer and replace the springs for ome 927s while keeping the daystar top plate in, i should be able to still use my stock front shocks by keeping them closer to normal stroke range, right?

That is basically what I did. But I added a small spacer below the stock isos to equal a DIY FrankenLift. See details here: viewtopic.php?f=6&t=50921

Lucky · **Joined:** Sat Mar 26, 2011 7:36 pm **Posts:** 28

I've got 16" wheels on mah jeep. You guys gave me some great info, and I really appreciate all the welcomes!

Hopefully I can get all the parts ordered in the next couple weeks.

Edit*
@Tall Texan: How did the black widows look?

long_tall_texan · **Posted:** Mon Jul 04, 2011 4:48 pm

Lucky wrote:

@Tall Texan: How did the black widows look?

Like this!

Lucky · **Joined:** Sat Mar 26, 2011 7:36 pm **Posts:** 28

Ahhh, very nice! Dunno why you didn't keep them.

long_tall_texan · **Posted:** Wed Jul 06, 2011 7:45 pm

Just wanted a change up and got a deal on Moabs - TWICE!

Fact checking and some questions...

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