Well, today was the day to tackle the installation of the JeepinAl's upper A arms.

Here is a shot of the KJ before work commenced. Ya'll normally see the other side, so I threw this one in for good measure:



I started off by loosening all the lug nuts, jacking it up, removing the wheels/tires, and placing it on jackstands.

On the passenger side, I removed the airbox by loosening the straight screw driver on the intake boot before snapping it out and removed the other bracket by removing the two 10mm nuts:


Pay no mind to that covering of Carolina sand all over the inside of my engine compartment. I should have washed it thoroughly before work commenced.

Loosen the 21mm nut that holds the UBJ to the knuckle and smack the knuckle with a hammer to release the UBJ and A arm:


Two 18mm nuts and 15mm bolt heads hold the A arm in place, remove those from inside the engine compartment:


At this time you are ready to grab the A arm and with a firm tug remove it from the Jeep:


Here is what the Al's arms look like compared to the stock units:


Fit the A arm into the slots, it may take some jiggling to get the bolts back into the holes and then torque both front and rear nuts to 90 ft/lbs.

Using a floor jack, raise the lower A arm assembly to facilitate inserting the UBJ into the knuckle:


Al's A arms come with new nuts which are 23mm so be prepared, I wasn't and had to head back to the shed to dig the socket out of my rollaway. Then torque the UBJ nut to 60 ft/lbs.

You're then ready to pack the UBJ full of grease via the handy zerke fitting installed on top:


I packed enough grease into the boot that it was escaping from the lip of the boot and out of the zerke fitting.

Reinstall two 10mm nuts on bracket and snap your airbox back into place while reinstalling the intake boot and tightening up the cinch band.

Now you're ready to reinstall the passenger side front wheel/tire, remove the jackstand from that side and torque the effected lugnuts.

Total time of passenger side install was less than one hour.

I'm soaked with sweat from near 90 degree temperatures and will be tackling the driver's side in a bit. I expect the drivers side to take a bit longer due to more interference, ie; steering linkage, battery, fusebox, etc;

More to follow.

Yeah that driver's side is a pain to get that back bolt,my bolts had a tab welded to them to keep them from spinning which made it nice.I had to use my 18" extension and a impact swivel to get that back bolt,what a pain in the a%$.Al's a-arms are really worth the money just from being able to grease the balljoint.Good luck and post some after pics.Really I'm just wondering if you loose a little lift from the suspension being at the correct angles like I did.

I already lost a little lift, somehow I unintentionally gave myself a clevis lift. The strut was not bottomed in the clevis, so I loosened the clevis retaining bolt, jacked it up as high as it would go under the lower a arm, spread the clevis with a screwdriver, and tapped it with a hammer.

I'm probably going to want that back. Noticed that both sides of the front were not sitting even. Hopefull that will give me the level look I've been after. Remember after installing the 1/2" packers in the rear I thought it could go up another 1/4" in the rear? Well, hopefully this makes me happy. It'll probably loosen up my front spring also.

Of all the things I could ask about in this thread, I came up with this OT instead..... Got a better pic of your Sleeve?

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99 TJ
71 C101
04 KJ
03 SFA KJ Sport
LOST JEEPS So-Cal

Alright kids, just finished the drivers side. Didn't remove the battery or anything else. The front bolt is a piece of cake to get at from the front. The rear bolt is a little more difficult, but I also got it from the front using about 36" of extension and a swivel!

My alignment is better already, the severe toe in is gone. No more rattling clunk either. I'm a happy dog, happy dog, hubba hubba hubba hubba.

The wheels are turned slightly to the left, but you can tell they aren't toed in:

Mutt, what do your cv angles look like? Looks like you have way to much lift on the front.

Did putting the new arms on do anything to the cv angle? I heard someone say onetime is does but I cannot think how it would?

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LOST KJ'S
Where are you going???
Current Jeep: 2004 Jeep Liberty
-Atlantic Blue
-Air Ride Rear Suspension ; OME/Rustys Lift ; Powertrax Locker ; Moog Lower Ball-Joints ; 245/70/16 Yokohama Geolander A/T-S's on MOABS ; Flowmaster 50 SUV
Lost #007082
http://www.cardomain.com/id/jeepjeepster

Here are what the CVs look like.

Before:

After:

The outer cv angle looks much better(as well as the lbj's angle) but your inner cv looks like it's at it's max angle.Any binding or noises when turning?

No binding, clicking, clanking or cracking. Drivers side does have a torn boot, but I think I know how that happened, pinched it during lift install.

Your KJ really does look awesome,just wondering what spring rate are your front springs?I need some of those suckers to hold up my KJ,hopefully I get my answer wed on my custom springs I'm trying to have made with 50-60% stiffer than stock and a 1/4" taller than my skyjacker's(f+r).

My front springs are the OME 927s that come as an option with the Frankenlift. They are for the CRD or ARB bumper and winch. I plan on getting the bumper/winch at a later date so I got the spring anticipating that. Unfortunately, I'm about out of my mod budget for now. Although, I do have a few more tricks coming in the next month.

I would recommend that you undo the clips on the boots (axle side) and slide the boot down the axle, pulling the boots down the axle. It will keep them from rubbing and wearing out. With the mud and dirt that is collected, they will wear out. To keep the CV quiet, while the bands are off get a needle point for the grease gun and slide the needle under the boot into the joint area, and fill with grease.

If the tear is not too large, clean the boot well, and use a high temp silcon to seal the hole. Clean the boot with brake cleaner, rough up the area with 80 grit sand paper. Start with the silcon tube tip in the hole and work it out, almost like a tire plug. Smooth the silcon over the hole, let it set a minimum of 24 hours. So far I have repaired three boots with this method, it lasts around a year.

Al

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One Ruby, One Grand Cherokee, One YJ, One disassembled CJ, one Chevy Mason dump, one hotrod IH Pick-up, couple of antique tractors.
Former owner of a 5.5 inch lifted KJ

Gosh mutt. Those look alittle steep. I really hope you do not have any trouble out of your libby. I know you were on the edge of selling it and i know when something goes wrong it makes you wan to sell it ever more. Just remember that when you wheel a rig, stuff IS going to break. Go over to an Xj forum and see how much stuff they break.

I would keep some extra funds around for those lower ball joints and tie-rod ends. You need to hurry up and get an arb with a winch to lower that front end!! Hope you get that boot fixed!

The 927's are the HD coils right? I have the MED coils so i should have the 926's I believe.

Edit: I now see in those pics how getting those arms can help cv angles. Helps that lower ball joint too.

_________________
LOST KJ'S
Where are you going???
Current Jeep: 2004 Jeep Liberty
-Atlantic Blue
-Air Ride Rear Suspension ; OME/Rustys Lift ; Powertrax Locker ; Moog Lower Ball-Joints ; 245/70/16 Yokohama Geolander A/T-S's on MOABS ; Flowmaster 50 SUV
Lost #007082
http://www.cardomain.com/id/jeepjeepster

Oh, I'm aware that stuff is going to break. My previous unhappiness was how new parts didn't work as advertised, more so that more parts needed to be purchased to correct inherent flaws.

I'm replacing the LBJs hopefully in the next week, also adding Detroit True trac to the front diff, Full Skid Row Skids, rock sliders, RE LCAs, and a custom boomerang..........oops, cats out of the bag. Oh yeah, A Flowmaster 40 and a couple other trinkets.

My wife loves me!

Thanks Al, I'll give that a try.

those Skid Row skids are beefy and have some weight so maybe they will help lower the front a little.

I will swear on every holy book of every religion all at once... that Mutt's lift increases every time he touches it.

Also that sometimes in the middle of the night his liberty grows a little taller on its own.

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~Miah~

2005 Liberty Renegade Dk Khaki
Stock

Pics!

Hard to tell from the pics, does the A-arm still make contact with the spring at full extension? Since they aren't as "beefy" near the the BJ I would guess they'd give a little bit of clearance. Nice to hear it didn't take too long to install.

Thanks for letting us know how it went.

No, that A arm no longer makes contact with the spring, hence my comment about no more clunking.

Does anyone have any pictures of the supposed arm contact with the spring. When fully unloaded my UBJ is what lays on the spring.

_________________
~Miah~

2005 Liberty Renegade Dk Khaki
Stock

Pics!