TJ vs YJ Drivability

[18406ej]

Greetings-

I am a new member on the site. I drove a ‘95 YJ Sport (stock w/4.0) until my first child came along.

I just bought a 2000 TJ with low miles and the options I wanted. It has new 33” tires and a 4 1/2” lift. Compared to my YJ, which maintained tracking without problems, the TJ darts across the roadway with just the slightest steering input.

The lift kit in place is an older Rough Country model with worn bushings and most likely worn-out shocks. I live along the coast, and while the TJ frame and tub are solid, the lift components corroded to a point where the paint is flaking off. Without meaning to demean the product, my understanding is that Rough Country products are at the lower end of the durability scale.

I am completely unfamiliar with the proper feel of driving a lifted Jeep. I know that returning a 4 1/2’ lifted vehicle to a stock suspension or even to a 2” suspension can be more trouble than it is worth. I have no problem with a 4 1/2” lift, but after repairing (or more likely replacing) the kit, will the Jeep handle more like a standard vehicle?

Note: I am in no way complaining about suspension stiffness and the accompanying bumpy ride that all Jeeps have. I just want to be able to hold a cup of coffee, remove my other hand from the steering wheel to shift gears, and not have my TJ swing into the opposing traffic lanes.

Thanks for any input,

E

 

[Wildman]

I've owned both a YJ & a TJ and both were lifted and ran 33" tires on both at one point.

It would help if you posted pictures of the front of your suspension mainly the steering components. What does the pitman arm look like? What about the trackbar? Two items can cause a lot of the issues you're talking about.
The recommendations you'll most likely receive here are to replace your complete suspension system.
Recommended lift kits are:
1) Savvy 4"
2) Rockjock 4"
3) Metal Cloak

There are tons of threads on here about the pluses and minuses to all the kits listed and why you want to choose one over the other. Same thing with shocks.
To answer your question, YES a TJ can & should drive close to a stock vehicle even with a 4" lift & 33" tires.

 

[DuckNut]

You have worn out parts.

My LJ tracks perfect with bigger tires than you have. If you are getting sudden direction changes you need to inspect your suspension and steering components. My solution would be to replace all the bushings and see where that gets you.

Who cares if Rough Country is on the lower end of the scale. They have millions of kits out there and they do what they were built to do.

People who spend more money on a product will tell you that lower priced goods are crap to make themselves feel good. People love to bash a company far more that they give praise and when they sell more kits in a week than most companies sell in a month or year, you are going to see more negative chatter.

 

[RoadRanger]

I suspect my 1998 with over 200K miles has a worn-out steering box:
https://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=11541121
But I need to check it for play. No death wobble, kindof a massive looking new-ish steering stabilizer :

 

[Tob]

Without meaning to demean the product, my understanding is that Rough Country products are at the lower end of the durability scale.

No need to be sheepish, we quite like demeaning Rough Country and the like here .

No reason you can’t have expectations of a straight-tracking TJ. It’s just a matter of diagnosis and fixing, and you’ve come to the right place for that. Welcome to the forum.

 

[Wildman]

You have worn out parts.

My LJ tracks perfect with bigger tires than you have. If you are getting sudden direction changes you need to inspect your suspension and steering components. My solution would be to replace all the bushings and see where that gets you.

Who cares if Rough Country is on the lower end of the scale. They have millions of kits out there and they do what they were built to do.

People who spend more money on a product will tell you that lower priced goods are crap to make themselves feel good. People love to bash a company far more that they give praise and when they sell more kits in a week than most companies sell in a month or year, you are going to see more negative chatter.

Rough Country is a lower quality suspension company. At this point IMO with his description of what's happening I agree with you that parts are worn out and it'd cost close to the same to just replace the bad joints as to buy a higher quality suspension system.

From his description I'd also suspect there might be a dropped pitman arm installed which is why I suggested that he post pictures.

 

[JustDandee]

Gang- Any thoughts on caster angle on 4 1/2 “ lift with stock arms? Pictures probably help there too. Just noting “low” miles comment.

 

[OldBuzzard]

First thing to check, for free: what's your tire pressure?

 

[TheBoogieman]

The old 4" RC lifts came with a dpa too. I bought a Jeep with an RC lift, and I could barely keep it in my lane on back roads. Replaced the dpa with a stock one, put some decent shocks on it, a DIY alignment and all was well after that.

 

[MBDIAGMAN]

My TJ was lovingly built by member Peppergats in honor of his late son, and I can tell you that even with a lift using various high quality components but with RC control Arms, 35’s, it drives around town predictably, wonderful at 70MPH on the highway to the Off Road Rec Area and awesome on the trails and over the rocks.

I know that the control arms will be replaced in the future, but for now everything is tight and properly adjusted.

I couldn’t testify about your components condition without my hands on it, I fully spect that Ducknut is right on the money with the first sentence of his post.

It sounds like you need to get underneath with a pry bar and start with the four P’s: Push, Pull, Pry and Prod. If everything is tight find someone who can set it up properly. If there are components that aren’t tight, correct them and THEN find someone who can set it up properly.

Hope this helps. Your machine has wonderful potential. Work through it and it will serve you well.

Edit: WHOOPS! I forgot to welcome you here. I’m new myself and have found this to be a good forum. Lots of helpful folks here.