Lifting IFS

[Chapman88SR5]

Earlier I asked about Ball Joint spacers and got all my questions answered.

But now I was reading another forum on YT about the Diff Drop (which I also planned on doing) and some people are saying that they would NOT lift an IFS even 3" due to the CV angle.

Now can someone tell me that those people are just extreme web wheelers and that it really is safe to raise my IFS 3"? I do off road quite a bit but nothing really extreme just yet.


*Offtopic* I never knew suspension was this stinkin confusing! I replaced my engine and that wasn't even this confusing!

[slosurfer]

My first question would be, How do you plan on lifting it 3"? If bj spacers and tbar crank, then even with a 1" diff drop, you will probably tear your inner cv boots often. Not unsafe, but a pain in the butt, especially when you forget to unlock your hubs and hop on the freeway. Gives the underside of your rig a nice grease bath. It is generally accepted, that 1.5" is about as high as you can go without getting into as many cv problems. Even with 1.5" lift and wheeling often, you are still going to be tearing some boots. Why do you need 3"?

[cootees]

I gained 3" of lift with bj spacers and a tbar crank while running manual hubs and without a diff drop. Been running this setup for nearly 2 years now and only recently did I break a cv shaft.

I don't really think that is bad at all considering how hard I wheel my rig and I typically venture out every other weekend to hit a trail.

[marko3xl3]

Even though I cannot tell you the exact procedure to get it right (my web wheeling experience isn't gonna help), I know it's possible to do a 3" IFS lift without endangering your CV's. That t-bar can be replaced with a better solution.

Bottom line, it'll take more work, therfore thoroughly consider if ya really need it.

And yes, suspensions are really confusing and there's no shame in not being an expert on some things. Ask wabbit...he's awesome with a welder but doesn't like working with engines .

[callmej75]

Diff drop is added insurance...doesn't cost much so I'd get it.

[Chapman88SR5]

I was planning on just getting 1.5" BJ spacers and 26mm torsion bars for the front.

I want the lift so I can fit 33"x10.5" tires.

[Robinhood4x4]

33x10.5s fit with 1.5" of lift. Probably even fit with no lift.

You also do not want to go with thicker tbars as that will only make your ride stiffer and reduce your articulation. If you're going to be doing high speed desert driving which includes jumping, then thicker bars are advantageous.

If you're set on going 3" then just crank your stock bars instead of getting thicker ones.

[waskillywabbit]

If you want to run bigger tires, put a mild lift on it and call it done as with the early IFS stuff you are better off putting your money into a SAS if you are looking for 35s+. You just sacrifice too much drivability on the early 1st gen IFS. I had a bud who did a mild lift and fit 32s nicely w/o sacrificing drivability but that was after going 33s and it driving like crap and having to lower the crank on his torsion bars.

[slosurfer]

I was planning on just getting 1.5" BJ spacers and 26mm torsion bars for the front.

I want the lift so I can fit 33"x10.5" tires.

Your best bet would be just the spacers and stock tbars. If you want a little bit more room add a 1 or 2" body lift because those actually help with tire clearance. A suspension lift may still compress back to the stock location, so in reality it doesn't help clear larger tires for offroading. If you are set on getting the bigger tbars, I wouldn't crank them past stock with the bj spacers. I know many people run spacers and tbar crank, but take it from me with just spacers, sometimes I want to relax my tbars just so that my boots stay intact longer (for some reason, I only have problems with the driverside). Also, listen to wabbit, he has forgotten more than I will ever know about this stuff. There are many out there who have spent a lot of time and money on IFS, and the majority will tell you to just keep it simple.

[reggie 00]

They had a good explanation on Extreme 4x4. about the pros and cons of IFS.
I did the ever popular Ball joint spacers and cruiser coils, left the t bars the same as they were before i started.
Figured it would be money wasted to do a IFS lift and then exceed those capabilities and then want to do a SAS.

I fit 32's pretty good. I had a little piece in the inner fender sticking out that i found pretty quick where it was and just as quickly wore it down out the way.

Lots of good info here. Whatever you decide just make sure its done right to keep you and the rig safe.