Your vehicle was engineered and built to perform in a specific way at the height it is now by the manufacturer. However, despite automakers traditionally discouraging the use of lift kits, the popularity of off-roading, increasing tire size, and the power of “looking down” on other vehicles has led to expanded use of lift kits on pickups, Jeeps, and SUVs.
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The practice of installing lift kits puts stress on suspension components and other parts, often resulting in manufacturers not covering components under the basic standard warranties or extended service plans. Some manufacturers, like Jeep, for example, now offer Wranglers with a factory-installed 2-inch lift that can be warrantied with an extended Mopar Vehicle Protection Plan. Vehicles with Mopar Lift Kits up 4 inches high installed by Mopar dealers can also be warrantied with a Mopar Vehicle Protection Plan and Mopar Lift Kit Protection Plan.
So, if you are considering the possibility of lifting your Jeep, Gladiator, Ram, or Challenger, for example, you need to know the pros and cons of lift kits, the types of kits, and safety factors affecting the installation of a lift kit on your SUV, truck or car.
Leveling Kits: The rear end of vehicles are typically higher than the front ends, which restricts the use of larger tires. Raising the front of your vehicle to the height of the rear provides clearance for larger tires, and often the level stance makes the vehicle look more attractive.
Body Lift Kits: This method of raising a vehicle requires unbolting the body from the frame, installing 1-3-inch nylon spacers between the frame and body, and re-bolting. Body lifts are time-consuming but are more economical than suspension lift kits. Body lifts retain the factory suspension geometry and alignment while providing more all-tire service clearance. These lifts create a gap between the body and frame, detract from the vehicle’s look by making the frame more visible, and sometimes hinder the performance by changing the vehicle’s center of gravity.
Coil Lift Kits: This type of kit is also less pricy than suspension lifts and puts space between the springs and body of .75 and 2.5 inches. Coil kits, also known as Budget Boost Systems, usually include longer shocks or shock extensions, longer sway bar links, brake line brackets, and track bar brackets. Some coil kits feature taller spring spacers for the front and shorter spacers for the rear for JK Wranglers or larger shackles for YJ Wranglers for leveling, too.
Suspension Lift Kits: These lift kits allow the owner to raise the vehicle as high as the driver feels comfortable and use a much larger size tire and wheel hub bearing combination. The annoyance factor of climbing into a monster SUV or truck, however, may not suit your family. Moreover, suspension lift kits will often roughen the ride, change the steering articulation, require more suspension components, and increase future maintenance. When properly paired with specific shock absorbers and other components, suspension lifts will prevent body squatting and excessive dive when accelerating and braking.
Suspension lifts come in two styles. The short-arm suspension lift kit is the most common for tough terrain and lifts vehicles under 4 inches. The long-arm lift suspension kits are for rock and mountain climbing, with the lifts ranging up to 10 inches. Such lifts can also conflict with towing restrictions, and state safety regulations and void your standard and extended vehicle warranties.
Keep in mind, that installing a third-party lift of more than 4 inches on a Jeep Wrangler, Gladiator, or Ram will restrict the owner from purchasing both Mopar Vehicle Protection and Mopar Lift Kit Protection Plans. Wranglers, Gladiators, and Ram ’s with Mopar factory-installed lifts of 2 inches are eligible for Mopar Vehicle Protection Plan contracts. Gladiators, Wranglers, and Ram ’s with dealer-installed Mopar lifts of 4 inches or less must purchase a Mopar Lift Protection Plan along with a Mopar Vehicle Protection Plan to maintain warranty service coverage.
The higher center of gravity of lifted trucks, Jeeps, cars, and SUVs means drivers must pay more attention to additional on- and off-road safety challenges.
Drivers of lifted vehicles need to forget about making tight turns, and swift maneuvering since the higher profile will cause such vehicles to flip or roll over easier in the event of an emergency maneuver. And rollovers if lifted vehicles will more likely result in serious damage and catastrophic consequences.
While the extra height provides an increased sightline above traffic and longer distance visibility, it reduces visibility in close quarters. The blind spots of vehicles with lifts are also larger, especially when small cars, motorcycles, bicycles, and pedestrians enter and excite the blind spots. This means drivers of lifted vehicles must be more vigilant in watching their entire surroundings.
A lift kit also leads to decreased steering and braking ability. The steering geometry is impacted by the higher center of gravity and the larger tires. The reduced steering, braking ability, and additional lift components require maintaining additional distance between your vehicle and the vehicle in front of you.
Drivers of lifted Jeeps, Rams, and SUVs must be particularly alert for the safety of shoppers and children in parking lots. You might need to turn off your vehicle, hop down and take a quick check for pedestrians before putting your vehicle in reverse, even if you have a backup camera.
Ram truck and Jeep owners get lift kits for two reasons: improve off-road performance and enhance a vehicle’s look. In addition, most Wrangler and Gladiator owners really do not need a kit because they a very off-road capable from the factory with or without a 2-inch factory installed lift kit.
However, depending on the desired all tire service size, ground clearance, off-road capability, look preferences, and driving needs, installing a lift may be very beneficial for the Ram truck or Wrangler owner. Furthermore, truck owners often add lift kits and integrated suspension systems for farm work and outdoor sports, additional off-road control on steep hills and deep holes, plus reduced dive when braking and squatting when accelerating.
Ultimately, the goal of adding a lift kit to a vehicle should be to achieve the best balance between daily on-roading, off-roading, camping, towing, and work use of the vehicle by the owner.
Shopping for a lift kit requires a lot of research if you want to enjoy and be satisfied with your choice over time.
From a budget consideration, leveling kits are the most cost-effective since only the front-end is lifted to match the rear-end, followed by body lifts, offering 1-2 inches of lift for less expense with usually no required suspension modifications.
Coil or budget boost systems, with 30-, 31- or 33-inch tires and 2.5 inches of lift, are slightly more expensive because they upgrade the suspension, but not to the extent of a full-blown suspension lift.
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The most expensive lift options are suspension lift kits -- short-arm kits with lifts under 4 inches and long-arm kits for 4 inches and taller – to gain ground clearance with improved approach and departure angles. It’s also important to realize that differences in JL, JK, TJ, and YJ Wranglers require unique lift kit components as provided in special lifts kits offered by Mopar for Wranglers. The 2-inch Mopar Lift Kit for the Ram Classic also features exclusive lift parts with rear shocks and front struts tuned for oversized wheels and tires to retain the geometry, ride, and handling of factory-built Ram trucks. You can also achieve this by looking into the wheel hub bearing.
Short-arm suspension lifts generally do not drastically change the steering geometry or the factory ride. These kits involve installing new coils, shocks, brake line extensions, bump stops, Jeep or truck sway bar links, track bars, and possibly adjustable control arms to maintain the factory geometry, along with larger tires. As a result, short-arm lifts offer better off-road advantages for a reasonable price with fewer maintenance problems than long-arm suspension kits.
When long-arm suspension kits are installed, the factory control arm brackets are completely removed, resulting in an extremely expensive lift installation and high future maintenance costs. This lift choice requires all of the suspension and tire changes noted previously for short-arm lifts, plus drive-line component replacement, fender trimming along with welding and fabrications of the radiator, steering linkage, and exhaust to maintain the factory-type geometry.
Jeep enthusiasts rejoice! The all-new Jeep Gladiator has arrived, and with it comes a brand new lift kit perfect for giving your rig some extra height. Here at our shop, we're excited to offer this great new lift kit and can't wait to see all the amazing modifications our customers come up with. If you're looking to take your Jeep Gladiator to the next level, be sure to check out our lift kit today. With its precision engineering and premium construction, this lift kit is sure to get your Jeep noticed on the trails and off-road ventures. So if you're ready to give your Gladiator a serious boost in performance and style, don't wait any longer - check out the new lift kit today!
Driving safety, state regulations, vehicle warranty issues, and vehicle utility are the overriding factors in determining whether to lift or not and how much lift. The right lift may look cool and increase your enjoyment of the vehicle, but if you make the wrong lift choice for your driving situation, lifting your Ram or Wrangler could be an expensive mistake.
Also, as you choose your lift, remember a Mopar lift kit of 4 inches or less professionally installed by a Mopar dealer on your Jeep or Ram can be warrantied with a Mopar Lift Kit Protection Plan and a Mopar Vehicle Protection Plan. Try our Quick Quote Calculator to obtain a Mopar Lift Kit Plan quote.
9-20-22Modifications to the Chrysler 300C are extremely popular. While performance upgrades are nothing new, there are some critical building blocks that should be considered to ensure you unleash your vehicle’s maximum potential. Below are a few things worth doing to properly modify your car for horsepower and handling.
Always make the suspension faster than the engine. Ensuring you can turn and stop will always be more important than knowing you can go fast. Getting your Chrysler 300C suspension dialed in can equate to you out-handling your competition, and depending on your type of racing, will even give you better times. If your vehicle came from the factory with softer suspension, it will almost always handle poorly until the suspension is replaced with a performance setup such as coilovers. Old, worn out suspension also has a very negative effect on the handling and should be replaced, especially if used for any spirited driving where handling is key.
Coilovers help to set up your Chrysler 300C height and damping, which allows you to lower your center of gravity and stiffen up your chassis for better cornering and control. Not only does your car look sportier (and better in our opinion), but it’s also a key step in allowing you to transform your car into a true performance machine, transferring your modifications into tangible wheel horsepower.
There are many different coilover brands and types on the market, so picking the right one can be daunting. Here are four key things you need to look for when buying Chrysler 300C coilovers.
Springs are an integral part of your suspension set up. They control the vehicle’s ability to bounce, absorb bumps and create low body roll when loaded. Higher spring rates require more force to compress the spring, which reduces the amount of suspension travel. The body of your car moves when you accelerate, brake and turn. By reducing body movement, you make handling more predictable and effectively spread the cornering load across all four tires better leading to better grip. Most aftermarket coilovers use significantly stiffer springs than OEM suspension, which improves handling and gives the driver more feel for the road and their car when performing spirited driving.
One of the many reasons anyone purchases a set of Chrysler 300C coilovers has commonly been to lower the car. The lower center of gravity will help reduce excessive body roll and improve performance. Having the adjustability for ride height, spring preload and damping are essential features of a high quality coilover. Adjusting your coilovers can help you fine tune how your vehicle handles and give it the perfect ride height for your application. The ability to replace the springs with stiffer springs is also an important feature as track cars need much higher spring rates than street cars to gain grip, improve handling and reduce body roll. If you swap to a stiffer or softer spring, it’s important to match your spring rate with your damping to avoid a bouncy ride which is ultimately detrimental to handling.
On top of the coilover is a mount that holds everything together and bolts the top of the coilover to the car. This mount is known as the “Top Mount” and between the mount and strut assembly are two different types of bushings, rubber or pillowball type. As you might expect, OE manufacturers use rubber bushings because it deflects more and is a primary cause for the failure of suspension precision. The rubber you’ll find on most OEM struts is soft and allows a lot of energy deflection. A stiffer rubber mount improves longevity and reduces energy deflection. A pillowball bushing is a metallic spherical joint which rather than deflecting from the cornering forces like a conventional rubber bushing, pillowball mounts do not move at all. This translates into a far more precise feel from the suspension and steering.
Inside any coilover, there are two designs of dampers you will come across, monotube and twin tube. The twin tube uses an inner and outer tube, twins if you will. The inner tube holds the piston shaft, valve and oil. The outer tube holds damper oil and nitrogen gas. Here’s how it works; when the suspension is compressed, the piston forces oil out of the inner tube by its valve and into the outer tube. When the piston moves back into position, the oil is sucked from the outer tube back to the inner. Most OEM suspension utilizes the twin tube damper set up because it allows for more suspension stroke and improves ride quality.
Monotube dampers hold the gas and the shock in one tube, separating the liquid from the gas with a floating piston. The design pushes the damper piston through oil and pushes the oil through chambers through the valves in the piston itself. This design allows the gas to be compressed and react quicker, by compressing slowly over small bumps and more quickly through larger bumps. One incredibly important detail about the Monotube is its ability to be used either way up, unlike most twin tube dampers. Compared to the twin tube design, the Monotube holds more fluid, has better heat dissipation and improves the responsiveness of the damper.
For the best performance on the street or track, the Monotube design is a superior upgrade to the twin tube design.
If you aren’t needing Chrysler 300C Suspension options designed specifically for heavy track use, Air Suspension is another great choice. While primarily used for street or show cars, many Air Suspension Kits available on the market today are strong enough to withstand light track use as well. While the debate between those that prefer coilovers or air suspension can get pretty heated, the unmatched height adjustability of air makes it a strong Chrysler 300C suspension option in our opinion.
Another thing to consider when modifying your Chrysler 300C are sway bars. By default, almost all factory cars are tuned with an understeer bias. This makes them easier to drive at their limit, and much safer. For example, a stock Mitsubishi EVO 8 (AWD Turbo) comes factory with a 24mm front sway bar, and a 22mm rear. While there are many upgrades the EVO might need out of the box, the point is upgrading the rear bar should be one of the first mods you do to bring the car to a neutral state. On our EVO 8, we upgraded the rear bar to a 25mm bar and noticed that the bar itself nearly corrected all understeering issues with the car itself. A bar and its size can make the world of difference in handling. Keep in mind when lowering the vehicle it changes your vehicle’s suspension geometry, which can incorrectly preload the sway bars and cause unpredictable handling characteristics, or in an even worse case, damage. To cure this, use adjustable endlinks to correctly preload the sway bar.
Brakes
While going fast is fun, how well can you stop at your peak power? This is something that must be considered for every build. Whether you’re building a race car or a street car, how well you are able to brake and how often will make a notable difference. Big brake kits consist of larger calipers with more contact pins in the caliper to hold and compress larger brake pads. With more brake pad surface on the brake rotor, you’ll need less time to push the brake pedal to stop. This also helps stop brake fade, which is a buildup of energy and heat from the brakes that causes them to start slipping after an extended amount of time being used. Larger calipers also help dissipate heat from the braking process, which attributes to less brake fade. Being able to brake efficiently and safely, and in style, makes a Chrysler 300C Big Brake Kit a key component for your build!
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