best replacement when rebuilding the suspsension

I live on a really bumpy lava rock road- 2.5 miles one way. The suspension on my 2002 3.7 2wd liberty is really, really showing it's age, bottoming out on potholes etc. Got 161k miles on it, great vehicle, but again, the suspension is showing it's age. Thinking of doing the medium duty 1.5 lift old man emu shocks and springs, and replacing most everything else (track bar, ball joints, etc) -- what are you guys thoughts on this? I really don't need a lift, but at the same time, I want high quality rugged springs and shocks for the road. If it lifts it a little, won't hurt- during heavy tropical rains rocks can show thier ugly sharp heads. I live on da big island of Hawaii, on an active volcano BTW. Its a 2002 KJ 2wd sport , pretty much my wife's favorite vehicle for life, I have three of them in my yard, putting a motor in an identicl appearing 4wd sport next. FYI- I have 11 Jeeps, but most of them are 4.0 wranglers, ZJs, WJs, TJs, CJs, YJs , XJs and one MJ

I think OME springs and shocks are a great idea. The ball joints are probably going to go bad before the control arm bushings. Have a look for torn rubber boots on the ball joints or cracks/torn bushings. Pretty sure the KJ Liberty doesn’t have a track bar, but it does have a “boomerang” upper control arm in the rear with an upper ball joint that typically wears out. Iron Rock Offroad makes a replacement for this part that is much more durable than stock.

Thanks- yeah, the price difference is extreme. Going OEM and replacing nearly everything.

cruisingram2000 said:

Thanks- yeah, the price difference is extreme. Going OEM and replacing nearly everything.

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I don't think you can find an OEM rca (boomerang) and if you do they're about the same price as the Iron Rock and not nearly as good. Any of the OEM type that are available aren't know to last.

The OME springs and shocks are an excellent and proven choice.
Because of availability where I live, I opted for H&R raising springs (sold as a set, part no. 29203-1) and Bilstein shocks all round. Gave me about 2” of lift. I saved a little bit of money and am quite happy with this set-up.
Just do your research. Lots of good info on this site and others.

I installed OME front and rear. Jeep rides great with no suspension issues. Here are some pics of the lift.

duderz7 said:

I don't think you can find an OEM rca (boomerang) and if you do they're about the same price as the Iron Rock and not nearly as good. Any of the OEM type that are available aren't know to last.

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They are cheap enough to just change in their entirety when they're shot. Not that hard to change either.

I tried new bushings once, and had to tack weld them in because the holes were stretched. Lift also angles the bushings and they tear faster. JBA had a bracket to alleviate that problem.

u2slow said:

They are cheap enough to just change in their entirety when they're shot. Not that hard to change either.

I tried new bushings once, and had to tack weld them in because the holes were stretched. Lift also angles the bushings and they tear faster. JBA had a bracket to alleviate that problem.

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Or buy the IRO once and never worry about it again. The bushings, if you choose that option, are even at the proper angle for lift.

duderz7 said:

Or buy the IRO once and never worry about it again. The bushings, if you choose that option, are even at the proper angle for lift.

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Too late now. That KJ diff bracket is a new offering.

My first new $80 jobber arm is still sitting standby on my shelf. 309,000km now on a couple used arms and a set of bushings. I'm still ahead on $$.

u2slow said:

Too late now. That KJ diff bracket is a new offering.

My first new $80 jobber arm is still sitting standby on my shelf. 309,000km now on a couple used arms and a set of bushings. I'm still ahead on $$.

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I suppose that's a matter of perspective. I personally prefer quality. My Jeep rides way better with the IRO, I'd hate to put the original back on.