Stock Suspension Upgrade (No Lift)

[Lesman]

GO OME
you can use OME 925 front, 947 rear springs with stock shocks, either Bilstein or OME
Stock springs are only rated for 310 pounds in front and in 60-70,000 miles they are sagging already
With the 925/947 combo you will only be a bit higher than stock brand new but ride and handling are vastly improved
Do not go back to stock springs from Moog or any of them, not worth it unless you hate your KJ
and no struts on a Liberty, coilover shocks in front

oh and OME 925s are rated at 350, just what the KJs should of came with from the factory

and YES to replacing springs and shocks
If you replace the shocks only with the sagged out weak springs, it overworks the shocks causing them to wear out faster, stock these KJs were junk as far as suspension goes. I bought my 04 new and started looking to upgrade before it was a month old , couldn't stand the ride or handling

So Tom if I go 926/947 for this minimal lift what bilsteins should I use I'm sitting right around 19" all around. Do I need anything besides springs and shocks for this stock suspension upgrade?
Thanks,
Lester Ware

 

[tommudd]

So Tom if I go 926/947 for this minimal lift what bilsteins should I use I'm sitting right around 19" all around. Do I need anything besides springs and shocks for this stock suspension upgrade?
Thanks,
Lester Ware

front shocks are always the same
you'll still need an inch of bumpstop in the rear ( one hockey puck per side )
I have the number of rear shock here somewhere, will look it up

 

[WheelNut]

front shocks are always the same
you'll still need an inch of bumpstop in the rear ( one hockey puck per side )
I have the number of rear shock here somewhere, will look it up

Those Bilsteins he is using are the standard length units, right? (24139175) No mention of oversized tires, so why add an inch of bump stop in the rear? Is these something about these Bilsteins or OME springs that necessitate more bump stop?

 

[tommudd]

Those Bilsteins he is using are the standard length units, right? (24139175) No mention of oversized tires, so why add an inch of bump stop in the rear? Is these something about these Bilsteins or OME springs that necessitate more bump stop?

ALWAYS add one inch of bumpstop per one inch of lift
Tried and true advice since day one of people lifting any vehicle
does not matter if oversize tires/ wrong width of wheels etc
I know people ( well most of them dead now that instilled this advice to me in the 70s and they had been doing it for years
look at any well designed/ built lift kit for wranglers/ Toyotas etc, they come with bumpstops included

 

[WheelNut]

Okay, I can appreciate that there is accumulated wisdom here that comes from experience, but why add the additional bumpstop? Rubbing? Body roll? There must be some reason to do it.

 

[tommudd]

Okay, I can appreciate that there is accumulated wisdom here that comes from experience, but why add the additional bumpstop? Rubbing? Body roll? There must be some reason to do it.

Keeps the suspension to what it was stock , you gain height, can install larger tires but suspension travel is the same in a way
Now of course off road rigs you build for extra travel , but also have it so it limits the travel when driving on road etc

 

[Johnny O]

Where do you order your components from?

I had great customer service and prices on OME springs and both bilstien and OME shocks from Off-road Warehouse located in Escondido CA. No one locally could help me out and I had a series of issues with other vendors. I mean I probably should have listened to the gang here the first time, but was and am still green to Libertys. I should also note that in a act of desperation I did order and install a full suspension kit of TRQ stock style from 1A Auto and then beat the c.rap out of it in the desert. Those cheapo parts got me through a bind, but ended up all needing replacement after 4K miles of abuse. Bert also was a mushy sloppy mess to drive with that stuff. Got my 400 bucks worth out oh it though while sourcing the good stuff. So good Wifey had me buy and build a Liberty for her.

 

[tssphoto]

GO OME
you can use OME 925 front, 947 rear springs with stock shocks, either Bilstein or OME
Stock springs are only rated for 310 pounds in front and in 60-70,000 miles they are sagging already
With the 925/947 combo you will only be a bit higher than stock brand new but ride and handling are vastly improved
Do not go back to stock springs from Moog or any of them, not worth it unless you hate your KJ
and no struts on a Liberty, coilover shocks in front

oh and OME 925s are rated at 350, just what the KJs should of came with from the factory

and YES to replacing springs and shocks
If you replace the shocks only with the sagged out weak springs, it overworks the shocks causing them to wear out faster, stock these KJs were junk as far as suspension goes. I bought my 04 new and started looking to upgrade before it was a month old , couldn't stand the ride or handling

I want to replace my stock suspension and I'd like to do the OME 925/947 upgrade that you guys recommend but I can't find those springs anywhere. I found 926 and 948 springs on Ebay. I want to stay at the stock height as much as possible, I only have a couple inches to spare before it won't fit in my garage. How much of a difference is there between the 925/947 and the 926/948? Thanks!

 

[Johnny O]

I want to replace my stock suspension and I'd like to do the OME 925/947 upgrade that you guys recommend but I can't find those springs anywhere. I found 926 and 948 springs on Ebay. I want to stay at the stock height as much as possible, I only have a couple inches to spare before it won't fit in my garage. How much of a difference is there between the 925/947 and the 926/948? Thanks!

Those are the old part numbers. OME 90009 for the front and N132L for the rear. (Off the top of my head, I’ll update when I get to my office)

 

[tssphoto]

Those are the old part numbers. OME 90009 for the front and N132L for the rear. (Off the top of my head, I’ll update when I get to my office)

Thanks! I appreciate your help!

 

[Johnny O]

So here is the most recent ARB/OME Jeep Liberty application guide.
Few things to keep in mind:
You get around 2 inches of lift when compared to your saggy stock stuff.
There is 3 different weight ratings for springs based on application. Those of us that have/want an aftermarket bumper go with the heavy load set for the front.
Just recently, I ordered my front and rear springs, and front and rear shocks from Off Road Warehouse in Escondido, CA. Mostly because they accept Pay Pal Pay in 4 and I didn't listen to the gurus here and blew my original lift budget on garbage.
I tie.d up almost 3 grand for four months with returns because I didn't listen! LOL
There are long lead times right now. I just got in a pair of N132L last week I ordered 9 weeks prior. Had five week lead times on the springs. All were shipped factory direct.

Folks around here have had good luck with the Bilstein b8 5100 shocks too. (24-282642 front, 24-185660 rear) I used them on my wife's KJ, and to be honest, I like the way the front on hers handles better. But, keep in mind I haven't got past the settling in stage with mine, and have the OME heavy on Bert Mk. 1 for my planned bumper and application (I carry a ton of gear a lot of the time)

Here's a short thread we recently discussed such things:

Bilstein 24-185660 vs Bilstein 24-282659 on the rear

Discussion: Pros/Cons Bilstein 24-185660 vs Bilstein 24-282659 Thoughts? Applications? Looking at Bilsteins for Bert Mark 2. No clue what the difference is between these two I see used here on the forums in a KJ rear application.

www.jeepkj.com

There are also numerous other threads on here in the Lift discussions, both old and new, that get into great detail. Its just some are very old and the numbers have changed.
Don't forget your lifted front bump stops and hockey pucks!

 

[tommudd]

Those are the old part numbers. OME 90009 for the front and N132L for the rear. (Off the top of my head, I’ll update when I get to my office)

132Ls if going up 2.5 inches and beyond, too long if only an inmch or so of lift

 

[tommudd]

So here is the most recent ARB/OME Jeep Liberty application guide.
Few things to keep in mind:
You get around 2 inches of lift when compared to your saggy stock stuff.
There is 3 different weight ratings for springs based on application. Those of us that have/want an aftermarket bumper go with the heavy load set for the front.
Just recently, I ordered my front and rear springs, and front and rear shocks from Off Road Warehouse in Escondido, CA. Mostly because they accept Pay Pal Pay in 4 and I didn't listen to the gurus here and blew my original lift budget on garbage.
I tie.d up almost 3 grand for four months with returns because I didn't listen! LOL
There are long lead times right now. I just got in a pair of N132L last week I ordered 9 weeks prior. Had five week lead times on the springs. All were shipped factory direct.

Folks around here have had good luck with the Bilstein b8 5100 shocks too. (24-282642 front, 24-185660 rear) I used them on my wife's KJ, and to be honest, I like the way the front on hers handles better. But, keep in mind I haven't got past the settling in stage with mine, and have the OME heavy on Bert Mk. 1 for my planned bumper and application (I carry a ton of gear a lot of the time)

Here's a short thread we recently discussed such things:

Bilstein 24-185660 vs Bilstein 24-282659 on the rear

Discussion: Pros/Cons Bilstein 24-185660 vs Bilstein 24-282659 Thoughts? Applications? Looking at Bilsteins for Bert Mark 2. No clue what the difference is between these two I see used here on the forums in a KJ rear application.

www.jeepkj.com

There are also numerous other threads on here in the Lift discussions, both old and new, that get into great detail. Its just some are very old and the numbers have changed.
Don't forget your lifted front bump stops and hockey pucks!

JUST A BIG NO on the 5100 front shocks , they are adjustable and should NEVER be used on the front
the 4600 and 5100 are basically the same internally
132L shocks are for larger lifts no the ones with lower rated springs
PLUS there are 4 weight ratings
925 are 350
926 are 375
927 are 400
790s are 500
for the front
everyone is getting confused I guess

 

[tommudd]

Updated information in the LIFT THREAD about the 5100s mentioned above