96 wrangler body lift install

LukeBurl22

New member
My friend wants me to put A 3" body lift on his 96. Anyone have a write up for a 96 3" BL?

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Everyone has an opinion on it but, I can tell you what I have heard from others that have run BL's. A small BL is just fine but when you get in the 3" area you run the risk of the body shifting while getting knocked around off road due to the much longer bolts. Other things to consider, steering column. shifters, may end up looking real short in the cab, wiring or hard lines attached to the body may need lengthend, radiater hoses, fan shroud and so fourth.

I dont know from experience just what I have read and heard from others.
 
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yeah i look at budget booster lifts first, might be safer, only if it is a bb suspension lift you might need to add new parts with anything lifted over 2", it can be quite costly in some situations, longer shakles might mean bending the exaust out of the way or you might need new shocks or control arms etc, a body lift will definatly be cheaper but might not be as safe
 

but then again i drive a cherokee and in the words of one of my buddys "we duddnt got no body lifts here, us cherokees is unibodys"
 
I worked on a Jeep with a 3" body lift at work the other day. I had to test drive afterwards and to be completely honest, that's the most unsafe I've felt in a vehicle. You have a higher chance of rollover with a body lift than you do with a suspension lift.
 
96 wrangler, are those the ones with a V6???


Regardless, 3" body lift is doable but stupid. too many cons to bother to list.
 

I run a 1 inch body lift on my TJ, and have run a 1 inch on my old CJ7. For me, an inch is about as high as I'd go.

For his YJ, I'd suggest running a one or maybe 2 inch body lift. You could get some slightly longer shackles for an extra half inch on the cheap.

As to how to do it, I did a writeup years ago here:
http://www.jeepz.com/forum/suspension/16939-body-lift.html

It should be the same as on his YJ. You may need to do extra work for 3 inches though - move the radiator shroud, work on the steering linkage, cut the floor around the shifter.
 
I'm glad somebody caught that '96 Wrangler besides me. Might have been bought in 96 but its either a 95 left over YJ(square headlights), or a 97 TJ(round headlights). But anyway, I have an 87 YJ with a 3 inch BL, and hate it. lol. (the BL not the Wrangler) I put it on to clear 35's and the body roll is extreme, always tightening the bolts on it, had to lengthen the shifters, cut the floor pan, lengthen the steering, cut the fan shroud, lengthen the ground strap, lengthen the filler tube for the gas tank. And many more things that i'm sure i have forgotten about the nightmare! But, it took my total lift to 8.5 inches and i clear 35's. Even though i have one, i wouldn't reccomend one. Lots of hassles involved.
 
There was not 1996 wrangler for a couple reasons, front impact ratings, requirements for drivers airbags and ODBII compliance just to name a couple. Jeep did not see a reason to invest the re-tooling into the YJ to sell as a 1996 model especially when they had the 1997 almost ready to roll out.
So for the first 1/2 of 1996, jeep sold the YJ as a 95 left over model, about may or june of 1996, the 1997 TJ was released that address the manditory changes.
 
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