1. Options were limited, and
2. All available coil conversion kits for YJ Wranglers are tuned for rock crawling (slow off-roading) hence not suitable for our desert driving and also with a great compromise on on-road driving stability.
It indeed took a lot of reading and understanding of at least the basics of chassis engineering, suspension design, and tuning. After having spent months on paper with the aid of dedicated software and bizarre formulae, it was time for taking apart the jeep… and start chopping, measuring, fabricating, measuring again, welding etc, etc. In the end, we added the following:
1. 2 inch diameter / 10 inch travel front coilover shocks
2. 2 inch diameter / 8 inch travel rear coilover shocks
3. Front and rear shocks with dual rate springs setup
All control arms are heim jointed for extra flex. The rear track bar was rendered redundant. A custom heim jointed front / adjustable track bar was fabricated.
The result is a 5 inch lifted YJ Wrangler that drives like no other. It offers the best compromise of on-road safety, articulation and
off-highway performance.
Hood louvers from Genright were installed on the stock hood. In addition, a TJ Safari snorkel was installed to compensate for the dry and sandy conditions here. Custom front and rear bumpers, as well as side steps, were fabricated and powder coated. In the interior, a full custom rally-style roll cage was fabricated as well.
– Special thanks to Abbas Fahmy for his contribution of this article and photos
* Published by JPFreek Adventure Magazine – The leader in Jeep and adventure enthusiast publications.