lift wheel alignment needed?

[beachbum]

If I put on my own lift kit do I have to have a wheel alignment? All the 4wd shops tell me weather I get a spacer lift or coil lift I need a wheel alignment after it is installed. If this is true can it be done before I put on the new bigger wheels and tires or after? This is for a 2010 Wrangler JK sport.

[AZ Outlaws]

The JK does not require an alignment with a mild 2.5" lift you were talking about in your other post. But... if you do get an alignment, do it after installing the lift and new tires.

[Doc in AZ]

you will certainly need an alignment, but sometimes the factory alignment specs no longer apply with a lift, but the wheels and tires shouldn't matter

[AZ Outlaws]

An alignment was not required on my JK. My tires are wearing just fine and track as they should after installing a 2.0" coil spacer lift with longer monotube shocks.

Taken from a JK specific forum's FAQ section....

Q: I just installed a lift on my JK. Do I need an alignment?
A: Due to the design of the new JK steering system, your toe-in will not change after installing a lift. If your lift did not come with adjustable upper or lower front control arms, you will not be able to adjust your caster angle. If you kit came with cam bolts, I would NOT recommend installing them to get your caster set as they would require you to notch out your lower control arm mounts and make them into slots (a mod that is not easily reversible). And, in my experience, it is very difficult to keep the bolts from loosening up. So, with all that said, the only thing an alignment shop will do for you is reenter your steering wheel and you can do that in your driveway with a 15mm wrench and 5 min of your time:

http://project-jk.com/jeep-jk-write-...-end-alignment

Now, if your lift kit did come with adjustable front upper and lower control arms, you can set your JK's caster following the instructions found towards the bottom of the same write-up.

[Jdemonto@Airpark Jeep Sales]

well consider the source of the forum you posted it's really as worthless as tits on a bull.

check out www.jkowners.com a real jk forum

Jason

An alignment was not required on my JK. My tires are wearing just fine and track as they should after installing a 2.0" coil spacer lift with longer monotube shocks.

Taken from a JK specific forum's FAQ section....

Q: I just installed a lift on my JK. Do I need an alignment?
A: Due to the design of the new JK steering system, your toe-in will not change after installing a lift. If your lift did not come with adjustable upper or lower front control arms, you will not be able to adjust your caster angle. If you kit came with cam bolts, I would NOT recommend installing them to get your caster set as they would require you to notch out your lower control arm mounts and make them into slots (a mod that is not easily reversible). And, in my experience, it is very difficult to keep the bolts from loosening up. So, with all that said, the only thing an alignment shop will do for you is reenter your steering wheel and you can do that in your driveway with a 15mm wrench and 5 min of your time:

http://project-jk.com/jeep-jk-write-...-end-alignment

Now, if your lift kit did come with adjustable front upper and lower control arms, you can set your JK's caster following the instructions found towards the bottom of the same write-up.

[CHAOSCASE]

lol! the rule of thumb i always use is to just spend the money for the aligment when you invest the money on new tires! reguardless of tire size or lift, why risk eating up brand new tires! alot of places will do an alignment check with the purchase of new tires anyways to let you know if something is out of adjustment.just my .02!

[The Donger]

Does it use the inverted Y steering setup? Even if it doesn't, caster will be off.

I don't know much about the JK specifically, but its still a 4 link.

Edit: looking at that dudes post, sounds like it isn't inverted Y. And there isn't a cam adjustment.

Sent from my Eris using Tapatalk

[AZ Outlaws]

well consider the source of the forum you posted it's really as worthless as tits on a bull.

check out www.jkowners.com a real jk forum

Jason

LOL... we've communicated before about the owner of the forum you don't care for and I can agree with your opinion. On the other hand, it's his forum and he can run it the way he sees fit. He seems to be doing very good $$$ wise so he's doing something right. I also think most of his how-to write ups are well done.

[RubiJk]

I have to support AZ Outlaw here... I have put several lifts on JKs, and I do my own alignments. I often do go to have it put on a rack to get a print out, as a frame of reference, and to make adjustments myself.

The ONLY alignment adjustments that can be made on a JK are the toe and the caster. Toe will NOT change, except for the slight impact as a result of the caster changing a little (without control arms obviously). At 2.5" it is not enough to change the to to be out of spec. Even so, it can easily be done at home with a tape measure and a couple of small turns on the tie rod.

Yes, the caster would change. Although, at that small of a lift, you likely would not get new control arms to adjust it anyway. It is also true that the "target spec" could ultimately change as to what you want your caster to be. OEM is 4.7* and with a lift and OEM driveshaft, you can run upwards of 5.5* and improve your ride and the return to center of your steering wheel. If you go to an aftermarket double carden shaft, you will likely have to run UNDER OEM specs to avoid driveline vibes.

Again, all that is kinda moot... with a 2.5" budget boost you do NOT need to get an alignment...

Edit to elaborate: If you choose to go over about 3" then you cross that line of what you need to, and what you should do. At that point, I highly suggest at least lower front CA's and rolling back your caster to improve your steering/handling. I also would NOT use a shop that is telling you that you HAVE to get an alignment after lifting your JK 2.5" or less... They either dont know what they are talking about, or are trying to take advantage of you.

[AZ Outlaws]

I have to support AZ Outlaw here... I have put several lifts on JKs, and I do my own alignments.

Again, all that is kinda moot... with a 2.5" budget boost you do NOT need to get an alignment...

Edit to elaborate: If you choose to go over about 3" then you cross that line of what you need to, and what you should do.

Thank you.

If folks read the post I made above with the quote from the other forum and read the how-to in the link provided... it says basically the same thing you've just said.