ZUKIWORLD Reviews: TRAIL TOUGH WRANGLER YJ LIFT KIT

 

TRAIL TOUGH WRANGLER YJ LIFT KIT

Installation Instructions For The Samurai.

Editor/Photo: Eric Bewley

MEDFORD, OR. -Trail Tough products have been making great products for Suzuki vehicles for several years now and we have seen several Trail Tough equipped vehicles on the trails around the North West and have always been impressed with their performance. So when we decided to embark on a new Samurai project vehicle, the choice for suspension was clear. The Following is a complete set of installation instructions with pictures to help aid in the installation of this kit.

All photos can be enlarged for enhanced detail by clicking on them.

Before you begin please note: the orientation of all bolts and nuts on the various assemblies they are shipped to you assembled in the way that they will need to be placed on the vehicle, tools needed for this installation include: welder, metric hand tools, level, jack w/jack stands, assorted shop tools ie. hammer, pry bar, etc.

Front-end Axle Housing Assembly Removal

1. Lift car via jacks or a lift until the weight of the car is off of the springs. This happens at the point where the tires just barely begin to lift off of the ground. Support the vehicle at the frame with jack stands so that the vehicle is secure.

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2. Remove bumper and turning indicator lights at the connector located on the inner fenderwell inside the engine compartment.. NOTE: The stock bumper will not be reused. click to enlarge 3. Remove tow hooks. click to enlarge 4. Using a reciprocating or hack saw, remove the outer bumper mounts.

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click to enlarge 5. Using a die grinder, clean the inside of the frame area where the tow hooks were attached. click to enlarge 6. Insert metal frame bushings into the frame. Welding is recommended to stiffen the frame.

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click to enlarge 7. Clamp brake lines. Remove Sway bar. click to enlarge 8. Unbolt the shock at the Shock tower. Remove the shackles, and rear spring mount bolt.

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click to enlarge 9. Disconnect Steering drag link from the Pitman arm. Remove Front Drive Shaft.

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click to enlarge 10. Roll entire front end housing toward the front of the car and remove.

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Rear-end Axle Housing Assembly Removal

1. It is recommended to remove the rear hitch bar and tow hooks.

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click to enlarge 2. Remove shackle and spring hanger bolts. click to enlarge 3. Clamp rubber brake lines to reduce fluid loss and disconnect at the axle. 4. Disconnect e-brake cables at the drums and unbolt them from the axle housing.

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click to enlarge 5. Disconnect shocks at the frame 6. Remove driveline. 7. Roll entire rear end housing toward the rear of the car and remove. click to enlarge

Front-end Axle Housing Assembly Preparation

1. Remove u-bolts, u-bolt plates, shocks, and spring packs. Save u-bolts. click to enlarge 2. Remove drag link and tie rod assembly. click to enlarge 3. Cut u-bolt guides off of housing. click to enlarge

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click to enlarge 4. Clean axle housing. Prep area for new spring mount perch and shock mount.

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click to enlarge 5. Making sure the original axle perches are level, tac weld the spring mount perches verifying that the new perch is level on all axis. click to enlarge click to enlarge click to enlarge 6. Also verify the perch is lined up vertically with the original perch. click to enlarge 7. Position the shock mount next to the original weld at the end of the axle tube. Level and weld shock mount on the top of the axle housing.

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click to enlarge 8. Once all mounts are tac welded with satisfactory placement, finish welding. Weld all the way around the perch; paying special attention to the ends.

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Front-end Frame & Body Preparation

1. Remove bump stop. click to enlarge 2. Remove shock tower. click to enlarge 3. Grind off and smooth area that new shock tower will be welded to. Make sure to grind up over the top of the frame since the new tower is welded on all 3 sides. click to enlarge 4. Prep shock tower for welding. click to enlarge 5. With the car level, place the shock tower at perpendicular to the floor, 17.5″ back from the front of the body to frame mount, and as high as possible (as close to the top of the inner fenderwell as possible without rubbing). Tac weld in place. click to enlarge 6. Once level and location is verified, weld into place. click to enlarge 7. Paint area to seal metal. click to enlarge 8. Massage body tub seem flat to reduce tire rub.

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click to enlarge 9. Massage front fender seem flat to reduce tire rub. click to enlarge

Rear-end Axle Housing Assembly Preparation

1. Remove u-bolts, u-bolt plate, and leaf springs. Save u-bolts. 2. Remove u-bolt guide. click to enlarge 3. Grind / prep area for welding click to enlarge 4. Level and square perch, tac weld in place. Do not rotate pinion unless you have a CV style drive shaft. click to enlarge 5. Level and square shock mount to spring perch; mounting it 1 3/4 inches away from the perch edge. Tac weld in place.

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click to enlarge 6. Once level and location of the spring perches and shock mounts are verified, weld in place.

YJ Spring Pack Rebuild

Identification: Rear spring is a 5-leaf with 3 spring clamps. The two ends are of different sizes. The spring shackle end uses a 1/2″ bolt and is also identified as the end with two clamps on it. The Larger eyelet uses a 9/16″ bolt and is attached to the frame end. Front spring is similar but most likely will be a 4-leaf pack. A second 5-leaf rear pack is suggested for the front if you will be running a bumper and winch up front. 1.Remove old bushings. First wedge the eyelet apart by driving a chisel into the base of the eyelet. click to enlarge 2. Drive old bushing out with a drift or press if necessary. click to enlarge 3. Use a liberal amount of anti-seize on spring eyelets, poly bushings, and metal sleeves. Press into place. NOTE: Small end uses 1/2 ” bushings while the large end uses the 9/16″ size. click to enlarge

Front-end Steering and Hi-steer Installation

1. Install new tie-rod in the original location. Install new brake lines onto disc brake calipers. click to enlarge 2. Place hi-steer arm in position and push the disc brake caliber into position. click to enlarge 3. Use supplied bolts to attach hi-steer arm. click to enlarge 4. Drag link to be installed once the axle housing is re-attached to vehicle.

Bracket Installation

Before you begin: Familiarize yourself with the bolt orientation on the pre-loaded brackets. This will speed up the assembly process and eliminate headaches. 1. Mount front spring hanger bracket using the stock bolt location to locate the mount. click to enlarge 2. Mark and drill the 3/8″ holes for the additional mounting bolts. A pilot hole may need to be drilled. Bolt the bracket on using supplied bolts. click to enlarge 3. Mount rear spring hanger bracket using the stock bolt location to locate the mount. click to enlarge 4. Mark and drill the 3/8″ holes for the additional mounting bolts. A pilot hole may need to be drilled. Bolt the bracket on using supplied bolts.

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click to enlarge 5. Using liberal amounts of antiseize, coat all bushings before installing including frame mount. click to enlarge 6. Install bushing, tap in metal sleeve. click to enlarge 7. Install bolt as shown. click to enlarge 8. Install front shackle stop as shown, install bolts.

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click to enlarge 9. Install front shackle. Do not tighten bolts at this time. click to enlarge

Final Installation Front-end Assemblies

1. Apply a liberal coat of antiseize to the spring bushings. click to enlarge 2. Bolt spring to the frame hanger using the 9/16″ bolt provided. click to enlarge 3. Attach spring to front shackle using the 1/2″ bolt provided. Insert spacer washers as shown. Tighten bolts without crushing the mounts or bulging the bushings

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click to enlarge 4. Repeat for other spring. 5. Position axle under spring and raise it up to the centering bolt. Using the center positioning hole, place new u-bolt plate in place as shown. NOTE: One u-bolt plate is larger, this is for the right front. click to enlarge 6. Install and tighten u-bolts to 40ft/lbs. Repeat for the other side. click to enlarge 7. Install the 8407 shock in the front location using the supplied bolts.

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click to enlarge 8. Install drag link.

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click to enlarge 9. Install brake line. Twist the line into a “pig tail” to keep it from rubbing on your tire. Even a couple miles of rubbing will ruin a brake line. click to enlarge

Final Installation Rear-end Assemblies

1. Mark, drill hole, and install the poly shackle bumpstop.

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click to enlarge 2. Apply a liberal amount of antiseize to poly bushings, Install large eye of the spring into frame mount using supplied bolt. click to enlarge 3. Install and attach rear shackle to rear spring using supplied bolts. Spacing washers are installed similar to the front installation. Tighten nuts only tight enough to contact washer – no tighter.

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click to enlarge 4. Position rear axle under the spring pack on the centering bolt. Install u-bolt plate and u-bolts. Tighten to 40 ft./lbs. Repeat for other side. click to enlarge 5. Install the supplied longer brake lines. Clamp to reduce fluid loss. click to enlarge 6. Remove e-brake cable upper bracket. click to enlarge 7. Install the 8333 rear shocks provided with supplied hardware. click to enlarge 8. Attach all other mounting points and e-brake cables to the drum brake. click to enlarge 9. Connect brake lines.

Driveline Installation

1. Note the orientation of Drivelines. Match up the ‘dot’ on the spline to the ‘dot’ on the yoke for vibration free operation.

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click to enlarge 2. Assemble the front driveline with the two spacers provided on at each end as shown and install into the vehicle. click to enlarge 3. Use the new extended yoke for the rear driveline. Notice the clearancing. This is so the driveline does not bind in high travel situation. Couple with your spined section of driveline making sure to match up the ‘dots’ on each piece. Install into vehicle.

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Final Installation And Adjustments

1. Install Wheels and tires, set the toe in to 1/8″. click to enlarge 2. Adjust Drag link for equal turning in both directions. 3. Bleed brakes to get a firm pedal. 4. Remove and adjust Steering wheel to center. click to enlarge 5. Verify all bolts are torqued to their specification. Re-check all bolts after 100 miles of use. click to enlarge

 
Contact information: Trail Tough Products, www.trailtough.com 1031 Narregan St Medford, OR 97501, 1-877-789-8547

 

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