I wonder if my RTE driveshafts will be affected. been on for a few months and 6K miles or so
got it. Thx! Yeah, I had an old TW D shaft..worked great with the lift...smooth as butter...probably had 40,000 miles on it and then the center ball went (my fault for not getting enough grease in there)..the next TW shaft wobbled and I returned it (purchased sometime in 2019 AFIR. I bought a cheap ebay D shaft for 150$ and it has had no issues.... but it does not have a greaseable center ball....
the radius arms corrected WILL create more of an angle for your D shaft as you bring the diff back to level, creating more stress. So if you correct the rear end too, be sure to use the upgraded 4 bolt shaft and change the input flange on the diff....
look closely at my front spring, it is bowed towards the front bumper. this is without the corrected radius rods installed.....probably could get away with it like this, but the steering geometry is out ...I went with 6 degree because adrenaline 4x4 said that was the correct thing to do for a 4" lift.....I never really measured it, but 3 degree probably would have been just fine...
Nice day finally! Changed out rear hub. It was leaking from the bearing seal. Easy with right tools. 4 ft breaker bar and 4 ft torque wrench. Bottle jack does come in handy for something........
Also, changed out rear diff plastic fill plug to brass. It was over-tightened and nearly countersunk, and stripping with correct 21mm socket. So I used a Dremel to carefully remove the flange, releasing the pressure on the nut. then it came out easily.
Finally getting somewhere....my son and I put on the sliders and the 6 degree rear radius links. Still have fronts to do......and driveshafts and tie rods and winch and.....etc...
installed 03-04 steering links with 'correct' taper on ball joints. new ball joints have lock nuts, not crown nuts (so you need a torx bit to hold them). installed front 6 degree radius links (Now my springs are square to their mounts). the new TF steering damper link mount was cheap sheet metal, so I used my old one. adjusted the steering knuckle stops so the tires do not hit the links. just a few more items then back on road...
edit: Here is a tip. if you are installing degree'd links, bolt the chassis link end bolt first. then use a jack to lift/align the link to the next bolt hole on the axle (which is the axle mount bolt closest to the long end of link). place the second bolt. then slowly drive the vehicle a few feet forward or back and step on brake to stop. this will rotate the axle and you can align the third link bolt hole (the one closest to the bumper) much more easily. Also, only replace ONE link at a time (if you are on the ground like me). replace both links with only two bolts on each side, then do the alignment trick.
so with the lift and the big tires, I just had alignment. The first time through, everything set to spec (basically zeroed on toe). BUT...that did not work out so well. Moderate drifting and kind of a loose feeling. Second time through alignment, I had them set the disco with just less than a degree of TOE OUT...1mm or so.....this worked out great! steering is right on.....so consider this if you have drifting post lift/fat tire issues!
probably turns over engine at 40% more revs than OEM. Let's see if it lasts....and YES, keep the heat shield. It's there for a reason! 8mm allen head bolts x2 for mounting starter. 10mm on heat shield attachment at engine mount.
and another update for those considering a lift: I have TF medium duty 2+ springs (F + R) on 2" spacers, and TF adjustable +3" shocks, and 32" tires. Shocks on setting '1' (softest). PERFECT ride unloaded. Not too firm, not too soft.....
Any tips for getting the starter shield back on? I replaced my starter with a used spare a couple weeks ago and I *think* I snuck it out the bottom when I removed it but gave up after a few minutes of trying to shoehorn it back in that same way.
yep, from the bottom, lift front end in first and pry (with fat flat screwdriver) the 10mm bolt mount into engine support, at then carefully work the front end up over the O2 sensor....it's kinda a back and forth deal...if you take out the O2 sensor, it can be done more easily (I did not have to do this).... if you can get it out, you can get it back in...
