<%@LANGUAGE="VBSCRIPT" CODEPAGE="1252"%> ROCKCRAWLER.com - Rough Country 6 Inch X-Series TJ Suspension

ROCKCRAWLER.com
Rough Country 6" X-Series:
35's On a Budget - and It Works!

By Shawn Pagan and Steve Snyder

Send this article to a friend!

Ramp Testing (Wall Testing, Anyway):
Once we got everything working fine we didn't want to wait for a real trip to test it out. We are fortunate to have a friend who has an old loading dock available for ramp testing. So the next morning after our install, we got up and drove the Jeep down to the dock.

X-Series
X-Series
The view from the front
X-Series
X-Series
The view from the rear. Doesn't that 8.8 look nice?

Of course, we did a little safety road test around the neighborhood before taking the Jeep out on the main road. After the initial test drive we found that the suspension felt really stiff, but we assumed it would settle once it got some miles on it.

The first thing we did was to drive the driver's side up the dock.

X-Series
X-Series
We were quite surprised by the amount of travel we actually got out of this kit. We realize that ramping is not real world but the Jeep pulled itself up to max flex with no issues and nothing binding. It should be noted that the majority of movement is upward travel, as the suspension has very little droop. But again, if it settles down a bit this will remedy some of that.
X-Series
X-Series
Here are the views of the upper control arms from the top. Even with maximum twist the arms are not deflecting the bushings, meaning that even with use they should last quite a while.
X-Series
X-Series
In the rear with the driver's side up on the ramp, there is plenty of brake line and the springs do not appear to be past their compression point. Again, nothing seems to be over-stressed, which should lead to longer component life.

Then we ran the driver's side up the dock.

X-Series
X-Series
Again, it easily reached max compression travel. Even with what felt like a stiff suspension, it felt very stable on the ramp.
X-Series
X-Series
As you can see, the tires easily stuffed into the front fenders. The movement in the front is exactly where it needs to be. The biggest issue we had is that the tire will remove the factory bumper end cap if you don't remove it ahead of time.
X-Series
X-Series
We just thought the photo on the left was a cool photo. The one on the right shows the force being applied to the lower control arm. The bushing is not distorting to the extent we expected. The articulating arms, while not really moving too much, are reducing the stress on the mounting points.

Then we decided to back up the ramp and see what we might find.

X-Series
X-Series
The rear end worked as well as the front. Although, it does show the normal short arm squat issue on the rear as the rear tire tends to move forward too far when it droops. It is not as exaggerated as we have seen it some other kits but could be a concern if you spend a lot of time climbing severe off -camber ledges, as it tends to shorten the wheel base while moving up.

We found no major issues on the ramp. The front seems to work really well and the back flexes enough with the sway bar on that we would recommend simply not using the rear disconnects. They are a little difficult to get to and we didn't find any real advantage in disconnecting them. Leaving them in place will help to control the rear squat and should keep you nice and stable. Of course, the front 35" Goodyears wanted to remove the front bumper end caps at flex, but to us the TJ looks better without those useless plastic things anyway.

X-Series
X-Series
Removing the front end caps is something they should cover in the instructions.

Now it's time for some real fun. Let's get this thing in the dirt and see what happens.

 

 

 
Help spread the ROCKCRAWLER world!           Share on Facebook



©1997-2022 ROCKCRAWLER 4x4 and Off-Road Magazine. All Rights Reserved.

RockCrawler.com   -   IH8MUD.com