jeep Commander - relocation Brackets - Photo 9340112

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The rear's upper links are kept parallel by adding extended relocation brackets to the top of the axle's factory mounting points. Due to variances in manufacturing from the factory, you might have to ream out the hole of the passenger-side upper-link mount to fit the Superlift relocation bracket. On both sides you'll have to drill out the second mounting hole to fit the Superlift brackets.

131 0712 01 z+jeep commander+passenger side view

131 0712 01 z+jeep commander+passenger side view

Biggie went under the knife first, as Jeeps R Us ripped the factory suspension off in order to hang our new Superlift kit under the truck. IFS kits always seem daunting when in pieces laid out on a table, but this one seemed worse than most. Luckily, most people who have the money to buy a new IFS vehicle will likely hire a shop to put the kit on.

After the differential is dropped, the front driveshaft needs to be removed as well. Notch a big section of the crossmember to make room for the driveshaft to fit once the differential is dropped. Superlift included a weld-in reinforcement in their kit, but even after Larry Garcia welded it in, we still had to grind a portion of it away to get the driveshaft from rubbing after the kit was finished and we went for a testdrive. You'll also have to remove a heat shield for clearance on the exhaust tube that runs right behind this crossmember.

A bracket is supplied by Superlift to allow you to move the front support ear a few inches higher on the differential cover in order to bolt to the subframe of the Jeep. The rest of the mounting points of the differential will attach to the Superlift kit.

Before adding the drop cradle for the lower A-arms, the lips on the factory subframe around the A-arm pivot points will need to be cut off. This will allow the cradle to be slid up into the subframe to hang the lower A-arms from.

After the cutting was done, Garcia placed the cradle and tightened the bolts. The lower A-arms will attach to the cradle, while an included skidplate will box in the front arm set and protect the differential.

To mount the rear portion of the lower A-arms, the bushing's bracket is simply flipped from sitting on top of the subframe crossmember to beneath it. The A-arm's bushing is very tight, so Garcia used a vise to lock onto the bushing's housing and turned the A-arm 180 degrees.

...The strut and strut extension were bolted back up into place using bolts that come through the engine compartment.

Superlift's Grand Cherokee/ Commander kit is a "knuckle" kit. A knuckle kit provides a longer cast-iron knuckle to go in place of the factory knuckle and allows the factory upper A-arm and steering components to sit in the original mounting location instead of having to drop it down like the lower arm. This creates more space in between the upper and lower A-arms, something that is debated by suspension companies as being a good or bad thing. We've neither heard nor seen any problems with this type of knuckle kit design yet.

The final part to add in the front end is the new Superlift skidplate. It adds substantial structural support and gives superior protection to the front end. Please note that you might have to trim down one of the skid's mounting bolts (it reuses the factory hardware here) that thread into the crossmember right beneath the driveshaft because it can potentially rub on the driveshaft.

New coils, sway-bar links, and drop brackets are given to lift the five-link rear end. The lower-link drop brackets attach to the Commander's body and keep the links at acceptable geometric angles.

The rear's upper links are kept parallel by adding extended relocation brackets to the top of the axle's factory mounting points. Due to variances in manufacturing from the factory, you might have to ream out the hole of the passenger-side upper-link mount to fit the Superlift relocation bracket. On both sides you'll have to drill out the second mounting hole to fit the Superlift brackets.

Once the holes were drilled, Padilla tightened the rear link brackets and track-bar relocation bracket. The Superlift kit retains the factory control-arm links and track bar (or panhard rod) as they are boxed and very strong, with OEM bushings that allow twist but soak up vibrations.

The last parts to add to the rear end were the coils, the new antisway-bar links, and the brake-line drop brackets. The brake-line drop brackets bolt into existing holes in the body, while the coils fit in just the same as the factory ones. The new antisway-bar links bolt onto the original antisway bar, and utilize an OEM-style rotational ball-joint at the end of their links to minimize binding. When the entire kit was bolted on and ready to go, the once scary-looking pile of brackets joined together to create a very nice kit that improved the strength of the suspension instead of weakening it like some suspension kits that we've experienced.

Since we couldn't quite fit 31-inch BFGs on without an inch or two of lift, we called up Daystar to order one of their budget boost kits for Shortie. The spacer kit would lift it almost 2 inches, allowing us to fit our 31s without any other modifications and only necessitating a realignment in the front end. The kit comes with the front and rear coil spacers, plus concentric strut spacers, new stem cushions, mounting plates, and new front coil-spring isolators.

The front spacer went onto the strut under the coil. Jeeps R Us put the truck on the lift, removed the strut, and used the spring compressor to break down the strut and add the Daystar spacer under the coil...

...Garcia also added the new mounting plates and upper coil isolators that replace the factory equipment. Underneath the coil and around the strut, concentric spacers are provided to keep the (now) raised coils aligned on the struts.

The stock tires looked pretty weak, even for a stock vehicle. We definitely needed some help in the treads department, and help would come from BFGoodrich Tires with a set of 33-inch Mud-Terrains for Biggie and a set of 31-inch All-Terrains for Shortie. After the tires were mounted, both Commanders needed very minor trimming at the rear lower portion of the front fenderwell, while the back of Biggie and Shortie were left alone even though they both rubbed very softly at full stuff.

Shortie looked a whole lot better as well, with a set of 265/70/R17 BFGoodrich All-Terrains mounted on the stock wheels. Next month, we'll be adding some racks, a GPS unit, rock rails, front-end protection, and some lights, so stay tuned.