Lift kit choices

Decided eventually to put a lift kit on my 2002 Jimny but which one and how high to go ???? thinking of either 3 or4" I see Jimnybits are knocking out full kits but does not appear to be much difference between the spec .
Any and all views gratefully received , also different suppliers.
I was looking at one that already had a full kit installed , it was an Ironman kit (Australian) but it was rock solid and I mean solid just got battered to death in it , need something with a bit of give in it

My question to you is do you need a 3 or 4 inch lift.what are your plans for the jimny ?
I personally would go with the kit with adjustable shock version
(remember the raptor adjustable shocks are actually avo's just a sticker)

Hi We are in Cyprus so can pretty much drive anywhere here and a lot of it is good stuff but need more clearance hence lift kit but mostly rock type terrain so neecspmething a bit forgiving

You can quickly end up in an arms race with swapping gear (like me :laugh: ).

4" lift is probably unnecessary unless you are wanting to run very large tyres. To run large tyres means a lot of work altering the gearing for it to still move. Remember - the lowest part of the car is the diff, which can only be lifted with bigger tyres.

Ive had Trailmaster, Zanfi, AVO and presently Jimnybits gear on in various lift combinations. Trailmaster 2" kit was the best for comfort and driveability. Not much of a lift, but looks ok with 215/75r15 tyres (which dont need gearing changes). A 4" lift with that tyre size would look a little odd. Indeed, when I added a 2" body lift to the trailmaster it was starting to look strange.

The Zanfi springs lasted less than 2 yrs and fell to bits, the trailmaster is over 4 years and still going strong on the project pickup. AVO shocks were bought to go with the Zanfi springs, and kept now its on jimnybits +4" springs & 1" spacers. Current setup is great, but if i didnt need all that for the huge 33" tyres I would keep it lower

Castor correction is important as well. 50/50 weather its needed on 2" lift, defo needed for anything higher. This can be correction bushes in the arms or new corrected arms (much better option).

Finally if comfort is important then use rubber buses, not polybushes. They wear faster than poly, but are a lot more comfy

I've got 3" Big Jimny shop springs with Rough Country shocks and no anti roll bar. It's a little roly poly with no arb but you can get a disconnecting arb from Dave Jones' Zookbob eBay shop.

The shocks and springs are an ok combination that I'm happy with comfort wise with 215.80.15 Malatesta Kaiman tyres on. So there's a fair bit of profile on those tyres to absorb bumps. Pot holes never get felt! Speed bumps hurt but that's got a lot to do with the short wheel base and live axles.

I have Super Pro poly bushes to save keep changing them but they are noticeably firmer and there's an argument that says they can cause metal fatigue of the axle mounts on both the axle radius arm mounts and the chassis end of the radius arm mounts.

Now I own a press I may go back to rubberlastic bushes.

I've had 3" KAP springs (no longer available) and Pro Comp shocks, which were the cheap end of the market. I found that the shocks overheated once off road for a prolonged period of time and the springs sagged with age. They were comfortable enough on the road though.

I have Off Road Armoury castor corrected radius arms and adjustable panhard rods. Super Pro panhard rod bushes are too hard and promote death wobble. The ones in the Big Jimny shop are fine.

Buy what you can afford though, bearing in mind that over 2" lift becomes expensive with castor correction arms.

Kits with brake lines, castor correction arms and everything else in are best value for money though.

If you're not planning on going over 215.75.15 on tyres, the Trail Master 2" lift sounds best in comfort flavour from a value, comfort and quality point of view to my mind from the hundreds of threads I've read.

I hope that helps.

Kirkynut