TJ Box Relocate - Gaining inches

By Al Vandervelde

A noticeable trend in our off road 4x4s is that they are getting bigger. Take the JK for instance, it’s 5 inches wider than a TJ and the 4 door dwarfs some mid-sized SUVs that are better suited to hauling sports gears to a damp soccer field somewhere near you. Sticking 37 inch tires under one is pretty easy but a chore in a TJ, and they off-road well with the longer, wider wheelbase. When I built my TJ some 4 years ago I made it taller, wider and longer. I ran into a wall at around 98 inches in wheelbase while keeping the tires inside the wheel openings and pushing the front axle forward did result in the tie rod and drag link rubbing together in a full lock turn. I’ve decided that I have lived with it long enough and with some other major changes taking place it was time to stretch it out a bit more.

I could comp cut the rear but that would make it near impossible to drive on the street. I wanted a better turning radius for 40 inch tires and better balance climbing steep hills so it wasn’t the back I needed to address. I have already cut the hood and raised the fenders and cut out most of the rear of the fender wells which required the battery to be placed in the rear as well.

The next move was the steering box. There is plenty of info on the internet about swinging the steering box down and drilling a new hole for the box - to get a meagre inch – but I was a little more ambitious than that.

I started by cutting off the entire steering box bracket (after removing the steering box of course) which wasn’t too tough as the welds from the factory weren’t exactly penetrating. This did require some careful cutting with an air cut-off tool and some good quality cut-off wheels. With the bracket removed we had to go a touch further and cut the front tubular cross member out. This tube is too large and in the way for the planned move of the steering box. Make sure you make a whole lot of measurements before you take this step, the width inside and outside of the frame for starters. Position from the ground on each side, and do anything else you can think of to make sure your Jeeps frame still sits square. At this point, it took a whole lot of grinding took place to clean everything up.

For a new cross-member I used a piece of .120 wall DOM tubing. This choice also allowed me to re-install my Currie Antirock Sway Bar with a pair of new bushings designed for their retrofit sway bar kits. This tube spanned the front of the frame as far forward as I could possibly get it, and it still allows for the install of the Fab Fours bumper through the stock frame mounting locations. The stock steering box mounting bracket was re-used, positioned 3 inches further forward and tilted slightly to allow for a stock length steering shaft to reach the steering box. Of course the power steering lines moved forward as well and required a notch to be cut in the grill for clearance around the lines. With the tube and steering box bracket in place, I had a ¼ inch piece of flat plate bent and I welded it to each end of the frame rail and the entire length of the tube. The end result is a far stronger frame assembly that looks better than stock, fits under any aftermarket bumper and still allows me to use the Currie Antirock sway bar. I gained enough room to push the front axle forward three inches, extending my wheelbase to 101 inches and it still keeps my tires under the fenders for street use. The angle change gave me better clearance for the rubbing tie rod and drag link.

Of course this is just step one in the re arrangement of my front suspension, next up are air bump stops, and FOA coil over’s, check back for part II soon.

For the fullstory and photos see Volume 14 Issue 5