Leaf spring to TJ coil suspension.

germain

germain

Precision Fit
Nov 30, 2009
588
Bartonville, TX
First Name
Gary
Willys Model
  1. Wagon
Willys Year:
  1. 1961
I need to power wash the underside of my ride, but here are some pics of the brackets used. Also found to have a leaky front caliper. I found the leak, the stains on the tire, when I was loading the pic of the front right brackets. Drips on the floor are front diff cover leak.
 

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Germain: your suspension upgrade looks very interesting. I couldn't quite see from the pictures, but it looks like you installed coils on the rear suspension as well as the front. Can you give more information on the coil conversion?
I can imagine the ride has been vastly improved with the use of coil suspension... are you pleased with the results?
Also, your relocation of the spare to the outside back tailgate is exactly what I want to do. Can you give info on that as well? I originally wanted to use a Nissan Pathfinder swing out spare carrier but soon realized that there would be problems. I really don't want to drill into the body to fasten the Nissan swing frame (which would have to be modified extensively). I looks like your have a bumper attachment...

Thanks!
 
Rubicon Express axle brackets front and rear; factory frame brackets rear; 6x6 square tube spring top brackets front; 3x3 square tube shock brackets front; Skyjacker 4" coil spring TJ lift kit for springs, control arms and track bars. Matched factory geometry of a TJ by using plate steel to lower/raise mounting points of component brackets. All structural components professionally welded. Used factory sway bars also. Ride is great, cruises 70 mph smoothly on tollway.
The spare tire carrier is a Tomken Machine swing away bolted to my 2x4 tube bumper. Make sure the bumper is long enough to mount the spare carrier bracket and still open the tailgate. Mine clears at 90 degrees or more open.
 
i know i'm asking alot but i think alot of people would like to hear more about this swap. details man details!! be as specific as posible and the more pics the better!
thanks in advance
scotty t
 
Scotty T; Check the pics I posted under "suspension pics" . I forgot to post them in this thread. Top to bottom, end to end, side to side I measured my 99 TJ and made sketches, and checked with the dealer parts dept. for available brackets for the frame and axles. I used, for the rear, the frame brackets for both top and bottom control arms, and the spring top pad and bump stop.. The TJ has the arms at a low angle to horizontal, so I used plates butted up to the factory spring perch (see photo). I also used a factory sway bar and tied the top of it to the plate as well. For the rear axle brackets, Rubicon Express makes a kit. But more practical than that is that axles are available from several companies , even Dana 60's, with the brackets already on them. They run about $2400.00. At the time I built my wagon I bought bare axles with disc brakes and tacked the brackets in place matching the TJ measurements. I hired a professional welder for about 7 hours and he welded all the frame and axle brackets.
The control arms, sway bar links, springs, rear track bar and relocation bracket are from a Skyjacker 4" TJ lift kit. I included a pic of the front as well. The only frame brackets not sold as a separate part is the top front spring mount. I used square tube to make bolt on brackets so I could adjust them up/down to correct the ride height after const. was completed. No adjustments made so far. Power steering is a GM box with a cut out of the frame for steering shaft clearance, boxed with a section of 4x4 steel tube. There are several articles on some of the older Willys sites showing how to do the steering conversion. With the lift kit, you will need a drop pitman arm, 4-6 inch drop.
 
germain....I think you should just sell me your Wagon....nasty oil leaks and all. I'm going with longer leaf springs in the front...found some that are 43" eye to eye, but looking for longer....stock measurement is 36". I'm hoping to gain more support for the heavier axles (Dana 44) and SBC weight. I'm still in the Research and Development stage, gathering infoBut you should just sell it to me :) .............. :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
 
Kevin, you would be trading working on your hobby with driving a leaky old wagon someone else figured out how to build. Besides, it would take lots of money to get me to part with it.
The SBC should weigh less than the 6cyl if that was what yours had in it. I also put in the 4L80E, aluminum case, automatic with a Dana 300 transfer case. Remember, the axles are not held up by the springs, so their weight is not in the calculation. They springs do need to be strong enough to handle the loads from the engine thru the axles, wrap, wheel hop,etc.
 
roundss; Dana 44 frt & rear, Bought from Hicks in Calif. Bare and then added TJ brackets. A lot of work,Currie and others make them now, and for about the same price. None available in 2002 when I built this. I would also use a long arm kit for the conversion.
 
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