With newer jeeps you sometimes have to disconnect the front driveshaft from the axle, it hits the exhaust crossover. I just did a spring swap on a friends with synergy 3" springs we had to disco his front driveshaft.

If your brake lines are loose, trackbar and control arms bolts loose, and swaybar links disconnected from axle then the driveshaft and drag link are the absolute last things that can limit you. (Besides breather and abs lines but those are obvious.)

You absolutely don't need a spring compressor for 2" lift springs, btw

 

Track bar was holding it up. I took the TB off and now I can lower the axle enough to squeeze those springs in there.

 

Good to see you resolved it. The track bar is the best way to go because both of them as well as all of your control arms *should* be loosened up and re-torqued at your new height anyways.

 

You asked about the upper control arm bolts getting loosened, you need to loosen all 16 control arm bolts, and torque them after the lift is in and the Jeep is setting on level ground. If you do not, you will have the bushings preloaded and they will live a shorter than expected life, and the suspension will not flex/work as it should.

All control arm bolts get torqued after your done and you have set the Jeep on the ground. I think it's the upper rear frame side bolts that you need to use a crows foot on, or scream them tight by hand if you can't find the tools to do it with what is in your box. Jamming lift springs in with the bushings left locked into an old neutral position is not the correct way to do it.

 

all you needed to do was not put the bump stop on until you got the spring on.
Be sure the hole was drilled for the bump stop, put the bump stop in the spring, put the spring on then mount the bump stop.
2" springs are easy, it's when you get to 3.5+ they get a little more difficult

 

Thanks, for the tips on the control arms and for the extra work!!! LOL!!! Going back to loosen the rear control arms and upper fronts now. I knew to tighten them with the weight of the vehicle on them....just didn't realize I needed to loosen all of them. Darn Mopar instructions, leave out half the steps.

 

2" springs don't require you to loosen control arms
The rear just unbolt track bar, brake line brackets and sway bars. The springs will practically fall out.

 

Require- no. Best practice- yes.

In regards to the comment about 3.5"+ coils being more difficult, I've found them to be easier since you're typically installing longer control arms as well.

 

I hope this loosening all the control arm bolts is worth it in the end, because damn this is a lot of extra effort. I'm getting ready to put my tires all back on, lower it on the ground and start tightening everything back up and after loosening the rear control arms I'm scratching my head and wondering how the heck am I going to tighten that axle side rear upper control arm bolt with the tires on? I had a hard enough time loosening it with the tires off using a 21mm wrench with a cheater pipe. Is there a better way to get at those bolts?

 

Use jack stands under the rear axle and tighten them up with the tires off. The jeep wont know that is not on the ground. The point is to have all the weight of the jeep on the springs so that the control arms are in the normal ride position before tightening the bolts.