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Skyjacker

Taking Suspension Lifts to New Heights for Three Decades

story and photos by Steve Temple

Amid the annual automotive aftermarket trade show (SEMA) in Las Vegas each fall, industry people roam through the vast tundra that is the Convention Center, all suffering from sensory overload from thousands of project vehicles, motorsports stars and booth babes. Yet the one display that inevitably drops the jaw of the most jaded convention goer is Skyjacker. The company invariably rolls out a 4x4 warrior that redefines the concept of off-roading.

Aside from grabbing attention, this extreme exhibit says something extra about Skyjacker. The company not only has a well-honed eye for the outrageous, but also is passionate about the sport. In keeping with that other well-known Louisiana export, Skyjacker is the Tabasco sauce of four-wheeling. Yet Skyjacker’s substance as a suspension company is on equal footing with its sense of style. While we salivate over the super-lifted 4x4s that require ladders to climb into and are equipped with all the bells and whistles, we still drive in the real world and require dependable, sturdy suspension systems to carry us over boulders, up ledges and through quagmires. What Skyjacker does is provide “Four Wheelin’ Freedom,” and lets us define how extensive that freedom is.

This year marks the company’s 30th anniversary. It all started, like so many 4x4 aftermarket manufacturers, with late-night tailgate challenges thrown out at a hunting camp. Lonnie McCurry, Sr. rose to the dare, “I bet you can’t” and spent many a moonlit excursions through the swamps and bayous of rural Louisiana. The logical next step for McCurry was to put his expertise to work for him and open a Four Wheel Drive Center. From his West Monroe shop, McCurry progressed from replacing and repairing 4-wheel drive parts to fabricating custom suspension parts and producing aftermarket products. The final leg of this evolution from shop to full-blown production of a broad range of off-road suspension systems was a heavy involvement in 4x4 events and motorsports-back to McCurry’s roots.

With so many companies involved in off-road racing, you have to wonder if the racing is the means to the end or the end in itself. It doesn’t really matter; the competition circuit is the best way to test the strength and durability of the suspension. Success in the racing arena is also the best way to catch the eye of off-road enthusiasts and that’s how McCurry grew Skyjacker. Today, Lonnie Sr. has been joined by his son, Lonnie Jr., as the company moves into its fourth decade staffed with other second-generation off-road enthusiasts.

One advantage of turning your recreational passion into a business is that you know what the enthusiast needs are and you’ve got the skill and innovative sense to make it. Skyjacker’s 30-year history is marked with this kind of innovation. A few examples:

Lifted suspensions run a serious risk of disturbing steering geometry, or the alignment of the steering system to the front wheels. The result of poor steering geometry is, in a few words, bad steering response. Your vehicle’s turning radius is reduced, the feel of the steering is alien and the rod ends can wear excessively.

To counteract these problems, Skyjacker developed one of the first dropped pitman arms for the aftermarket, allowing the lifted 4x4 to retain the original geometry and going a long way in the direction of safety and ride quality. As the technology and engineering changed through the years and leaf springs were replaced with independent front suspensions, Skyjacker continued its quest for safety and durability with a drop-center link to correct the angle of the outer tie rod ends. For the ultimate fix, on the company’s new CNC-machined steering knuckle and bracketry lift system, the attachment point for the outer tie rod end is now higher to correct the angle.

Next are rock crawling and suspension systems custom-designed for the sport. One of the fastest growing forms of motorsports, rock crawling puts specific demands on the 4x4 and Skyjacker rose to that challenge with its Rock Ready series. Articulation, flexibility and durability are the keys to a good crawler. The Rock Ready series includes a long arm link with the sub-frame assembly, along with other features such as an 80-percent increase in the length of the lower control arm.

Additionally, the company makes adjustable flex front and rear track bars, double disconnect front swaybar end links and extended rear swaybar end links. On Skyjacker’s new Platinum Series Coil Overs, each coil is CNC machine-wound for precision, and dimensionally tested and preset to add memory and eliminate settling. A final height rate test is then used to verify the consistency of the pound rate through the complete travel cycle.

Skyjacker also provides coil-over conversions for 1999 to 2004 Ford Super Dutys, called the Z-Link Platinum Series Coil-Over Conversion. The Super Dutys’ front leaf springs are removed and, in a bolt-on installation, the heavy hauler is converted to a coil-over 4-Link front suspension with improved ride quality and longer suspension travel.

Skyjacker produces three performance shock lines, each designed for a specific application. The Hydro H7000 Series, designed for mid-sized vehicles used for mild off-roading or full-sized trucks with multiple shock systems. The Hydro, as the name implies, features hydraulic action. It also incorporates a litany of features including multi-stage velocity sensitive valving, compression control to prevent the formation of air bubbles that cause shock fade, an expanded fluid reservoir to keep the shock running cooler, heavy-duty twin tube construction, internal rebound bumper and polyurethane bushings.

Next, the Nitro N8000 shock is designed for full-size trucks, those with diesel engines or those that are used for moderate off-roading. The Nitro series are 150-psi nitrogen gas pressurized and share the features of the Hyrdo series.

For extreme off-roading and long travel situations, Skyjacker’s solution is its Platinum Mono-Tube Gas Shock. It’s nitrogen gas pressured with a massive 2-inch piston bore. The Platinum series features 360-degree directional mounting, 0.875-inch (22mm) chrome hardened piston shaft, 0.125-inch heavy-gauged steel body wall, off-road race inspired wafer valving, and are available up to 50 inches in length.

The company’s 30-year history is reflected in the depth of its product line, starting with 2.5-inch and up to 8-inch lifts for the classic war horses of the late ’60s. Then there’s the Rock Ready and Flex Systems for Jeeps, and lifts for the full range of the modern American trucks and many imports. And one of the latest items is a 5.5-inch lift for the Hummer H2.

Skyjacker lifts them all with optional upgrades to many of the different systems to meet the demands of the terrain. To ensure each suspension system delivers a solid ride, both on and off the road, Skyjacker first makes test runs with a Light Vehicle Dynamics Simulation. Using this combination of high-tech computer soft- and hardware, the engineers can double check the steering geometry, driveline angles, pinion angles and so on during the suspension’s travel cycle. The Light Vehicle Dynamics Simulation provides information on how the suspension will impact the vehicle’s ride quality, as well as verifying spring rates, shock rebound and compression, travel and articulation-all important elements in a rugged, durable suspension.

But Skyjacker doesn’t stop at simply simulating off-road conditions. The company is closely involved with hands-on wheelin’ through both sponsorship of and participating in off-road motorsports. These activities range from the fast-growing Jeep owners club’s JeepSpeed series to championship level competition. The Skyjacker Tour Team includes Barrie Thompson, the JeepSpeed Challenge Series points champion for 2002, and Curt LeDuc, Class 8 2002 season champion for the Best in the Desert Series. Both LeDuc and his son Kyle race in the Championship Off-Road Racing (CORR) series; Curt with his Pro 4 Division Ford F-150 and Kyle in the Skyjacker Ford Ranger Pro-Lite Division.

Skyjacker-sponsored events include the Goodyear/Skyjacker Extreme Rock Crawling Nationals, Skyjacker/TOR Challenge in Tennessee, the Northeastern US Rockcrawling and Offroad Championship, Truckin’ 4x4 Nationals, Skyjacker ROCKS, and a series of family-oriented trail rides across the country.

The keen sense of competition that sparked Lonnie, Sr. during those tailgate challenges in the bayou 30 years ago has endured over the decades — even down to the company slogan and mascot, “the bear of suspensions.” According to the company line, the bear is big, strong, adaptable, and aggressive — just like Skyjacker suspensions.