Skyjacker Suspensions: Celebrating 50 Years of Off-Road Excellence and Innovation

Skyjacker Suspensions archives . October 30, 2024 . Diesel World

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Celebrating 50 Years of Excellence

The late 1960s drew in founder Lonnie McCurry Sr’s passion for off-roading (Louisiana southern-style mud digging) into local mud truck racing. Lonnie, along with his wife, Nell recognized a need in the growing 4×4 community and opened up Lonnie McCurry’s 4-Wheel Drive Center—a small shop in their backyard. It started as a passion for growing the hobby that Lonnie and his friends enjoyed. Lonnie Sr. set out to design products that would redefine off-road capabilities, and eventually in 1974, he established Skyjacker Suspensions. This project would go on to become a transformative force in the off-road aftermarket industry, largely in part to the popularity of the dentside F-150 heavy-duty half-ton pickup. Today, Skyjacker has over 85,000 square-feet of combined facility space, over 50 employees, and three generations of family working in the business.

Since its pioneering days in the early ’70s, Skyjacker has been dedicated to being a leader in the off-road suspension industry. Skyjacker’s field-proven expertise is in creating lift kits and suspension systems along with all related components and accessories. People have always enjoyed heading into the great outdoors to satisfy their sense of adventure, and there are always some who want to go further and conquer more. These are Skyjacker customers. Throughout Skyjacker’s 50-year history, it has never backed down from its dedication to pure off-roading. Skyjacker’s philosophy has always been to provide the best designed, advanced-engineered, and most innovative suspensions possible. It engineers the definition of what quality suspension systems should consist of— components that work in form and function to the highest level of achievement possible, with the highest quality of materials and resources available.

With Skyjacker being a member of SEMA since 1999 making a statement at the 2023 SEMA show was of utmost importance. The year marked the soft launch of the company’s celebration of 50 years in business. The booth’s official theme was history, and the Skyjacker team designed a booth to bring its 50-year timeline to life. Skyjacker’s “Hallway of History,” as the booth was named honored and showcased the legacy of the founding McCurry family’s heritage.

In the world of automotive enthusiasts, few names carry as much weight as Skyjacker Suspensions. Renowned for its top-quality suspension systems and unmatched performance, this company has continued to set new standards of off-road excellence since its inception 50 years ago.

Lonnie McCurry’s 4-Wheel Drive Center was a local full service 4WD shop until the late 1980s. It offered lift kits, tires, wheels, gears, winches, bumpers, repairs, etc.–the whole works. This Ford F-150 was fresh with custom paint and the works in 1977, and has since been refreshed with new Skyjacker Suspension parts,Raceline white 8-spoke wheels, and Interco 35×10.00-15 Super Swamper TSL SX2 tires.

SEMA 2023 launched a celebration of 50 years. Skyjacker designed a booth to bring its 50-year timeline to life. Skyjacker’s “Hallway of History” was to honor and showcase the family’s off-road heritage as a trusted partner of adventure-loving drivers over the years.

With a strong focus on Ford trucks, including the iconic dentside Ford F-150, Skyjacker has firmly established itself as a trusted partner for adventure-loving drivers over the years. Ford trucks have always held a special place in the hearts of automotive enthusiasts, and Skyjacker quickly recognized this. It saw an opportunity to cater specifically to Blue Oval owners, knowing that these proud individuals demanded uncompromising quality and performance. Skyjacker shares a love for Ford so much that it brought a dentside F-150 to the 2023 SEMA show. The previously Skyjacker-owned ‘77 Ford was lifted, painted, and fully built out on the property where Skyjacker’s headquarters remains today. The truck was sold off at some point in the later ’70s, and it resurfaced just before the company’s 50-year anniversary. The F-150’s current owner reached out, and luckily the truck was still in pristine condition. It still had the original paint and accessories as well as a newer Skyjacker suspension kit under it.

Lonnie Sr., along with his wife Nell, recognized a need in the growing 4×4 community and opened up Lonnie McCurry’s 4-Wheel Drive Center, a small shop in their backyard. It started as a passion for growing the hobby that Lonnie and his friends enjoyed. Skyjacker Suspensions officially branched out from these humble beginnings in 1974.

Skyjacker offers numerous lift kits for dentside Ford F-150s that deliver 1.5-, 2-, 4-, 6-, and 9-inch lift heights utilizing components such as Softride coil springs, rear block and U-bolt kits, full-height Softride rear springs, Pitman arms, drag links, tie rods, radius arm drop brackets, C-bushings, extended length stainless steel brake lines, three lines of steering stabilizers, four lines of shock absorbers, and a newly released adjustable front track bar.

Skyjacker believes its relationship with Jesus Christ has been the driving force in the success of the company. Along with a strong faith in God, the company also attributes its success to its faithful customers.