To lift or not to lift

[PASmokeater]

1043116

I finally got my 99 TJ off the road, and have found myself totally bitten by the trail bug. I now am faced the long trail of modifing the stock Sahara to make the riding even more enjoyable. I'm not doing anything extreme, just intermediate trails, with rocks, mud, and water. I have the stock 30" tires and want to go a little higher to keep the scraping to a minimum. The problem is I have no idea what I'm doing, and thought I would open it up the floor to get your opinions on lifts and tires. I still use the Jeep as my daily driver. I've heard about body lifts and suspension lifts, but don't know the pro's and cons of each. Also, what kind of tires do you all recommend? I was thinking of gong to 31"s. Your feedback will be very usefull and I can't wait to get started on the projects planned for this winter

[addsig]

 

[ShyD33]

1043128

Well PASmoke...Im new at this too...I'm in the same boat ast you. 2003 Sport on stock 30 inch wheel group. Here's what I've learned so far. You can go to 31" tires on stock suspension and be fine ( maybe 31.5" if they make that??). Any thing bigger, and you need clearance. Clearance is made by lifting your Jeep..."Ta-Dah". The standard numbers are this....31" tires needs stock...32s need a 2 inch lift...33" tires need a four inch lift ( done in various combinations)...35s need a four inch suspension lift and a 3 inch body lift. Now...the ways to lift your jeep....Spring Spacers...Body Lifts...or Suspension Lifts. Springs spacers are plastic blocks at the bottom of your stock springs ( the only mod would be longer shocks). Body lifts ( WHICH SUCK in my opinion) are plastic blocks in between the body and the chassis ( leaving a horrible space and are terribly unsafe on the highway. Finally Suspension Kits are the bomb. You get new springs, new shocks, pitman arm for correct steering connection, Transfer case lowering kit to keep correct angles for the 4WD...adjustable trac bars to keep the axles from scooting over to the sides, and a plethora (sp?) of other shit depending on how intense to plan to be. MIND YOU some ppl are too anxious and do like a 2 inch spacer kit and a 2 inch body lift JUST BC THEY WANT 33's...Wrong way to do it. Get your clearance the real way. =)



NEXT POST...wheels.....

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[ShyD33]

1043132

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[ShyD33]

1043134

OK ....so you picked out your tire diameter...Then you pick your lift. Now Wheels...In JEEPLAND...What Goes Up, Must Go Out. Wouldn't want to flip your jeep. Stock 15x8 wheels ( what you and I have ) have a postive offset ( means they fit underneath the fender flare) We got 30x9.5 tires...so thats 9.5" tires on 8"wheels. When you raise your Jeep...FORGET FACTORY WHEELS ( unless you just want 31" tires on them.) With 32's you would need aftermarket 8inch wheels with a negatvie offset ( of usually -22mm) to retain a good "Jeep Stance" 33's go with 10inch aftermarket with -44mm, and 35's go with 12.50 wide wheels with a -56 mm offset. Also RULE OF THUMB...always at least 2 inch wider tires than wheels...So the final breakdown...



Tires A) 31"x11.50xR15...B)2"x11.50xR15...C) 33"x12.50xR15...D) 35"x14.50xR15

Wheels A2) 15x8" stock...B2) 15X8" Aftermkt...C2) 15X10" Aftermkt...D2) 15x12.50"Aftmkt

Offset: A3 +22...B3) -22...C3) -44...D3) -57(ish)

Lift:A4) None needed...B4) 2"...C4) 4" suspension...D4) 4" SP + 3" body



Good Luck. and PS: The jump from 33"s to 35" is huge financially. 33's can be done for $2000....32's and 31's....much cheaper. Scott.[addsig]

 

[RedWrang]

1043136

I will disagree with you ShyD33 on the wheel sizes. Ive been this stuff all my life and you can run 33s on an 8in wheel with no problems and a 35 on 10in. Not starting anything but just trying to help out a guy with the right sizes.[addsig]

 

[berettajeep]

1043139

33x9.50 on a 8 inch wide wheel fine,33x10.50 on a 8 inch fine too but a 33x12.50 should go on a 10 inch wide rim [addsig]

 

[Greencuke]

1043145

well...this is what ive gathered on the subjects; guys who know more then i do will be able to give more detail..

a body lift is a decient way to give a few inches cheap, but will only lift the chase, so in order to gain some lift you would have to add bigger tires, which is the primary purpose of a body lift. Im told that this in overall not too good for the body structure...

suspention lifts raise the chase above the axles higher, which gives you an overall higher ground clearence, and im pretty sure ur able to put bigger tires on but as im writing this i cant figure how...but they tend to be more costly. anyway, i hope u can get better information than this, good luck in any case[addsig]

 

[Jizeep]

1043146

when gettin into bigger tires (35+), it is impossible to lift a jeep with a total suspension lift without spending tons of cash. For example the 4 inch lift from skyjacker is around 800 dollars (resonable).......the 6 inch lift is over 2000(urgh). it's true that body lifts may not be as good as suspension, but not everyone has tons of cash to throw around......and then you have to factor in new gears, slip yoke, extended drive shaft..blah, blah, blah..... anyways my point is that body lifts get too much bad credit....everyone says how much they suck but in reality they can be a life saver.[addsig]

 

[RAVEN13xxx]

1043154

33x12.5x15 on 8" rims. Especially if you do any rock crawling. When you air down on the 8" rim, the tire itself offers more protection to the bead area making it less likely to spin the bead loose. On 10" rims there isn't good enough coverage and you wil end up loosing the bead (unless you have beadlocks). BUT just for looks, I'd go 33x12.5 on 10". I plan on a 4" full traction lift w/ 1 3/4" daystar spacers, and a 1" body lift. Then 35x14.5x15 tires.[addsig]

 

[ShyD33]

1043174

I agree with both sides here "RedWrang"on the whole 8inch vs 10inch wide wheel with 12.50 inch wide tire....Again it's how your going to drive your vehicle. If you want more sideall projection and better offroad grip ( possibly due to airing down) go for the +4 inch difference for widths ( i.e. 8inch rim:12.50 inch tire) If you want a more rectangular look, better ON-ROAD traction and better handling ability in the turns..go for the 10inch rim:12.50 inch tire combo. You do lose sidewall projection but "lose" is a relative term. As far as 35's Leave'em for the Big Dogs ( RAVEN) =). I live in miami... 33"s by 12.50 on 10" wide rims are perfect for me....conversely my best friend drives a CJ with 33's by 12.50 on 8inch wide rims....Its all what you want....[addsig]