Lift kits and tires

[rylee144]

Hi all,

 

I am trying to decide on how big of a lift kit to get, how big of tires and what size of wheels. A lot of my decision is going to be the look of my MJ when its done as I don't plan on wheeling it. 

 

If you choose to respond to this can I get a picture and the sizes of the things listed above. Thanks for the help. 

 

Rylee

[Marine1Texas]

engine, trans, and current axle ratio to see what options for larger tire sizes.

I use 31's with no lift and 4.10 front/back ratio. However anything bigger then 31 you would for sure need a lift. are you 2wd or 4wd?

I am guessing your going for look right? I my self like the way a Comanche looks with no lift and 31's

[rylee144]

I have a 4.0L with a five speed manual transmission. i think the axle ratio is 373 or 411. The truck is a 2wd short box. 

[Marine1Texas]

most manual 4.0's came with 3.07. However if you are 4.10 without to much hit to gas mileage and take off you could go with 35's.  you would need to go with about a 6 inch lift. If you want more power I would be closer to 31 on a 4.10 it will be very peppy. If you have a 3.73 I think 33's would be about the biggest I would go. that your need a 3inch lift at least. If you do have a 3.55 rear end, I would not be much bigger then 31's. On 31's not every truck can get away without a lift kit. 2 inch may be needed.

 

You also have to think about your brakes. once you get over 31's your brake need a upgrade if you want to stop fast and easy. Between 235/75r15 to 31x10.5r15 I notice a lost in stopping power with stock setup. was not bad, however I can imagine worse going bigger.

 

If you have the 3.07 I would not go higher then 30 inch. I think the 235/75r15 at 29 inch is best for that 3.07

stock 4.0's came with  225/75r15 at 28.3 inch's and 215/75r15 at 27.7

the standard upgrade with no problems is 235/75r15 at 28.9 inch's this is on stock rims

 

you can go as wide at 10.5 inch with out much of any problem on stock rims

 

If you want to go bigger tires, you can however best to be at least 4.10 or more. double check your setup. It is cheaper to get a new rear end with a 4.10 then to go thru hassle of upgrading your 3.07 to a 4.10. If you do have a 3.55 and want to go bigger they do sell thick gears to upgrade rear end much easier.

 

I am surprised no one has commented yet, since lots of lifts. a lot more people know more about lifts and brands. however most are off roaders and not just street.

 

[rylee144]

My grandpa upgraded the rear end when he had it so I'm not positive what is there. I've been tossing so many sizes around its crazy. I like the sound of a 32 or 33 with a 3-4 inch lift. I hadn't heard about the braking issue so thanks for the tip. Ill do some research on that too. I'm pretty early into the project but it is derivable so I'm working as fast as I can. The interior was pretty messed up so I've got that torn apart now. Carpet, pad, headliner are all ordered and the old stuff is torn out. I am in need of a new gauge cluster but it seems to be hard to find. Thanks for your time and response.  

[Dzimm]

The most important thing is to figure your gear ratios as mentioned, before moving forward any further.

 

You also should consider running all terrain tires as aposed to mud terrains since this will not see offroad.  This way you can get the look of an MT but get the on road performance of an AT.  This also allows for some offroading if you ever end up doing it. (BFG KO2 ATs are very aggressive looking all terrains that I have decided on based on my research). 

 

The other question to ask (since you are looking for looks) do you want to trim the fenders or leave them untouched?  If you don't want to cut, you can fit 33s in there on 4.5" of lift, but if you do end up offroading, you will bash your fenders up in no time unless you bumpstop it.     

 

I'm in this boat, I have a 4.5" lift on mine but don't want to trim.  I've found 33x10.5 to be the biggest you can fit under there without cutting, but it needs bumpstopped accordingly and will probably rub at full lock.  I want to run 32s but nobody makes good all terrain tires in 32x10.5r15.  32s don't really exist right now.   

 

Here is a couple pictures of my truck at 4.5" with 235/75r15 tires on stock wheels.  I think I have decided on 31x10.5xr15 BFG KO2 ATs for now so I don't have to trim, it will look good, lose less power, and still perform without rubbing or hitting fenders.  I base this decision on this being mostly a street driven truck that I want to be able to do some decent offroading with every once in a while.  

 

[rylee144]

thanks for the info and the photo. its nice to see what people have after they explain it. I could see myself doing something very similar. 

[Pete M]

what's you budget look like?

[rylee144]

I would like to keep the lift under $750. That leaves me another $750 for wheels and tires. I have a few other things that need replaced too, window seals, wiper motor is on its way out and a gauge cluster. Only the speedo works right now. 

[Pete M]

with a restricted budget, you can't go wrong with a 3" lift and 31s.    Don's (hornbrod) MJ is 2wd, 3" and 31s (with a few other knickknacks thrown in)

 

 

[rylee144]

thanks!

[carnuck]

It will partially depend on your own ability and what you can do of the lift yourself.

I started mine before getting my cabin but after I already had a longbox ‘86 2wd with a home made spring lift converted to 4x4.

I used the “booster” leaf from my Jeep J10 in the rear (thicker with built in curve) to get 3” of lift out of the factory leaf sags, I mean springs.

It rode like a rock but cleared 235/75R/15s no problem and the TBI 2.5 with 5 speed and 4.10s cruised with 3” ZJ coils in front but it rode like a rock.

Doing an SOA in the rear with 33/9.50/15s was good with 4.0L and 5 speed with 3.73s but I lost power and fuel economy when I went to automatic until I dropped to 235/75R/15s to tow an Eagle SX4 back from near the CA border. The end plan was 4.10s but then I became too sick to work on it.

The front was lifted with 7” TJ coils (unsure what brand but they weren’t as stiff as the ZJ 6” ones I swapped them for), an adjustable tracbar, extended lower arms, shock extensions, YJ brake hoses and a late 90s XJ booster with new master cylinder.

I removed the load sensor and went directly to the axle hose. The type of brake materials you use will affect your overall braking ability as well.

I ended up with just enough lift that the 235s looked too small for the truck unless it was loaded. Later I added rear Metric tonne springs to calm the towing wigwag and a 2” receiver hitch.

My icon photo above is that truck in 2003 or so with LT255/85R/16s on ZJ alloys. The metric equivalent to 33/10.50/15s but it touched the lower arms on full turns and hitting bumps. I didn’t know about the WJ curved lower arms at the time.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

 

[Eagle]

On 11/4/2017 at 3:46 AM, rylee144 said:

Hi all,

 

I am trying to decide on how big of a lift kit to get, how big of tires and what size of wheels. A lot of my decision is going to be the look of my MJ when its done as I don't plan on wheeling it. 

 

If you choose to respond to this can I get a picture and the sizes of the things listed above. Thanks for the help. 

 

Rylee

 

Personally, for a street truck I think stock height suspension with 30-inch tires is perfect from an appearance perspective.

[yxmj]

My avatar is a 2wd stock Springs in the rear and a 2" puck in the front to eliminate some of the "rake" ....the rear sits now about 1" higher than the front....31" BFG's on 15 x 8 Eagle alloys 

[sinkrun]

I am running 30`s, 4x4, metric ton and no lift if you would like a pic let me know.

[Marine1Texas]

for street use this is how mine sits with 31's. no rub ever. however I have some bags that give me 3 inch instant lift on front and back for when I am in the back. II almost never have to use the bags unless I am in deep river bed clay crap.

[muddypunk]

For street use level it and 31's will give it a real nice (should have come stock that way) look. 15' or 17' 16's cost a arm and a leg but have good sizes like 285's but I'm over them as they cost so much more to replace.

Gearing forget about that I one of my XJ's has 3.07 and 33's and drives fine I never see 5th gear unless on the freeway but I still average 17mpg on my rural drive to work.

Sent from my Arse because my hands are full

[87MJTIM]

2 hours ago, Noriyori_Kudo said:

for street use this is how mine sits with 31's. no rub ever. however I have some bags that give me 3 inch instant lift on front and back for when I am in the back. II almost never have to use the bags unless I am in deep river bed clay crap.

 It really bugs me to see this.  Your grill is upside-down.

 

[Marine1Texas]

yea been that way for 15 years or so. When I got back from over seas in Marines my brother was using it. I never needed to remove it since, so it is like that.