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Help with 2018 rubicon

Nivek

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I will be quick and to the point here. My wife has always wanted a jeep wrangler and I finally found her a 2018 wrangler rubicon. Now she wants "bigger tires" and lifted. Thats what I got for a statement from her. I have been a 25 yr Gm guy (sorry). I know next to nothing about jeeps. What she wants is an agressive looking jeep that doesnt appear stock but drives like it is or better. Welcome to my world.

What I would like to know is should I go with just some aftermarket grille and 35" tires on the stock 17" rim? Or is there a magic combination of things? Should I look at a body or suspension lift? 37" tires? Bigger rims? I am looking for some ideas. What works what to stay away from. This will 100% be a daily driver and will more than likely never go off road. If it does would be very light. We live in wisconsin so snow and ice handling needs to be considered. Also is there any great sites to look for jeep accessories?

As I said I know nothing about jeeps. Also happy wife happy life. Thanks for any help and advice ahead of time
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americonium

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I like Northridge 4x4. They have knowledgeable staff, fair prices, and can help you build out what you're (your wife) looking to accomplish.
That being said...
I had a 2012 Sport S. I put a 2 1/2 inch lift on it. I put 33 x 12 R18's on it. Then it needed longer lower control arms to correct the caster. The angle of the lift blew out the rzeppa joints. Now I needed new drive shafts. The list goes on. I have a 2018 Rubicon now. I put LOD sliders on, upgraded the stereo and lights, and it's better than my last Jeep.

Choose wisely.
 

CBTXJLUR

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Honestly since it’s already a rubicon, I would do just some wheels, 35’s and bumpers/sliders ect. Mostly exterior cosmetics. No need to lift it and make drive-ability worse. Just my .02.
 

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Ouch. Here is one person's opinion:

No mud terrain tire is worth a damn in snow and ice. You want something three peak rated so the aggressive look is going to have to come from the sidewall, not the tread.

Show her a picture of her Jeep (color and number of doors) with Mopar beadlocks (you will run them as a conventional wheel with the rings just for looks).

For tires consider 35x12.5R17 Nitto Terra Grapplers

Add a 1" spacer lift, any more and she'll want 37's.

Prepare yourself for the next request, new bumpers and a winch LOL!
 

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Joe98

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Don't get a lift. Apparently it will ruin the steering
 

Kreepin1

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I will be quick and to the point here. My wife has always wanted a jeep wrangler and I finally found her a 2018 wrangler rubicon. Now she wants "bigger tires" and lifted. Thats what I got for a statement from her. I have been a 25 yr Gm guy (sorry). I know next to nothing about jeeps. What she wants is an agressive looking jeep that doesnt appear stock but drives like it is or better. Welcome to my world.

What I would like to know is should I go with just some aftermarket grille and 35" tires on the stock 17" rim? Or is there a magic combination of things? Should I look at a body or suspension lift? 37" tires? Bigger rims? I am looking for some ideas. What works what to stay away from. This will 100% be a daily driver and will more than likely never go off road. If it does would be very light. We live in wisconsin so snow and ice handling needs to be considered. Also is there any great sites to look for jeep accessories?

As I said I know nothing about jeeps. Also happy wife happy life. Thanks for any help and advice ahead of time
I gave my suggestion above, now for some don'ts and rationale.

1) Don't get an "Angry Eyes" grill. Or we will hunt you down.

2) Tires and Wheels make the single biggest statement. Looks are highly subjective so you definitely need to get her input on what she wants. Big fat donuts or little skinny pizza cutters? Lots of tire sidewall or big wheel?

3) Do keep the wheel offset as close to stock as possible. To some people "aggressive" means big fat tires that stick out past the fenders. You need to find out if this is the look she's after. If so, you need wheels with less offset than factory. In my mind this is the single biggest factor that affects handling. Factory is +44mm and to get the tires to "poke" you will end up in the 0 to -12mm range. That's two inches off the factory spec and lots of people are fine with this or more. If the steering is unacceptable, add hydraulic assist, adjustable lower control arms for more caster, etc. Not cheap but the problem can be solved.

Personally, I prefer the sidewall barely sticks past the fenders, say an inch or so. The Mopar Beadlocks I mentioned at +12mm offset provide this look and are close enough to factory offset to maintain decent handling.

3) Don't get a body lift. There was a time when they made sense. Currently, adding spacers to the coil springs is the better way to go for moderate street oriented lifts.
 

somedude922

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I dont care what ya’ll do but FOR THE LOVE OF CHRIST, please, please,please DO NOT GET AND ANGRY EYE GRILL!!!!

Its like putting a ford emblem on a GM.
That being said, a 1” spacer lift and 35s on the stick rims will look good.
 

mwilk012

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Honestly since it’s already a rubicon, I would do just some wheels, 35’s and bumpers/sliders ect. Mostly exterior cosmetics. No need to lift it and make drive-ability worse. Just my .02.
Don't get a lift. Apparently it will ruin the steering

My lift made my Rubi drive better than ever. Very smooth, very little body roll. YMMV.
 
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Nivek

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Ouch. Here is one person's opinion:

No mud terrain tire is worth a damn in snow and ice. You want something three peak rated so the aggressive look is going to have to come from the sidewall, not the tread.

Show her a picture of her Jeep (color and number of doors) with Mopar beadlocks (you will run them as a conventional wheel with the rings just for looks).

For tires consider 35x12.5R17 Nitto Terra Grapplers

Add a 1" spacer lift, any more and she'll want 37's.

Prepare yourself for the next request, new bumpers and a winch LOL!
I gave my suggestion above, now for some don'ts and rationale.

1) Don't get an "Angry Eyes" grill. Or we will hunt you down.

2) Tires and Wheels make the single biggest statement. Looks are highly subjective so you definitely need to get her input on what she wants. Big fat donuts or little skinny pizza cutters? Lots of tire sidewall or big wheel?

3) Do keep the wheel offset as close to stock as possible. To some people "aggressive" means big fat tires that stick out past the fenders. You need to find out if this is the look she's after. If so, you need wheels with less offset than factory. In my mind this is the single biggest factor that affects handling. Factory is +44mm and to get the tires to "poke" you will end up in the 0 to -12mm range. That's two inches off the factory spec and lots of people are fine with this or more. If the steering is unacceptable, add hydraulic assist, adjustable lower control arms for more caster, etc. Not cheap but the problem can be solved.

Personally, I prefer the sidewall barely sticks past the fenders, say an inch or so. The Mopar Beadlocks I mentioned at +12mm offset provide this look and are close enough to factory offset to maintain decent handling.

3) Don't get a body lift. There was a time when they made sense. Currently, adding spacers to the coil springs is the better way to go for moderate street oriented lifts.
For sure no angry eyes grill. She likes the oracle vector led grill. Unless its considered angry eye. I do not know alot about spacer lift. Is that for ease of install/clearance or to help with stance? If I put in the spacers should I change out springs at same time or are oem good enough?

Screenshot_20210123-171114_Samsung Internet.jpg
 

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Kreepin1

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For sure no angry eyes grill. She likes the oracle vector led grill. Unless its considered angry eye. I do not know alot about spacer lift. Is that for ease of install/clearance or to help with stance? If I put in the spacers should I change out springs at same time or are oem good enough?
Looks are a very personal thing and being able to easily customize the look is a strong point of Wranglers. I'd have her give you a picture of what she has in mind. Personally, I'm a fan of the factory grill, but to each there own!

Spacer lift is the easiest way to get a little height and retains the OEM springs so you maintain factory ride. Be aware that as you lift you change caster and other suspension factors. So spacer lifts should be kept to an inch or so. After that you need a suspension lift which requires a lot of money and effort to get right.
 

neil

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I say get her the angry grill and be done w it.
 

mwilk012

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For sure no angry eyes grill. She likes the oracle vector led grill. Unless its considered angry eye. I do not know alot about spacer lift. Is that for ease of install/clearance or to help with stance? If I put in the spacers should I change out springs at same time or are oem good enough?

Jeep Wrangler JL Help with 2018 rubicon Screenshot_20210123-171114_Samsung Internet
spacer lifts come with shock extensions and spring spacers, normally. It’s sometimes you will find just spring spacers and new longer shocks.
 

aldo98229

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Welcome to the forum!

Angry grilles get a lot of Jeepers angry...

I’ve had mixed experiences with Northridge 4x4; the most recent one was during the holidays and it wasn’t very good.

If you are buying the JL from a Jeep dealer, see if they are willing to throw in a Mopar 2” lift into the deal. My dealer had a deal of parts + labor for $2,000 + tax, so I took them on the offer. I ended getting 4 inches of lift in front and 3 in rear; am impressed how well it drives.

For tires my go-to place is Discount Tire, and for wheels Quadratec. I really like their own brand name line of wheels. I wouldn’t bother with MT tires; ATs will do everything she will ever need and more. More importantly, they retain the factory on-road ride and handling characteristics.

After you get 35” tires, you are going to need a programmer to recalibrate the speedometer, and an adjustable track bar.

This is my JL with the Mopar lift, Quadratec CJ Retro alloy wheels and 35” General Grabber ATs.

Good luck!
Jeep Wrangler JL Help with 2018 rubicon 1611454520227
 

Rubifan

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Just for reference, this is a spacer lift on stock 33” tires. I just did mine yesterday, took about 5 hours in my garage. TeraFlex 1.5” spacer lift (actually 1.5” rear, 1” front) with Falcon shocks. I got a great deal from a forum member who decided to go with 37” tires.

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