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2 door Rubi: Help me achieve my goal please with ride and height

Greg Cobble

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I want to move from original Rubicon tires to a 34.5 to 35 inch tires while maintaining the stock window of room between tire and fender (I don't want it stuffed nor a bigger gap). I want a suspension that absorbs as much of the daily driving slab roads, pot holes, RR tracks as possible without increasing body roll and brake dive to the extent possible. I don't want to handicap current off road ability, but I don't need to increase it. How do I get there(desired height and soft/smooth road ride)?
I think the Terraflex 1.5 would give me the perfect height. If I left the springs alone and added Falcon 3.3 adjustable shocks would I get the ride I want?
The Dynatrac 2 inch with Fox shocks might be a little higher lift than I want but the ride sounds like what I am looking for?
Any thoughts between these two options or any other solutions you think would get me where I want to go?
THANK YOU for any comments you may have!
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Oletimer

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I want to move from original Rubicon tires to a 34.5 to 35 inch tires while maintaining the stock window of room between tire and fender (I don't want it stuffed nor a bigger gap). I want a suspension that absorbs as much of the daily driving slab roads, pot holes, RR tracks as possible without increasing body roll and brake dive to the extent possible. I don't want to handicap current off road ability, but I don't need to increase it. How do I get there(desired height and soft/smooth road ride)?
I think the Terraflex 1.5 would give me the perfect height. If I left the springs alone and added Falcon 3.3 adjustable shocks would I get the ride I want?
The Dynatrac 2 inch with Fox shocks might be a little higher lift than I want but the ride sounds like what I am looking for?
Any thoughts between these two options or any other solutions you think would get me where I want to go?
THANK YOU for any comments you may have!
Terraflex 1.5 may do the trick, but i would go with fox shocks. Better consider longer or adjustable lower control arms. Even the 1.5 will only lower castor and make handle worse.
Then try and stick with a 6 ply tire.
And putting a 315 size tire on a stock wheel can cause you to run on crown of tire and cause handling issues.
Its hard not to have any negatives but it can actually drive just as good only different.
 

UKCATS

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Here’s a couple pics of my 2 door Rubicon with the Teraflex 1.5” spacer kit. I added a .5” spacer to the front to make it 1.5” on all 4 corners as my Jeep already sit level. The tires are 315/70r17 Milestar Patagonia’s.

D6E0F95D-C412-458E-9D65-B0C3BA3D009D.jpeg
6EE8C8AC-EA87-46F7-91C8-0F4F701E8E52.jpeg
C7E30FA7-7EBD-4306-B42D-5AC07855269D.jpeg
 

irishtim7

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I would base the decision on factors other than wheel gap. I know you want to maintain a nice ride but you should mainly be focusing on what you want to do with the Jeep and what kind of gear (if any) you want to add (i.e. how much weight will you be adding). If you are adding a bunch of weight to the Jeep, the stock springs are going to start sagging.

Do you take it wheeling? how often? What kind of trails?
Do you have a winch? Do you plan on one?
Do you have steel bumpers?

The route you take also might be dependent on whether or not you do the install. If you're paying for an install, the labor to add spacers as opposed to springs is the same. If I was doing the labor, I'd be inclined to start with the spacer lift first to see how you like it since it's so inexpensive. Rubicons with 1.5" of lift on 35's look really nice but it's still going to drive very similar to stock. That may be good or bad IDK. Maybe a bit worse in terms of floatiness and body roll.

The Dynatrac lift on my 2 Door netted me a lift of 1.75" front and 2.25" rear. I've got a winch up front though. I've only added about 175lbs total to my Jeep so far. 100lbs of that is the winch and front bumper. 35's with this lift may look a little small and the wheel gap is going to be bigger than stock. The tradeoff is the ride quality though. It is considerable better than stock. It's not perfect. You're still going to feel potholes, tracks and rough road.

Also, at 2" of lift and below you don't really need to worry about swapping out control arms. The geometry is still within spec and the affect on handling should be minimal. That's been my experience anyway.
 
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Greg Cobble

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Here’s a couple pics of my 2 door Rubicon with the Teraflex 1.5” spacer kit. I added a .5” spacer to the front to make it 1.5” on all 4 corners as my Jeep already sit level. The tires are 315/70r17 Milestar Patagonia’s.

D6E0F95D-C412-458E-9D65-B0C3BA3D009D.jpeg
6EE8C8AC-EA87-46F7-91C8-0F4F701E8E52.jpeg
C7E30FA7-7EBD-4306-B42D-5AC07855269D.jpeg
That is a great looking Jeep!
Well done!!!
 

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UKCATS

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Greg Cobble

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I would base the decision on factors other than wheel gap. I know you want to maintain a nice ride but you should mainly be focusing on what you want to do with the Jeep and what kind of gear (if any) you want to add (i.e. how much weight will you be adding). If you are adding a bunch of weight to the Jeep, the stock springs are going to start sagging.

Do you take it wheeling? how often? What kind of trails?
Do you have a winch? Do you plan on one?
Do you have steel bumpers?

The route you take also might be dependent on whether or not you do the install. If you're paying for an install, the labor to add spacers as opposed to springs is the same. If I was doing the labor, I'd be inclined to start with the spacer lift first to see how you like it since it's so inexpensive. Rubicons with 1.5" of lift on 35's look really nice but it's still going to drive very similar to stock. That may be good or bad IDK. Maybe a bit worse in terms of floatiness and body roll.

The Dynatrac lift on my 2 Door netted me a lift of 1.75" front and 2.25" rear. I've got a winch up front though. I've only added about 175lbs total to my Jeep so far. 100lbs of that is the winch and front bumper. 35's with this lift may look a little small and the wheel gap is going to be bigger than stock. The tradeoff is the ride quality though. It is considerable better than stock. It's not perfect. You're still going to feel potholes, tracks and rough road.

Also, at 2" of lift and below you don't really need to worry about swapping out control arms. The geometry is still within spec and the affect on handling should be minimal. That's been my experience anyway.
Thank you for your time and comments. To add some details:
1. I do not take it wheeling ever. I will get off road to do some photography, but usually this consist of fire trails or rocky wash board dirt roads. Clearance is not an issue.
2. No winch and don't plan to add one.
3. I have stock bumper.
4. I have the 3.6 with 4:10 gears and 8 speed automatic.

Compared to past Wranglers I have owned, the performance on this one is spectacular. I don't want to give up the acceleration and all around livability on the street. I want it to look good to my eyes and ride well on rough county paved roads. My preference is to avoid both the stuffed look and the look where the lift seems to have outgrown the tires :).
I have even considered that my needs might be best filled with stock springs, no lift, falcon 3.3 shocks, 33 x 12.5 x 17 tires on some icon rebound wheels.

Whatever I choose, I will do the install myself. I am not an accomplished mechanic by any stretch, but I have installed coils and shocks on an F250 and a lift on an FJ Cruiser successfully....thank God for good directions and videos LOL. It is enough outside of my profession that I enjoy a wrench in my hand once in a while.
Thanks again for your time!
 

Krondor

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I'm enjoying my lift and I was doing just fine with 315's and the 8.5" wheels with 4.75" backspace. The wheels and tires alone made the Jeep LOOK great and I got some traction from the new tires. I will say though, that the extra travel and bumps made speed bumps and railroad tracks a non-issue. Amazing how the Jeep absorbs the bumps now.

That said, you may find that adding Fox Shocks will be all you really need. Shocks help absorb impacts and decrease body roll... As has already been said, it all depends on what you will be doing and what you will be carrying.

Just thought I'd throw a plug in for MetalCloak. Loving the new ride myself.

IMG_0692.JPG


Before lift.

IMG_3019.JPG


After lift.

No rubbing either way. :like:
 

Krondor

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Thank you for your time and comments. To add some details:
1. I do not take it wheeling ever. I will get off road to do some photography, but usually this consist of fire trails or rocky wash board dirt roads. Clearance is not an issue.
2. No winch and don't plan to add one.
3. I have stock bumper.
4. I have the 3.6 with 4:10 gears and 8 speed automatic.

Compared to past Wranglers I have owned, the performance on this one is spectacular. I don't want to give up the acceleration and all around livability on the street. I want it to look good to my eyes and ride well on rough county paved roads. My preference is to avoid both the stuffed look and the look where the lift seems to have outgrown the tires :).
I have even considered that my needs might be best filled with stock springs, no lift, falcon 3.3 shocks, 33 x 12.5 x 17 tires on some icon rebound wheels.

Whatever I choose, I will do the install myself. I am not an accomplished mechanic by any stretch, but I have installed coils and shocks on an F250 and a lift on an FJ Cruiser successfully....thank God for good directions and videos LOL. It is enough outside of my profession that I enjoy a wrench in my hand once in a while.
Thanks again for your time!

Well then, I'd say add good shocks and the MetalCloak bumps and see how that goes. You may also really want to consider the beefier steering bits if you start to experience any wobbling. (Heavier tires may bring this up sooner.)

Post back your choice and then your reviews as you go. Add to the pool. :beer:
 

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Greg Cobble

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I'm enjoying my lift and I was doing just fine with 315's and the 8.5" wheels with 4.75" backspace. The wheels and tires alone made the Jeep LOOK great and I got some traction from the new tires. I will say though, that the extra travel and bumps made speed bumps and railroad tracks a non-issue. Amazing how the Jeep absorbs the bumps now.

That said, you may find that adding Fox Shocks will be all you really need. Shocks help absorb impacts and decrease body roll... As has already been said, it all depends on what you will be doing and what you will be carrying.

Just thought I'd throw a plug in for MetalCloak. Loving the new ride myself.

IMG_0692.JPG


Before lift.

IMG_3019.JPG


After lift.

No rubbing either way. :like:
I can only imagine the Game Changer to be just that. Nicely set up Sir!
 

AnnDee4444

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Here’s a couple pics of my 2 door Rubicon with the Teraflex 1.5” spacer kit. I added a .5” spacer to the front to make it 1.5” on all 4 corners as my Jeep already sit level. The tires are 315/70r17 Milestar Patagonia’s.

D6E0F95D-C412-458E-9D65-B0C3BA3D009D.jpeg
6EE8C8AC-EA87-46F7-91C8-0F4F701E8E52.jpeg
C7E30FA7-7EBD-4306-B42D-5AC07855269D.jpeg
Are those the Sport wheels? Running any wheel spacers? Jeep looks great BTW.
 

UKCATS

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Are those the Sport wheels? Running any wheel spacers? Jeep looks great BTW.
Thank you. Wheels are Quadratec Recons. I changed it up a couple weeks ago. Added 2.5” lift and 37’s. Looked better as pictured IMHO.
 

AnnDee4444

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Thank you. Wheels are Quadratec Recons. I changed it up a couple weeks ago. Added 2.5” lift and 37’s. Looked better as pictured IMHO.
Wow... those look so close, I had to do a side-by-side comparison to even tell the difference.

Sport S:
e41b88e3-d829-411c-aca5-0011e6fcd084-jpeg.jpg


Quadratec Recon:

Quadratec-Recon-Wheel-17x8.5-5x5-Silver.jpg
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