37s stock JLR wheels 2.5" lift, must I do it all at once?

[COJeeper]

I would look at 1.5"+ lifts but no more than 2.5" IMO.

I don't think we need much discussion but I'm curious to hear your opinion on why you don't recommend going to a 3.5". My initial thought was 2.5" for 35s and 3.5" for 37s. I like to hear peoples opinions. From my understanding, I can run 37s on the Clayton 2.5". I know that the Ozark Overland gal runs the 2.5" with 37s, maybe even 38s actually.

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[COJeeper]

I'm on 35's now and 37's here in the next month or so. My 35's weigh the same as my 37's and I am running a Rubicon as well with the 2.0L engine and a Pulsar XT for a little extra HP.

I'd say stick with your 37's on stock rims and upgrade your tire carrier to Teraflex HD Alpha adjustable one and pick your lift kit. That is plenty to get you wheeling some difficult trails and then you can upgrade ball joints, brakes, axles as you start to get a little wear on them.

You want to come up and help me install all this crap? :D

What are you doing with your 35s? If they have a lot of life left, maybe we can work something out, save me some moolah.

 

[COJeeper]

Sounds like I'll be going with Metalcloak as Clayton is not offering free shipping and $300 is effectively removing some of the discount. I get it though, this crap is heavy.

 

[Zandcwhite]

We need amsoil to run 37's? "Can't" run them on factory wheels? 62k miles of hard wheeling all over the country on standard fluids and stock wheels (although I did run a 1.5" spacer). The manufacturer recommended wheel sizes are not set in stone and actually vary pretty largely between tire manufacturers. Running a wide tire on a narrow wheel makes it less likely to lose a bead, the bead has more pressure pushing it into location with the increased width and there's no chance it jumps over the outer bead and off the wheel. Now the "stance" kids running skinny tires stretched onto wide wheels and a massive amount of camber are just begging for a tire failure, but that's a whole different topic. Jeep won't let you run the sway bar disconnected in 2wd or above 20mph, they won't let you use the front locker only. Just because the manufacturer doesn't recommend it doesn't mean it can't be done. Thanks to the tazer, desert washboards are much smoother cruising at speed with the sway bar disconnected, don't tell the mighty manufacturer. I use the front locker far more often than the rear as I find it's the light front end in a tricky climb that needs the extra traction, don't tell jeep. It's a recommendation not some hard law that the police are going to swoop in and arrest you for. Do what you are comfortable with.

 

[GATORB8]

I greatly appreciate everyone’s input here. This post is exactly why I asked these questions. I have found many people showing 12.50 35s and 37s on stock Rubicon 7.5” rims. I’m interested in your reasoning behind saying you cannot run this when many are. What do I risk by doing this? When people say it’s a “poor man’s beadlock” I immediately think this is good for airing down on the trail. I can run at lower pressures and not risk losing the bead. Why would you say I cannot do this? I’m dumb, explain it to me like I’m 7. Could you also explain why I should drop all fluids and use this 75w140 in the diffs? What does engine oil, coolant, washer fluid, etc have to do with 37s on stock Rubicon rims?

To keep this discussion on track and easy for an idiot like me to follow, let's discuss this first. What I'm understanding by your post is that it's not best practices because it can be done based on what I've read on the internet, and I believe everything I read on the internet.

Here are two threads I have perused. Both showing folks running 37s on stock rims.

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/anyone-running-37s-on-stock-rubicon-wheels.4117/

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/37s-on-stock-wheels-with-no-wheel-spacers.45471/



My biggest concern would be not following manufacturer recommendations and going 80 on the freeway and a wheel falling off the rim and killing my poor dog because she wasn't wearing a seatbelt. I have no intention of running wheel spacers. Why? I've heard more negative than positive with it and at one point I think I heard it was illegal. Can't remember if I actually did hear that or if I'm remembering incorrectly. All that said, I just don't want to do it. If that isn't enough, I don't want to pay extra money for wheel spacers when the end game is to get properly sized rims, seems like a waste of money.

A concern would be getting the tires on the wheels, some tire shops won't install outside the manufacturer's rim width range.

Remember, offset does impact some components of the lift. While MC's control arms should be able to take the stock backspacing, their sways and outboard shock mounts have separate requirements.

 

[kah.mun.rah]

I don't think we need much discussion but I'm curious to hear your opinion on why you don't recommend going to a 3.5". My initial thought was 2.5" for 35s and 3.5" for 37s. I like to hear peoples opinions. From my understanding, I can run 37s on the Clayton 2.5". I know that the Ozark Overland gal runs the 2.5" with 37s, maybe even 38s actually.

It’s tough to say because not all lifts lift what they say and not all 37s are 37” tall. That said, you can run 35s on a Rubicon as is with no lift and run 37s with the Mopar 2” lift. I have 37s with the TeraFlex ST2 (2.5” lift) and feel that it’s just right. The taller you lift it the more you will impact your suspension geometry (caster, pinion, driveshaft angles) which decreases your ride quality, and the higher your center of gravity will be giving you more body roll on the corners and making it more tipsy on the trail.

 

[GATORB8]

I don't think we need much discussion but I'm curious to hear your opinion on why you don't recommend going to a 3.5". My initial thought was 2.5" for 35s and 3.5" for 37s. I like to hear peoples opinions. From my understanding, I can run 37s on the Clayton 2.5". I know that the Ozark Overland gal runs the 2.5" with 37s, maybe even 38s actually.

You'll likely be increasing bump stop from 2 to 3" when going to 37s, which means you'll have an inch less of uptravel at the same ride height. Not necessarily the end of the world, but a consideration with your travel goals.

 

[TX_Ovrlnd]

Sounds like I'll be going with Metalcloak as Clayton is not offering free shipping and $300 is effectively removing some of the discount. I get it though, this crap is heavy.

Make sure to check Northridge4x4, they carry Clayton and offer free shipping if over a certain amount. jlwranglerforums is the code for some monies off, or they offer other codes from time to time on their website.

 

[BullMoose1776]

You don't have to do it all at once. Here's what I did on my 19 JLUR, in order, and not at the same time:
New AEV Wheels (kept the original 33s)
AEV Suspension
37s (and a TazerJLMini)
Regear (coming up, 2 + years later)
You could do those things in any order you want with a Rubicon. If you aren't offroading heavily, you can even start with the tires and no lift.

Idk about a sport or anything with different gears than 4.10s.

 

[Mtenna99]

Here was the order i did it.
-2.5 inch rc spacer lift. Put it on in my garage over a weekend.
-tazer mini (adjust speedo)
-37s and new wheels

*saved for a few months
-3.5 inch game change MC
-saved for a bit and didn’t run a spare. It sat in trunk.
-rustys spare tire carrier.

Things I’ve broken because of not modding after the list above:
-oem drive shaft from flexing while off-roading. Found the issue the day before I left on a wheeling trip. Replaced it with another oem take off ($50) as that was my only quick option.
-oem rubber bump stops were shredded. Replaced with MC.

I’ve been running this setup above for about a year and 10,000 miles. What still needs done:
-stock tie rods and drag link.
-regear
-after market front drive shaft.

I expect my ball joints to be gone after next year but so far so good.

 

[Jeepn’]

Here was the order i did it.
-2.5 inch rc spacer lift. Put it on in my garage over a weekend.
-tazer mini (adjust speedo)
-37s and new wheels

*saved for a few months
-3.5 inch game change MC
-saved for a bit and didn’t run a spare. It sat in trunk.
-rustys spare tire carrier.

Things I’ve broken because of not modding after the list above:
-oem drive shaft from flexing while off-roading. Found the issue the day before I left on a wheeling trip. Replaced it with another oem take off ($50) as that was my only quick option.
-oem rubber bump stops were shredded. Replaced with MC.

I’ve been running this setup above for about a year and 10,000 miles. What still needs done:
-stock tie rods and drag link.
-regear
-after market front drive shaft.

I expect my ball joints to be gone after next year but so far so good.

Coming from a Toyota world, it’s crazy how such a small amount of mods can fit 37s. I had to chop the cab mount on my Tacoma to fit 33s lol.

 

[COJeeper]

You'll likely be increasing bump stop from 2 to 3" when going to 37s, which means you'll have an inch less of uptravel at the same ride height. Not necessarily the end of the world, but a consideration with your travel goals.

Gotcha!! So, if I did a 7" lift, then I would be able to have more uptravel, correct? So maybe instead of the 2.5", I only consider the 3.5" because that will give me more space for uptravel?

 

[COJeeper]

You don't have to do it all at once. Here's what I did on my 19 JLUR, in order, and not at the same time:
New AEV Wheels (kept the original 33s)
AEV Suspension
37s (and a TazerJLMini)
Regear (coming up, 2 + years later)
You could do those things in any order you want with a Rubicon. If you aren't offroading heavily, you can even start with the tires and no lift.

Idk about a sport or anything with different gears than 4.10s.

I like to think I offroad heavily. I mean, I did Hell's Gate in my stock Rubicon. I'd say some modded Jeeps don't even touch anything like that. It's funny about when I bought my Jeep, I said, "I don't really want a rock crawler, just a better adventure mobile than my Subaru." Here I am building a pretty cool DD rock crawler though! It's so much fun!

 

[COJeeper]

Here was the order i did it.
-2.5 inch rc spacer lift. Put it on in my garage over a weekend.
-tazer mini (adjust speedo)
-37s and new wheels

*saved for a few months
-3.5 inch game change MC
-saved for a bit and didn’t run a spare. It sat in trunk.
-rustys spare tire carrier.

Things I’ve broken because of not modding after the list above:
-oem drive shaft from flexing while off-roading. Found the issue the day before I left on a wheeling trip. Replaced it with another oem take off ($50) as that was my only quick option.
-oem rubber bump stops were shredded. Replaced with MC.

I’ve been running this setup above for about a year and 10,000 miles. What still needs done:
-stock tie rods and drag link.
-regear
-after market front drive shaft.

I expect my ball joints to be gone after next year but so far so good.

Awesome, thank you for sharing! I mean, not awesome that you broke stuff but awesome that you shared your experiences, thank you! Sounds like I can run without an aftermarket from drive shaft through this winter as no Moab probably but come spring, I'll have some cash saved up and be able to get that! I like that 3.5" with 37s, thank you for sharing!

Looks like you also have the 2.0L motor as I do. Assuming it runs just fine but you have the same thoughts as me, a re-gear will help. I'm thinking 4.88s.

 

[Philly_]

Awesome, thank you for sharing! I mean, not awesome that you broke stuff but awesome that you shared your experiences, thank you! Sounds like I can run without an aftermarket from drive shaft through this winter as no Moab probably but come spring, I'll have some cash saved up and be able to get that! I like that 3.5" with 37s, thank you for sharing!

Looks like you also have the 2.0L motor as I do. Assuming it runs just fine but you have the same thoughts as me, a re-gear will help. I'm thinking 4.88s.

Not apples to apples, but I have the 2.0L with 35’s and 4.10’s and it is still very peppy. It is still not perfect, but I can’t justify a regear with the current setup. I absolutely will go 4.88’s if/when I bump up to 37’s.

I expect 37’s to be livable, but not optimal on 4.10’s. Lots of people with the 2.0L at sea level and in flatlands run that combo with no issues.

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