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Lift Kit Confusion (Jeep Noob)

Jerkeejoe

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I just picked up a 2020 Rubicon Recon last week and I’m starting to look at lifting it so I can put some 35s on it. It’s a daily driver and an off-road toy, so I want to lift it as little as necessary and I’ll go with BFG AT tires for noise reduction.

My problem is that I overthink things. I started off looking at the Mopar 2” lift kit and read some good and some bad, but a ton of people saying the 2” lift is really a 3-3.5” lift. So I moved on to other brands and quickly found myself looking at $3k kits that I know I don’t need, but I know will get the job done. And then started reading about needing to replace additional parts not included in the kits based on lift height and started to get really confused.

The question is, what should I get? I really only need 2-2.5” so I can get up to 35s. I enjoy off-roading and like to hunt and camp, but will likely never do any hard core wheeling. I want good off-road performance and good road performance. I don’t mind paying for quality, but don’t want to pay extra for something I don’t really need.

I’d greatly appreciate any suggestions or input.
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Sydwaiz

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The Rubicon allows 35s without a lift. I have one on order for that reason alone. Okay, maybe that's not the only reason but it was an important one!
 

Bandana

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Yup, since you are not planning on any difficult wheeling I highly suggest going straight to 35's and investing in a tuner to adjust for the new tire size. Run that for a while and then reevaluate if you really need the lift
 
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Jerkeejoe

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That’s great news. I had seen a couple articles and videos that said they were getting rubbing on the rears when flexed with 35s and no lift.

Nobody having that issue?
 

Bandana

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That’s great news. I had seen a couple articles and videos that said they were getting rubbing on the rears when flexed with 35s and no lift.

Nobody having that issue?
You're gonna have to be doing some serious flexing before you have rub issues. I ran a number of moderate trails with no lift and had no issues. In the end I added a spacer lift, but only to get away from the fat girl in heels look
 

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confusiussaid

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I ran 35's (well, 315's) with no lift for a while and didn't have any issues with rubbing off road. If your concerned about rubbing anyways, pick up a set of cheap half inch spacers from teraflex. Won't be a noticeable height increase but should prevent any rubbing.
 

SecondTJ

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You’ll be fine on a stock Rubicon. There’s not a significant difference between the stock 285/70/17 and a 315/70/17

Jeep Wrangler JL Lift Kit Confusion (Jeep Noob) 19B2E340-CA24-4E08-BAB4-22FCEAD80310
 

bryan

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If anything, you next investment should probably be wheels with a smaller negative offset, assuming your 35s will be wider than stock.
 
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Jerkeejoe

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If anything, you next investment should probably be wheels with a smaller negative offset, assuming your 35s will be wider than stock.
By smaller negative offset what do you mean? The stock wheels are +44, correct? You suggest going with something closer to 0?
 

blnewt

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Just ask @cosine he knows!
By smaller negative offset what do you mean? The stock wheels are +44, correct? You suggest going with something closer to 0?
You'd be going to a 8.5" width wheel (most common size), and you'd want the wheel out a bit from your current setup to allow a bit more articulation and distance from the inner suspension parts.
Here's a link w/ your current tire/wheel set and a 17x8.5 +10 running 35x12.5x17 tires for comparison.
https://www.wheel-size.com/calc/?wh...-17X8.5ET10&fcl=2in&wcl=1.25in&scl=2in&sr=0in
You can plug in most any tire & wheel size to see how they compare
 

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jeepoch

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Joe,

You have the budget for a Recon but not a lift?

Wish I had your problem. I didn't have a budget for any type of Rubi but found the funds for the Mopar lift and 35s.

Never regretted it. Couldn't be happier.

Jay

IMG_20200605_180738.jpg


IMG_20200605_180858.jpg


IMG_20200605_180947.jpg


IMG_20200606_132713.jpg
 

jeepoch

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Joe,

You have the budget for a Recon but not a lift?

Wish I had your problem. I didn't have a budget for any type of Rubi but found the funds for the Mopar lift and 35s.

Never regretted it. Couldn't be happier.

Jay

Jeep Wrangler JL Lift Kit Confusion (Jeep Noob) IMG_20200606_132713


Jeep Wrangler JL Lift Kit Confusion (Jeep Noob) IMG_20200606_132713


Jeep Wrangler JL Lift Kit Confusion (Jeep Noob) IMG_20200606_132713


Jeep Wrangler JL Lift Kit Confusion (Jeep Noob) IMG_20200606_132713
P.S.
I went with a -12mm offset on the wheels. I really like the little wider stance and it really makes the setup that much more bad-ass.

IMG_20200605_180828.jpg


IMG_20200605_180803.jpg
 
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Jerkeejoe

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Joe,

You have the budget for a Recon but not a lift?

Wish I had your problem. I didn't have a budget for any type of Rubi but found the funds for the Mopar lift and 35s.

Never regretted it. Couldn't be happier.

Jay

Jeep Wrangler JL Lift Kit Confusion (Jeep Noob) IMG_20200605_180803


Jeep Wrangler JL Lift Kit Confusion (Jeep Noob) IMG_20200605_180803


Jeep Wrangler JL Lift Kit Confusion (Jeep Noob) IMG_20200605_180803


Jeep Wrangler JL Lift Kit Confusion (Jeep Noob) IMG_20200605_180803

No no, I have the scratch for a lift, I just couldn’t figure out what the hell to buy. My goal is really just getting to 35s, so if I can do that without a lift I probably will. That said, some pictures I’ve seen look great with 35s and no lift and some I don’t like so much.

In the end I’m guessing I’ll end up lifting it, and I’m leaning toward the Mopar 2” kit.
 

Cthehentz

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I was having a difficult time locating a complete lift kit so I installed a level kit and 35" KO2's, gave me the look I wanted and bought me time to locate a lift,.

IMG_6138.jpeg
 
 



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