Well I've only had my XJ for a few days... I was outside making a list of stuff to do when my wife walked up and said "when are you gunna lift it?".... God I love that woman!

Now back on track....

Now that I have orders to customize my jeep, I'm starting this thread to keep the info in one place. Sorry if anything (or everything) has been covered already... This is my greedy attempt to keep everything straight.

First thing first.... The objective

My wife says she likes the tires on her brothers full size dodge.... 33x12.5x15's. How much lift do I need to make that work... And what gear ratio should I aim for?

Please don't get too far ahead of me. And thanks for your help!

 

how big a lift do you need and what gear ratio in the same sentence? I'd say you're already too far ahead of yourself! lol
go to google. type in whatever you want to know followed by "cherokee forum" and there will be a ton of info for you.

but noramlly for 33's:
4.5" lift, 4.56 gears, lockers, new rims for backspacing, SYE, and a couple steering upgrades

 

What is SYE?

(edit)... Duh, I must be tired or something. As soon as I posted I remembered

 

Slip yoke eliminator.

 

SYE stands for "slip yoke eliminator". If you go with a lift like a 4.5", then you'd need one in order to prevent driveshaft vibration.

 

Maybe 31's would be better for me.... I'll never really do any crazy off roading... Prolly just play in the mud.

 

more research would probably be best

 

That's the idea... This is where I ask the questions to know what to research. I'm not Gunna trust the guy trying to sell me the lift. I'm not exactly a computer guru, so advice and input is appreciated.

 

If you go with something like a 3" lift, you can fit 31s under there, and not have to worry that much about the steering components or the drivetrain. A t-case drop may still be a good idea.

 

Well.... My wife interjected. She reminded me of the old saying.... GO BIG OR GO HOME.

Looks like I get to plan for AT LEAST a 4.5" lift.... She even authorized buying a Lil car for the down time. (will be just after this winter)

She's goin nuts looking at lifted xj's on the net.... The weird part is that she dosen't drive.... What can I say?... It's a jeep thing, right?

 

You can always build on your lift if you get the correct parts.

For example, find some used coil blocks for the front, usually 2-3" of lift given and cost maybe $25. Then get some "chevy lowering shakles" from Advance Auto or AutoZone for $34 and then some relocation brackets for them. That will yeild roughly 3" in the rear depending on how you set it up.

Maybe some JK shocks, or just spend the cash on new ones. Extend your front hardline and get a new rear line for the brakes.

And all this can either be added to, or even sold here for little loss.

 

Before you decide on having Rough Country kit on your list......Think again!
Do some research.

I just install my RC 4.5" Xseries, RC CAD brackets, RC Shackles Relocation brackets ......in the process of swapping out.

 

I'm kind of leaning toward one of the RC kits, which is counter-intuitive to my normal MOA. I usually take the cheap route. The reason is I think my rear leafs are shot.... But I am looking into the jy options. I gotta look at the stickie again for jy parts that will work.

 

I did some research on the JY lifts. I'll be doing it that way.... I have the rear mostly figured out using a bastard pack and extending the lines... For safety reasons I'll spring for the SLE.... Will I need to drop the TC with about 4-5" lift?
Also what do I do about the rear sway bar?

 

whats SLE? and yeah plenty of people run TC drop on 4.5" of lift. most have horrible vibes. as for the rear sway bar... you've got a garbage can right?