Cloudz96XJ

Hi forum, I have a 96 jeep xj 2wd manual 2dr and I bought a set of new 255/70/18 with powder coated 2015 Sahara jeep wheels, I also bought some 1.25" spacer/adapters. I want to know if a 3" lift will be high enough to prevent rubbing, thanks hope to here from y'all soon.

SteveMongr

That's a 32" tire. Tight fit without removing the fender flares or adding aftermarket flares.
Keep in mind, the spacer/adapter is the weak point of wheel connection to vehicle. Those wheels will not fit without an adapter, so if there is an issue or failure of adapter, you will be stranded. If you must run improper wheels, carry an extra adapter. And those adapters should be hub-centric and wheel-centric! The Sahara wheels have the same hub bore size as the XJ, 71.5mm.

This picture is 4.5" lift on 31" tires, stock flares.

SteveMongr

Picture of difference between hub/wheel-centric and non centric.

Fred/N0AZZ

In all honesty I would sell those tires/wheels and buy a set of the proper size and backspaced wheel to fit your XJ and the size lift you plan on installing. Then when you decide on that you need to make a decision on trimming the fenders or not, that will determine the amount of flex you will have with the suspension/tire combo without maxing out bump stops to limit it.


I ran a 33x12:50x15" tire on a 3" lift with trimming but works a lot better at 4 1/2" of lift. Properly fit wheels are a big factor in any correctly done lift.