RE 4.5". Was responding to ta2tony.

Re the bumpstops. While I'm a fan of doing them right, since I did them wrong at first, if you're willing to trim as much as needed then trim before bumpstops. Why limit your self?

 

The answer to rubbing is not trimming. If you want to trim your fenders, and you account for that difference in your build, that's fine.

If you don't want to trim your fenders, you need to compromise on tire size and bumpstop to prevent rubbing.

Everyone always tells these new guys about lift and tire size, but nobody ever tells them to bumpstop to prevent rubbing. 235/75R15 tires will rub the fenders on 3.75" BS wheels, even if you lift. You need to bumpstop.

 

This..

And I would think 32s would be just fine with 3.5 of lift considering I have 33s on a 3inch lift... Mild trim up front and the normal cut and fold in the rear. If you plan on keeping your stock flares and whatnot then you need to bumpstop correctly. But I vote for giving it a trim.

I was honestly surprised just how well my jeep does flex wise with my setup. You can make anything work. It's all in how you build it. People roll around with 35s on 3inch lifts. You can too

 

I disagree about the answer not being trimming. Both bumpstops and trimming are options and both are compromises. The former limiting the capabilities of your suspension. The latter being hacked-up body. And I don't mean to completely disagree. Bumpstops are a great tool to have in your arsenal.

 

Trimming only helps so much. When you get into bigger tires, they will hit the fender, especially with offset wheels.

And, as I said, not everyone wants to trim. So no, it isn't always the answer. Everyone should have bumpstops.

 

Bumpstopping only helps so much too. You're mixing up "want" and "should". I don't want to do anything except go out in my stock Jeep and wheel it everywhere but that's never going to happen.

I'm going to equate "should" with "must" in this example:
RE 4.5" Super Flex, 33x12.5x15 KM2 there is NO option if for crawling. You must trim and bumpstop. Although if I trimmed a little more bumpstopping might not be required.

Again I don't want to shoot you down bumpstopping is part of the game but you seem a little fixated in bumpstopping as the end-all fix for everything.

 

It isn't an end all fix for an offroad vehicle, but OP isn't crawling. He said he doesn't want to trim, and people said he has to because it will rub if he flexes. That is fixed by bumpstopping.

I've said several times now:
If you incorporate trimming into your build, it changes things.

Everyone should still have bumpstops. If you don't, you're probably bottoming out your shocks when you compress a spring. If you aren't doing that, you're rubbing or your axle is hitting the metal bumpstop housing.

Just like limiting straps. Almost nobody cares about them, but if you don't have them, your droop is limited by suspension binding or maxing out your shocks.

Those aren't the right ways to build.

Edit: Those aren't the best ways to build. I was *****ed at a few days ago by several people for asking someone why he was lifting his XJ 6.5", and I don't feel like having people take my general guidelines to be immutable fact a second time.

 

CRAP! Look what I started.

Ok, not going to be doing crazy, must flex 36" type stuff, and I read the low COG thread and WILL bump stop accordingly.

I don't want to trim my fenders because personally I think it makes the awesome and formidable XJ look like an effin' Bronco when you take the flares off...and that ain't cool.

 

NewKindOfClown,

Actually I'm trying to say 80% the same thing as you and have been trying to give you the majority of the credit. I'm not sure if you're getting mad about this or not so I'll just let it go.

 

No, I'm not mad. I just want to stress the importance of those poly (or rubber) pieces that keep your wheels where they should be. Since he mentioned LCOG, I'll also point out that front bumpstops can act as a fulcrum to leverage more droop on the non-compressed side.

I'm only trying to fight misinformation and ignorance of the topic.

 

Well, it took 3 months to get to it, and a couple of weeks to finish it, but here's the before-and-after pix. And thanks again for the help & advice.

Before:




After:



...the semi-final** measurement is 1 inch over OEM in the front, and 1.75 inches over OEM in the rear; this puts it level front-to-rear.

...and quite a bit higher than where it started out lol.

(I have all the measurements, and the parts numbers, in the What did you do to your Cherokee today thread if your curiosity isn't quite sated lol.)

**The "semi-final" bit is because I'm ordering 0.75 inch Zone spacers for the coils, to get the front end about where it should be in relation to the rear, and which will make this an "official" 1.75 inch lift, whoo-hoo.

 

hey guys i have a few questions i was gonna lift my xj with a 3" RC kit and decided i would go a little higher out the gate. im going to purchase and have professionally installed RE 4.5 short arm kit with leaf packs. i would like to run 32's or 33's which would be better? (for looks and actual use) leaning towards 33's. also its my DD and would like to keep my MPG's above 15. i drive about 90% city and 10% highway. in texas so its mostly flat here. what would be the best gear ratio for that. i hear everyone saying 4.56 but i hear alot of 4.88?

Thanks in advance, Red

 

I know the saying is 1" of bump stop per 1" of lift, but its really about tire size, right? So 3" of bump stop for 3" of lift is really for 31" tires, and 5" of bump stop for a 4.5" lift is really for 33" tires...this assumption based on the size tires most guys run at those height.

Do you think I'd get by with 4" of bump stop if I ran 32's on a 3-3.5" lift? I know it'd limit my compression (and total suspension travel) but I like the idea of the low-COG crawler...so this would kinda be a mild version of that but with a mostly stock appearance.

The XJ is my DD...or rather "commute car". I bought it cause its 4wd and gets better gas mileage than my truck, so I really don't want to hack it up b/c its not a trail rig...but I do want it to be capable off road as I do want to wheel it...

Is this doable? Like I said, I don't mind removing the bumper end caps and trimming the bottom fronts off the fender and flares (pre-97 body)....

 

You can't really give someone a number on bump stops, everyone's setup is different, you have to measure you can't just say 3 inches of lift and 31s needs 3 inches. I've only got 2 extra inches of bumpstop up front with 33s on 3.5 inches of lift and it works out perfect. It takes time and good measurements to get bump stops set up right.

 

Yeah, I know that. Was more looking for a agreed upon general starting point...assuming the general consensus is not that its impossible to fit 32" tires under a 3" lift without trimming the wheel wells/removing the flares...