woody90

so i want to lift it 4.5 should i lift it first before the lockers and what your thoughts on auto locking front and rear

BuckB91XJ

I have Aussie "luch box" style auto lockers in the front and rear of my XJ and they work great off road and they have great on road manners..I.E. they are quiet, no jerking, still get decent fuel mileage, etc.

Metalgearmurder

Hello from a fellow NM dweller... Fist of all what size tires are you running or planning to run. Second of all once you figure that out then you need to determine how long it will take you to get said tire size. Once you have that figured out then buy gearing for the tires and the lockers. In terms of your processes its all depending on you. Do you like to go wheeling often? if not and your just going to be running around burque then lift it and add parts as you go, but dont do lockers first and then gears or vise versa... youll be doing double the work/paying double. so knock both of those out at the same time.. what rear axle do you have?

ct67_72

I have auto lockers in both and they work great. It would be my preferance to have a manual locker in the front. If you have the money do a selectable locker up front. well, I say this in new england too. if you dont see snow, and only use 4x4 for wheeling, auto is ok, still nice to turn a little easier in 4x4 having the option to unlock it.

woody90

cool ya i was thinkin auto both would be nice i'm running the chrys 8.25 in the rear...
i wanna lift 4.5 and run 33's with 4.10 gearing

Metalgearmurder

4.10's ? 4.56's are better suited for 33's

woody90

is that where i'll be closest to the best fuel efficiency

FloydXJ

Fuel efficiency often becomes kind of a wash. With high gears like mine, there is more of a lug factor, but the RMPs are low. Guys with lower gears at higher RPM's but less or no lugging get about the same MPG. Although, I would put my bet on 4.56 will be a bit better, especially with an automatic tranny.

ct67_72

yeah, its not all rpm, it has a lot to do with engine load like said above.
I get the best mileage I have ever with the 4.88's and 35's

Metalgearmurder

4.88's are my next move.. my poor xj is hating life with my 35's currently

dogger15

get some recovery first then lockers

Metalgearmurder

Dogger is correct in that too! No reason to be going out onto a trail with no recovery points or gears. Get that handled first then you will be ready to move on Happy trails

BuckB91XJ

Here is my setup: 4.0 HO, AW4, 4.56 gears, Aussies front and rear and 33" mudders. I still average 18mpg on the Hwy.