after a few weeks of research, my brain is fried!

alright fellas, lets see who wants to be my hero! i'll be the first to admit that i'm fairly new to the lifting my jeep scene lol. my bestfriend has been trying to get me up to speed on the various things i would need. i have a 00 xj and i'm thinking that i just have to go 5.5 inches with maybe 33's. did i mention that i don't want to break the bank? so here is the idea he threw at me; go with a 3.5 inch RE lift, and add 2" spacers and blocks to give me that extra lift for alot less than the actual 5.5" from RE. will this work out ok? i would need bigger shocks than what the 3.5 would come with right? i was thinking about going with the 3.5" Super Ride w/ Rear Springs. then i would add the 2" Standard Kit w/ Blocks. also, i know that i will need a SYE, but what other things will i need before i could go out on the road. basically, my jeep is bone stock. i have bfg all-terrains on my stock 16's. that is unexceptable now, especially after my friend got his 33" mtrs yesterday and made me feel like crap when he layed them next to my stock jeep! i'm sorry that i'm not up to par with most if not all of you, but hopefully you guys can help out an aspiring XJ fanatic! help me please!!!

holyfield1799 said:

alright fellas, lets see who wants to be my hero! i'll be the first to admit that i'm fairly new to the lifting my jeep scene lol. my bestfriend has been trying to get me up to speed on the various things i would need. i have a 00 xj and i'm thinking that i just have to go 5.5 inches with maybe 33's. did i mention that i don't want to break the bank? so here is the idea he threw at me; go with a 3.5 inch RE lift, and add 2" spacers and blocks to give me that extra lift for alot less than the actual 5.5" from RE. will this work out ok? i would need bigger shocks than what the 3.5 would come with right? i was thinking about going with the 3.5" Super Ride w/ Rear Springs. then i would add the 2" Standard Kit w/ Blocks. also, i know that i will need a SYE, but what other things will i need before i could go out on the road. basically, my jeep is bone stock. i have bfg all-terrains on my stock 16's. that is unexceptable now, especially after my friend got his 33" mtrs yesterday and made me feel like crap when he layed them next to my stock jeep! i'm sorry that i'm not up to par with most if not all of you, but hopefully you guys can help out an aspiring XJ fanatic! help me please!!!

Click to expand...

if your gonna go 6" just go 6". adding spacers to a 3.5 kit will put ur CA's at some steep angles and ride quality will be harsh. plus, whenever you can avoid blocks, avoid them! also new brakelines will be something to consider. new gears, cuz 3.55 with 33's will suck ass, go at least 4.56!

HTH
brandon

The RE 3.5" kit with full packs is plenty of lift for 33's. Your going to have to trim your fenders regardless of lift height with 33's, so if you are trying to be cheap, then forget the 2" budget boost addition, because going to 5.5-6" of lift isn't cheap, unless you buy the kit used. If you want to lift that high, your going to want to do it right, or else the ride will severely suck. Oh, the RE 3.5" kit with packs sits 5" to start, so you will want to add an adjustable trackbar (I recommend JKS) and get some good shocks, like the OME long travels. The SYE will help save some money if you get the RE "hack and tap" for about $85.

you gotta do it the right way if you want to go 6", meaning:
full/adjustable front arms (not included in 3.5 superride)
adjustable track bar (not included in 3.5 superride)
sye kit and new driveshaft (def. not in 3.5 superride)
brake lines and gears as already mentioned

plus, i'm assuming you're going to wheel it if you're going to 33s. why the hell would you go through all the trouble otherwise, right? ..right?
and if you're gona wheel it the bushings in the superride arms are going to be gone in about a week.

Run some 33X10.50's and you won't have to trim. Also, at 6 inches, just put a 1" Transfer Case drop kit on there and you won't have to worry about the SYE and new driveshaft. That right there will save you at least $500 or more. I ran 5" on my 97 Cherokee with 33X10.50 TSL Radials and it was alright, I just needed to trim a little bit.

The RE 3.5" is NOT okay for 33" tires. I've installed them twice. It does real well with 31" tires and 32" with some moderate rubbing. Expect the front flares to be pulled off at full stuff even with 31"s. Been there and done that twice.

i thought that anything over like 3.5" you should consider an SYE? i've thrown out the idea of the spacers, because this is still going to be a daily driver. but at most i'll be taking it through the woods of maryland, no rock crawling so i don't need crazy flex. i tend to stress myself out over things and this is no exception! so many options.......... so confusing lol

tnxjjeeper said:

Run some 33X10.50's and you won't have to trim. Also, at 6 inches, just put a 1" Transfer Case drop kit on there and you won't have to worry about the SYE and new driveshaft. That right there will save you at least $500 or more. I ran 5" on my 97 Cherokee with 33X10.50 TSL Radials and it was alright, I just needed to trim a little bit.

Click to expand...

6" and just a tcase drop... IMO it may have worked for you, but i wouldn't suggest it to anyone else.

holyfield1799 said:

i thought that anything over like 3.5" you should consider an SYE? i've thrown out the idea of the spacers, because this is still going to be a daily driver. but at most i'll be taking it through the woods of maryland, no rock crawling so i don't need crazy flex. i tend to stress myself out over things and this is no exception! so many options.......... so confusing lol

Click to expand...

With your year of xj you had better plan on a SYE!!
You can build your kit however you want with what ever components you want but you had better include:
UCA, LCA, longer break lines, new coils (why add spacers), new springs or aal and shackles (no blocks!!), Shocks, Adj track bar.

Things that you can make due with but will most likely want to change later include, Steering, gears.

Keep in mind a good portion of the cost of the lift is not the lift but the wheels, tires, gears, and lockers!!

Michael

shimmy said:

6" and just a tcase drop... IMO it may have worked for you, but i wouldn't suggest it to anyone else.

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i'll definetly second that.

and 3.5'' is plenty to run 33's if your willing to cut.

A fellow new guy to XJs and Four Wheeling here.

I'm in the same boat. You get the ride. You get the itch. You want to go big, but the cash is nuts.

I'll share with you what I read and talked with people and a few respected local mechanics about -- then you can figure on what you're willing to do.

- a stocker with tires and recovery points can have lots of fun off road, if you've done that and found limitations, maybe use that as a guide on what to mod -- but -- if you value the look and capabilities of llifted and 33s out of the box you gotta pay for it -- since I have an 01, here's what I think I need to run 32s, and it's what I'll save up to before installing anything, all of this came from weeks of reading and asking noob questions all over ---

RE 4.5
TW SYE/CV
4.56 gears (d30, 8.25)
32s (I suppose 33s would work on the 4.5 with trim and proper bumps)

That's a good chunk of cash right there.

Now consider

Front skid
T-Case skid
Front Tow hooks
Gas Tank Skid
Class III reciever hitch

minimum protection and recovery

but most also want

rock rails
aftermarket front and rear bumpers

and then the winch too.....


Don't mean to discourage anyone at all. And as some have indicated, you can lift and stuff tires all you want. But front what I've read and been told is that every thing you do to your ride along those lines may bring up other issues that should be corrected for the "life and health" of your ride.

Just my opinoin though. I'm a newbie.

Danno said:

The RE 3.5" is NOT okay for 33" tires. I've installed them twice. It does real well with 31" tires and 32" with some moderate rubbing. Expect the front flares to be pulled off at full stuff even with 31"s. Been there and done that twice.

Click to expand...

Full stuff is full stuff, regardless of how much lift there is. Unless you extend the bump stops, the only thing that MIGHT prevent the bigger tires from stuffing all the way into whatever part of the body they can hit first is the exra long lift shocks bottoming out ... which is not good for the shocks.

You really need to extend the bump stops with a lift.

im not a fan of blocks either but a 1 or 2" block tapered down with help with ds angles along with and sye. or you could cut your spring plates off and reset em but a tapered block makes more sense.

wescam said:

- a stocker with tires and recovery points can have lots of fun off road, if you've done that and found limitations, maybe use that as a guide on what to mod -- but -- if you value the look and capabilities of llifted and 33s out of the box you gotta pay for it --

That's a good chunk of cash right there.

Click to expand...

x2

holyfield, considering that type of wheeling you described, it does not sound at all like you NEED a 6" lift and 33" tires. An XJ with a 3" lift running 31" tires is an extremely capable machine. Since you don't appear to have your own private bank, I'll belabor the obvious by mentioning that a 3" lift and 31" tires is also a lot more affordable.

Got a suggestion for you, unless you're in the "gotta do it tomorrow" mode already. You're in maryland. The North Atlantic Chapter's big national event, NACFest, is coming up in June. NACfest is held at Paragon off-road park, right off I-81 in Pennsylvania. Why don't you keep your rig stock for now, come to NACfest, and see (a) how your rig performs, and (b) how other XJs with various lifts and mods perform? That way you'll have a realistic benchmark rather than "My buddy's tires are bigger than mine, I gotta go bigger."

You'll find info about NACFest on the North Atlantic Chapter forum. See you there.

Eagle said:

x2

holyfield, considering that type of wheeling you described, it does not sound at all like you NEED a 6" lift and 33" tires. An XJ with a 3" lift running 31" tires is an extremely capable machine. Since you don't appear to have your own private bank, I'll belabor the obvious by mentioning that a 3" lift and 31" tires is also a lot more affordable.

Got a suggestion for you, unless you're in the "gotta do it tomorrow" mode already. You're in maryland. The North Atlantic Chapter's big national event, NACFest, is coming up in June. NACfest is held at Paragon off-road park, right off I-81 in Pennsylvania. Why don't you keep your rig stock for now, come to NACfest, and see (a) how your rig performs, and (b) how other XJs with various lifts and mods perform? That way you'll have a realistic benchmark rather than "My buddy's tires are bigger than mine, I gotta go bigger."

You'll find info about NACFest on the North Atlantic Chapter forum. See you there.

Click to expand...

you make me want to get out there old timer damn you for being so far away...

red91inWA said:

you make me want to get out there old timer damn you for being so far away...

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I'll be there... isn't that incentive enough? :wave:

2xtreme said:

With your year of xj you had better plan on a SYE!!
You can build your kit however you want with what ever components you want but you had better include:
UCA, LCA, longer break lines, new coils (why add spacers), new springs or aal and shackles (no blocks!!), Shocks, Adj track bar.

Things that you can make due with but will most likely want to change later include, Steering, gears.

Keep in mind a good portion of the cost of the lift is not the lift but the wheels, tires, gears, and lockers!!

Michael

Click to expand...

What he said!

To decide on what lift you want you should first determine what you intend on doing with the Jeep. I planned my vehicle with the intent of wheeling here in Montana but also doing some decent off-road trips to places like Moab. At the same I wanted to still have a decent daily driver. With that in mind I ended up with a version of the RE 4.5" and running 32" tires until they wear out and then running 33's. If all you plan on doing is forest roads and light trails, a lift for 30-31" tires is fine. People also build just for looks, but it seems almost everybody here does a lift for the benifits you receive off-road.

This is only my opinion but these are the lift heights I would run for the various tire sizes. There will always be debate on this issue though, and it will never be set it stone. Yes, you can run 33" tires with a 3.5" lift but that doesn't mean its the best application. This is just one guys opinion.
30" - 2" Budget Boost
31" - 3.5"
32/33" - 4.5"
35" - 5.5" or 6"
When you start to get above the 2-3" range there will be additional expenses that go along with it, keep that in mind when you decide. I also wouldn't go over 4" without considering drop brackets or long arms.

Greg

Eagle said:

"My buddy's tires are bigger than mine, I gotta go bigger."

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ahh, but seriously... whats the real reason you want to go bigger? jk, that was just setup too easily. :cheers:

brandon

You might want to check out rustys 4.5" kit. thats what i have now and i am running 33's with no trimming. although i kept both sway bars on to limit flex and i rub, but not too horibly. the downside is the kit doesnt come with upper contorl arms but you can buy those seperatly. and they are under $150. my kit sipped to my front door was just under $800. or and it comes with shocks. i would also buy extended brake lines bar pin eliminators and disconects for the front sway bar to replace rustys drop brackets. Drop brackets are crap in my opinion especialy rustys because its difficult to get the sway bar far enough forward with them... and you said you know you need a sye so with that and some fender triming you could run 33's easy.