Achieved the look and function I wanted! (Overland with 35s and leveling kit)

[AZJT]

Greetings to all - I couldn't decide if this goes under the wheels/tires thread or others, as it covers a few areas (mods are welcome to move it if needed). Long story short, I just added Nitto Ridge Grapplers (285/75/18) to my leveled Overland I picked up in Feb. 2020. I've scoured the forum over the months trying to decide on the 'lift' type, and after having taking my JT into the desert on various occasions, I found that the clearance was plenty (at least thus far). As such, I went with the Rubicon Express lift/leveling kit (they call it both on various sites) model #JT7134E. I am more than happy with the way it turned out, and there's plenty of room for the 35s I just added. Absolutely no rubbing at full turns, and while I haven't taken it off-road yet, you can see from the pics there is plenty of room in front and back. First pic is stock; second pic is with the leveling kit and OEM tires, third pic is with the Grapplers installed. I am loving the way it looks and drives, recognizing I'll need to order a Tazer to calibrate the speedometer. I will tell you that in Phoenix, which is very flat, I am still hitting 8th on a regular basis, but do notice it 'hunting' between 7th and 8th when I'm on an incline. I may do a suspension lift in the future if I find it necessary, but right now the leveling kit and tires more than meet my needs, as the JT is my daily driver.

I hope others find this information helpful, and am willing to answer any questions and take measurements on any areas others are interested in (sorry, didn't do so before the leveling). I know that it took me quite a while to decide the direction to go, and had priced out several options in terms of suspension lifts, leveling kits, tires and wheels, etc. I would truly like to thank others for their posts over the months, as it helped me to decide on a direction (although I didn't find a whole bunch of info on the RE leveling kit, but took the chance anyway).

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[HjStrater]

Great looking truck. I have been in a similar place trying to decide the exact lift and tire size combo to get the look I want. (As are many on the forum, just look at how many tire size threads there are!)

The 35's and the 2" level are a good look. I'm looking to go Rubicon take offs and 3/4" spacers for around 1.5" all the way around from a stock Overland. Also on ~35's with 295/70r18's.

 

[AZJT]

Great looking truck. I have been in a similar place trying to decide the exact lift and tire size combo to get the look I want. (As are many on the forum, just look at how many tire size threads there are!)

The 35's and the 2" level are a good look. I'm looking to go Rubicon take offs and 3/4" spacers for around 1.5" all the way around from a stock Overland. Also on ~35's with 295/70r18's.

Thanks! I can't believe all of the mental back-and-forth I went through after looking at all of the options and pricing out each. This is my first Jeep (I've owned a slew of Rams over the years), so I really appreciate all of the knowledge others posted before me. I can't believe how much I like this truck - it is fun, good-looking, and gets way better MPG than my previous Hemis. Discount Tire staff was great to work with - they rolled out several tire models and sizes to hold against the JT for viewing. The 285 width looks great (and aggressive) without sticking out too much - it's entirely within the wheel well/fender. I can see the difference in MPG so far, but again - need to get in a Tazer to adjust that. I also really like the OEM Overland wheel, so I stuck with that.

 

[BenFoOw]

Nice truck!

I'm looking at the Overland or 80AE. I like 18" wheels.

I'm pretty set on the Nitto Ridge Grapplers 37 x 11.50 r18. Not sure if there would be any rubbing. I should be good considering that the Nitto will only be 1.5" wider.

2"-2.5" lift TBD

 

[DaddyG]

Great looking truck. I have been in a similar place trying to decide the exact lift and tire size combo to get the look I want. (As are many on the forum, just look at how many tire size threads there are!)

The 35's and the 2" level are a good look. I'm looking to go Rubicon take offs and 3/4" spacers for around 1.5" all the way around from a stock Overland. Also on ~35's with 295/70r18's.

I have a Max-tow Sport S and went with Rubicon takeoff (front springs) and a 3/4" daystar spacer lift, and obviously the Fox shocks at all four corners. I kept the Max-tow rear springs as I've read on here they are superior to even the Rubicon's rear springs (progressive rate on Max-tow). I'll also be running 35" Cepek EXP's when I finally decide on a sweet set of rims !

 

[JBOverland]

Greetings to all - I couldn't decide if this goes under the wheels/tires thread or others, as it covers a few areas (mods are welcome to move it if needed). Long story short, I just added Nitto Ridge Grapplers (285/75/18) to my leveled Overland I picked up in Feb. 2020. I've scoured the forum over the months trying to decide on the 'lift' type, and after having taking my JT into the desert on various occasions, I found that the clearance was plenty (at least thus far). As such, I went with the Rubicon Express lift/leveling kit (they call it both on various sites) model #JT7134E. I am more than happy with the way it turned out, and there's plenty of room for the 35s I just added. Absolutely no rubbing at full turns, and while I haven't taken it off-road yet, you can see from the pics there is plenty of room in front and back. First pic is stock; second pic is with the leveling kit and OEM tires, third pic is with the Grapplers installed. I am loving the way it looks and drives, recognizing I'll need to order a Tazer to calibrate the speedometer. I will tell you that in Phoenix, which is very flat, I am still hitting 8th on a regular basis, but do notice it 'hunting' between 7th and 8th when I'm on an incline. I may do a suspension lift in the future if I find it necessary, but right now the leveling kit and tires more than meet my needs, as the JT is my daily driver.

I hope others find this information helpful, and am willing to answer any questions and take measurements on any areas others are interested in (sorry, didn't do so before the leveling). I know that it took me quite a while to decide the direction to go, and had priced out several options in terms of suspension lifts, leveling kits, tires and wheels, etc. I would truly like to thank others for their posts over the months, as it helped me to decide on a direction (although I didn't find a whole bunch of info on the RE leveling kit, but took the chance anyway).

What type of MPG are you getting now that you have driving for a while on 35’s and a lift on the overland?

 

[AZJT]

What type of MPG are you getting now that you have driving for a while on 35’s and a lift on the overland?

Thanks for the question!

Have had the Nittos on for right at two months now, and am going into the office more, so here is what I have experienced: freeway driving is still showing good #s - ~20MPG (Phoenix is pretty flat); my commute is about 21 miles each way. Local/neighborhood/errand driving is mid-17s to mid-18s. I did recalibrate with a Tazer Mini, as the speedo was WAY off after the tire change-out (especially once I hit above 55MPH). Post-Tazer experience has also been improved relative to gear hunting and shifting: I'm hitting 8th more often now, or at least it seems that way since it 'hunted' between 7th and 8th quite often pre-Tazer. Still happy I went this way in terms of lift/leveling kit selection and tire brand/size.

 

[AZJT]

P.S. Some follow-up info: the Nitto Ridge Grapplers are spec'd at 35.08" in diameter (per the Discount Tire site); I have found that once installed, they are more like 34" and change. This was a major factor in calibrating my truck once I received the Tazer Mini - I originally set it at 35" then had to play around with the #s until the speedo was correctly calibrated. I ended up going with 34" and change in the Tazer - not exactly the measurement of the tire in real life (in fact, a bit above - and yes, I measured both ways - leveled diameter, and halfway up x two), but pretty close.

I'm posting this info because of those looking to have a third party calibrate their system once they change their tire size - simply punching in a # may not get it right the first time, so I'm an advocate of doing it yourself.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

P.S. Some follow-up info: the Nitto Ridge Grapplers are spec'd at 35.08" in diameter (per the Discount Tire site); I have found that once installed, they are more like 34" and change. This was a major factor in calibrating my truck once I received the Tazer Mini - I originally set it at 35" then had to play around with the #s until the speedo was correctly calibrated. I ended up going with 34" and change in the Tazer - not exactly the measurement of the tire in real life (in fact, a bit above - and yes, I measured both ways - leveled diameter, and halfway up x two), but pretty close.

I'm posting this info because of those looking to have a third party calibrate their system once they change their tire size - simply punching in a # may not get it right the first time, so I'm an advocate of doing it yourself.

That's because of the differences in ROLLING DIAMETER. It's a fact that there's a difference between measuring a tire laying flat on the ground uninflated, and a tire diameter as it rolls with a load and various inflation levels.
Some European cars actually sense inflation rates indirectly based on the differences in the rotational speed of the 4 tires. That means if you run with xx psi in your tires compared to yy psi, your rolling diameter will vary, thus your speedometer reading.
As many people here have shown, you can't plug in the tire maker's diameter and call it good - you use that as a starting point and adjust as needed.
(Jeep uses direct TPMS, some vehicles use INDIRECT TPMS - meaning there's no sensor in the tire, it's based on comparing the rotational speed of each tire - often using the ABS sensors.)

I went with Rubicon front springs (the lower rate of all of the Rubicon springs) under the front of my Overland - and gained just shy of 1" at the bumper, I suspect a bit over 3/4" at the axle. I then added the steel bumper and a heavy winch which dropped it down, and then put the Daystar spacers under the front to bring it back up. I've been swapping and changing things and lost track of how high it was from the factory so I can't say how much higher it sits now than it did when new! I need to find someone with a bone stock Overland to measure and compare to mine now haha.

 

[Cleankat]

Looks great. I have a similar setup on my overland, very pleased with it! I like the factory wheel design quite a bit.

 

[Moontown]

Greetings to all - I couldn't decide if this goes under the wheels/tires thread or others, as it covers a few areas (mods are welcome to move it if needed). Long story short, I just added Nitto Ridge Grapplers (285/75/18) to my leveled Overland I picked up in Feb. 2020. I've scoured the forum over the months trying to decide on the 'lift' type, and after having taking my JT into the desert on various occasions, I found that the clearance was plenty (at least thus far). As such, I went with the Rubicon Express lift/leveling kit (they call it both on various sites) model #JT7134E.

Thanks for sharing this info. I’ve ordered the same for my JTOD. Can you please share your roof height?

 

[AZJT]

Thanks for sharing this info. I’ve ordered the same for my JTOD. Can you please share your roof height?

From driveway to the top of the ridges of my hard top, I'm measuring 74.5 in. Hope that helps -

 

[Jeepinjerry]

Greetings to all - I couldn't decide if this goes under the wheels/tires thread or others, as it covers a few areas (mods are welcome to move it if needed). Long story short, I just added Nitto Ridge Grapplers (285/75/18) to my leveled Overland I picked up in Feb. 2020. I've scoured the forum over the months trying to decide on the 'lift' type, and after having taking my JT into the desert on various occasions, I found that the clearance was plenty (at least thus far). As such, I went with the Rubicon Express lift/leveling kit (they call it both on various sites) model #JT7134E. I am more than happy with the way it turned out, and there's plenty of room for the 35s I just added. Absolutely no rubbing at full turns, and while I haven't taken it off-road yet, you can see from the pics there is plenty of room in front and back. First pic is stock; second pic is with the leveling kit and OEM tires, third pic is with the Grapplers installed. I am loving the way it looks and drives, recognizing I'll need to order a Tazer to calibrate the speedometer. I will tell you that in Phoenix, which is very flat, I am still hitting 8th on a regular basis, but do notice it 'hunting' between 7th and 8th when I'm on an incline. I may do a suspension lift in the future if I find it necessary, but right now the leveling kit and tires more than meet my needs, as the JT is my daily driver.

I hope others find this information helpful, and am willing to answer any questions and take measurements on any areas others are interested in (sorry, didn't do so before the leveling). I know that it took me quite a while to decide the direction to go, and had priced out several options in terms of suspension lifts, leveling kits, tires and wheels, etc. I would truly like to thank others for their posts over the months, as it helped me to decide on a direction (although I didn't find a whole bunch of info on the RE leveling kit, but took the chance anyway).

Do you have any photos showing the wheel poke??

 

[AZJT]

Do you have any photos showing the wheel poke??

Yes - see page 3 of this thread: https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/overland-18”-wheels-and-33”-35”-37”-tires.23821/

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