Looking for suggestions for Tire/Lift combo

[atrizzy]

Hi all, recently got rid of the old TJ and picked up a 2023 Willys, which is great so far. The bad part is that I was fluent in the issues surrounding lifting my old jeep and find myself currently devoid of info. Hopefully y'all can help me with a few issues.

I want to run 285/75R17 tires on this rig.

Will I be able to run these without rubbing on the stock suspension provided I don't disconnect the sway bars? There might be a few months before I can get the lift installed.

Secondly, I'd like to keep the lift minimal while retaining the ability to disconnect the sway bar. The BDS 2" lift here seems suitable. And also comes with the swaybar disconnects. Will I need wheel spacers or anything to keep my fenders from being torn up if I go this route?

Thirdly, how prevalent are driveline issues after a 2" lift? I see that the Mopar 2" lift includes longer control arms for the front to fix the geometry. Has anyone had issues with vibrations? The thing rides so damn smooth, I'd hate to have an issue afterwards. The Mopar lift is super expensive though... is this the same one that they put stock on the Rubicon?

Thanks everyone, and happy Jeeping.

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[MrClortho]

I want to run 285/75R17 tires on this rig.

Will I be able to run these without rubbing on the stock suspension provided I don't disconnect the sway bars? There might be a few months before I can get the lift installed.

Secondly, I'd like to keep the lift minimal while retaining the ability to disconnect the sway bar. The BDS 2" lift here seems suitable. And also comes with the swaybar disconnects. Will I need wheel spacers or anything to keep my fenders from being torn up if I go this route?

Thirdly, how prevalent are driveline issues after a 2" lift? I see that the Mopar 2" lift includes longer control arms for the front to fix the geometry. Has anyone had issues with vibrations? The thing rides so damn smooth, I'd hate to have an issue afterwards. The Mopar lift is super expensive though... is this the same one that they put stock on the Rubicon?

You won't need a lift to run that size. If you want a little more clearance, you can go with a leveling kit with shock relocation brackets, keep your factory control arms, and add swaybar disconnects. I wheeled like this for a while, and it did quite well for forest service roads. I installed a good engine/transmission skid plate and some rock rails and used them. I also have a TJ and if you wheel the JT, you will find it needs quite a bit more clearance due to its size. If you are simply tooling down forest or ranch roads, it will perform quite well and comfortably this way. I did miles in the rocky mountains and was pretty happy.

I now have a 3.5" Clayton lift that I got more like 4"-5" out of it with no driveline issues and no vibrations, but it is a full and comprehensive kit. Unlike the TJ's, the JT's are much more forgiving with vibes. Anything over 2" and you will really want to get a full package with control arms, sway bar links, track bar accommodations, shocks, bump stops, and brake line extensions to do it right. Sure, there are kits out there without these things but... I can drive 80mph with 37's and three fingers on the steering wheel, comfortably.

 

[atrizzy]

Cool, thanks for the response.

So you think I could run 275/75/r17 with disconnects without damaging my fenders? That would be ideal as a first step, as I don't want to go with too large a tire, regear, etc.

 

[Wheelin98TJ]

You can run 285/75/17 stock.

Wheel spacers are not for fender clearance, they are for inner tire sidewall clearance. You won't need them for 285 tires. You would need them if you went to a 12.50 wide tire. Sometimes wheel spacers can hurt fender clearance if the tire can no longer tuck under the flare.

You won't have to worry about driveline issues with 2" of lift. The driveshafts on these Gladiators can easily handle that small amount of lift.

The Mopar lift is not on a stock Rubi.

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