New Owner/New to Jeeps, Things Just Got Expensive But Fun, Looking for Advice

[*J*]

Hey all, new here and to the Jeep world.

A bit of backstory, I was always a car guy, then decided I wanted a small truck and narrowed it down to a tacoma or gladiator. I had no real intention of wheeling or offroad and it didn't really enthuse me. However, my car had just died a horrible death and I needed something quick and put out some feelers and a Gladiator Sport S in the color combo / spec I wanted was available. I just wanted the base model as it was mostly going to be a daily driver or used for general travel / camping.

I drove this thing for about a year and then had a random tragedy. Now it's just me and my young boys and I decided lets go explore and have fun and see some trails and get out of our funk and go enjoy some nature, camping, general trails. So I started talking to a friend as her and her husband go out pretty often. So I started joining and reading on some forums and found this place which has been a good source of knowledge. So I started researching random lifts, tires, builds, etc. and decided to pull the trigger.

I initially just did the Clayton 2.5" Ride Right lift, then I ordered the control arms, then some other stuff, so essentially what I got was the Clayton 2.5" premium lift kit here, except I went with the Fox ATS 2.0 steering stabilizer, but got all the other components..... https://www.claytonoffroad.com/product/jeep-gladiator-performance-packages-jt-premium I should have just bought it from the beginning in the package, but oh well.

I then got a set of Raceline Defender in 17x9, and Toyo Open Country R/T Tires in 37x12.5.

I ordered a Tazer Mini as well as that seemed to be recommended / suggested by many.

I am basically looking for some advice on what else I should get for mild/medium off roading....Bumpers, Winch, Straps, etc. Also, if I had known I was going to get into this I likely would have got a different model. But that's neither here nor there anymore and I am all in. Any suggestions on anything and I am open to listen, learn and have fun.

I am looking at getting the lift and wheels and tazer and other misc. items installed soon and if possible would just like to do everything at once. So that's why I am looking for suggestions as to not have to do it sporadically.

Thanks in advance!!!

Sponsored

 

[NGNERD]

I wish happiness for you and your children. Clayton and this forum are good resources, for the 37s, might want to consider regear when budget allows if you have 3:73. Otherwise recommend a Gooloo or another brand for jump starts if camping remote, have fun

 

[*J*]

I wish happiness for you and your children. Clayton and this forum are good resources, for the 37s, might want to consider regear when budget allows if you have 3:73. Otherwise recommend a Gooloo or another brand for jump starts if camping remote, have fun

Hey thanks! The regear is definitely on my radar. I don't have the tow package or whatever it is so that seemed to be a common thing that was brought up. My initial main concern was just having it be capable, now I'm going down the rabbit hole and throwing my money in said rabbit hole as well. ?? Like I said very new so trying to absorb as much as possible.

I'll take a look at the Gooloo. Seeing as this is my daily driver as well it may not be a bad thing to have regardless.

 

[Scott L]

Your Jeep is quite capable stock. I’d suggest taking it out a bit more and see what you might need. Don’t go crazy and break shit but go out and find the weakness in your build and go from there. But with 37s and 3.73 gears you’ll probably be well advised to save up for a regear. Any chance you can do the lift yourself? With your sons assistance it would be another great experience and save you a bunch of money on install costs.

 

[KevinC]

That's a good looking tire/wheel package you have. 3.73 and 37's in Arizona may not work to well especially if you are at elevation.
Not saying you put the cart before the horse but by buying 37's you may have opened up a can of worms.

 

[*J*]

That's a good looking tire/wheel package you have. 3.73 and 37's in Arizona may not work to well especially if you are at elevation.
Not saying you put the cart before the horse but by buying 37's you may have opened up a can of worms.

The tazer and possible future regear should help with that though, no?

Also, spend most of my time in the Phoenix area so not much for elevation.

Outside of that what might these other worms be? Like I said I'm hear to learn and open to any insight or suggestions.

 

[*J*]

Your Jeep is quite capable stock. I’d suggest taking it out a bit more and see what you might need. Don’t go crazy and break shit but go out and find the weakness in your build and go from there. But with 37s and 3.73 gears you’ll probably be well advised to save up for a regear. Any chance you can do the lift yourself? With your sons assistance it would be another great experience and save you a bunch of money on install costs.

I've thought about doing it myself. I've watched a few videos and it doesn't seem that difficult. It would be a good learning experience for sure. But I'm also impatient and would probably like to block off a couple days to do it at least, and my free time is pretty limited these days.

 

[DarthAWM]

The tazer and possible future regear should help with that though, no?

Also, spend most of my time in the Phoenix area so not much for elevation.

Outside of that what might these other worms be? Like I said I'm hear to learn and open to any insight or suggestions.

example of a worm, if you're regearing and moving toward serious wheeling you should consider adding a front locker. your shop(or you) are going to be in there anyway.

 

[KevinC]

The tazer and possible future regear should help with that though, no?

Also, spend most of my time in the Phoenix area so not much for elevation.

Outside of that what might these other worms be? Like I said I'm hear to learn and open to any insight or suggestions.

Re-gearing will put you back in the range it was stock so yes, it will help. You need to figure out where your powerband needs to be and get the gear ratio that will put you there. For the 3.6L and 37's, I would suggest 4.88 if most of your driving is on road.

Once you go 37's, there is a lot of considerations. How much lift will you need? Will the lift affect your geometry where you have to start replacing other components? Will your tires rub the inner fender liners or control arms at full lock? Are your brakes big enough to stop safely? Is your front driveshaft now at an angle where its needs to be addressed or hitting the exhaust?

I could go on but I'm not trying to steer you away from 37's. It's just something to think about to make sure you get the right components to make it all work.

 

[*J*]

Finally got everything all installed. Funny enough I put the 37's on prior to the lift kit and other components being installed and it ran fine outside of some rubbing on the stupid piece that connected from under the turn single to the bumper so I just removed that and it no more rubbing except at full lock.

I'll take everyone's suggestions and get the lockers for sure and consider a regear after taking it out a couple times, but for now it seems to drive fine.

 

[ColoradoCantu]

Awesome! Excited for your new adventures with your boys. If you trail with some minor obstacles, a manual front sway bar disconnect will give you more capability until you can swing the front/rear lockers. There are some good videos on youtube showing the advantages of a sway bar disconnect vs not having one. I just got my 3in lift done and I got Rubicon Express Sway bar disco for under $200 for front and rear although most dont do rear disconnects but you should look into Apex for the front, they disconnect with a twist of a knob, they cost twice as much but easier to use. Definitely recommend a good winch and recovery gear if your going to be trailing by yourself or even with others. I have 6 soft shackles, a 7/8in 30ft kinetic recovery rope (make sure its the correct size, weight of the vehicles need to be able to stretch the rope, bigger is not better with kinetic ropes), a snatch block with tree savor strap that can also be used as a bridle for towing. For airing down, I have the EZ Flate MOAB auto air, deflates and airs up all four at the same time and shuts off when desired psi is reached, its half the price of the popular ARB twin and significantly faster but not as small and compact. I like the protection of my steel bumpers but that along with my bed topper, tools and rack have added a lot of weight so be mindful of how much weight your springs can handle. I lost two inches of lift with all my mods on the stock Mojave Fox suspension. Get some sort of satellite com device for emergencies. I have a Garmin Mini 2, works with your phone to send text msgs out to preset contacts or added numbers, there are other devices that do this for cheaper. An H3R Halguard Clean Agent car fire extinguisher, its crazy expensive for a fire extinguisher, $300 but should you have an engine/cab fire, this will be much easier to clean without the caking of normal extinguishers or so have I been sold but I got one, lol. BTW, great choice of wheel color, looks great on our white gladiator! Good Luck!

Sponsored