Lift Kit and Diff Gears

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Najamerson

New member
Hello everyone, this is my first post as a new member. I am incredibly new to the Jeep world as I will be purchasing my first jeep (probably a JK U) in about a month or so and want to go with 35's on 17" rims. I will go off roading occasionally (nothing too serious) but mainly want a 3-3.5" lift for around $1000 (or a little more) that will give me the most comfortable ride for normal day to day driving, as this will be my primary vehicle.. Also, what would be the best gear ratio for that set up? Thanks for any assistance in advance.
 
Najamerson said:
Hello everyone, this is my first post as a new member. I am incredibly new to the Jeep world as I will be purchasing my first jeep (probably a JK U) in about a month or so and want to go with 35's on 17" rims. I will go off roading occasionally (nothing too serious) but mainly want a 3-3.5" lift for around $1000 (or a little more) that will give me the most comfortable ride for normal day to day driving, as this will be my primary vehicle.. Also, what would be the best gear ratio for that set up? Thanks for any assistance in advance.
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Look at EVO, Rancho, or JKS lift kits. 4.56 gears would mimic stock drivability with 35s on a JK, assuming you’re going automatic. Maybe 4.88s with a manual.

More importantly though, buy a Jeep and get it out wheeling in stock form first before throwing money at it. Especially if it’s your primary driver, you’d be surprised with how capable it is stock and learn where you’ll want to put your money after going out wheeling with it.
 
DirtHeadDavis said:
Look at EVO, Rancho, or JKS lift kits. 4.56 gears would mimic stock drivability with 35s on a JK, assuming you’re going automatic. Maybe 4.88s with a manual.

More importantly though, buy a Jeep and get it out wheeling in stock form first before throwing money at it. Especially if it’s your primary driver, you’d be surprised with how capable it is stock and learn where you’ll want to put your money after going out wheeling with it.
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If I want the 35's for appearance, would I need to get new gears, for performance and mpg? Also, would going to a different gear set up automatically give you better performance and mpg, regardless of the rim size
 
Najamerson said:
If I want the 35's for appearance, would I need to get new gears, for performance and mpg? Also, would going to a different gear set up automatically give you better performance and mpg, regardless of the rim size
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If you want 35s for appearance, forget about MPG. You’ll never get that back. Better performance sure, but like I said, mimics stock performance. Lower gears (numerically higher) will up the RPM, using more fuel. Doesn’t do any better - unless you go super low which at that point becomes a dedicated crawler and terrible on road. 4.56 to 4.88 is the sweet spot for 35s and a JK. Wheel size doesn’t really matter.
 
Najamerson said:
Hello everyone, this is my first post as a new member. I am incredibly new to the Jeep world as I will be purchasing my first jeep (probably a JK U) in about a month or so and want to go with 35's on 17" rims. I will go off roading occasionally (nothing too serious) but mainly want a 3-3.5" lift for around $1000 (or a little more) that will give me the most comfortable ride for normal day to day driving, as this will be my primary vehicle.. Also, what would be the best gear ratio for that set up? Thanks for any assistance in advance.
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What DirtHeadDavis said is sound advice. I would add that 3"-3.5" of lift is a LOT of lift for just a set of 35" tires, especially being that MOST lift kits yield way more lift than is advertised. On a JK and with budget in mind, I personally would recommend either a 2" coil lift or even just a 2" spacer lift. Regarding gears, I would say it depends on what gears you get in your JK. If you get a Rubicon that has 4.10 gears, you'll be fine with it and 35's.
 
wayoflife said:
What DirtHeadDavis said is sound advice. I would add that 3"-3.5" of lift is a LOT of lift for just a set of 35" tires, especially being that MOST lift kits yield way more lift than is advertised. On a JK and with budget in mind, I personally would recommend either a 2" coil lift or even just a 2" spacer lift. Regarding gears, I would say it depends on what gears you get in your JK. If you get a Rubicon that has 4.10 gears, you'll be fine with it and 35's.
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What he said! @Najamerson I’m running a 2.5” and 37s. Albeit with chopped fenders and some other trimming - but I ran 35s on the 2.5” lift with stock fenders for 5 years with no issues. Heavily wheeled regularly as well. Just was dependent on being bump stopped correctly.
 
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