My first ever major project on my 99 XJ...

[Nine Mile]

Oh yeah, and while we are on the subject of white cherokees, here's mine

 

[shelbyluvv]

Sounds like a good start. But leave the shock condoms off. They can hold dirt and water which can cause your shock pistons to rust or destroy the seals. Shock condoms are for street queens not a trail rig. Just my two cents.

 

[BruceB83]

Damn...is this thing done yet?

Ha ha...just kidding. I got REALLY lucky on my first XJ...installed a 3" Rusty's lift in about 3 hours start to cleaned-up. I had nothing break on me. BUT, since then, I've had my fair share of "WTF!"s and "G--D--- ___" and "Holy @#$% that hurt..."

Oh yeah...I too have a set of 30" A/T's if anyone's interested!

 

[NCjeepgirl83]

Sounds like a good start. But leave the shock condoms off. They can hold dirt and water which can cause your shock pistons to rust or destroy the seals. Shock condoms are for street queens not a trail rig. Just my two cents.

Well, until I actually take it off road, this lift/tires is pretty much for show. It's also a daily driver, so I want to keep that in mind and not take it too far, but basically I want a streetable Jeep that I can drive in the city and take it mudding or something on a weekend without worrying about it not being capable (ie stock) to do anything. And to be honest, I'm more interested in getting it muddy than I am about actual rock crawling...

 

[ZacSquatch]

Where the heck are the pics?

 

[NCjeepgirl83]

The diamond plate does protect the body from rocks but not the way a slider does. It protects more from rocks being thrown from the tires. I like the way it looks and it was cheap. I paid $22 for the diamond plate on both sides and a 1 inch T-case drop.

The tires are General Grabber AT'2 and they are 265/70/16's. Good cheap tire. I have had them for about 10,000 miles now and they still look new. They also look very much like the BFG AT tires, but at half or less the price of the BFG. I paid $90 a piece for them and then $50 to have all 4 mounted and balanced.

What size are they in terms of 30", 31" etc sorry I'm still learning about tire sizes...

Wow that does sound like a good deal! I paid $20 for a T-case drop kit that the bolts are different on so I don't even know if it'll work! Guess we'll find out when I drive it home tonight!

 

[ZacSquatch]

Thats a 30x10

265-75-r16 is 31.5x10.50
285-76-r16 is 32.7x11.50

ect...

 

[NCjeepgirl83]

Thats a 30x10

265-75-r16 is 31.5x10.50
285-76-r16 is 32.7x11.50

ect...

THANK YOU!! That helps out immensely!

 

[99XJLove]

Here is a pic of mine with a 3" Skyjacker and 31x10.50 R15's. Lift sucks by the way, atleast the saggy rear. Rustys 6.5" and 33's by this summer.

cant wait for the pics.

 

[smccollamjr]

Sounds like a good start. But leave the shock condoms off. They can hold dirt and water which can cause your shock pistons to rust or destroy the seals. Shock condoms are for street queens not a trail rig. Just my two cents.

X2...when I installed my lift the shocks I took off had boots and at least two of them had water in them. Here's mine by the way...

3" Rough Country w/ 31" BFG MTs

 

[NCjeepgirl83]

Does anyone have a front or rear shot w/ a 3" or 3.5" lift and 31x10.50 tires and pro comp rock crawler wheels so I can get a general idea of how much they're gonna stick out?

Thanks!

 

[ZacSquatch]

Same year and color even... 3.5"
265/75R16's on 16" krawlers

 

[DougJ]

Well, here's another white one. 4.5" BDS suspension, Rubicon wheels with the stock Rubi 245/75R16's. (30.5 X 9.5 equivalent)

Right after lift:

Here's a look at how the tire fits in the well with the, um... Rubi slippers. Front is still on the Ecco wheels and 235/75R15's in this pic.

 

[NCjeepgirl83]

Does anyone have any idea what backspacing I have on my wheels? I'm pretty sure they're 15x8 but I want the tires to fit like Zac's and not stick out very far from the fenders...

 

[BruceB83]

Does anyone have any idea what backspacing I have on my wheels? I'm pretty sure they're 15x8 but I want the tires to fit like Zac's and not stick out very far from the fenders...

The wheels are probably 15x8 with 3.75" BS. If you run those wheels with 31x10.50's they should be about even with the edge of the flares. I think that's right...my flares didn't stay on too long so I can't remember exactly. I know that wheel/tire combo won't stick out further than the flares...I don't think that happens until you go to the 11.50 wide tires.

 

[2000bluexj]

mine started out as the 3.5 inch superflex. remember the ruicon kits always come out bigger than what it says. .....
heres a couple pictures...

ties are 32x11.5x15 frone fenders are trimmed. its now rubicon 4.5 superflex.

 

[NCjeepgirl83]

First impressions...

Hey thanks guys so much for the pics and help on tire size/wheel size!

I drove it today and drove it home last night and it drives good. A bit stiff but not too bad. I figure everything's gotta get broken in.

I did notice I seem to have to give it a little more gas than usual from a dead stop, but that could be b/c I have 4 tires in the back.

I also notice that my turn signals don't cut off automatically after I turn, I think this must be because the steering wheel is crooked so it doesn't straighten out all the way. I was told by the guy that put the lift on that 4wp will be able to fix it when they mount/align the tires and align the front end.

My other concern is it's a bit taller than I thought it would be. And I'm quite short (5'2) so getting in and out of it is a little tricky, but nothing I can't manage. I am a bit worried about how much higher it'll sit with the bigger tires on it (as it's still got the stock ones on now).

And lastly, I've noticed when I take my foot off the gas pedal, it makes a noise under the car, like something's shutting off or something...it's not a grinding noise, and I probably shouldn't worry about it, but I've been listening for everything since I got the lift on.

There's also a lot more noise, I guess it'd be called road noise, it just sounds louder inside the car, like I can hear the car more. I guess that's what happens when you lift a Jeep...

 

[BruceB83]

Re: First impressions...

Hey thanks guys so much for the pics and help on tire size/wheel size! It's only because you're a girl.

I drove it today and drove it home last night and it drives good. A bit stiff but not too bad. I figure everything's gotta get broken in. Yeah...go crawl some rocks.

I did notice I seem to have to give it a little more gas than usual from a dead stop, but that could be b/c I have 4 tires in the back. If you haven't changed your tires yet, it's just because of the extra weight of the tires...and probably a little bit in your head too. You shouldn't notice issues with gearing until you change your tire size. Plenty of people run 31's with stock gearing, you'll be fine.

I also notice that my turn signals don't cut off automatically after I turn, I think this must be because the steering wheel is crooked so it doesn't straighten out all the way. I was told by the guy that put the lift on that 4wp will be able to fix it when they mount/align the tires and align the front end. Yup, it's because of it being out of alignment. Your signals will work right after it's aligned. He should have done a quick and dirty alignment for you to at least straighten your wheel out.

My other concern is it's a bit taller than I thought it would be. And I'm quite short (5'2) so getting in and out of it is a little tricky, but nothing I can't manage. I am a bit worried about how much higher it'll sit with the bigger tires on it (as it's still got the stock ones on now). RE is known for that. You'll get used to it.

And lastly, I've noticed when I take my foot off the gas pedal, it makes a noise under the car, like something's shutting off or something...it's not a grinding noise, and I probably shouldn't worry about it, but I've been listening for everything since I got the lift on. Probably driveshaft vibes. You may need a slip yoke eliminator (SYE) or some shims to correct your pinion angle.

There's also a lot more noise, I guess it'd be called road noise, it just sounds louder inside the car, like I can hear the car more. I guess that's what happens when you lift a Jeep...

You shouldn't hear anything differently since you said your stock tires are still on it. But :dunno:

WHERE'S THE PICS?

 

[RenegadeStang]

Katie, good to hear you've got it lifted! Congrats!

I'm sure it'll drive better once Kyle and the guys up at 4WP get it aligned for ya. And RE lifts are known for being much taller once first put on. It'll come down after a lil' while.

 

[NCjeepgirl83]

Here's a few pics to show the transformation my XJ has gone thru since I've owned it (Dec 2002):

It looked like this when I got it:

With new wheels (Aug 2005)

After the RE 6025 Super ride lift which added 3.5" and a new set of rear leaf springs (still with stock tires):