35" tires hitting fender flares w/ 6" lift

RickHocutt

RickHocutt

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Joined
Apr 5, 2017
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Location
Concord, NC, United States
Hello! I have a noob question as I just bought my first Jeep. So far I love it but have one issue. I was told it has a 6" suspension lift and 1" body lift which I suspect is true based on it's height. It's on 35" tires but when I went wheeling recently the tires hit the plastic fender flares enough to bust out the back 3 screw holes on the flares. They are the pocket style flares. It appears to have a longer bump stop so I'm wondering what else I need to do to keep this from happening or do I need flat fender flares? It seems like I've seen other Wranglers with a similar setup so I may be missing something.

Here's a photo of my rear wheel and fender area:

Screen Shot 2017-04-05 at 8.46.13 AM.png


Thanks!
 
You've got a few things you can do to handle this situation:
  1. Get flat fender flares or tube fenders
  2. Increase the bump stop
  3. Get smaller tires
Whichever route you decide to go, definitely check your bump stop and make sure it's been setup properly. You have no idea if the previous owner actually took the time to dial the bump stop in correctly.
 
Chris said:
You've got a few things you can do to handle this situation:
  1. Get flat fender flares or tube fenders
  2. Increase the bump stop
  3. Get smaller tires
Whichever route you decide to go, definitely check your bump stop and make sure it's been setup properly. You have no idea if the previous owner actually took the time to dial the bump stop in correctly.
Click to expand...

Isn't 7 inches of total lift borderline unsafe for a TJ?
 
FTI76 said:
Isn't 7 inches of total lift borderline unsafe for a TJ?
Click to expand...

Well, it's going to be an extremely high center of gravity, so it is going to make it much more unsafe, yes.

I would never run anything about 5" of lift, period. All the guys I see running 35" tires are usually running 4" of suspension lift and 1" of body lift (to allow for the tummy tuck). With that amount of lift you can clear 35" tires just fine. The trick there is that you really need tube fenders at that point.

For me though, I'd rather sacrifice a little more articulation to keep the stock fender flares. I simply can't get behind the look of flat fender flares or tube fenders. But for most, that isn't an issue.
 
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Chris said:
Well, it's going to be an extremely high center of gravity, so it is going to make it much more unsafe, yes.

I would never run anything about 5" of lift, period. All the guys I see running 35" tires are usually running 4" of suspension lift and 1" of body lift (to allow for the tummy tuck). With that amount of lift you can clear 35" tires just fine. The trick there is that you really need tube fenders at that point.

For me though, I'd rather sacrifice a little more articulation to keep the stock fender flares. I simply can't get behind the look of flat fender flares or tube fenders. But for most, that isn't an issue.
Click to expand...

All the cool kids run flat fenders... :b1:
 
FTI76 said:
All the cool kids run flat fenders... :b1:
Click to expand...

Yep, I really dislike the flat fender look.

For whatever reason or another, I love the look of the stock fender flares! One of the things I hate so much about JKs is the ugly stock fender flares they use. They really got them right with the TJ!
 
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Chris said:
Yep, I really dislike the flat fender look.

For whatever reason or another, I love the look of the stock fender flares! One of the things I hate so much about JKs is the ugly stock fender flares they use. They really got them right with the TJ!
Click to expand...

Haha. I loved ripping every piece of plastic I could off the outside of my Jeep. To each his own.
 
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Thank you all so much for your replies!

I'm not opposed to flat fenders and actually would prefer them over what I have but I was hoping to put them lower on the priority list. I took a few pics and measured and it looks like at a normal stance there is roughly 12" of coil spring and the bump stops extend down about 5 3/4" of that leaving just over 6" of travel. Does that seem or look correct? I'm new at this so I have no real idea here.

https://goo.gl/photos/WyJ7PV7eGFJbvAvy5

https://goo.gl/photos/ofxE1w5jkPDShD116
 
Best way to tell would be to put it on jack stands, pull the shocks to allow the springs to drop out, then cycle the suspension to see what rubs and how. Then decide how much more bump stop extension you need. You also need to account for the length of your shocks completely compressed so as not to damage them.
 
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xxdabroxx said:
Best way to tell would be to put it on jack stands, pull the shocks to allow the springs to drop out, then cycle the suspension to see what rubs and how. Then decide how much more bump stop extension you need. You also need to account for the length of your shocks completely compressed so as not to damage them.
Click to expand...
Sounds like a plan, thanks! :emoji_thumbsup:
 
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It sounds like you have stock bump stops, no added bump stop at all. The oem bumpstop cup extends down about 3.5 inches, if you count the foam jouncer (you shouldn't) it's about 5.5 inches, which is what it sounds like you are describing. I have 3.5 lift, 35" tires, oem rear flares. I had to add 3" of bump on the spring perch, and the flare was not my limiting factor. The front of the tire was almost hitting the edge of the body. I could have done only 2" bumps, but then there was less than 1/8 clearance right there, which I was not comfortable with.
20170405_191446.jpg
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