Lol. I had a Sammy before my YJ. If I need to go fast I just take my truck. My Jeep is purely a toy so I don’t mind at all.
98 2.5 barely makes it to 65 MPH
- Thread starter Jainee
- Start date
Go fast & Samurai do not belong in the same sentence let alone same page or chapter.
brett313
Member
2.5 TJ with 33s 4.10s and a slightly blown head gasket, I also had no issues hitting 70 on flat ground.
this may have already been asked but do you have a way to check compression?
this may have already been asked but do you have a way to check compression?
Rubicon88
TJ Addict
Something is wrong.
You're either running on 3 cylinders or you don't have 5.13 gears.
That ✌ . 5 isn't a power monster but with 5.13 gears, manual tranny, and only 33's....something is legitimately off if you can't hit 65.
Do NOT buy new tires....quit brain washing yourself into thinking it's your tires. I told you my son is running 32" tires with 4.10 gears. Hits 70 plus no problem. Other posters running 4.88's no problem hitting 65-70 with 33 and 35"
It has nothing to do with 15 vs. 17 rims...all that nonsense.
It sounds like you're running 4.10 gears and 33" tires. Barely able to hit 65 mph....
Or your speedo Is off
Or running on 3 cylinders...
If you want a less harsh ride...
You do NOT want Fox or Bilstein or Rancho 7000 (to name a few)
You want Skyjacker Bkack max or Rancho 5000x.
We install both here for customers with good feedback.
Back to your power.
Sonething is off here. Your description...or your Jeep.
My son has (I've owned a few myself with 31's) a 4 cylinder with 32's. He is running stock 4.10 gears. I razz him about that hot rod he's driving but even still he has no trouble hitting 77mph in it.
That said, if he hits a wheel chair ramp let alone a real hill without down shifting, it will drop 20 mph.
In other words the little 4 that could...can't...overcome much adversity like even slight hills without downshifting and or dropping 20mph before getting back to 70 plus 1 mile later.
I'd say from your description of barely making it to 65mph...having 33's but with 5.13 gears...
65 should be no issue whatsoever.
Echoing again my son can hit 77 mph with 32's and 4.10 gears.
You've one inch bigger tire and have more weight but you also have a full ratio lower gearing(Numerically higher)
Something is off here....
I got my Jeep back and the ride is bumpy or floaty or wavey.
I’m ready to order Rancho 5000x. The shop recommended fox but thats way too expensive.
I checked the site and it says 5000x don’t fit 98 TJ. Is there any specific model number I should check?
Rubicon88
TJ Addict
I think you need(2) 55255 and (2) 55256 with your lift.
Don't be afraid of the black max from Skyjacker. They're much better than their hydro's and nitro's. Finish is better than the Rancho they're very smooth.
Rubicon88
TJ Addict
4 Angry squirrel survivor here. I echo the consensus, you've got something wrong. My setup for years was 33x10.5 R15's on the stock 4.10 gears and the Dana 35C rear end. I put nearly 100K on that setup, it's no power house, and you have to drive it like a 4Cyl. Rev that thing out, downshift it early and build up extra speed on the downhill for the next uphill.
If you really can't get it to accelerate over 65 you've got power issues. I found the cap and rotor was a common source of weak ignition and would put it down on power. A plugged up cat or air filter can also really rob power, the 4cyl likes to breath. Your description of it waving like your in a boat is not right either. You've got a few things going on here.
If you really can't get it to accelerate over 65 you've got power issues. I found the cap and rotor was a common source of weak ignition and would put it down on power. A plugged up cat or air filter can also really rob power, the 4cyl likes to breath. Your description of it waving like your in a boat is not right either. You've got a few things going on here.
Mine had started to get a big more doggy than normal. I thought it was just the new tires, as they were significantly heavier than what I had on. Found I had a stuck caliper. Replaced both front calipers and she is back to her old self again. Cruising at 65 easy. Can hit 75-80 if I choose. But 65 is the pace she likes. Lol
Thank you all for your help. The Jeep was in shop because I thought head gasket leak.
There was no head gasket leak, but one hose was leaking causing coolant to disappear.
I have receipts with 5.13, never checked if it is 5.13. I don’t think reputable garage will cause issue. The Speedo unit was also replaced with bigger tires.
The Mickey Thompson are running on 26 psi. The load rating is C.
Yeah, I go with smooth shifting and don’t push too hard on 3rd. I switch to 5th on 45-50 mph.
the wavy ride, the shop said it’s rough country lift and shocks. I read all posts saying Rancho RS55239 & RS55241 and now 55255 and 55256. Which one should I get? I read steering stabilizer wouldn’t need to be changed, which was changed during the lift. I do see steering shakes at 45 mph. It’s not death wobble but steering shake.
I have put a lot of money in this, and every time it goes to shop, that’s extra money with more replacements.
I also know exhaust manifolds were also changed 2 years back.
This Jeep shop is very famous, and they didn’t find anything except the bumpy, wavy ride quality and recommended lift and shocks upgrade.
There was no head gasket leak, but one hose was leaking causing coolant to disappear.
I have receipts with 5.13, never checked if it is 5.13. I don’t think reputable garage will cause issue. The Speedo unit was also replaced with bigger tires.
The Mickey Thompson are running on 26 psi. The load rating is C.
Yeah, I go with smooth shifting and don’t push too hard on 3rd. I switch to 5th on 45-50 mph.
the wavy ride, the shop said it’s rough country lift and shocks. I read all posts saying Rancho RS55239 & RS55241 and now 55255 and 55256. Which one should I get? I read steering stabilizer wouldn’t need to be changed, which was changed during the lift. I do see steering shakes at 45 mph. It’s not death wobble but steering shake.
I have put a lot of money in this, and every time it goes to shop, that’s extra money with more replacements.
I also know exhaust manifolds were also changed 2 years back.
This Jeep shop is very famous, and they didn’t find anything except the bumpy, wavy ride quality and recommended lift and shocks upgrade.
I have a 3.25" suspension lift and the 55255 is easily too tall for the front. My rear has brackets and other things in play that you don't and my 55256's are kinda riding the line of being too tall so if you use the factory mounts they might work out great.
It's a lot easier (and far better) to just regear the axles so they're geared properly for the tire size. For 33's and 5-speed that would have been 4.88. Not only would you have been a lot happier for those 100k miles, you likely would have even gotten better mpg with the engine operating more efficiently up in its power band. I bought my present TJ used and it was undergeared for its 35's, it never reached 12 mpg. Once I regeared it to a more appropriate ratio it started getting nearly 15 mpg on the highway which is a 25% upward bump.
I have 3.25 Rough Country lift and no Body lift. This is what described in info
- Part Numbers RS55255 and RS55256
- Set of 4 Shocks for vehicles w/4-5" front lift and w/4-5" rear lift; Incl. Rancho RS6501 or RS6504 Systems
This is all the work done around 2 years back in Austin TX
R/C 3.25" LIFT KIT
EXHAUST MANIFOLD
NEW RADIATOR
NEW WATER PUMP
UPPER RAD HOSE
LOWER RAD HOSE
HEATER HOSE 1
HEATER HOSE 2
MOPAR T/STAT W/GASKET
COOLANT
80W-90 GEAR OIL
75W-90 SYN GEAR OIL
ATF+4 SYN. FLUID
SEAT BELT KIT
REPLACE EXHAUST MANIFOLD AND GASKETS 2.5L
REPLACE WATER PUMP ASSY,
REPLACE UPPER AND LOWER RADIATOR HOSES
REPLACE HEATER HOSES
REPLACE THERMOSTAT AND GASKET REPLACE RADIATOR ASSY
SERVICE FRONT AND REAR DIFFERENTIALS
SERVICE TRANSMISSION AND TRANSFER CASE
AXLE BEARINGS
A/C KNOB
5.13 GEAR PACKAGE
80W-90 GEAR OIL
Dana 35 AXLE SEALS
Dana 30 AXLE SEALS
H/S STEERING SHOCK
TIE ROD @PITMAN ARM
43 TOOTH SPEEDO GEAR
Plus I put AEM intake and throttle body spacer.
R/C 3.25" LIFT KIT
EXHAUST MANIFOLD
NEW RADIATOR
NEW WATER PUMP
UPPER RAD HOSE
LOWER RAD HOSE
HEATER HOSE 1
HEATER HOSE 2
MOPAR T/STAT W/GASKET
COOLANT
80W-90 GEAR OIL
75W-90 SYN GEAR OIL
ATF+4 SYN. FLUID
SEAT BELT KIT
REPLACE EXHAUST MANIFOLD AND GASKETS 2.5L
REPLACE WATER PUMP ASSY,
REPLACE UPPER AND LOWER RADIATOR HOSES
REPLACE HEATER HOSES
REPLACE THERMOSTAT AND GASKET REPLACE RADIATOR ASSY
SERVICE FRONT AND REAR DIFFERENTIALS
SERVICE TRANSMISSION AND TRANSFER CASE
AXLE BEARINGS
A/C KNOB
5.13 GEAR PACKAGE
80W-90 GEAR OIL
Dana 35 AXLE SEALS
Dana 30 AXLE SEALS
H/S STEERING SHOCK
TIE ROD @PITMAN ARM
43 TOOTH SPEEDO GEAR
Plus I put AEM intake and throttle body spacer.
You need to find out if you have 5.13 gears in your axles. It's easy to do in a few different ways.
http://www.how-to-build-hotrods.com/gear-ratio.html
Once you figure out what gears you have in your axles we can try to help you from there.
I always wanted a samurai and I still keep looking.
I just don’t find anything stock and most of them were rusted or abused in local projects
Those would be way too tall for your amount of suspension lift and Rancho's guide indicates part numbers that are too tall for the amount of suspension lift. Rather than go for Rancho's indicated shocks for your present 3.5" lift, my experience with their shocks say you need to go with their 2.5" lift models. When shocks are too tall they bottom out and can start breaking or breaking their mounts.
For the front that'd be a RS55239, for the rear it'd be RS55241.
You're better off actually measuring your shock mounting points when they're compressed together and fully extended and selecting the shock part numbers based on that but...
The throttle body spacer isn't doing ANYTHING for your engine as far as POWER goes.
https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/do-throttle-body-spacers-work-on-jeep-wrangler-tjs.4509/
https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/four-angry-squirrels-or-the-tj-2-5s-and-2-4s.3602/
https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/cold-air-intake-faq.3087/
Yep they are getting REAL hard to find now that are unmolested.
https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/do-throttle-body-spacers-work-on-jeep-wrangler-tjs.4509/
https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/four-angry-squirrels-or-the-tj-2-5s-and-2-4s.3602/
https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/cold-air-intake-faq.3087/
Yep they are getting REAL hard to find now that are unmolested.
Sure, but when you're a young professional in a flat state you start with what you can afford. Gears was in the upgrade when they break category not the need to do now category. I was getting 15-18MPG with the set up I described.