Checklist for a 3" lift

Forgot to answer your original question...

Springs, shocks, bump extensions and you should be good to go. I don’t think you need a trans drop until you go to 3” lift. Keep an eye on the angle of your tie rod ends in the front at full droop. Watch the rear driveshaft too. Depending on shock lengths you could have some potential issues.
 
By the way, I’m happy to share my spreadsheet to anybody and everybody who wants to figure out exactly what RPM they will be turning at any speed in any gear. It’s simple math but I have all the gear ratios on the sheet so it’s pretty handy and has zero opinion of its own!

Just shoot me an email: [email protected]
 
Mike Jolley said:
Wow,
Interesting how many folks are adamant about must have this or that. I guess that’s the power of the internet.

I have two Jeeps, a manual 6 speed 2006 LJ Rubi with 35s and 4.56 gears and an auto 2004 TJ with 33s and 3.73s. I’ve also swapped tires and gears on these Jeeps. The 35/4.56 combo is almost exactly the same as stock tires and 4.10s. The 33/3.73 combo is surely a taller ratio but one that I find acceptable if you don’t mind dropping out of OD to accelerate, pass, or go up an incline.

I also have a spreadsheet I made that allows one to input any transmission, axle ratio, and speed. Some of the info being thrown around this thread is a little loose. Figure out what is acceptable, what you have for goals and run the numbers. Taking some of the advice being dished out here is unlikely to make you happy. Only a few of the folks throwing out recommendations have even considered the very large differences between final drive ratio variations between a 6 speed, 5 speed, and auto.

I find the 4.56/35” combo pretty close to ideal for my 6 speed. I can always drop down to 5th but rarely need to during normal freeway driving. I had 5.13s in the rear end before it was installed in my Jeep, I paid good money to switch to 4.56s. I did my homework myself and I’m happy with my choice. My Jeep cruises comfortably at 75, it wouldn’t if it had a 5.13.
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It’s nice to see there is more than one answer to the 33 tire gear ratio issue!
My posts on the matter were soundly dismissed.


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Grimmjeeper.com is a great site to research gear ratios.
 
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Mike Jolley said:
Wow,
Interesting how many folks are adamant about must have this or that. I guess that’s the power of the internet.

I have two Jeeps, a manual 6 speed 2006 LJ Rubi with 35s and 4.56 gears and an auto 2004 TJ with 33s and 3.73s. I’ve also swapped tires and gears on these Jeeps. The 35/4.56 combo is almost exactly the same as stock tires and 4.10s. The 33/3.73 combo is surely a taller ratio but one that I find acceptable if you don’t mind dropping out of OD to accelerate, pass, or go up an incline.

I also have a spreadsheet I made that allows one to input any transmission, axle ratio, and speed. Some of the info being thrown around this thread is a little loose. Figure out what is acceptable, what you have for goals and run the numbers. Taking some of the advice being dished out here is unlikely to make you happy. Only a few of the folks throwing out recommendations have even considered the very large differences between final drive ratio variations between a 6 speed, 5 speed, and auto.

I find the 4.56/35” combo pretty close to ideal for my 6 speed. I can always drop down to 5th but rarely need to during normal freeway driving. I had 5.13s in the rear end before it was installed in my Jeep, I paid good money to switch to 4.56s. I did my homework myself and I’m happy with my choice. My Jeep cruises comfortably at 75, it wouldn’t if it had a 5.13.
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I always tell people that a large part of gearing is preference, for sure.

Of course I have heard that if you have the improper gears it can be really harmful on your transmission. Not sure if there's any truth to that or not?
 
jjvw said:
Low gears are better both on and off road. There is no downside. You are trying to convince yourself that poor performance is normal for a Jeep. It doesn't need to be that way.
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It's not that easy for most people. Not everyone has the technical know-how to swap out their gears or the money to pay someone else to do it.
 
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Jeffreybomb said:
It's not that easy for most people. Not everyone has the technical know-how to swap out their gears or the money to pay someone else to do it.
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True but, it is all part of the building process. People have no issue dropping a few grand for a lift or on wheels and tires but choke on a 1600 dollar gear swap. It is easier to spend big bucks on something you can physically see as opposed to something hidden by a diff cover.
 
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Rob5589 said:
People have no issue dropping a few grand for a lift or on wheels and tires but choke on a 1600 dollar gear swap.
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I can do more with 33x12.5 tires and a 3.5" lift with stock gears than I can with 15" tires and no lift with a $1,600 gear swap. :)

A gear swap should be on everyone's list if they want to make the most of their lift and wheels. It's just not something people are ready to drop that much money on when they can still have fun with a good wheel/lift set-up.

Before I added my lift and wheels, I didn't go wheeling with my stock TJ. I really wish I did. Personally, I'm okay with not upgrading my gears just yet. Wheeling with what I've got means that I'll understand the upgrade when I do get beefier gears.

Edited for half-awake, newborn kiddo-induced brain farts.​
 
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Jeffreybomb said:
It's not that easy for most people. Not everyone has the technical know-how to swap out their gears or the money to pay someone else to do it.
Click to expand...
That has nothing to do with the validity of the advice. Pretending that being undergeared is perfectly fine with any qualification is doing everyone a disservice.
 
jjvw said:
That has nothing to do with the validity of the advice. Pretending that being undergeared is perfectly fine with any qualification is doing everyone a disservice.
Click to expand...

I said exactly the opposite of what you're claiming I did in a later comment:

Jeffreybomb said:
A gear swap should be on everyone's list if they want to make the most of their lift and wheels.
Click to expand...

"Doing a disservice" is firing off an ill-advised rebuke.
 
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