Cost and quality efficient Jeep build for hard working high school noob

Bfryant44

Bfryant44

New Member
Joined
Apr 9, 2021
Messages
9
Location
VA
Hello everyone! My name is Bryce and I just registered today to be part of wrangler forums! I am a hard-working High School senior on the east coast and I am also a VERY proud owner of my own fully stock 5-speed 4.0 I6 1998 wrangler sport TJ. I have owned my Jeep for almost 2 years now and I am finally ready to exit the baby-jeep phase. I know I am young and I have minimal knowledge on jeep modification as well as the "lingo" or acronyms frequently used on this forum. My jeep is my daily driver although I plan on going offroading on some light to moderate trails as well as some mudding NOTHING EXTREME SUCH AS CRAWLING OR INSANELY INTENSE TRAILS (at least not for a few years lol). Nevertheless, I have just recently bought brand new 33"x12.50x15 Achilles desert hawk m/t tires.

I need to get a lift kit though in order to fit my new tires under my jeep. I have done a bit of research myself but I have been easily overwhelmed by hearing all of the suggested or essential mods to make a lift work without drive vibrations kind of frighten me although I have been working a lot to achieve this lift. After reading some threads I am thinking of a 3-4" lift for my tj. I am aware of things such as drive vibrations and the necessity for a CV driveshaft and SYE although I do not know their direct use or purpose.

I have the utmost respect for all of you and thank you for being so patient with me. I would love to hear your suggestions, explanations, or something like a written-down list of everything I would need to accomplish the task of lifting my jeep tj for 33s for light to moderate offroading as well as remaining my daily driver. Is there any cost-efficient but a quality way for me to do this? Hopefully without breaking my bank account too much lol. Thank you all and I look forward to hearing from you!
-Bryce
 
  • Like
Reactions: Vinsane, harbiison, Hog and 3 others
Others here will surely help you get your Jeep upgraded. I just want to pass on a story. My son's first car was a CJ7 soft top with an automatic transmission when he turned 16. A year later he bought my CJ7 with a hardtop and a 4 speed. He immediately put bigger tires on it. He and his friends had a blast with it during High School and then off to college he went with his beloved Jeep. Graduating with a degree in Geological Engineering he headed for California and a job as a Geo Tech taking soil samples all over the back country. He tells a story of how the other guys Toyota pickups couldn't make it up a particular hill to get a sample but he drove right up. When he came down and they said how amazed they were he told them It would have done better if he would have locked in his front hubs (it did have a posi-traction rear axle).

So enjoy your Jeep as you venture forward on your journey through life, as I can tell you will.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 02SteelBlue and Weasellee
To get the 33s on there are several ways to go, some expensive and some not. And since you say it's a DD and you may do easy trails in the future IMO I think you can go the not so expensive route, but everyone on the forum is happy to help you spend your money :)

A not so expensive route would be a 2.5" spring lift coupled with a 1.25" body lift and a 1" motor mount lift. That combination will easily fit 33s and the chances of drive line vibrations are very minimal saving you several hundred on drive lines, SYE kits and adjustable control arms.

Take a look at this thread to get started:

https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/a-recipe-for-an-affordable-but-quality-2-5-lift.41687/
 
  • Like
Reactions: JMT, Weasellee and 2001slvrstntj
Welcome! You’ll get lots of great advice here and learn a bunch! I was a noob a year ago, and still am. I learn something new everyday from the fine folks here! Just remember, it’s your Jeep, and if you are happy with it that is all that matters! 👊🏼💯🔥
 
CodaMan said:
Welcome to the forum and glad to see a young TJ owner. Make sure you post some pics of your rig.
Click to expand...
Thank you! Here is a photo of my TJ

EBE40671-0029-4D6E-92DC-1457954BB83A.jpeg
 
  • Like
Reactions: JMT, ColoJeep, Mudflat and 12 others
Arizona Jim said:
Others here will surely help you get your Jeep upgraded. I just want to pass on a story. My son's first car was a CJ7 soft top with an automatic transmission when he turned 16. A year later he bought my CJ7 with a hardtop and a 4 speed. He immediately put bigger tires on it. He and his friends had a blast with it during High School and then off to college he went with his beloved Jeep. Graduating with a degree in Geological Engineering he headed for California and a job as a Geo Tech taking soil samples all over the back country. He tells a story of how the other guys Toyota pickups couldn't make it up a particular hill to get a sample but he drove right up. When he came down and they said how amazed they were he told them It would have done better if he would have locked in his front hubs (it did have a posi-traction rear axle).

So enjoy your Jeep as you venture forward on your journey through life, as I can tell you will.
Click to expand...
Thank you so much!
 
CodaMan said:
To get the 33s on there are several ways to go, some expensive and some not. And since you say it's a DD and you may do easy trails in the future IMO I think you can go the not so expensive route, but everyone on the forum is happy to help you spend your money :)

A not so expensive route would be a 2.5" spring lift coupled with a 1.25" body lift and a 1" motor mount lift. That combination will easily fit 33s and the chances of drive line vibrations are very minimal saving you several hundred on drive lines, SYE kits and adjustable control arms.

Take a look at this thread to get started:

https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/a-recipe-for-an-affordable-but-quality-2-5-lift.41687/
Click to expand...
Okay awesome. Thank you for the help!
 
Welcome from deep SW VA.
Do you know what rear axle and gear ratio you have? If not go read the stock specs thread in the resources section. This is important because you may ned some axle upgrades for those 33’s
 
All good advice here especially from @CodaMan on how to avoid the SYE / DC driveshaft.
Bfryant44 said:
I am aware of things such as drive vibrations and the necessity for a CV driveshaft and SYE although I do not know their direct use or purpose.
Click to expand...
You asked, so I'll elaborate. When your suspension lift height reaches a point where your rear driveshaft angle has gone beyond what the U- joints are happy with, the result is driveline vibrations. The remedy is to effectively extend the length of the driveshaft, thereby reducing the operating angle. The only way to make room for a longer driveshaft is to free up space somewhere else in the drivetrain. Enter our hero, the Slip Yoke Eliminator. This modification changes the rear portion of the transfer case and can create 2 to 3+ extra valuable inches of space depending on the style of the kit. I'd personally recommend the Super Short kit from JB Conversions.

http://www.jbconversions.com/products/sye/np231j_short_sye.php
Problem solved, your driveshaft is happy. Your wallet, however is somewhat lighter. 🙂
 
  • Like
Reactions: Weasellee
Give these people here a target to shoot at. What is your budget? Knowing what you want to invest will make it easier for the forum to help direct you to what you will need for your intended end use. You wouldn’t want to spend where it won’t be most effective for your goal.
 
Son, you don’t have to impress me with bigger tires, because you already have.

In school, you also worked, managed your money, paid for it, and have kept it going.

I’m a Bryce fan already.

I’m not going to get into the technical advice, good people are already chiming in and they got ya.

I just want to tell you to keep up the good work, remember that Jeep was earned, and all the money you will ever have is currently in someone else’s bank account....and you now know the key to open the vault-work.

You will never forget this Jeep, ever. Don’t go crazy, seek to understand the changes you want and their consequences, don’t move faster than the speed of money, and use this forum wisely.

AndyG
 
  • Like
  • Love
  • USA Proud
Reactions: DougyintheBushies, Gasman, harbiison and 9 others
SvtLdr said:
All good advice here especially from @CodaMan on how to avoid the SYE / DC driveshaft.

You asked, so I'll elaborate. When your suspension lift height reaches a point where your rear driveshaft angle has gone beyond what the U- joints are happy with, the result is driveline vibrations. The remedy is to effectively extend the length of the driveshaft, thereby reducing the operating angle. The only way to make room for a longer driveshaft is to free up space somewhere else in the drivetrain. Enter our hero, the Slip Yoke Eliminator. This modification changes the rear portion of the transfer case and can create 2 to 3+ extra valuable inches of space depending on the style of the kit. I'd personally recommend the Super Short kit from JB Conversions.

http://www.jbconversions.com/products/sye/np231j_short_sye.php
Problem solved, your driveshaft is happy. Your wallet, however is somewhat lighter. 🙂
Click to expand...
IMO you left out the most important one...the rear DS pulling right out of the T-case...

That said you put a link up for the extreme short SYE...
When the regular SYE would be fine for his use and significantly cheaper.

At this point he's just trying to add some 33's and I don't think he needs a SYE just yet.
 
  • Like
Reactions: D M
never monday said:
Welcome from deep SW VA.
Do you know what rear axle and gear ratio you have? If not go read the stock specs thread in the resources section. This is important because you may ned some axle upgrades for those 33’s
Click to expand...
No way!!!

Every person going to a large tire needs to experience just how important gears are.

Especially kids. Kids slapping on big tires absolutely positively deserve to experience how tires will suck the power right out.

We've all been there and Bryce needs to experience this too. 😎
 
  • Haha
  • Like
Reactions: DougyintheBushies, Hog and D M
Glad to see other youngins like myself getting hooked on this terrible, terrible addiction 😆 For what you described you want to do, I also recommend the thread @CodaMan posted.
Rubicon88 said:
IMO you left out the most important one...the rear DS pulling right out of the T-case...

That said you put a link up for the extreme short SYE...
When the regular SYE would be fine for his use and significantly cheaper.

At this point he's just trying to add some 33's and I don't think he needs a SYE just yet.
Click to expand...
It all really depends if he has vibes or not. Some people get vibes with lower lifts, while some dont get any at all
 
  • Like
Reactions: Cheetokps, SvtLdr and Alex01
DylanM345 said:
Glad to see other youngins like myself getting hooked on this terrible, terrible addiction 😆 For what you described you want to do, I also recommend the thread @CodaMan posted.

It all really depends if he has vibes or not. Some people get vibes with lower lifts, while some dont get any at all
Click to expand...
We've installed many lifts and honestly a 2.5" spring lift is what we've done the most.
If you're getting vibes with a 2.5" spring lift or less you need new u-joints.

Trust me when I tell you many people grab, yank and say yep.. my u-joint is good to go when that is absolutely positively not the case.

A SYE has it's place but it's not needed on a short lift provided your u-joints are A1 condition.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DougyintheBushies and TJ_owns_a_TJ
Rubicon88 said:
We've installed many lifts and honestly a 2.5" spring lift is what we've done the most.
If you're getting vibes with a 2.5" spring lift or less you need new u-joints.

Trust me when I tell you many people grab, yank and say yep.. my u-joint is good to go when that is absolutely positively not the case.

A SYE has it's place but it's not needed on a short lift provided your u-joints are A1 condition.
Click to expand...
Cant argue with that statement, SYE is nice since it plans for future cause we all know everybody dives down the rabbit hole one way or another ;) And a cheap " bandaid " to those low lift vibes is a 1" MML which also sets you up for the future
 
  • Like
Reactions: Alex01
Wow, I was not expecting this much help and support! You guys are awesome and thank you for for all of your kind words and wisdom!
Right now after some research I am leaning towards a 2.5” lift with a 1.25 BL and a 1” MML.
Here is what I have written down:

Coil Springs: OME 2” front and rear
Shocks: rancho rx5000 2-3” front and rear
Body lift: savvy 1.25”
Motor Mount lift: savvy 1”
Track bar relocation bracket: ARB
Tires mounted and balanced as well

The rough total estimate: $1035

Is this a good setup? Am I missing anything? And would the springs allow for 2.5” of lift or will they sag quickly? Thank you everyone for the help again!
-Bryce
 
  • Like
Reactions: JMT, IrishWake, TheBoogieman and 1 other person
Top Bottom
Back