Lift kit advice?

[almosthavoc]

There’s so much conflicting information online about Wrangler lift kits, and I’m brand new to 4x4 vehicles (last 2 cars were sports cars), so I figured I’d give info about what I want out of my Jeep. Maybe I could get some advice.

Goal
I won’t be driving 100 mile commutes everyday, but it will still be my daily driver, so maintaining daily drivability is priority number 1. Next, I just want the Jeep off the ground a little bit more. The thing just looks too wimpy at stock height. Finally, I won’t be going too crazy off-roading. No crazy trails and climbing up rocks. I really just want to drive on the beach with some occasional off-roading a little more intense.

Budget
I’m a college student, so modding my Jeep isn’t my main priority. I will continue to save up money until I have enough for what I like. With that being said, I don’t want to go too cheap. I’m more of a best bang for my buck guy rather than straight up going the cheapest route.

Tires
I believe I’m currently on 30s. From my research 33s seem to be the sweet spot for me. 35s are just too massive (and expensive), and I’m assuming it’s going to make fuel economy significantly worse than it already is. Please feel free to give me other suggestions though. I don’t mind the stock wheels, so to save some money I plan on painting them black and throwing the bigger tires on there.

Lift size
I don’t want my wrangler to become a monster truck, so I was thinking around 2.5-3.5” max. As with the tires, feel free to suggest other sizes based off the info I provided. I really am clueless when it comes to this stuff.

Hopefully I’ve provided enough information for some of you to point me in the right direction for lift kits to start looking at. All feedback appreciated. Thank you!

 

[Jerry Bransford]

A 3" suspension lift is enough for most Jeepers that want to go offroad. Zone makes a popular less expensive suspension lift product and I don't recall ever reading any complaints about it. I'm not running a Zone personally, I'm just passing it along as a pretty well respected non-expensive product.

https://zoneoffroad.com/product.php?parm=suspension-lift-kits_jeep?

 

[Goatman]

A good set of springs in the 2-2 1/2" range and you can keep the rest of the suspension stock with only a slight chance of a driveshaft vibration. And that can (almost always) be cured with a small tranny drop.
Stay with 31-32" tires and you should have no gearing problems.
Once you get into 33s and a 3 1/2 or 4" lift things can get more expensive if you get vibrations.
Upgrade to a ZJ steering setup and you have a lot more strength in the front end. And cost is minimal.
Definitely getting into 35s will put you in a whole new world of modifications and expense. Sticking with a 2 1/2 spring lift and a 1 1/4" body lift will fit 33s with ease.
Read up on the 'builds' section for a lot of great step by step instructions to improve the TJ off road.