What do I need to run 33x12.5 tires with no off-roading?

xxdabroxx said:
At 4" of lift with 33" tires you are going to feel different driving down the road, particularly on curvy roads. I personally don't mind how mine handles even with a looser sway bar. I can keep up with most vehicles on curvy mountain roads no problem without feeling tippy. I can also cruise 70mph down the freeway and let go of the steering wheel. I have a good tight steering and well balanced tires though.

Don't forget though when you go to bigger tires you are very likely going to NEED to regear your Jeep. For what you want to do with your Jeep you're likely better off going with a 1-2" lift with 31" tires where your current gear ratio (depending on what you have now) is likely to be more acceptable. With the 3.07 ratio and the 5 speed transmission in my Jeep when I bought it I never used 4th-5th gear. I've since regeared to 4.56 and almost wish I would have went 4.88 for the amount of freeway driving I do. Now I only use 1st gear when on a hill or when the Jeep is really loaded down, otherwise I take off in 2nd to save a shift halfway through the intersection. (On the other hand the previous owner had no issues with how it drove even before I fixed the suspension and steering when it was freaking scary doing just 55mph)
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what i have now is 31x10.5 and dont think there is a lift. I dont like the 31.
Is it really necessary to regear when running 33"? Didnt think so.
 
lindsey97 said:
Yes. Says Bilstein and the part #'s under the Rubicon Express paint. I really like them, the Jeep rides good on unpaved roads, I do believe they are stiffer than Rancho 5000x's, but not bad.
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Thanks for that info.. I have RE shocks and I've had Bilsteins. Agreed, the RE shocks are not bad.
 
jjvw said:
Remember when you said you wanted at least as much shock travel as stock?
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I am not experienced with jeep.. am truly new to this car hence all these questions.
I know that i will be replacing all the components as the car sat for a while and theres some rust and worn components.
While doing a suspension refresh the plan is to ride with 33"x12.5 or 10.5 tires. So i just need whatever good lift kit that wll allow that. Again no offroading no wheeling. Just street drive and lil muddy farm road ride.
I see that zone offroad as a 3" lift or the 4.25" combo kit, or whatever that wll clear 33" tires.
I need a recommendation for a good quality lift for what am trying to accomplish.
Let now focus on money but rather what will a good quality set for what am intending to use the car for.

Thanks all
 
myjeep3 said:
I am not experienced with jeep.. am truly new to this car hence all these questions.
I know that i will be replacing all the components as the car sat for a while and theres some rust and worn components.
While doing a suspension refresh the plan is to ride with 33"x12.5 or 10.5 tires. So i just need whatever good lift kit that wll allow that. Again no offroading no wheeling. Just street drive and lil muddy farm road ride.
I see that zone offroad as a 3" lift or the 4.25" combo kit, or whatever that wll clear 33" tires.
I need a recommendation for a good quality lift for what am trying to accomplish.
Let now focus on money but rather what will a good quality set for what am intending to use the car for.

Thanks all
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That Zone lift you found has a good reputation. For pure street use you'd be fine for 33's with just a 3" suspension lift. If you ever wanted to start offroading you could add the 1.25" body lift to get the 4" recommended clearance required by 33" tires for offroading.
 
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Jerry Bransford said:
That Zone lift you found has a good reputation. For pure street use you'd be fine for 33's with just a 3" suspension lift. If you ever wanted to start offroading you could add the 1.25" body lift to get the 4" recommended clearance required by 33" tires for offroading.
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Here is thay 3" kit..

https://www.extremeterrain.com/zone-offroad-products-zone-3-tj-j2.html
Few dollars off from the zone 4.25" combo. But again its all about needs.

I may just go with the 3" kit as you said and add letter if needed.
 
The above advice is spot on. I have a 3 inch suspension lift and no body lift on 33s & I’ve had some issues, done some damage to my front fenders and have had a lot of rubbing in the rear. Kind of in a shitty situation because I can’t add the body lift I need due to a height issue with my garage door opening. I’ve compensated two ways, first up front I have a coil spacer which actually gets me more than 3 inches up front offsetting the factory rake and the weight of the winch. More importantly I’ve also increased my bump stops front and rear which results in less travel than I could otherwise have but that’s what keeps my tires from hitting metal and that’s more important to me so while it’s not an optimal setup I haven’t had any further issues since installing them.

By the way all of those issues mentioned have been off road in extreme flex situations, never a problem on the road so I too think you’d be ok with 3 for the street.
 
So 3
Westtown Willy said:
The above advice is spot on. I have a 3 inch suspension lift and no body lift on 33s & I’ve had some issues, done some damage to my front fenders and have had a lot of rubbing in the rear. Kind of in a shitty situation because I can’t add the body lift I need due to a height issue with my garage door opening. I’ve compensated two ways, first up front I have a coil spacer which actually gets me more than 3 inches up front offsetting the factory rake and the weight of the winch. More importantly I’ve also increased my bump stops front and rear which results in less travel than I could otherwise have but that’s what keeps my tires from hitting metal and that’s more important to me so while it’s not an optimal setup I haven’t had any further issues since installing them.

By the way all of those issues mentioned have been off road in extreme flex situations, never a problem on the road so I too think you’d be ok with 3 for the street.
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So 3" zone offroad it is..

https://www.extremeterrain.com/zone-offroad-products-zone-3-tj-j2.html
 
This is pretty simple really. With a $500-600 budget that puts hard limits for what you can and can’t do to clear those 33’s. That pretty much eliminates the 4” suspension lift not because of the initial cost of the lift kit but rather all the follow-on mods needed to support the 4” lift. It’s called the Jeep Butterfly effect. One change on your suspension causes unintended consequences somewhere else. A true 4” suspension lift will definitely force you into some other mods, totally destroying your $500 budget.

The good news is your desire to run 33’s on the street and dirt fields is totally achievable provided you make some compromises to future off-road potential. From your description of your Jeeps daily use you should stick with a 2-2.5” lift and possibly a 1” body lift. Both doable for your proposed budget, clearing your 33’s and functioning as per your intended use for your TJ. Is this scenario the perfect solution? No, but given your budget and intended use it will certainly get you by just fine and keep you within your intended budget.

About budget boosts. People poopaw them as a hack cheapskate way to gain clearance for bigger tires. I fully agree with that it isn’t ideal way to do things but it is cheap. In fact it’s so cheap that you won’t mind ripping it out and throwing it away when you finally get around to putting in a properly setup up suspension. It’s a place holder that buys you time to research what you really want and save up the cash to do things right. And it will allow you to cheaply run 33’s. Again, not recommending it just another thing to consider.
 
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myjeep3 said:
hows the ride? do you have any pictures ?
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No need for more than a 2" or 2.5" OME lift with 33's. I will never hit my tires to my fenders. If I rock crawled like from the people you are getting responses from, that is different. I would do light off roading in my TJ with my set up. 4" looks too high with 33's, but that is just me. Now if you are talking about rock crawling that is different.
jeep finished.jpg


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gg1 said:
No need for more than a 2" or 2.5" OME lift with 33's. I will never hit my tires to my fenders. If I rock crawled like from the people you are getting responses from, that is different. I would do light off roading in my TJ with my set up. 4" looks too high with 33's, but that is just me. Now if you are talking about rock crawling that is different.
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Tell us about your shock travels. More, the same or less than stock?

Every thing I have offered in this thread is for highway travel and city diving. We haven't even touched on regearing for the larger tire size.
 
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jjvw said:
Tell us about your shock travels. More, the same or less than stock?

Every thing I have offered in this thread is for highway travel and city diving. We haven't even touched on regearing for the larger tire size.
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Got the OME shocks that came with the kit. Had to paint them black because I don't like shocks with ugly colors. Shocks should be black. lol TJ drives great, but I have KO's that are a proven winner on the roads and light trails. They are quiet thankfully.

I have stock 4:10 gears and a 5sp. No need to change them.
 
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gg1 said:
Got the OME shocks that came with the kit. Had to paint them black because I don't like shocks with ugly colors. Shocks should be black. lol TJ drives great, but I have KO's that are a proven winner on the roads and light trails. They are quiet thankfully.

I have stock 4:10 gears and a 5sp. No need to change them.
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How much up travel? I had those same shocks with 33s. The front 33s require more bump stop extension than the shocks do. Meaning that with only 2" of lift and no body lift, there is no to achieve even the factory amounts of up travel before the larger than stock tires start colliding with the body.

I am very familiar with 33s/4.10/5 speed. It is barely adequate if 5th gear is to be usable. 4.88 is delightful on the highway and around town.
 
jjvw said:
How much up travel? I had those same shocks with 33s. The front 33s require more bump stop extension than the shocks do. Meaning that with only 2" of lift and no body lift, there is no to achieve even the factory amounts of up travel before the larger than stock tires start colliding with the body.

I am very familiar with 33s/4.10/5 speed. It is barely adequate if 5th gear is to be usable. 4.88 is delightful on the highway and around town.
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True, I have 33x12.50s, 4.10s, and 5spd and I only get to 5th gear on a flat or slight decline. Also 8k feet elevation takes some wind from my sails.
 
the 3" zone offroad seem to be the kit needed.

I pocked my head down to look at what i have for suspension and cant figure what these are.
Don't mind the rust, will all be cleaned up and new looking soon.

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myjeep3 said:
I need new body mounts so If i were to do 2.5 sl and 1.25 bl will i still need longer shocks and adjust track bar?

Doesnt the lift kit come with shocks and springs?
Will the car drive okay on regular road at high speep?
Sorry am new to this.
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The Zone 4.25” combo kit would fit your needs well
 
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