spoke with everyone I have ever seen with a Jeep and a guy at a garage about things. now guy i know may be doing the work since i know nothing about this. Have decided on 33" duratracs with a 17" wheel (i think 17", would 18 look better with 33s?), rough country 2.5" lift with shocks, and dual steering stabilizers.
he wants to charge $450 labor for the work.
couple questions (and please don't beat me up too much since i'm a rook):
-does the above equipment look like it will all work with my current setup?
-should i be going with an 18" wheel?
-going with 33s b/c of my current gear situation and don't want to mess with that
-does the $450 labor charge seem reasonable or have i lost my mind?
-will i need to mess with my speedometer after the upgrades?
-what width tire should i be looking for in order to widen the stance? the whole offset thing confuses the snot out of me.
any help here is greatly appreciated (no need to destroy me). Thanks and feel free to add pics when appropriate. thanks everyone.....now Go!!!!
Rough Country gets a bad rap depending on who you talk to. What are you paying for the actual kit?
Labor doesn't seem terrible, it really depends on where you're located.
I recently had a 2.5" Teraflex kit installed. I got the kit for $700 which included the shocks, so I don't know how that compares to the price of the RC. For the kit, steering stabilizer and labor I paid 1200 out the door. So I'd say the labor is about right. I'm in the Chicagoland area so prices seem to be on the higher side.
I switched my 18's out for 17's. More tire options and typically cheaper when you need to replace them.
I didn't need a procal to adjust my speedo. I tested it with the waze app on my phone, and that was spot on.
Shoot for 4.5 back spacing on the wheel. I bought Fuel Vapors with that back spacing and my tires stick out about an inch or two from the fender.
I couldn't recommend the TF lift enough. The shocks seem pretty good. You can always go with the kit and get different shocks. I will most likely get some Rancho's or Fox shocks when the time comes. Just do your research. Also look at the additional weight of the wheel/tire combo. You may want to look at a different tire carrier down the road to compensate for the extra weight.
I second the above poster but I did get a procal when I did my TF lift. I went with TF shocks as recommend by installer. Paid 550 for labor which included TPMS switch over.
3.21 gears suck. I will regear this Fall. Seems like alot more work on clutch, can't imagine driving Auto with 33's.
JJH do you have pics of those Vapors? including the stance?
the RC lift is $355. was recommended by the garage i spoke to as well. am i going to hate that lift in my DD? i want a decent ride since DD. i'll have to search the lift threads about the lifts.
running auto in this jeep bc kids are young and i didn't want to shift with all the crap the little guys bring to the table.
in DE, overall maybe $450 isn't too bad. keep the help coming.
Save your money on spacer lifts, personal opinion, get flat fenders instead, and the 33's with aftermarket wheels, or at least wheel spacers (assuming you don't have the factory 16's), l think is a better investment, and you won't have to thinker with your suspension, while giving you time to do a better lift with coils, longer shocks and basic arms later on. With the money you were going to spend in labor, you can get the Rockhard oil/trans and evap skids, also get some disconnects for the front, and if you don't have sliders, get at least rubi rails from Craigslist or eBay, you'll go a lot places offroad with that setup. Enjoy.
I'll grab some pictures for you shortly. I'm running the setup I posted above on 3.21's (auto). It's definitely not as peppy as it was stock, but you're not driving a sports car right? This will depend on the weight of your wheel/tire combo though.
Shift points feel the same. I've been driving it for 3 weeks now and I can't exactly remember what stock acceleration feels like.
I'm running Mickey Thompson ATZ P3's (285/70/17) on the Fuel Vapors. If I remember correctly the combined weight is 97 lbs.
I have no issues with 3.21 and 33"s until I get into big hill on the freeway. Then it does downshift and lose speed. Luckily living in AZ we don't have too many hills. Here is mine on 33"s with a 2.5 Teraflex lift. Love it, but I will be upgrading to 35"s and regearing.
I like the vapors. thanks again for the input. thinking about moving to the teraflex lift due to all the bad RC input across the internet. no one says anything bad about TF. prob worth the extra money for my daily driver.
wish i could test drive a 3.21 with 33s before doing all this. do not want to get into it for first time and hate the pick up.
I went with 1.75" puck spacers and 1.5" wheel spacers since I knew I would not be doing any heavy rock crawling. This set up will definitely be fine for 33's and you save money to buy your shocks. It's my DD and right now I'm running factory 32's until I replace with 33's or 34's. I really like the stance and look though it will look better with 33's or 34's. I have 3.73 gearing which handle the 32's fine. I know I'll lose some power with bigger tires, but hopefully not too bad as I'm not really wanting to spend the cash for a regear....but we will see.
No idea why they're rotated. Ugh haha. Probably a few grand for a regear. You'll be fine with your current gear ratio. I couldn't be happier. If you were close to Chicago I'd let you test drive it. If you're really concerned, try to keep the tire/wheel weight down. And for that matter heavier bumpers.
Those words are horrible now. this is possibly the most confusing and complicated thing i have ever dealt with. 2 college degrees? easy. multiple mortgages and refinancing? piece of cake. Jeep mods? i'm now bald.
JJH.....to move from stock to your current setup you just got the teraflex lift, wheels, tires, and stabalizers? anything else you added at that time or wish you would have?
why does everyone install stabilizer if they are pointless? not being smart, i just don't know anything about this stuff yet. can i install the lift and tires then test drive and if there is too much play in the steering, go back in and install the stabilizer? how involved is that install?
i have been looking at all this stuff off and on for three years. going to end up spending about 3K on the lift, tires, wheels, and labor. i've been on multiple forums, talked to professionals in my area, and everyone else with a jeep. my kids are so embarrassed when i walk up to some random jeep or jeep owner asking about their setup.
I have a friend who does these jobs on the side and I feel comfortable with him completing the job and making sure it's done right. also had another friend tell me this job is a 2 1/2 on a scale to 10 and that most guys with a little knowledge can get this done in no time. finally narrowing down my search and making decisions (difficult for me since i'm cheap and $3000 is by far the most i have ever spent on any upgrades of any kind.)
had considered a budget boost/hockey puck install but went to the lift thinking it would be better in the long haul. am i making a mistake? (here we go round and round again)
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