4-Door owners info please!
09-11-2009, 01:49 PM
#11
JK Freak
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Monterey, CA
Posts: 662
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
to run 35's, 3" of lift is more than adequate and it's what i'm running on my orange JK now. as far as drive shafts go, if you have an auto, you will end up tearing the spline shaft boot for sure the first time you go wheeling and the only real fix for this is to get an aftermarket replacement shaft as they are narrower in diameter and will not have this problem. being that you have a 4-door, you will be fine with your factory rear shaft especially if you stick with a 3" lift. as far as gears go, i have 3.73's and they seem to do the job just fine. of course, running 4.88's would give you a bit more pep and 5.13's even more so but, i haven't seen the need for them.
So now I'm saving for a new front DS. It's not super critical that I get one today but I don't like the idea of driving around with a failure waiting to happen.
09-11-2009, 08:46 PM
#12
JK Super Freak
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: downingtown, PA
Posts: 1,103
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
You will need a new front drive shaft if you ever plan on going off-road, I have an unlimited with a 3.5 inch lift, auto trans and 35s and I pulled my front D.S. apart my last trip to rausch creek!
09-13-2009, 09:23 AM
#15
JK Enthusiast
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: San Diego, CA
Posts: 158
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
the short answer is you don't need a lift.
Now, if you want a more capable jeep, or want the look of a lifted jeep, then go for it.
Be prepared for expensive lifts on the JK though, even BB's often require DS's, and your thinking about 4 inches? having to get even a single ds can nearly double the price of your lift!!!!........good deals are abundant on here with the sponsors, just give them a call and they will be more than glad to answer any questions you might have.
I am running the RE LA 4.5 and DS replacement was required:
I replaced F/R DS's with 1350 JE Reel, they ran nearly 1400.
Are these overkill, maybe, but the piece of mind is there for me, and no worries when the Hemi drops in.......
Now, if you want a more capable jeep, or want the look of a lifted jeep, then go for it.
Be prepared for expensive lifts on the JK though, even BB's often require DS's, and your thinking about 4 inches? having to get even a single ds can nearly double the price of your lift!!!!........good deals are abundant on here with the sponsors, just give them a call and they will be more than glad to answer any questions you might have.
I am running the RE LA 4.5 and DS replacement was required:
I replaced F/R DS's with 1350 JE Reel, they ran nearly 1400.
Are these overkill, maybe, but the piece of mind is there for me, and no worries when the Hemi drops in.......
09-13-2009, 03:57 PM
#16
JK Enthusiast
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Cape Cod
Posts: 358
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I asked all the same questions, got all the same answers. lots of good info. here on the site, just read as much as you can so you don't have any surprises. here's what I ended up doing.. I did the 3.5 clayton lift with 35's. I knew the boot on the front shaft was going to tear (and it did immediately). I have not replaced it yet, but i know it's a time bomb ticking away.I will run it to the death, that was the plan all along. Also, I have the stock 3:73 gears. It drives fine with this gearing and i would keep the gears stock ... BUT FOR ONE THING (my surprise) I did not read up enough on transmission heat. On the highway, with 35's and 3:73's the tranny temps get way too hot. I added a cooler (and a gauge) to buy myself time to save money for gears. It still runs too hot for my liking on the highway with the cooler, and i am hoping to get the gears done soon to ease my mind. I would rather avoid cooking the tranny and asking for a warranty after all the mods. With my luck and lack of patience it would get ugly very fast. So, in short.. buy a COMPLETE kit and plan on some driveline changes. If I were to do it over, I would do the gears with the lift and not wait. lesson learned.
09-13-2009, 04:25 PM
#17
JK Enthusiast
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Graham, WA
Posts: 182
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
to run 35's, 3" of lift is more than adequate and it's what i'm running on my orange JK now. as far as drive shafts go, if you have an auto, you will end up tearing the spline shaft boot for sure the first time you go wheeling and the only real fix for this is to get an aftermarket replacement shaft as they are narrower in diameter and will not have this problem. being that you have a 4-door, you will be fine with your factory rear shaft especially if you stick with a 3" lift. as far as gears go, i have 3.73's and they seem to do the job just fine. of course, running 4.88's would give you a bit more pep and 5.13's even more so but, i haven't seen the need for them.
Lift's for the JK DO NOT need to be expensive either. The Teraflex 2.5" replacement coil lift with shocks is a sweet kit for the money. If you are going to do some more serious wheeling you may want to use their beefier rear trackbar bracket that mounts to the axle instead of the one that comes with the kit. You may also want to consider an adjustable front trackbar and some adjustable front lower control arms too but the basic kit will get you started just fine.
As far as the gearing goes.... I have 4.10's and I'm running 35's right now. I get around town just fine and don't see any real NEED to regear. However... I bought some 5.38's already and will be putting those in sooner or later. I just want a little more get up and go with my auto!!! I was used to my TJ with 4.88's running 35's and a manual transmission... so even before I put 35's on my JK I felt a little under powered. I'm looking forward to those 5.38's.
09-13-2009, 04:46 PM
#18
JK Jedi Master
A few things that will cause the ds boot to rip under flex, front axle not being centered ( I think this contributes to alot of people with BB's ripping it), tranny skid/crossmember no trimmed and lowered, and the big kicker is the metal band with the nub sticking out that will hit the lip of the tranny pan. Modifications I did that made my front driveshaft last longer, cut, notch,drop the skid, replace band with ziptie. My front ds survived several off-road trips and alotta miles before going kaput, and that was at the top cv joint.
09-13-2009, 05:18 PM
#19
JK Enthusiast
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Graham, WA
Posts: 182
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
A few things that will cause the ds boot to rip under flex, front axle not being centered ( I think this contributes to alot of people with BB's ripping it), tranny skid/crossmember no trimmed and lowered, and the big kicker is the metal band with the nub sticking out that will hit the lip of the tranny pan. Modifications I did that made my front driveshaft last longer, cut, notch,drop the skid, replace band with ziptie. My front ds survived several off-road trips and alotta miles before going kaput, and that was at the top cv joint.There was NO WAY I could have run the stock transmission skid plate after my lift!!! I was going to give that a try but I would have had to cut through more than half of entire width of the skid plate for the ds to clear at full drop of the suspension. This would have left very little support for skid plate. I'm almost touching the exhaust pipe that runs above the cross member at full drop!
There is also now way that personaly I could have re-used my stock trany skid plate with my lift. I would have needed to cut a notch out more than half way through the skid to provide enough clearance. My drive shaft almost hits the exhaust that runs over the cross member as it is at full suspension drop.
Now that I have the Tom Woods front drive shaft and Rock Hard trany skid I have no clearance issues at all.
Last edited by FlyingJeep; 09-13-2009 at 05:30 PM.