thejtr

Okay, I'm still waiting to do my wheel/tire/suspension package but I do know I'll need to upgrade gears and also get lockers.

I have an 07' Jeep Wrangler X - manual transmission. Therefore, can someone help me figure out exactly what I need to upgrade to or where I can get them? I need details.

I will be running 33's and was thinking 4:10's are more then enough? Am I right? Majority of my driving will be on-road and many hills/mountains; very little off-road (for now as I'm interested in slowly getting more off-road time in).

Lockers - are they all the same? What am I looking for? I want to get the stock switch panel for the interior of a rubicon.

I see the for sale section of JK-Forum and not sure what I'm looking for to make offers (details).

Thanks all.

Jtr

BaltChief

IMO.....and others may dissagree, even with 33's and the manual, if you will see allot of mountains go with the 4.56's.....6th gear will thank you.

seer1

For flat landers it's one thing, but with hills and mountains you'll want to go a bit more than what you think. Plus as you go, you'll be adding some weight and need some extra pep anyway. All the lockers have different switching apparatuses to activate them. The stock rubi switch panel won't work in your Jeep. It'll look nice, but won't be able to do anything.

BlackNorthernJK

I'm not sure anyone can tell you EXACTLY what YOU need, but we can offer some opinions and advice...your looking to run the same set up I'm gonna be running with.
Currently I have the '07 X manual trani, with 3.21's running 33" tires. If you've attempted to research this already using the search function you'll find a broad range of opinions regarding this set up. Does it lack power right now, absolutely, is it manageable...for me yes, for others no. Am I planning on upgrading to 4.10's...yes, as I, like you believe this will be plenty to serve MY purpose. Others will say that 4.10's aren't enough for even 33's...be sure of your expectations is all I can say...if you even THINK you might go taller than 33's my suggestion would be definately look into 4.56's or 4.88, heck even 5.13's. Will it be a power monster with 4.10's and 33's, no, but it will get the job done I'm sure. And if your going to be re-gearing, you'll probably just wanna do this once and make sure you've got the right gear ratio to suit your needs, it's expensive and you don't wanna be re-doing it too many times.
HECK NO, they aren't all the same. You'll be needing to do a little more research on this.
..again, I think you'll need to do A LOT more research on lockers, besides if your only planning to do 'very little' off roading than why even bother getting lockers?? ...on the flip side of that, if you believe you'll seriously require lockers than you probably will want to do this at the same time as your re-gear, save yourself some money. But your the only one that can truly assess weather they're a REAL requirment or not for your needs. I'm no locker expert, however, I same as YOU use my JK as a daily driver with most time spent on road...which doesn't mean I don't like to get out when I can and put it through it's paces...it's a VERY capable machine stock from factory, so I'm not opting to install lockers at present. My suggestion... get out on the trail and learn how to use your ride stock before considering upgrades that your not sure you'll even require.

With all that to ponder...with a 'simple' re-gear your going to require obviously the ring and pinion gears of the desired ratio, you'll require the appropriate over-haul kits to install them which includes stuff such as bearings, shims, bolts, pinion nut etc. And from what I can tell if your only planning on upgrading to 4.10's your stock carriers should be fine especially in the front Dana30 diff you have...however I believe there have been issues if your considering going numerically larger like 4.88's and such as the front carrier may require replacing as well....I CAN'T give you definate on that, but others may have a for sure answer, but definately something you should be aware of.

Currently I'm gathering all the stuff I need right now to do a gear install myself, alls I have right now is the stock ring and pinion gears in 4.10 ratio front and rear from a non-Rubicon JK. I'll be getting the overhaul kits soon...then I'll be buying myself a press, bearing puller, and run out dial...along with a nice new micrometer to do this install myself, I'll be able to offer more advice later this year once I've completed this install.

I hope I've managed to help you a little. Good luck and really consider your future plans for your rig.

thejtr

Thank you. I do see a lot of mountains in my daily commute. In fact, the reason I want to do lockers is because I've tried pulling people out of the ditches before in the snow from my 99 TJ and couldn't gain the traction I needed. Lockers would have helped. Therefore, I do believe for me lockers would be necessary. Had I done all this research before I bought the X I probably would have just bought a Rubi. Oh well, I'm in the X and I'll make it work.

Would 4.56's fit on an X without massive modifications?

Now that it's pretty clear that not all lockers are the same; which ones do I need to be eyballing? I'm definitely going to do gears and lockers at the same time to spare excess install expenses. This upgrade will be a later one for sure but will need to be done.

Thanks again. Keep more info coming if possible.

Jtr

wgr

hmmm...lockers for pulling out others ??? Well..you are a nice guy in that sense...investing to lockers to be able to pull others out of ditch...but do you really need them for it... If you eventually go and do some serious offroad wheeling then it is a wise investment but otherwise in your case i would do as suggested before...wait and see i i really need them.
Years past...i have pulled many many cars and trucks out of many different situations...and never failed, never needed any lockers for that.
These days i use my JK for wheeling with rigs equiped with lockers and am not planning to have lockers installed anyday soon.
Please do not take this as a nasty comment, this is only my opinion and you make your own decisions anyway. Just wondering if it is worth of all that money based on what you are telling you are going to use it. Maybe a winch can do same for you with less expense ?

RedneckJeep

FIrst off....what gears do you have now? The 07 had options for 4.10 gears AND a locker in the rear. Since your Jeep ain't splattered all over the forum, we can't see whether it might have those things. Secondly, I agree with some of the others recommendations. If you're GONNA regear, make it worthwhile. Frankly, if I was gonna regear, I might even go to a 4.88. I plan on runnin 33s as well, but mine is an Unlimited auto. 4.88s would be a nice little punch. However, regearing for me, even after the tire change is probably going to be WAY down the road. You'll be happier with a little MORE gear for what you need than a little LESS. That's somethin to keep in mind.

NYJKGUY

If you really wanna do lockers do your home work about the locker and the company that makes it and if u have any questions call david at northridge 4x4 hes a great help i have an 07 x and i went with 5:13 and arb lockers but i think u would have to change the front carrier on that dana 30 to fit 5:13s im not sure about the rear

SaharaBlackNo1

My 07 Sahara came with 4.10s, what did your X come with?

Personally, if you're just moving up to 33" tires I wouldn't do anything. That's only 1" bigger than the stock Rubicon tires. Plus you've got a 6 speed so your gears will work harder for you than they would in an auto.

But the main reason I'm telling you to hold off is that, by this time next year (or sooner), those 33s will start to small and you'll want to go bigger. At which point depending on your budget you'll consider 35s or 37s or maybe you'll get a great bonus at work and even think 40s. lol

So wait, drive the JK as is or heck maybe you've just got to go bigger, why not buy a set of Rubi rims and tires for cheap from someone who's upgraded? They'll make a huge difference on your JK, without spending much. Then you can drive it, talk to other JK owners here and around your neck of the woods and see where you really want to take your JK. Specifically regearing just to run 33s seems like a waste of money to me.

Edit: PS: I started with 33s as my first mod and thought it was all I'd really ever do to my JK. Now look at my sig! lol Trust me upgrade with some rubi tires/rims for cheap, drive it and see where you want to go. You WILL want to go bigger. Just ask anyone here. 99 out of 100 I'd bet would go bigger if the budget allows and nowadays with budget boosts, etc you can run up to a 35" tire and only spend a couple hundred bucks to get there. Though at 35s I would definitely consider the regear, just not at 33s.

thejtr

Man, thank you guys for all the constructive criticism and information! I mean that. It is so confusing on which upgrades to do and when, as I'm sure all of you can somewhat relate to.

I believe I will do the Teraflex 2.5" coil with springs and run my 33's for awhile. Then when I run those tires into the ground or when I have some extra money to drop into the jeep I'll at that time add gears and lockers. Nonetheless, it all doesn't need to be done at the same time and that's my issue I suppose.

As for pulling people out of the ditch, I only really have two more months of winter and I don't suppose those unfortunates warrant me a reason to spend a boat load of money on unnecessary upgrades at this point. You're right though, I want the lockers for wheeling not for ditchers. I just know I've tried pulling two out already and the circumstance called for lockers. LOL

Thanks so much for the input, I REALLY do appreciate it.

Jtr

By the way; here is a picture of my little dinky 'X' model. LOL It's a work in progress; aren't they all? The Rubi is my brother's and it was bought that way.