lv jk

I echo do it right. I started with a econo lift and it was nerve racking to drive on the freeway. Now I have the adjustable arms and track bars and it rides like a dream. by the way sitin' on 35s.

RevyJKU08

Just be sure you wife won't have any issues getting your kids and dog and herself into the JK with 35's and lift. Happy Wife means more mods for the Jeep down the road.....bumpers, wheels, winch....

SuperJK

I take my daughter everywhere, she loves the jeep... She loves it, there are even sometimes she even falls asleep when we are out on the trail....

porters

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), JKs have great front crash ratings, and marginal rollover ratings. Side impact ratings are poor, mainly due to the doors not remaining latched. JKs also have poor braking distances. The nature of any convertible if you are not wearing a seat belt is obvious. Hard Tops are not made of steel and are not really that much protection in a roll over. I don’t mean to scare anyone but it’s important to state the facts. If you want the safest 4WD vehicle vehicle you should have bought a Honda Pilot as it’s a top IIHS safety pick with really good crash test scores in all areas. However, you won't get very far off-road in a Honda Pilot.

On the positive side JKs have rollover prevention, antilock brakes, and panic braking assist. These features make it far safer than Wranglers of the past.

Lifting a JK is not exactly going to make is safer. Raising the center of gravity will increase the risk of highway rollovers and make emergency maneuvering more difficult and risky. Off-road the higher CG will also have a penalty.

Of course no lift is safest. When you lift a vehicle you feel more tippy in the corners as the CG changes, handling will be effected to some degree by any lift and the taller you go the more pronounced the effects on safety and handling. I think most would agree that the sweet spot for a JK, the spot where increased CG effects are minimized but increased clearance is helpful off-road is in the 2" to 3" range. There also are lots of ways to minimize the effects of raising CG as many on this tread have explained so I won't go into them further here.

I have tried to give you the facts as best I know them. I put a small lift on mine and I can’t tell much change in handling. I get stuck off-road more then I would like as a result but that’s the price I pay to stay as safe as I can. I also siped my tires to improve braking distance.

TexsDream77

When you lift it. You get bigger tires. Bigger tires are wider. Increasing wheel track. The average person that does even a small 2-3" lift goes to a 33 or 35 x12.50. Gaining about 2" of wheel track. Then they usually push the tires outward with either wheel spacers or new wheels. Gaining another 2-4" of wheel track. Wider wheel track counteracts the higher center of gravity. I would recomend that if you feel that it is getting hairy in some obsticle. Let them out. They can stretch/ take pics and video. I would do that wether I was lifted or not.

I take my 4 year old with me a lot. I started out with no lift and 33x12.50's. I went for a lift and bought the 4" kit just because of the added wheelbase I needed the center clearance. I was amazed at how offcamber this thing can get without even lifting a tire. I rolled my less lifted yota in less. Now I'm on 37's. And increasing my track width again by about 3".

If you lift your rig properly You will be fine. Just don't lift more than you need. No one here knows exactly what kind of wheeling you do. So, we can't tell you what lift you need. I wheeled mine stock and then decided what I thought I would need. I thought the 4" and 33's would be fine. It was... but, I wanted to tackle some harder terrain. Needed bigger diggers.

rubican!

im in scc4x4.com here in southwest va. We have the mountains as our play ground. I have no concerns about on the trial or in the woods becasue even if i was wheeling a sherman tank i would never do anything that was just to crazy in my jk. We take it slow and alot of the guy in my club have alot of experiance and always set me up with a good line. They have gotten me through some stuff that you wouldnt think a stock rubi could do.

I guess my main concerns were how well the jeep responded on the highway. My jk right now drives like a champ and after the other jeeps iv owned in the poast id have to say i feel the safest in the jk. After reading what you all have posted i think ill go ahead with the 35's. Its a for fun car we dont take itt o the grocery store but when we plan a trip or somethign outdoors its always the jk gettign picked to make the run. THanks for the input and i will do everything to a t with the lift to make sure its safe going down thehighway.

I was considering the 33's but if your gonna do it to a jk you should do it right. Thanks for all your input

porters

This setup actually sounds interesting from a maximizing height perspective without changing CG significantly. Most of the JK weight is in the frame. A 2.5 in lift marginally raises the frame. An additional 2" body lift adds more clearance for bigger tires without raising the frame or CG further. Bigger tires add even more clerance without a significant change in CG. In the end you get about 4" additional clearance and increase wheel track by almost that same amount. Well done!

wayland1985

If a lift is done properly, your jeep wont be "unsafe", but it will be slightly less safe than your stock jeep (Which as already stated, isn't the safest vehicle on the road... Heck, the jeep itself has a decal on the soft top saying the doors and top only provide protection from the elements).

There's an undeniable trade-off in performance as you modify the jeep. It may be better, or worse, but either way, it has deviated from what's stock.

A couple of things to watch out for:
-Higher center of gravity: Like Tex said, wider tires usually make up for the height gain, but you're still higher off the ground. That being said, my 2.5" lift really doesn't feel much different than stock. Highway ramps require some extra caution, but there's no loss in confidence when driving. Evasive maneuvers might be a little compromised on road, though.

-Bigger/heavier tires: Bigger Tires are heavier than stock. Stopping requires a little more effort than stock....



My own personal inquiry is how well a lifted jeep will hold up to other idiots on the road. I can drive as safe as possible all day, but all it takes is some moron running a red light to T-Bone me. This is probably the only situation I'd ever feel unsafe in a wrangler, knowing that I'm a vehicle that's a little more top-heavy than before. But, I guess as long as it's not a Big-Rig, the fact that the doors don't protect me really doesn't matter if you're higher than other cars on the road

liquidrock

I take my 4 year old with me everywhere. She loves the jeep. With that said, when she is in the car, I drive much more differently.

The family will be going for a Teraflex 3 inch lift with 35's once the money makes since to spend. I say family 'cause I got the jeep as a family adventure ride. So the decision to go with 35's was more or less a family decision. Well, if you consider nobody opposed. Everyone is excited and almost impatient we haven't gotten the lift yet. We are the kind of family to get out in a snow storm and lay the first tracks as everyone else is inside warm and cozy.

I'm not going to waste your time with statistics of safety 'cause strange things can happen at any time. So, drive safely, be aware, and the adventure will unfold.


-J

Choppus

I think 3" and 35's are fine for the family. As the others have said, just make sure you get a good kit, and attention to detail with the install and making sure everything is tightened down after you get a few miles on the lift.