About to lift but need advice

Stonegate

New Member
Joined
Nov 14, 2019
Messages
1
Location
Northern Virginia
I'm just about to buy a 2016 Jk and I'm looking to lift it up with bigger tires. I went to a shop and they were telling me that no one does body lifts anymore and the only thing done is suspension lifts. Does this sound like an obvious upsell or is it true that no one does body lifts anymore. I'm looking to raise it about 2.5 to 3" with 35" tires. Any expertise you could provide would be appreciated. Thanks everyone.
 
They are correct. People don’t really do body lifts anymore. That ended with the TJs and there is no reason to do it on a JK. A body lift is the wrong way to lift a vehicle.

Of anything I would recommend a coil spring spacer lift before a body lift.
 
Many, and I mean many people immediately want to lift their Wranglers. I as well, would love to, but it does come with a price.

One major thing to consider before lifting and adding larger tires, is what gear ratio your differentials have and if the transmission is auto or manual.

Having 3:07 gears and moving up to 33" or 35" tires will simply leave your JK powerless for the most part. More so with an auto transmission. Even 3:73 gears with 33" tires is pushing it, and 35" tires I would suggest re-gearing.

There is much to consider with all the moving parts, especially to do it "correctly".

If your JK will never see the off-road and you can live with the performance loss, it is your prerogative to add a lift and throw on 35" tires with less than recommended axle gear ratio.

I love the look of properly setup and lifted Wranglers, but it will cost me lift + installation + rims (not a fan of wheel spacers) + tires. So I am in no hurry to jump into that. My 2 door Willys has 3:73 gears and 255/75R-17 tires that equate to 32.1" tall, so not far off from the max size I would go of 33". It is plenty capable off road and is a looker on it. :)

So it really comes down to your reasons/necessity/requirements/wants. I am all for lifting, but do not forget there is typically more involved than simply the lift and larger tires.

Here are 2 excellent resources from this site that Chris posted:

Lifting: https://wranglerjkforum.net/threads/general-information-about-lifting-your-jeep-wrangler-jk.26197/

Tire sizing: https://wranglerjkforum.net/threads...fit-with-no-lift-on-a-jeep-wrangler-jk.26023/

I hope you found this helpful in some way! :)