Calgary Jeep Association
4x4 Related Groups => Tech Talk => Topic started by: mulitayjeep on February 03, 2006, 04:09:50 PM
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howdy there yal. i decided i would like to get into 4wheelin so i got myself a 97 jeep tj and i really have no idea where to start with her.. im thinkin tires and i lift, i dont want to get too aggressive with her so i was thinkin 2" lift on some 32" tires. so i guess what my question is, is will there be enough clearence or will the tires rub in the wheel wells/ fender flares? :twisted:
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I ran a 3.5" Rubicon Express lift with 33" tires and rims with 3.75" backspacing on my 97 TJ. This is a great little suspension kit and I have no rubbing at all. I'd recommend it, got mine from North Shore Offroad www.nsor.com for about $1100 + shocks.
Welcome to the world of wheeling! Your pocketbook won't thank you, but it's fun anyway! Good luck.
Erin
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A friend of mine is running a 2" coil spacer kit and 32" tires. He did have problems with the stock rims rubbing and got some with less backspacing. Other than that he has plenty of room for flex.
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Welcome to the addiction of having a jeep.
A cheaper option for a lift is coil spacers and new shocks. I have the coils spacers and no rubing with 31"MTs. You may want to consider what rear end gears you have in your choice of tire size. Shop around and get some ideas. Two places to go in Calgary are Modern Motors and National 4WD. Both shops have lots of info.
Blair
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cool sounds very interesting even though i have no idea what backspacing is or what my gear ratios have to do with the size of my tires. if someone could clear this up for me that would be great!
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Rim backspacing is the amount of offset on your rim. Deeper backsacing (stock) increase the potential to rub as you fit larger tires on your jeep.
Stock rims are usually in the range of 5 inch BS. Aftermarkets like common 15" steel rims are usually 3.75. Meaning the rim mounting surface is shallower, causing your tire to stick our farther, or allow larger tires to be turned without rubbing.
Gears of course effect your power, performance, and mileage. Larger tires require lower gears to maintain that stock feel. Not much of a worry until you go with tires larger then 33".
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cool that makes a whole lot of sense... question about the back spacing. isnt it possible to get spacers so that the wheels stick out more?
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You can get spacers, but they cost as much as a set of rims, sometimes more.
A quality set of spacers goes for about 500$. They are primarily used when people are deadset on keeping a certain rim, but the backsacing isnt enough for them.
If you stay with 15" rims, you can get a set of steelies with proper large tire backspacing for 65$ a rim plus tax, brand new.
hth
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cool i think thats what i will do. is steel the way to go for offroading?
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Steels are good in that they are cheap, and come with good backspacing to accomodate larger tires.
There downside is that they can be prone to bending if you are really hard on them, and are somewhat heavy. But then again, its 60 bucks for a new one.
Aluminums are less prone to bending, balance better, are lighter, but are way more expensive.
So its a toss up.
Most of us do go with steelies though because of price and availability.
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I like aluminum because they are way lighter (big difference, at least compared to stock steel rims.) The difference probably becomes negligible once you get into 35" and up tires when the tire far outweighs the rim. But, I figure every bit helps. Also, aluminum doesn't rust!
I've bought 2 sets of aluminum rims on CJA now for quite cheap, but I'd say that aluminum rims will hold their value better than steel.
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I've bought 2 sets of aluminum rims on CJA now for quite cheap, but I'd say that aluminum rims will hold their value better than steel.
Thats kinda backwards red. Typically 200$ aluminums are selling for 100$ or less.
A rubicon rim is almost 400 new and goes for 100 bucks.
Stellies are 60-90 and go for a common 50 bucks.
Steelies you are losing mebbe 40 bucks. Aluminums you typically lose 100 plus.
my observation anyways