New to Calgary area, asking opinions and such.

[Grmpy]

So I moved here from New Brunswick and its time to build a new bogger. its a budget build so Im getting an XJ. now a couple questions I have are:

how much lift do I want for the terrain in waiparous and mclean creek areas and any other big spots (i have never been wheelin in alberta). i dont want to be slowed down because i dont have enough. im debating between a 4.5'' from rough country and a 6.5'' by rusty off road. if people have anything bad to say about these please let me know what the issues were. I will be running 33x12.5 inch tires, if you say they will rub im only gonna give you my answer: grinder, sawzall, so many ways around this

Im also debating between auto and manual, i like manual but at the same time i like auto so i can relax and drink a cold one. i guess this is more a personal preference but if you want to leave me some reasoning behind your opinion that would be great, like if there are a lot of rocky hill climbs and stuff ill prob go auto.

Thank you in advance to who ever feels like giving there opinions and helping me out.

[morerpmfred]

There are many pros and cons wirh many different lift heights as well as brands.
I run a 4.5 inch x series rough country lift on 33s. Wheel wells have all been clearanced for 35s with sazall and grinder and rear cut and folded. Rear flares are raised and of rear yj sport. $20. Fronts are raised and are rear tj sport flares. Lots of pros and cons here.

[morerpmfred]

Oh and with an auto you will want to run 488 or gears and with a manuel 456 or 411 gears in order to make everything work.

[JackstandJohnny]

sawzall + grinder = 4.5" lift is plenty.

i have some YJ flares you can have cheap if you want on this XJ build.

if you are going XJ i'd go with a 97 and up; you can get the better diffs with those.  

good luck!

[Grmpy]

thanks guys, and there isnt much around for 97 and up at the moment, would it be just as easy to swap a whole rear end out of a parts jeep 97+? i can do all the work myself just wondering if it would be a bolt in swap.

[WhiteOut]

Any XJ rear end should be a bolt in swap.

As for the "grabbing a cold one while driving", I hope you mean soda.

[Grmpy]

There are many pros and cons wirh many different lift heights as well as brands.
I run a 4.5 inch x series rough country lift on 33s. Wheel wells have all been clearanced for 35s with sazall and grinder and rear cut and folded. Rear flares are raised and of rear yj sport. $20. Fronts are raised and are rear tj sport flares. Lots of pros and cons here.

regarding the rough country x series did you need the lengthened rear shaft as well as the slip yoke eliminator? and any issues about dropping the tcase? are there ways around this to keep ground clearance and much as possible? thanks

[morerpmfred]

Went with a hackin tap and new drive shaft when lift was installed. Did not install transfer case drop as not required.
Tranfer case has the two piece tail cone so probably could have gotten away with it with no vibes but original driveshaft was pooched. Most newer jeeps with the one piece tail shaft require a slip yoke eliminator to work. There are a couple different aftermaket suppliers who make raised crossmember/skid plate combos where you can gain an inch or two clearance over stock.

[hps4evr]

I as well run 33's with about 4.5-5" of lift and fender trimming. Tires don't rub at all. I use TJ flares to cover everything up. I haven't seen or heard  much good from rough country or rustys. If you're looking for a good bang for buck check iron rock offroad or zone, if you want to have the best then try Clayton off road.
Lots of mud, trails and climbs out here. Not much for rock. Auto or stick is your choice, both are common. Look for 1997-1999 ideal, 1991-1996 is second, either way look for hi pinion front dan30 and Chrysler 8.25 rear. 242 or 231 are both good t/cases.

[Grmpy]

I as well run 33's with about 4.5-5" of lift and fender trimming. Tires don't rub at all. I use TJ flares to cover everything up. I haven't seen or heard  much good from rough country or rustys. If you're looking for a good bang for buck check iron rock offroad or zone, if you want to have the best then try Clayton off road.
Lots of mud, trails and climbs out here. Not much for rock. Auto or stick is your choice, both are common. Look for 1997-1999 ideal, 1991-1996 is second, either way look for hi pinion front dan30 and Chrysler 8.25 rear. 242 or 231 are both good t/cases.

Is there a link to a thread you know of that will tell me how to tell the type of front axel, rear end and the differences between the tcases whle im looking at jeeps, are they easy to tell from what they look like or are they more specific to the model, year and engine/tranny combo?

[SwampSinger]

Im also debating between auto and manual, i like manual but at the same time i like auto so i can relax and drink a cold one. i guess this is more a personal preference but if you want to leave me some reasoning behind your opinion that would be great, like if there are a lot of rocky hill climbs and stuff ill prob go auto.

WTF?

[AstraX]

hahaha

i guess someone needs to educate this new guy with cja's religous tread lightly tree huggng no drinking rules

Nah.  Just common sense and not putting yourself and others at risk.

[hps4evr]

hahaha

i guess someone needs to educate this new guy with cja's religous tread lightly tree huggng no drinking rules

I don't think this guy has much common sense. But that's not new for him...

[cLAY]

Welcome to Alberta! 

I'm assuming that by cold one you meant a cola? Consuming alcohol  on the trail here is the same as drinking on the road and is subject to fines and all sorts of other nasty stuff. Not only is it stupid but you'll pretty much find with any club here in Alberta that drinking while operating a motorvehicle will get you ejected from the run pretty quick.

You say you are wanting to build a bogger? "BOGGER" here has a bit of a bad rep that goes with it. It brings to mind people who tear up and down creeks and rip back and forth thru meadows  does massive trail damage and giving the offroad community in general a bad name. If this is your intent then please go home. If needed we can show you the way.

Personally for building an XJ I like the auto. The AW4 automatic that came in the XJs is a very stout tranny. Add a cooler and do the electrical mod for locking it down into 1st or 2nd gear(Google 2nd gear please mod)  and you should have no problems with it baring getting water in it.

[The Machinist]

hahaha

i guess someone needs to educate this new guy with cja's religous tread lightly tree huggng no drinking rules

That's right!  Is that why your back, finally decided to abide by them?