37's, 5.5" lift, gear choice?

2702 Views 13 Replies 11 Participants Last post by '05TJLWBRUBY, Jan 1, 2011

bdb

Discussion Starter · Dec 17, 2010

I saw the xenon 4" flat fenders and have come to find out that their demo jeep is running 37's; I love the look, but cannot afford dropping 4k into a LA lift. I was trying to duplicate the look and overall functionality of that rig. Let me know what you think? I know most everyone will tell me to go with the LA, but not in my budget. It will be a daily driver for about 6 months. I plan to wheel it on some fairly decent trails atleast once a month.

Here are my considerations: 2005 unlimited rubi'

1) RE 4.5" short arm super flex kit
2) 1" body Lift
3) teraflex belly up kit
4) Regear - ?? 5.13 ? ? daily driver.
5) Xenon 4" flat fenders
6) Body armor rear bumper (jerry can holder)
7) keeping the 44's and stock lockers

Straight forward, respectful, and knowledgeable opinions are really appreciated. IF anyone knows any information on the jeep in the pic, it helps. I will be starting the build up late january.

Brian

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Jeep1086

· #2 · Dec 17, 2010

I am not to fond of RE's lifts. I would recommend buying some used uppers and lowers and then JKS track bars when you can. As far as the TT goes why not use rokmen's or nths if you are planning to upgrade to LA in the future. Nth would be a good start. You can easily run 37s with 2.5-3" spring.

As far as gears:

I would recommend 5.13, however if you have an auto you will lose much of your power with 37s.

Shaun

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Phillip

· #3 · Dec 17, 2010

Having had a RELA on the Jeep, you can look elsewhere for a nice setup. If you have the capability, a mid arm setup is ideal. This way, you get the arms up and out of the way while still retaining good geometry. If you don't want to build your own suspension, I would look at the Currie 4.5" suspension. The full Johnnny Joints are nice, and it's a proven design. As for the skid plate. Wait on Savvy to get it's tummy tuck into production. It's lighter, stronger, and has more clearance than anything on the market. Nothing else is remotely close.

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lucasinpsj2

· #4 · Dec 17, 2010

Here's mine on 37's. RE4.5 springs and JKS bodylift. I trimmed the rear out and plan on flat fenders.

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bdb

Discussion Starter · #5 · Dec 17, 2010

Hey thanks for the help. Lucas' how do you like your set up? Are you running the short arm or the long arm? What gear ratio are you running?

Phillip', thanks for the advice. What gear set would you recommend to retain the stock rpm's. It is my daily driver, and an automatic. I heard Nth from are AEV are crazy expensive, I didnt realize they had affordable-starter options.

Thanks,
Brian

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lucasinpsj2

· #6 · Dec 17, 2010

bdb said:
Hey thanks for the help. Lucas' how do you like your set up? Are you running the short arm or the long arm? What gear ratio are you running?
Thanks,
Brian

I'm running short arm, all rokmen. My goal is to drop to a shorter spring once i Highline the front.

As far as ride, I have no complaints. i can roll down the interstate at 80 and let go of the wheel.

But......... I have a buddy trying to sell me a dana60 and 14bolt REAL cheap with 5.13's, cromolly axles, lockers and hydro assist for a stupid low price. So I may go linked and 42's with a 4" currie spring. Cant afford coilovers or I would.

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Kehyler

· #7 · Dec 30, 2010

Don't go with rubicon express. There are better options. RE bushings fail too often.

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Phillip

· #8 · Dec 31, 2010

bdb said:
Phillip', thanks for the advice. What gear set would you recommend to retain the stock rpm's. It is my daily driver, and an automatic. I heard Nth from are AEV are crazy expensive, I didnt realize they had affordable-starter options.

Thanks,
Brian

Sorry, just saw this.

If you plan on 37" tires, the only choice is 5:13. For that matter, its the only choice with 35" tires. The automatic transmission really needs the gearing.

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dpendergraph

· #9 · Dec 31, 2010

I run 4.88's on 35's with the 5-speed tranny. It works but I have to say that I don't think I would mind 5.13's...

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chris03rubicon

· #10 · Dec 31, 2010

RE lifts are ok, but as others have stated...there are other options to concider. The RE joints are rebuildable, and are cheap to do...something else to concider when buying a lift/links. I bought my TJ with 92K miles, the prior owner didn't change out any links...and after 2 years of ownership I have replaced 1 RE joint. Most of them just needed tightening. I do have a rear upper link that needs to be replaced now. So for 25.00, I will have a new joint.
My RE lift was already on when I bought it, but I would have done some research before buying one.

I would run 5.13's minimum for 37's. Make sure you gusset and keep a closefull watch on all your axle brackets for cracks and tears.

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blkrubi05

· #11 · Dec 31, 2010

5.13s

I have the RE LA and I guess I've been lucky...mine hasn't been horrible. I also maintain my stuff and try to stay ahead before it wears out/breaks. But if I had the budget and knowledge 5 years ago, I would have went with a custom setup.

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JBD

· #12 · Dec 31, 2010

blkrubi05 said:
5.13s

I have the RE LA and I guess I've been lucky...mine hasn't been horrible. I also maintain my stuff and try to stay ahead before it wears out/breaks. But if I had the budget and knowledge 5 years ago, I would have went with a custom setup.

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bnine

· #13 · Jan 1, 2011

I'll say this as nice as I possibly can.

If a long arm is out of your budget range, you should seriously re consider running a 37 inch tire.

Unless your jeep is a purely street rig, the 37's will quickly empty your wallet with additional maintenance and repair cost when compared to a 35.

Your balljoints, wheel bearings, steering box, track bar, axle shafts, ujoints, lockers, and suspension are all under sized for a 37 inch tires.

We've run 37's on jeep equipment here. The worst I've seen is an xj that we had to balljoints and unit bearings after every 3rd wheeling trip.

Rubicon steering boxes are notoriously weak, and prone to failing with 35 inch tires. The addition of 37's without some sort of hydro assist is a recipe for disaster on those ZF boxes.

RE bushings and standard track bar are not up to keeping 37's in check, which will result in more sensitvity to death wobble.

Anything shy of curries hd steering with an ultra duty chromo tie rod from savvy is severely under sized steering, and even the currie is small for 37's.

The rubicon 44's are not up to the task of reliably handling 37's inch tires. Of the ten regulars I have with rubicon 44's I have had 7 stock carrier failures on 35 inch tires, and 1 on 33 inch tires.

I would suggest you strongly reconsider moving to a 37 inch tire with your existing set up.

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'05TJLWBRUBY

· #14 · Jan 1, 2011

While many folks here on ROF have successfuly run 37's on their rubi 44's with upgrades, I HIGHLY agree with bnine above and for those same reasons, believe the 35" tire is as big as I'll go on my rig for wheeling use. Regardless of what others have had good luck with regarding 37" tires, I have blown my rear already on 33's and will not go bigger than 35's for trail use-and yes, I'm already built for them. Good info Bill and I definitely agree with you. (I do have some good friends running 37's who will disagree with me just for the record... :laugh: )

Best of Luck,

Mike

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