To lift or not to lift??

Limrik

Limrik

New member
Hey everyone, I am new here to the Jeep scene (6 months and so far so good). I have purchased a 2017 JKU Rubicon (Recon edition of that makes a difference) that appears to be all stock. It has 80k miles on it and still has the original suspension I believe so it is time to update that at least. I would like to put a slightly larger tire on it, as much for appearance as for purpose as the furthest off road I am likely to get is the beach or maybe a few fire roads.
It is currently running on 255 75 R17s on stock rims. I would like to go with 285 70 R17s or 33” x 11” tires (I believe they are about the same as each other).
My questions are as follows
1. Will I need wider Rims?
2. Will I need to lift it, bearing in mind it is a Rubicon and might be already a little higher than the Sport or Sahara.
This is my daily commuter and I don’t want to mess it up, it is my first Jeep and I was pleasantly surprised at how nice it rides (taking in to account the fact that the original shocks are shot).
I would really appreciate any input from you guys, there seems to be a lot of knowledgable people on here.
thank you
 
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No ,you won’t need a lift or different wheels for that size. If you’re happy with your Jeep and just want a different size tire I would leave it alone. That Recon is a very capable Jeep. There is no reason for a lift for what you’re doing with it. Hell, there is little reason for a lift for what a lot of us do.
 
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I just lifted my sport and put 33x12.5 tires on it. I'm still a noob so I won't give any advice, however I will say that I had to recalibrate my engine using the ECRI system to tell the Jeep it had bigger tires on it. I know Eddie has a good video on the ECRI system. Just sharing my experience.
 
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onlyone said:
No ,you won’t need a lift or different wheels for that size. If you’re happy with your Jeep and just want a different size tire I would leave it alone. That Recon is a very capable Jeep. There is no reason for a lift for what you’re doing with it. Hell, there is little reason for a lift for what a lot of us do.
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Thanks for that, good info. And saves me some $$
 
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NevadaJohnny said:
I just lifted my sport and put 33x12.5 tires on it. I'm still a noob so I won't give any advice, however I will say that I had to recalibrate my engine using the ECRI system to tell the Jeep it had bigger tires on it. I know Eddie has a good video on the ECRI system. Just sharing my experience.
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Was that a big deal to recalibrate. And does it make a big difference to how the Jeep drives now?
 
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I ran 285‘s on my 2012 Sport stock. It rubbed a little under max stuff but that never bothered me. Evenif you had a little contact on the sway bar, just add a small single washer on the steering stops. You’ll never notice the difference. It would definitely be safer to run a 255/80/17 but for his wheeling I don’t think he will get any.
 
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Limrik said:
Was that a big deal to recalibrate. And does it make a big difference to how the Jeep drives now?
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Absolutely. My engines' shift points were off after my mods. The engine still thought I was on stock tires/wheels and I was getting less than 12 mpg. After I recalibrated everything is normal.
 
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If your Jeep in its current form isn't holding you back, there's no need to lift it.

As for tire clearance, I suggest heading to your local Discount Tire store and ask for their advice and a test fit.

I got no affiliation with Discount Tire other than they keep bribing me with excellent customer service.
 
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I have a 18’ JLU Sahara that I’ve had almost 3 years. I put 35s and a 2.5” lift and I used a Tazer JL mini to compensate. I lost a few MPG. I finally got around to regearing going from 3:73 to 4:56. It has been a huge difference.
 
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