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Jeepmedic46

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I would use it for a season before you do anything. I think you will find 4.5" lift with 31s-33's is the sweet spot for over landing a xj. Like someone else posted. Take inventory of how it was done. 4.5" lift is pushing the geometry of stock components so you want to be sure it is upgraded properly. Things like steering, sye,gearing, front frame rail stiffeners or steering brace to prevent fatigue on the steering section of the frame. You will figure it all out in time.

The thing I like about my Xj is it is very affordable entry level 4x4 that you can personalize to your liking. Mine came with a 4.5" lift and 33s'. A very budget lift at that.It still had 307 gearing and 33"s made it inadequate for anything other than a dirt road. But I took it up and enjoyed myself despite that. I immediately traded my 33s for 31"s and ran it that way for quite a while.

I hope you enjoy your rig as much as I do mine. I have it set up so my wife and I can sleep in it and don't have to have a tent. Just a roof top bag for our clothing, sleeping bags the light stuff.

Hey post some pictures! Have fun!
Thank you, Hoping to have some fun with it this summer. Going to have the lift looked at at a place that installs them to make sure it was done right. Going to try and set up a sleep system in it. RTTS are out of my budget at the moment.
 
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cruiserfien

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A winch is nice, knowing how to properly use it is even better.

Tire, winch, and lockers are my top three suggestions for upgrades in that order. I seldom recommend lifts. I have had three lifted rigs, and only one of those three handled as well as stock.
larger tires is going to lift your differential and transfer case more than a lift kit. The lift kit does nothing for raising the differentials at all without adding larger tires.
The winch second for recovering others along with the ability to recover your self. I personally have used my winch far more to recover other people than recovering my self or clearing a trail.
Lockers last, because with lockers you will make you feel over qualified to go places you probably shouldn’t and will need the larger tires and winch you already installed.

now, since your rig already has a lift, larger tires, and a rtt, adding a winch for a piece of mind might be an option. Ask yourself how many times you have actually gotten stuck so bad a winch was required vs a tug from someone else.

I have been doing this quite some time, and have gotten stuck more times than I care to admit. I have only been stuck twice where a winch was the only option. Both times having my own winch wouldn’t have made the situation any less sticky. Both times the best method of pulling me out was by pulling backwards. Both times I was high centered by my front and rear bumpers blocking the path for a frontal recovery, think creek crossing, and being pulled frontwards would have destroyed the creek bed.
I mention this because even though I have a winch now, only once it was used for self recovery, and even then there were other things I could have done to get unstuck. The rest of the time I have used it to safely recover other rigs and to clear trails.
The one piece of recovery gear I always felt missing in my kit was the farm jack. I don’t want to get into that debate, but it was a tool in my grandparents kit, my dads kit, and my first kit that got stolen. It is a tool that my brother and I learned how to safely use as young kids, learned to respect, and most important how useful it is as a tool other than just a jack... although the jack part of it is nice too.
@Dave K and @PNW EXPLR great advice

This is great advice for what to add to your rig, however I would interject that rock sliders are one of my top 3 priorities when I build. Nothing is worse than a damaged rocker panel...just my $.02
 

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"It all depends."

A lot of Overlanders are using things like Subi wagons, Honda Pilots, or other "cross-overs" with little lifts and bigger tires. A bone-stock JL or JT Rubicon, or even something like a Colarado ZR2 with their true front and rear lockers (and solid axles in the JL/T) are going to go way, way further on tough trails than even a "lifted" cross-over with "AWD" and IFS/IRS. Others that are a bit more into hard trails use rigs like Tacomas, XTerras, etc. with mild lifts and up to around ~35" tires. A stock JL/T fits a 35", or a FJZ80 Land Cruiser will just about fit one stock (from what I've seen they fit the metric equivalent that works out more like ~34.5" stock).

So, when it comes to people with more capable factory vehicles (like a stock "triple locked" 80-series or a TJ/JK/JL/JT Rubicon) the fact is those vehicles will go deeper stock than I think 99.99% of people actually realize and are probably totally capable of doing what MOST people call "Overlanding" bone-stock (even down to the stock tires in the case of the Rubicons that have 33" M/Ts as a stock option). You basically are just not going to be able to mod a Subi or cross-over to run with a STOCK Rubicon. It takes a very modded Taco or other IFS rig to hang with a Rubi or triple-locked 80 (assuming you're pushing the Rubi/80 to their limits).

See what I'm getting at? The vehicle you start with dictates a lot of whether or not you "need" to mod to Overland. Or, take WJs for example. Bone-stock they're very, very capable (more capable than *most* modern IFS rigs save for maybe the ZR2s with their factory lockers) but are tire-size limited. They flex great stock and will get through really tricky stuff, but when you get to obstacles that are really just a function of having enough tire, the stock 29"s are an issue. A mild lift and ~32"s like I have keep the Quadra Drive happy so the stock setup still works well, but *most* of the tire-size issue is fixed. So, yes I could Overland a STOCK WJ... but if my group includes stock Rubicons and they plan to go pretty much to their potential I *have* to mod to hang.

Others don't leave groomed forest service roads or generally smooth trails when they are "off-road." There is NOTHING wrong with that, and doesn't require modding even in a basic AWD cross-over. You can use forest service roads to be hours and hours out from "civilization" without
"wheeling" hard. For example, we have a family cabin that's ~3hrs out from paved roads, power, cell signal, or anything resembling civilization. However, I can (and have) gotten a rented AWD Equinox to the cabin. Substitute camping instead of hitting my cabin and that's Overlanding... and if I REALLY wanted to I bet I could get a bone-stock Civic out there.

-TJ
 
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tjZ06

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A lift is not always just for clearance. A full suspension modification also allows Wheel travel, articulation, smoother ride and more. I think your 4.5 inch lift should be fine as long as all the other components are correct for the lift. Like Trailing arms, Shocks, Sway bar disconnects, etc. I used to wheel Cherokees for a long time. They are a great vehicle for overlanding and even hardcore wheeling. I would take inventory on what make a lift you XJ has and go from there. Log into a Cherokee site like NAXJA. there is a wealth of knowledge out there for the XJ.
Agree 100%

His XJ, like my WJ, is pretty tire-size-limited. You need that ~4.5" lift to even get a moderate (by modern standards) size tire on it and PROPERLY clear it at full flex. Much like my current setup of 4.5" with a just-under-32" tire I think a XJ at 4.5" on something around a 32" (or a 33" with enough cutting) is a GREAT combo. It's not over-sized for the rig or the axles (unless it has a D35 rear... then anything is over-sized, even stock, lol) and can actually clear it flexing. Proper flex and traction devices (lockers or good LSDs) are more important than tire-size 99% of the time.

People (including me sometimes) get hung-up on 35"s vs. 33"s or whatever. A 35" only gives you 1" more ground clearance than a 33". Depending on how you air-down, the difference often all but evaporates. How often do you actually come across an obstacle that 1" of ground clearance one way or the other is the deciding factor? It's almost never. Usually you either have the clearance, or you WAY don't and 1" wouldn't change anything. However, a spinning tire in the air because you couldn't flex well enough or you don't have the right traction devices in the axles OFTEN stops people.

On something like a JL that can run a 35" stock I totally get the "no lift" advice... though even a JL will be able to flex-out with 35"s better with a 2" lift. But on XJs, ZJs, WJs and to a lesser extent TJs that are tire-size limited stock a lift makes sense to get past the tiny stock tire fitment (29-ish on XJ/WJ/ZJ). Then you throw in the much improved articulation of a proper long-arm lift, and the benefit is far more than just clearance.

-TJ
 
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M Rose

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This is great advice for what to add to your rig, however I would interject that rock sliders are one of my top 3 priorities when I build. Nothing is worse than a damaged rocker panel...just my $.02
In 30 years of extreme off-roading, I have never bent a rocker panel from under neath the rig. I have brushed them along side of obstacles crushing front fender to rear quarter panels, but a slider wouldn’t have saved my truck from damage. Up until about 20 years ago when the rock buggies came popular, there was never mentioned the need for rock sliders. Skid plates under the oil pan, transmission, and transfer cases (and some times diffs) yes, those are important, but sliders... not really. I personally feel, unless, the sliders are solidly attached to the frame by grade 5 bolts (so the bolts break or bend) they actually cause more harm than good by tweeking the frame. I worked in a body shop for several years, and the amount of rigs that we had to pull the frame due to sliders was horrendous. And Unibodies like the XJ were the worst, because we could never get them straight without lots of surgery.
 

DrivingTacoLoco

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In 30 years of extreme off-roading, I have never bent a rocker panel from under neath the rig. I have brushed them along side of obstacles crushing front fender to rear quarter panels, but a slider wouldn’t have saved my truck from damage. Up until about 20 years ago when the rock buggies came popular, there was never mentioned the need for rock sliders. Skid plates under the oil pan, transmission, and transfer cases (and some times diffs) yes, those are important, but sliders... not really. I personally feel, unless, the sliders are solidly attached to the frame by grade 5 bolts (so the bolts break or bend) they actually cause more harm than good by tweeking the frame. I worked in a body shop for several years, and the amount of rigs that we had to pull the frame due to sliders was horrendous. And Unibodies like the XJ were the worst, because we could never get them straight without lots of surgery.
Good for you but I bent my rockers on the first time I went off road. Granted I had no idea what I was doing. I have also gotten too close to a tree and bent a fender. The kickout would have prevented that. So I would say it really depends on where you go and how much you are willing to push your vehicle. Also sometimes you can slip and slide into something and if not for the rock slider you could have done serious damage.

As far as bending the frame goes. I have heard that many slider brands are poorly designed and mounted and will cause frame damage. So finding a quality well designed brand is very important.
 
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tjZ06

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In 30 years of extreme off-roading, I have never bent a rocker panel from under neath the rig. I have brushed them along side of obstacles crushing front fender to rear quarter panels, but a slider wouldn’t have saved my truck from damage. Up until about 20 years ago when the rock buggies came popular, there was never mentioned the need for rock sliders. Skid plates under the oil pan, transmission, and transfer cases (and some times diffs) yes, those are important, but sliders... not really. I personally feel, unless, the sliders are solidly attached to the frame by grade 5 bolts (so the bolts break or bend) they actually cause more harm than good by tweeking the frame. I worked in a body shop for several years, and the amount of rigs that we had to pull the frame due to sliders was horrendous. And Unibodies like the XJ were the worst, because we could never get them straight without lots of surgery.
I have to respectfully disagree. I've seen countless rigs bend a rocker, even ever-so-slightly, then have problems with doors not closing/sealing etc. for the rest of the life of the rig. It doesn't take much to tweak a rocker. IMHO if you're dropping down onto a rock-slider hard enough that it bends the frame you have much BIGGER problems going on. Either a) the slider was poorly designed/attached so it's concentrating all the force from the slider into 1 spot on the frame b) you're dropping your rig waaaaaaaaaaaay too hard onto your sliders. In the former case, bad engineering is bad engineering and doesn't mean that having a slider is bad... it means having a BAD slider is bad. In the latter case, if you are hitting a properly engineered slider hard enough to bend the frame, well then without the slider you would have smashed up through the rocker, into your doors, and probably found some frame too. That would be a HARD hit.

So, I guess I do retract my previous statement a bit: even if I was "Overlanding" a bone-stock WJ I'd add rock sliders, period (and a winch).

-TJ
 

BCMoto

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"It all depends."

A lot of Overlanders are using things like Subi wagons, Honda Pilots, or other "cross-overs" with little lifts and bigger tires. A bone-stock JL or JT Rubicon, or even something like a Colarado ZR2 with their true front and rear lockers (and solid axles in the JL/T) are going to go way, way further on tough trails than even a "lifted" cross-over with "AWD" and IFS/IRS. Others that are a bit more into hard trails use rigs like Tacomas, XTerras, etc. with mild lifts and up to around ~35" tires. A stock JL/T fits a 35", or a FJZ80 Land Cruiser will just about fit one stock (from what I've seen they fit the metric equivalent that works out more like ~34.5" stock).

So, when it comes to people with more capable factory vehicles (like a stock "triple locked" 80-series or a TJ/JK/JL/JT Rubicon) the fact is those vehicles will go deeper stock than I think 99.99% of people actually realize and are probably totally capable of doing what MOST people call "Overlanding" bone-stock (even down to the stock tires in the case of the Rubicons that have 33" M/Ts as a stock option). You basically are just not going to be able to mod a Subi or cross-over to run with a STOCK Rubicon. It takes a very modded Taco or other IFS rig to hang with a Rubi or triple-locked 80 (assuming you're pushing the Rubi/80 to their limits).

See what I'm getting at? The vehicle you start with dictates a lot of whether or not you "need" to mod to Overland. Or, take WJs for example. Bone-stock they're very, very capable (more capable than *most* modern IFS rigs save for maybe the ZR2s with their factory lockers) but are tire-size limited. They flex great stock and will get through really tricky stuff, but when you get to obstacles that are really just a function of having enough tire, the stock 29"s are an issue. A mild lift and ~32"s like I have keep the Quadra Drive happy so the stock setup still works well, but *most* of the tire-size issue is fixed. So, yes I could Overland a STOCK WJ... but if my group includes stock Rubicons and they plan to go pretty much to their potential I *have* to mod to hang.

Others don't leave groomed forest service roads or generally smooth trails when they are "off-road." There is NOTHING wrong with that, and doesn't require modding even in a basic AWD cross-over. You can use forest service roads to be hours and hours out from "civilization" without
"wheeling" hard. For example, we have a family cabin that's ~3hrs out from paved roads, power, cell signal, or anything resembling civilization. However, I can (and have) gotten a rented AWD Equinox to the cabin. Substitute camping instead of hitting my cabin and that's Overlanding... and if I REALLY wanted to I bet I could get a bone-stock Civic out there.

-TJ
I totally understand this and this is why I don't usually go out with other because I think my rig is shit compared to jeep and smaller trucks
 

tjZ06

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I totally understand this and this is why I don't usually go out with other because I think my rig is shit compared to jeep and smaller trucks
Don't worry, my WJ can't hang with a lot of stuff either. When I plan group trips we plan around the least-capable vehicle in the group. Every run doesn't have to be a balls-to-the-wall, test your capability at every twist and turn, white-knuckler.

-TJ
 

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Thank you, Hoping to have some fun with it this summer. Going to have the lift looked at at a place that installs them to make sure it was done right. Going to try and set up a sleep system in it. RTTS are out of my budget at the moment.
Having someone who sells thier services check out your rig I would be leary of what they tell you. I would rather get the opinion of other xj owners. The ones that have worked through the do's and don'ts on thier rigs already.

Yeah a roof top tent if out of the question for me in more ways than just the $$$$. My wife doesn't like the idea at all. And I don't want the weight up there anyways. What I have done is I took out the bottom of the rear seat and lay down the back. I do carry a lot of tool spare parts and recovery gear. So where the seat used to be I have it built up with tool boxes and such and other heavy stuff on the floor. I built a simple platform (built just to make the floor perfectly flat)that folds over when I want to put the seat back together I can. We have three Plano boxes (full of recover gear and fliudes) and a bear proof cooler and a large amo-locker modified to lock , all this can tuck under our rig when we sleep. Because the platform is just used to level the floor there is more room for the two of us. I scored one of those storage bags that strap to the roof rails on the roof. There is also enough room up there to strap a easy up for shade.

It is unbelievable how capable a xj is. I think you will be pleasantly surprised!
 

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In 30 years of extreme off-roading, I have never bent a rocker panel from under neath the rig. I have brushed them along side of obstacles crushing front fender to rear quarter panels, but a slider wouldn’t have saved my truck from damage. Up until about 20 years ago when the rock buggies came popular, there was never mentioned the need for rock sliders. Skid plates under the oil pan, transmission, and transfer cases (and some times diffs) yes, those are important, but sliders... not really. I personally feel, unless, the sliders are solidly attached to the frame by grade 5 bolts (so the bolts break or bend) they actually cause more harm than good by tweeking the frame. I worked in a body shop for several years, and the amount of rigs that we had to pull the frame due to sliders was horrendous. And Unibodies like the XJ were the worst, because we could never get them straight without lots of surgery.
A properly built slider will protect from underneath and prevent a side impact from deforming a rocker, possibly even saving a door in many cases.
 
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M Rose

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ok, the frames damaged, the rocks had hit all the sliders under the floorboards,
A properly built slider will protect from underneath and prevent a side impact from deforming a rocker, possibly even saving a door in many cases.
like I said I used to wheel hard, and never once have I hit anything that a slider would have saved, and I have personally seen way too much damage done by bolt on sliders.
 

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I’ve been watching a lot of Overlanding videos and it seems like when they are building their Overlanding vehicles they don’t seem to be installing any lift kits. Is it normal to have a lift on a Overlanding vehicle? People on the channels are using Toyota Land Cruisers.
To address your question directly, it all depends on where YOU want to go. Build your rig for your needs, not someone else’s. I don’t do much rock crawling so, for me, a lift is further down on the priority list. Most of where I go, any stock 4WD SUV with a competent (important note) driver could reasonably make it. Heck, look at some of the places folks like @Road go in a van! That being said, it is nice to have capability beyond your needs. This is a hobby after all and it should be fun, right? We found ourselves at an offroad park last summer and I had an rather impromptu test of the abilities of my Cherokee. We met a group of nice folks in some really REALLY nice overbuilt Wranglers who were headed up one of the more technical runs. When I followed them up the hill, they could not believe the “fiat Jeep” made it. That rear locker comes in handy in a pinch!

Anyway, all that is a really long way of saying, drive what you want and enjoy what you drive. Be as prepared as possible but don’t let your hesitations keep you indoors. Get out and enjoy!
 

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Don't worry, my WJ can't hang with a lot of stuff either. When I plan group trips we plan around the least-capable vehicle in the group. Every run doesn't have to be a balls-to-the-wall, test your capability at every twist and turn, white-knuckler.

-TJ
Its alright ide rather just go alone
 

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Good for you but I bent my rockers on the first time I went off road. Granted I had no idea what I was doing. I have also gotten too close to a tree and bent a fender. The kickout would have prevented that. So I would say it really depends on where you go and how much you are willing to push your vehicle. Also sometimes you can slip and slide into something and if not for the rock slider you could have done serious damage.

As far as bending the frame goes. I have heard that many slider brands are poorly designed and mounted and will cause frame damage. So finding a quality well designed brand is very important.
I agree ... better safe than sorry!
 

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I agree with just run what you have for a year and take notes then if you need any mods you will be better educated to do them...

I dropped $20,000 into mine and if I had it to do again there are things I would have done differently now. I certainly could have saved 5k. With my Tahoe a little lift is a good thing for clearance issues but I am glad I limited it to just 4 inches.

I just recently was at King suspension to order custom shocks for mine and in our conversation he pointed out all the off road race truck have very little lift it is more about travel and good suspension...

Ok doing a bed platform I love mine and it gives me a place to sleep without setting anything up... I don't take passengers in mine so, I removed all the back seats to give me a ton of storage space and all of it is very low to the floor. The fastest, lightest and easiest way to install a platform is by using wire frame shelving. Just pick the size that fits in your rig and cut the legs to the height you need some legs will be longer or shorter due to the floor of your vehicle no big deal just cut to fit. With planning you could complete a platform build in an hour...

If you want more details or ideas on setting up the inside for camping check out my build thread in my signature.

A 5 inch thick full size foam mattress fits over the platform and now I also have a 37 qt refrigerator under there too.

20190428_003755.jpg

It is easy to make them lift up for better access too. Mine lift up in the back and in the front only the center section remains in place.

20190511_160451.jpg
 

tjZ06

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I agree with just run what you have for a year and take notes then if you need any mods you will be better educated to do them...

I dropped $20,000 into mine and if I had it to do again there are things I would have done differently now. I certainly could have saved 5k. With my Tahoe a little lift is a good thing for clearance issues but I am glad I limited it to just 4 inches.

I just recently was at King suspension to order custom shocks for mine and in our conversation he pointed out all the off road race truck have very little lift it is more about travel and good suspension...

Ok doing a bed platform I love mine and it gives me a place to sleep without setting anything up... I don't take passengers in mine so, I removed all the back seats to give me a ton of storage space and all of it is very low to the floor. The fastest, lightest and easiest way to install a platform is by using wire frame shelving. Just pick the size that fits in your rig and cut the legs to the height you need some legs will be longer or shorter due to the floor of your vehicle no big deal just cut to fit. With planning you could complete a platform build in an hour...

If you want more details or ideas on setting up the inside for camping check out my build thread in my signature.

A 5 inch thick full size foam mattress fits over the platform and now I also have a 37 qt refrigerator under there too.

View attachment 136587

It is easy to make them lift up for better access too. Mine lift up in the back and in the front only the center section remains in place.

View attachment 136588
That's a nice, simple but usable setup. I like it. I've been thinking about sleeping platform options for my WJ, and I think I tend to over-think it a LOT and let my mind run wild with crazy setups.

-TJ
 
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