Soft top can wait
How things change! In a couple short weeks, I decided to mostly abandonmy old list of upcoming changes and make a complete 180 turn. I am going to hold off on getting a soft top and the security enclosure that I was going to buy for when I run with the soft top.
Tires and stuff
I was initially going to hold off changing out the tires, but I decided to make a tire change one of my first changes and that affects every other thing that I plan to do to the Jeep in the next few weeks and in the near future. The list below are the changes I have planned and the products that I will buy to support the tires.
The List (with some explanation)
The Tires
BF Goodrich LT315./70R70 KO2
These tires were on sale and they get great reviews, so I went with them over the Duratrac tires I was considering.
The Wheels
Pro Comp Series 7005 Wheels (17x8)
These are relatively inexpensive wheels. I can get 5 wheels for $600. My Jeep came with 18 inch rims, so I needed new wheels to support the change.
The Lift
1. Teraflex 2.5 Lift Kit without springs
2. Rancho RS9000XL shocks
3. Geometry correction bracket
The reason I am getting a lift is because the Jeep needs it to be able to support the 35 inch tires. The reason I picked the Teraflex and Rancho combo is that it was the most popular recommendation on the Jeep Wrangler forums. The Ranchos have a $100 rebate, so that helped with the decision to go with them rather than a cheaper option.
The Tire Handler
Smittybilt Pivot Heavy-Duty Oversize Tire Carrier
When you update the tire size, it is best to update the rear tire carrier. I could get by with a $50 option in the short run, but I would eventually need to go with something more beefy and the Smittybilt will work for my purposes.
Gear Changes
I am also going to re-gear my Jeep. I have the 3.21 gearing that is meant to run base 26 inch tires and I was planning on making a gear change regardless of what tires I was using. The chart below has the proper gears for tire size. As you can see, even with the stock 32 inch tires that came with my Jeep it was already setup to have sluggish behavior.
BF Goodrich LT315./70R70 KO2
These tires were on sale and they get great reviews, so I went with them over the Duratrac tires I was considering.
The Wheels
Pro Comp Series 7005 Wheels (17x8)
These are relatively inexpensive wheels. I can get 5 wheels for $600. My Jeep came with 18 inch rims, so I needed new wheels to support the change.
The Lift
1. Teraflex 2.5 Lift Kit without springs
2. Rancho RS9000XL shocks
3. Geometry correction bracket
The reason I am getting a lift is because the Jeep needs it to be able to support the 35 inch tires. The reason I picked the Teraflex and Rancho combo is that it was the most popular recommendation on the Jeep Wrangler forums. The Ranchos have a $100 rebate, so that helped with the decision to go with them rather than a cheaper option.
The Tire Handler
Smittybilt Pivot Heavy-Duty Oversize Tire Carrier
When you update the tire size, it is best to update the rear tire carrier. I could get by with a $50 option in the short run, but I would eventually need to go with something more beefy and the Smittybilt will work for my purposes.
Gear Changes
I am also going to re-gear my Jeep. I have the 3.21 gearing that is meant to run base 26 inch tires and I was planning on making a gear change regardless of what tires I was using. The chart below has the proper gears for tire size. As you can see, even with the stock 32 inch tires that came with my Jeep it was already setup to have sluggish behavior.
Given the chart above, I had planned on going with 4.56 gears, but I talked to 4wheelparts about the gearing and given the 35 inch tire size they recommended 4.88. Therefore, I will go 4.88 when I re-gear the Jeep.
Handheld programmer
Superchips 3571 Flashcal F5 Tuner to recalibrate my Jeep for the tires and gear change. If I don't need it after the updates, I will send it back. I see it recommended anytime someone updates their Jeep tires, so it seems like a necessity, so I went ahead and ordered it since Amazon had it on sale.
Note: I get paid commissions for purchases made through any links to Amazon products in this post.
Handheld programmer
Superchips 3571 Flashcal F5 Tuner to recalibrate my Jeep for the tires and gear change. If I don't need it after the updates, I will send it back. I see it recommended anytime someone updates their Jeep tires, so it seems like a necessity, so I went ahead and ordered it since Amazon had it on sale.
Note: I get paid commissions for purchases made through any links to Amazon products in this post.
A Couple Security Updates
While I am holding off on the Tuffy Deck Enclosure, I still want a hood lock and locking gas door. I have already ordered some seat covers, a garage door opening product that I can use my phone to open the door (this means I won't need to carry my garage door opener with me in an open Jeep), and a Harken Hoist.
I really wanted a soft top for the summer, but I will probably hold off on that until next summer. I hope to have all of these changes paid for before the end of the year, but I planned on putting the hard top on about that time, so there won't be any hurry to get the soft top at that point in the year. Once I get the Hoist installed, I can take off the top on the weekends when I am pretty sure that it is not going to rain. I don't really want to pay for a cheap Bimini top, since I won't use it when I get the soft top, so I may just have to live with the Freedom Panels during the week.
I really wanted a soft top for the summer, but I will probably hold off on that until next summer. I hope to have all of these changes paid for before the end of the year, but I planned on putting the hard top on about that time, so there won't be any hurry to get the soft top at that point in the year. Once I get the Hoist installed, I can take off the top on the weekends when I am pretty sure that it is not going to rain. I don't really want to pay for a cheap Bimini top, since I won't use it when I get the soft top, so I may just have to live with the Freedom Panels during the week.
The Wrap Up
While I don't plan to take the Jeep off road very often during the time I am paying on it, I will want it to go off road on occasion (especially when we are in the Gatlinburg area) and I want it to have better than stock capabilities. Also, I like the look of the 4 door Jeep with larger tires. I was planning on re-gearing anyway, so this just makes it more useful and pushed it up in my upgrade path from next year to this year.
Once I have most of the list done, I will post some pics and a new article about it.
Once I have most of the list done, I will post some pics and a new article about it.
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