Wow thanks for all the info guys. My plan is to put a mild lift on it, run 33's and maybe build a custom bumper for the front and rear.
Some guidelines for lift vs tire size on these:
- 3" lift will fit 31x10.5" tires, or with careful fender trimming and wheel spacing 33x10.5.
- 4.5" lift will fit 33x12.5, may still need some trimming depending on your wheel spacing.
3" lift and 31's is a really good combo on these if you're not going too crazy with wheeling. I noticed a significant difference in handling going from this to 4.5" and 33's; it's better offroad now of course but gave up a lot on the pavement.
When you take a XJ above 4 ", you better be prepared for some serious drive train realignment. If not engineered correctly, death wobble and alignment are the least of your worries, lol
Personally I think a 3" lift with good articulation and 31" inch tires, is the holy grail for XJs.
Has great clearance while still keeping good on road ability. Throw a couple lockers front and back and you have a fantastic 4x4 that can drive from Washington to Moab Utah, spend a week crawling Moab, then drive back home in comfort.
