My 4x4 rig burned it was an 86 f150 with 8'' of skyjacker lift and 38's

I guess my mom felt sorry for me and said I could have her old 97 XJ

I don't want to compromise at all I'm looking at the 8" rusty's lift with the biggest tires I can get on there and I don't care if I have to cut the entire fender off.

I'm looking for some WILD Ideas to go with this build projects. Do any of you have pics of yours, or someone elses build that they did extensive body mods? I don't care if it looks good I want it to perform.

 

Well function depends on what you want the rig to do. IMHO 8" lift is over kill for an XJ and you lose function and gain looks. For me around 5-6" of lift with 35's will function much more then 8" and bigger tires. That's just me though. Main thing is go long arm and skids, lockers, new rear axle, SYE, and maybe even a stroker..

 

I guess I'll do a little crawling around here but I really love the mud. Unfortunately I'm stationed in the Mojave

Thats why I was thinking tall as possible with bigger tires, extremely aggressive gears to keep the tires turning......Mud drag.....

Oh and most of the gearheads I serve with have tuners....I want to be able to park on top of one and not notice....

 

if you want big lift and big tires, go 8 inch long arm, and re gear, throw some 38s on it. if your truck was that big its clear you want somethig big and something to play in the mud, if you want to go technical on trails and hit all types besides mud holes go with a 4.5 lift sye, 33s and skids, maybe regear and throw some lockers in it. xjs are a very capable rig stock so modifying them makes them just remarkable. just some suggestions,,,,by the way if you go big on tires you will need hd rear and front axles, they will hold for while but over time they will die dana 30 is good but not good for huge tires. if you have dana 35 trash it if you have a cry 8.25 it may be sufficient, if you really want a big rig and no comprimising on cog and stuff you can still function well being so tall if you have wider stance and set up properly i have sen them go big and still go far an do well. i would definately swap some dana 44s under it possibly full width, and peice your 8 inch kit together according to your needs or wants some examples of what you would need are, adj. trac bar hd steering setup, long arms 8 inch coils, full leaf packs, extended brake lines... sye, gears, ....this would be "MY" suggestion if you want to go big and not just have looks. "everyone has opinions on what works but everyone doesnt weel the same or in same conditions. also we all cant just spend this kinda money welll i cant i dont know what your budget is...good idea is to look at other peoples rigs pics, builds, and pics and videos of wheeling you can get a idea of what you see functional and go from there.

 

yeah 8" and 38's would be a great mud machine but a very bad rock crawler. The COG is to high and flipping would be a big issue. Rock crawling you need big tires and low COG. Just my opinion anyways. Also IMHO an XJ is not ideal as a mud machine that's just me though. You also have to remember you aren't on a real frame rather a unibody frame so going to big could be stressfull on unibody rails. I would definitely suggest adding frame rail stiffeners at that much lift.

 

thats the spirit!

 

i think this is a good idea over the 8 inch and 37 or 38 inch tires. it will be more stable and be a better way to go

 

x2 didnt mention that. frame strengtheners are a big plus....he is right in my opinion you want low cog and big tires(kinda hard to do when your used to the stereotype everyone thinks of bigest lift and biggest tires) but mild crawling, lots of deep mud your big lift and big tires are good but have to be very cautious on flopin it over. 4.5 lift with good bit of trimming will get you clearance on 35s ive seen 37s, that will def be better on rocks and still get you sufficient clearance oin diffs and underbody for mud. there are pics on here iin the tire/wheel/lift combo pics of 4.5 and 37s looks pretty good to me even though i like big tires with lots of clearance but the guys with these simalar set ups will tell you they actually flex and perform well with proper bumpstopping.

 

But thats what I'd expect from an OKIE!

I was born in muskogee.....

So the jeepster will make a better trail/survival vehicle...... Whats tuff without going overboard. Maybe the old ford was a good mud rig....maybe the jeep will be my SHTF truck...........this is gonna be a great project.....

so low center of gravity, big tires? you still get the axle clearance with the big tires right? what kinda kits give you that monster flex???? Can I still have HUGE TIRES?????

 

Go long arm no matter what, and I would say 4.5-6" of lift tops, 35-37" tires and you would have plenty of clearance on the axles. Truss the axles, regear, lock em, toss in a D44 or stronger rear axle, beefy diff covers, t-case skid, gas tank skid, frame stiffeners, added front steering frame area stiffeners, sliders, oil pan/engine skid, and 12" travel shocks..man the lift could go on, also extended brake lines, and so on..

 

Oh you could also extend the rear fender wells for added stuffing space and maybe even move the fuel tank up in the rear cargo area and box it in.