Leave the 33's or go down to 31 on tj wrangler

[Orangepeel]

I just bought a 97 TJ with a 4 inch lift it has 33x12.50R15 mud tires on it and the little 2.5 is gutless. Would it be a sizable difference to go down to a 31? The 33's are cheap crosswinds MT. Let me know what you guys think. Thanks!

 

[Rand]

probably not worth it unless you are buying new tires anyway.

 

[spasm3]

What was the stock tire size?

 

[Bighorn2500]

Throw some 4:10’s or 4:56’s in the diff’s to get back in the powerband.

 

[Orangepeel]

Throw some 4:10’s or 4:56’s in the diff’s to get back in the powerband.

It has 4:10 from the factory

 

[gfh77665]

If you keep the existing gearing, going from 33's to 31's will be a great decision. You and your Wrangler will love it.

 

[jeepman3071]

31's are the max size I'd go with a 2.5L.

 

[Chris142]

What was the stock tire size?

215/75/15

 

[Chris142]

Throw some 4:10’s or 4:56’s in the diff’s to get back in the powerband.

Ya stock is 4.10 already. It needs 5.38

 

[Chris142]

Even with 31's it's a turd. Mine was downright unsafe on the hwy as it could not keep up with traffic with 30's on it. Fine for fire roads but not for the hwy.

 

[Orangepeel]

Even with 31's it's a turd. Mine was downright unsafe on the hwy as it could not keep up with traffic with 30's on it. Fine for fire roads but not for the hwy.

Yeah I figured as much I'm just hoping it helps some........

 

[Orangepeel]

If you keep the existing gearing, going from 33's to 31's will be a great decision. You and your Wrangler will love it.

Do you think going from 33 to 31 will make a noticable difference with on road ability and pep?

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Yes, it will.

If you want to run 33s on a 2.5L, it'll have to have 4.88 gears.

 

[Rand]

Are you sure it has 4.10's now?

 

[Orangepeel]

Are you sure it has 4.10's now?

According to the build sheet it does.

 

[Rand]

According to the build sheet it does.

Might be worth doing some math to see if 4.10's are what is in it now.
Since you didnt buy it new....
If previous owner put a 4" lift and 33's on it might have regeared too...

 

[Bottom_Feeder]

LS swap I mean 4.0 swap.

 

[jeepman3071]

Even with 31's it's a turd. Mine was downright unsafe on the hwy as it could not keep up with traffic with 30's on it. Fine for fire roads but not for the hwy.

What gears does yours have?

Mine is a 4.0L/AX-15 with 3.73 gears and I can easily keep up with traffic with a 1" lift and 31x10.5's.

 

[Orangepeel]

Might be worth doing some math to see if 4.10's are what is in it now.
Since you didnt buy it new....
If previous owner put a 4" lift and 33's on it might have regeared too...

Well it was stock until the last owner he did the lift wheels and tires he didn't mention re gearing and looking at it it doesn't appear to have been apart recently so I'm assuming its likely stock.

 

[AZjeff]

And get All Terrains not Mud Terrains. You need all the help you can get. Does it have a bunch of heavy stuff on it too? If you're going to drive it on the street much you might consider narrow 30s and shorter springs. These 2.5s were pretty gutless stock, almost any mod will make it worse on the street.