got bit by the AEV bug! ha ha!

[kojackJKU]

Well, after figureing out I want a little more suspension under my JKU plus some new armor, I have settled on the 2.5xt kit, with front and rear bumpers, argent pintlers, 35" bfgs, roof rack and a few other odds and ends. their products just finish the jeep off so good!

Off comes the teraflex leveling kit, monroe shocks (which work awesome for 33's) and MBRP front end.!

 

[toddz69]

Smart move in my opinion!

Todd Z.

 

[Vince1]

You sure 2.5 is enough for 35s?

 

[Dan Grec]

You sure 2.5 is enough for 35s?

The AEV 2.5 was designed with 35s in mind. It's perfect.

-Dan

 

[Vince1]

Well, I had a 2.5" lift ripped out and replaced with the AEV 3.5" when I went to 35's. I found I needed the extra lift after all the heavy accessories (bumpers, winch,rack, and sometimes my trailer) were added. My tires are true 35s though and I found I could get them to rub on extreme trails when loaded. Since the OP was adding similar accessories, I thought I'd bring it up.

 

[dstock]

Well, I had a 2.5" lift ripped out and replaced with the AEV 3.5" when I went to 35's. I found I needed the extra lift after all the heavy accessories (bumpers, winch,rack, and sometimes my trailer) were added. My tires are true 35s though and I found I could get them to rub on extreme trails when loaded. Since the OP was adding similar accessories, I thought I'd bring it up.

The AEV 2.5" is designed for the added weight of heavy bumpers and a winch and and to run with 35s.

 

[Vince1]

The AEV 2.5" is designed for the added weight of heavy bumpers and a winch and and to run with 35s.

Yes I know what they say. I'm just saying I went that way and it didn't work, same set up with Pintlers and 35's. It cost me another $2k to swap it out. Your 285's are not 35" (not even true 33's, but close enough) so when you try it you will see. The 2.5 is perfect for 33's. You WILL get rubbing with true 35's on full flex under load. If it's just a mall crawler, then no worries. If you are using it on a long off road trip, rubbing will eventually lead to failure. You may find a skinny tire and backset wheel combo that will work after you trim you pinch seams, cut back your rails, and do a few other mods, but it is not optimal for rough terrain.

 

[kojackJKU]

I have been talking to a rep at AEV, using the products I want to use, I will have no rubbing, trimming etc. will work great. they have a group rigs with this setup and its great.

 

[Vince1]

Great, I suggest you get it in writing. I like AEV products because of their innovation. However, their implementation is not always great. I've spent many thousands on their products and have them on both of my JKs so I think I speak with some experience. As you have the bug to use a lot of their stuff, I'll give you some first hand experience:

1. Their Hemi kit I installed has gone through 3 leaky radiators. They said this never happened on any of their rigs, yet I've come across many with this issue. The supplied cat converters with this kit also went bad after 10K miles. Others have had the same problem yet Dave at AEV claims it doesn't happen and doesn't warranty them despite the EPA rule that says that even aftermarket vendors must warranty for minimum 50K miles.
2. Their Tire carrier I had installed rattles. I've had 2 different AEV installers look at it and have played with it myself. The other one I have works fine. Many have experienced this problem yet AEV claims their carrier is rattle free. The upper locking bolt strips real easily too. Happened on both of mine.
3. Their Pintler wheels crack easily. There is a whole thread on this on the AEV forum. I have purchased 12 of these wheels (5 on my main rig plus matching 2 on my trailer and 5 on my other rig). and have had 2 fail on minor trails. AEV denies this is a problem, but does warranty them.
4. The AEV fuel caddy is a pain. If anyone wants it, I have one used only twice that I will sell for half price.
5. The AEV hood is great, but really doesn't do much to reduce heat. Looks good though.
6. The Bilstein 5100s provided with their 3.5" lifts are terrible...get the remote reservoirs instead. I replaced mine with adjustable Kings and you should feel the difference...night and day. Same can be said with the Bilstein steering stabilizer; replaced mine with Fox. On the other hand, the progressive springs provided with their kits are great, I've had no issues with them. I also like the fact that I was able to order Dynatrac axles with their bracketry attached as the have great relationships with other suppliers.
7. Their CHMSL has been trouble free, I like the fact that the attachment bolt spacing is the same as most aftermarket rear view cameras so you can stack it with them.
8. Does anyone really use the water container in their rear bumper? I can't imagine. Rear bumper originally didn't work with Gobi rack, but Gobi fixed this with a bracket so no longer an issue.
9. One of the two Procals I received went bad. Crippled the vehicle until a replacement was obtained. I hear this is rare.

I encourage others to speak with good AEV install shops that have a lot of experience before purchasing a lift. Mine has done hundreds of builds. They recommended the 2.5" lift for 33s, the 3.5" for 35's, and the 4.5" for 37"s. My experience confirms this. The OP seems to have made up his mind, and that is fine. I only mention here for others who are debating which lift to go with.

 

[kojackJKU]

I will check into it vince. for sure. one of the main reasons im going this route is because of ride quality and to fit 35s. I have a teraflex leveling kit with 33's now and love the ride, but with the stock springs, when I put heavy bumpers on im going to sag alot. so I was looking at their lift etc as it should be top quality. I thought the wheel issue is fixed...how old are yours?

 

[dstock]

I will check into it vince. for sure. one of the main reasons im going this route is because of ride quality and to fit 35s. I have a teraflex leveling kit with 33's now and love the ride, but with the stock springs, when I put heavy bumpers on im going to sag alot. so I was looking at their lift etc as it should be top quality. I thought the wheel issue is fixed...how old are yours?

I had the same setup with the TF leveling kit. You are correct the stock springs are terrible. I found the ride quality and handling of the AEV 2.5 w/ the geometry brackets to be amazing, far superior to the stock suspension even with a winch and heavy bumpers, and a Gobi rack. Despite AEV claiming the lift was designed for 35's, Vince1 has experience with 35"s rubbing so I can't comment there as I have only run 33's.
The question is really what do you plan to do with your rig? I am not into major rock crawling, but I do like to hit the trails, camp, etc. My JK is also my daily driver and I have to park in a garage at work with 7 ft clearance. With 33's, AEV 2.5 lift and a Gobi rack, I can still fit (granted only a couple inches to spare). I live in Los Angeles and highway speeds are frequently 70+ so handling was important to me as well.
I've been on so many trails with 31s on an older Cherokee, the 33's have more clearance and have suited my needs fine so far.

The wheel issue has been batted around in thread Vince1 is referring to on the AEV forum, and there doesn't seem to be a clear resolution there, nor clear information about what actually happened to cause the wheel to crack. I imagine as with anything, there are going to be some defective ones, Vince1 apparently had some issues and it appears AEV will warranty them.

So the question becomes do you really need 35's, how often do you wheel, how hard do you wheel, what's your budget, etc. You will get lots of opinions from lots of forums, certain ones will push in certain directions but ultimately you will need to figure what works best for you. Good luck, no matter what you decide it's fun figuring it out and building it!

 

[kojackJKU]

budget is what I want to spend, no real set limit, I wheel a fair amount but no rock crawling. I am on 33's now, and never hit anything. So maybe 33's are fine, i dont want to loose height with the big bumpers, rack and winch....so I can probably get the 2.5" aev, and go from there, the 33's are great....I just like the 35's but im into regearing etc. now, i dont mind that either that means i can swap in true tracs too...

 

[Dozilla]

I have the 2013 JK Sport 4dr. 3.73 automatic ,Pintlers, 35" Nitto Trail Grapplers, 3.5" SC, Poison Spyder front and rear bumpers, Warn 12.0 endurance winch, Teraflex HD tire carrier and exhaust spacers....and a few other items.

I do think my 35's would have worked with the 2.5" lift at a full stuff.

Had I to do it over I would have got the 2.5 and ran 33's. Got a Gobi rack and.....(current setup with a Gobi rack will not fit in my garage)

MPG is 15.9 avg.

Going to have to RE-GEAR to 4.56 and will put a rear locker in at the same time. I do admit this is a aggressssssive Overlanding rig BUT I do live in AZ and do come across rock issues here that I do not have to worry about. I do stay off of the ROCK CRAWLER trails that say "body damage probable" they can keep those trails.

I installed all my items on my rig myself. Some were harder than others but if I break something on the trail I feel like I have a fighting chance to fix it.

Donny

 

[redthies]

Kojack, you could always run a 285/75-17. It is like a 34x11.50 tire. I run them on my JKUR with 2.5" Old Man Emu. I have flexed it out a fair bit with moderate load, and no rub.

 

[Idahoan]

I have AEV 2.5", AEV wheels, and 285/75... No problems. I like the narrower tire too.