Jeep xj tire backspacing

[hankimus]

Hey guys, im plannin a lift for my xj, want to stay in the 3-4 inch range with 31s, what backspacing do you suggest for a 15 inch rim? Also, im torn between the RE lift, and the Rustys lift. Id like to stay away from doing a SYE kit for now...any ideas

 

[Steve F]

What width tyre/rim are you looking at. 31x10.5 will work on stock wheels but will rub on stock control arms. Aftermarket tubular arms give a bit more room and may not rub at all. If you're going an 8" rim a 4.75" backspacing should keep a 31X10.5 under the guards and not rub at all, but a 7" rim is a better bet with 10.5" tyres.

Oh, and I've kept the Australian/British spelling of tyre, I cant bring myself to write tire even though the spellchecker keeps telling me to

Cheers
Steve

 

[Hill Bill E.]

I agree with the 3.75 to 4" BS.

I have the RE springs front and rear, w/IROR long arms, and love it. Nice ride and great flex.

 

[Xjaddiction]

Higher lift means less back spacing. You would be surprised how much better a lifted vehilce handles with a wider rim, wider stance, and tire. I've been lifting XJ's for about 15 years. I've tried just about every lift and tire size (not the megas, but up to a 38"er). The main thing about the XJ is you can't be afraid to do a little trimming. With a 31x10.50 tire, and a 15x8 with 3.75" bs, you'll most likely not rub. XJ fenders will handle a max 31" tire without trimming and near stock BS. Trimming will be the front fenders, and be limitted to the front of the fender, and the pinch seam. Rear should be fine. Really depends on how soft the suspension system is, and how much compression you get. At most, very minor trimming.
You can run a 4.75" rim, But, you will loose some stability, which on a Jeep that hits the streets is unsafe IMOP. You will also hit the CA's with the tire at full turn. I've run a 4.5" RE/Tereflex lift with 32x11.50's, and a 15x10" rim with 3.5"es of BS. That was a perfect set-up Nothing major. Stock gear was fine with that. My final set-up with 35's and RE DB's was fantastic on the road with same rims.

All matter of opinion, and definitely how your suspension is set-up. I would go wider stance.

 

[JCMatthews]

I owned an offroaded an XJ for 13 years. I put on AR 767s with 3.5" of backspacing. They worked wonderfully. First I ran them shod in 31x10.5 and then when it got taller I shod them with 33x10.5s. They worked wonderfully. They kept my tires off of the control arms, but did not stick out too far.

Also I would also not recomend Rusty's. I purchases their 4.5 inch lift. Later added the adjustable upper and lower control arms, because I spaced it to about 5 1/4 inches. The problem I had with the lift was quality and comstomer service. The lift worked well, and I had amazing flex. However, when one of my rear springs, with very few miles (only a few thousand) and only a couple Moab trips, failed and started to sag I contacted Rusty's and was told that I would have to remove the spring ship it across the country so that they could inspect it and decide what they were willing to do for me. I realized very quickly what a limited warranty meant. It meant that I was screwed. I purchased an aal and had to rebuild my own spring.

 

[cshontz]

This is personal preference, and everyone's points are valid, but if it was me, I wouldn't bother with aftermarket wheels at all at that height and tire size. That's money that would be better spent on something like driveline modifications, if they weren't already performed.

I used to run 32x11.50 on factory 15x7s to no discernible disadvantage - not that I was fond of such a wide tire.

 

[Stumpalump]

higher lift means less back spacing. You would be surprised how much better a lifted vehilce handles with a wider rim, wider stance, and tire. I've been lifting xj's for about 15 years. I've tried just about every lift and tire size (not the megas, but up to a 38"er). The main thing about the xj is you can't be afraid to do a little trimming. With a 31x10.50 tire, and a 15x8 with 3.75" bs, you'll most likely not rub. Xj fenders will handle a max 31" tire without trimming and near stock bs. Trimming will be the front fenders, and be limitted to the front of the fender, and the pinch seam. Rear should be fine. Really depends on how soft the suspension system is, and how much compression you get. At most, very minor trimming.
You can run a 4.75" rim, but, you will loose some stability, which on a jeep that hits the streets is unsafe imop. You will also hit the ca's with the tire at full turn. I've run a 4.5" re/tereflex lift with 32x11.50's, and a 15x10" rim with 3.5"es of bs. That was a perfect set-up nothing major. Stock gear was fine with that. My final set-up with 35's and re db's was fantastic on the road with same rims.

All matter of opinion, and definitely how your suspension is set-up. I would go wider stance.

x2