Only thing I can say is with age comes wisdom. I've owned a number of modified 4x4 vehicles and found one universal truth, the more I spend on modifications, the more I either spend, or want to spend. I say this because the more I add to the vehicle the more I push it. This then leads to one of the following two things:

- Breakage (from pushing the vehicle to far)
- More modifications (to allow for pushing the vehicle harder)

When I bought my current JKU I made a decision to keep it very simple. The plan was to use the vehicle to its potential in stock form, and then modify as needed. With that said, I stuck to the following guidelines:

- keep the handling as close to stock, or better, as possible
- keep the center of gravity low as possible
- get only what I need, and not what I want
- keep warranty issues to a minimum
- not have to re-gear
- keep MPG impact to a minimum

With all that said, I wheeled my stock vehicle for a while, with my buddies all on 35" tires. I ultimately realized I needed to step it up to a bit, after using the winch numerous times. I ended up going with a 3" lift (inexpensive, but functional) and 33" tires. I now wheel with them and have no problems. I do admit to wanting 35" tires, but, per the above, I really don't need them. Bottom line, these vehicles are amazing and most of us don't even drive them to their stock potential!

 

As a stock 08 JKU this thread made me feel better that my Jeep is that simple clean ride. It's my DD, and I drive 120KM round trip 5 days a week, so MPG is important to me, and the $$$ for mods is hard for me right now.

At the end of the day a stock JKU is WAAAAYYY bettr then driving any SUV or mini-van on the road....I'm feeling darn lucky (and proud) of what I have.

I'll be modest on the upgrades, new Duratracs, rock rails, and I have the Mopar Auto trans cooler kit to install.

Thanks for the thread!

 

So here's the final outcome...



I went with the TF 2.5 coil, 17" dc's and 305/70r17 Bighorn's. From here on out it will be minor add on's.