I know a million threads on gearing. But, this is right to the point and something that could apply to many. I have 33's on an '07 2-door 6-speed. I have got to go 35's, I almost never drive on interstate (have Audi turbo for that.) Now, I have heard people say its un-bearable. Also, heard people say, its not that bad the thing is slow anyway, you just lose 6th. I think that I fit into the 2nd camp. I mean I sold a supercharged '98 Cobra that ran low 12's to get this JK. To be honest with you, I have embraced driving slow around town and love it. I mean the thing is a brick on wheels in the first place. But, I have not driven a JK on 35's with a 3.21. So if you have/used to have 35's on the 3.21 gear, I want to hear from you. If not, please don't comment as I want to hear from people with experience. Is it really un-bearable???

 

3 weeks ago I went to 35's...(34.75 actual)....I was gonna regear at the same time but an unexpected emergency came up and I could only afford one or the other....I needed new tires so that's what I got.

Now, maybe I just expected it to be bad, but it is not that bad at all. I still use 6th on the highway at 70....5th and 60 I am running 2100 rpms.....Hills suck but it is pretty flat here and I can down shift if and when I need it. I have not had it offroad yet so the jury is still out on that one.

Will I regear.....you bet, but it is not near as much of an emergency that I thought it was gonna be.

 

Simple fact is that 'Nobody' can answer that for 'You'. You say you've seen 'all' the threads on this. So you know that opinions vary wildly. Get the 35's, see how 'you' like it, then regear if needed...

 

Good call. But, I still like this tread b/c while I have read a lot on it. I want to isolate the opinions of people who have 35's on 3.21's specifically. Also, another factor for me is I live in Florida so hills are 550miles away at my mom's mountain house in North Atlanta. So 99% I am on flat land. Also, I can only imagine the mileage driving to Atlanta with like 5.38s are something crazy-low like that.

 

i've done 2 1300 mile trips with this current gearing setup. You can't drive above 75mph in 6th unless the road is 100% flat or going downhill. I only drive ridiculously fast like this because i hate driving that far....so i try to get it over with asap. My jeep is a DD, and I have no problems with it in the city. For regular driving and highway driving under 75mph, it isn't that bad.

 

I ran 35's with 3.21 and 6-spd for almost a year. Getting around town is just fine. Highway driving is OK but 6th gear is useless. I was always going to drop a hemi in anyway so I never really thought much about a gear swap. With the hemi, the 3.21's are fine for everyday driving.

My view is if want to keep the V6 and can afford the gear swap, I would do it.....but recognize that it is not necessary to have a fully functional vehicle.

 

I have an unlimited wrangler 6 speed with 3.21 gears and it is driveable but I dont use 6th gear anymore and have to drop down to 4th or sometimes 3rd to climb hills and a long straight away to pass on but you can do it. I have had my jeep for about 15 months and with the factory 16" wheels it sucked then to me. But like I said it is my opinon. I want to regear to 5.13s and will eventually do it. Hope this helps.

 

https://www.jk-forum.com/forums/modified-jk-tech-2/35s-3-21-gears-69716/

Just in case you hadn't seen this thread.

I had this set up and it was bad. It is bearable at first, but really gets to be a drag after a few months. The power you get back after regearing is amazing. Go with the 35s and save up for gears next. Just my opinion.

 

ive been running that way for 2 months now!!i want to regear but its still driveable like said ya loose 6th gear but you can cruise at 75 mph in 5th gear fine

 

i have 35s with 3:21 also and i live in AL so theres a good mix of hills and flat mostly hills though, i have the auto transmission and i can tell a difference but i dont think i am gonna re gear, i just need something to give me a little better gas mileage. I am not the fastest thing on the highway but i am not doing 45 on the interstate either, plus its a jeep, if you want to go fast then you bought the wrong vehicle...