X2 to Doc_D comment. Spot on.

In regard to Terminator's comment, yes you can live without a gear change and put your money elsewhere. I had a 1993 Cherokee XJ with 3.07 gears and 5 speed manual trans. I ran 33s and 35s on it. Did it crawl well on the trail? No, constantly revving to keep it from stalling. Did it run well in the highway? No, 5th gear was gone with 33s and 4th gear was almost gone with 35s. Did it run well in the city? No, I had to ride the clutch out of 1st and also pray I didn't have to start from a stop on any hill. Did I live it? Yes, for 7 years. Did I like it? No, not really, just learned a new shift pattern and didn't use 5th but anyone else who drove it thought there was something wrong it. Did I spend my money on other parts instead of doing a gear change? Yes, I sold the XJ and bought a 2007 JKU Rubicon! LOL!

By the way, with all the focus on 1st gear and overdrive, just wanted to point out that my auto trans Rubicon will hold 2nd gear all the way to 80mph under WOT. Most cars I have owned are into 3rd gear by then. And that is with stock tires, not even 35s.

 

I just put 285/70/17s TSRs on my 2011 6spd with 321s. Once on I jumped in expecting a loss in power, I didnt feel it, so I took it out on the highway for a 10 minute run, I didnt notice any change. With my old wranglers I rarely used 6th because it was usueless on hills and with the new tires it's pretty much the same I didnt notice any difference at all from my old tires.

 

It all depends on the driver. Sure, if you just blindly put it into "D", you'll have some hard time with all the shifts. At highway speeds mine always stays in 3rd gear, OD off. Before on stock tires with OD on, it would jump up and down on mild inclines. In city, I'm constantly in 2nd gear, no more 2-3 gear jumping (or OD). The only time I'm shifting 1-2 is when I have to make a complete stop. Otherwise, accelerating/braking, I always stay in 2nd gear. Performance wise, it's actually better than regearing. It is also more reliable, because you're not sacrificing gearing strength, or transmission life.

I agree. I never said that it doesn't. But there are other ways to achieve lower gearing to the wheels.

Only from a dead stop. After that it should be very close.

I agree.

This is subjective. Autos have less gears straight from the factory, yet, no one cries. There are tons of 5 speed manual transmission cars. Is it a problem? No. Actually, with 6 speed transmissions, it often feels like you can skip some gears, 'cause they're too close. You get annoyed by shifting so much, and you wear out the clutch more.

I have the charts. They support exactly what I'm saying. There are pros and cons to both.

 

Exactly. I only noticed a small difference after going to 35's. And the difference isn't crazy at all.

 

I run a 2010 JKU with 3.5 inches of lift, 35-12.50 -17 Goodyear MTR KEVLAR , 5:13 Yukon gears, gusseted D30 front. Auto and a Superchip Flashpac with the 93 Octane tune. And it does not hunt for gears stays in OD on inclines as I live in North Georgia. I get average 16-18 MPG. It is better now than it was stock. So my answer to your question is REGEAR you will actually like your Jeep.

 

I understand the wider gears, etc. with bigger tires and 3.73's, and my Jeep may not need 4.88's because when I went to the lift and bigger tire size I also did a Superchips, AEM intake and Magnaflow cat back - so my performance was better, but I'm sure the 35's 'robbed' me of some drivability, just not enough to worry about. And like others have said I put my money in other mod's - but if I break something, that will be the time I will go to 4.88's with a D44 up front and lockers, just don't want to reach into my pocket for $5,000 right now.

 

OK, I'm done. I feel like Christopher Columbus trying to convince the King of Spain that the world isn't flat.

P.S. There is nothing wrong with making the decision not to regear because you have other priorities. But to imply regearing would be worse than not regearing is nonsensical.

 

This going back and fourth is funny. Look man if you can afford to do it and if YOU personally feel that you would be better off regearing then do it. If not then dont. At the end of the day your the one driving it and although opinions are great, at the end of the day its your jeep and your money.

 

@Doc-d HAHAHA I know how u feel bro

 

The issue was not that someone doesn't want to regear, that's fine bc it's your jeep. But The Terminator was telling people that you do not have to regear with larger tires. Which is misleading. Like I'm gonna be able to put 37's on my jeep with 321's and have no issue. "I just need to learn how to downshift" is what I was told