Lifting the Jeep w/o larger tires is of little affect. The differential is still traveling at the same height. True, you will raise your frame rails some, but the pumpkins gonna get busted in any terrain where having higher frame rails are an advantage. The main reason to lift is to be able to fit larger tires and raise your diff. A good place to start might be new wheels since your lifted Jeep will most likely need either new wheels with different backspacing or wheel spacers - my vote; new wheels. New wheels will give you a different look and be an investment in where you want to go.

 

New wheels will get scratched to $hit on the trails... so IMO that'd be one of the last purchases to get if you're not against the look of the stocks.

 

Do what I did. Spend a good two to three months researching, reading reviews, talking to others, etc. I ended up going with a TF 2.5" coil and 35" Duratracs.. Not one regret!!

 

Good advice from everyone. I can say that in the short term you can do a lot of damage in the first month with $1k.

Get a winch, recovery gear, a hi lift jack and essentials like a first aid kit, portable air compressor and etc. All this can be had for under $1k.

And just like that you're offroad ready! Stock JK's are extremely capable vehicles so as long as you can unstuck yourself, you're good to go.

That will at least allow you to have some fun while you wait for the big-ticket stuff like lifts, tires, regear and etc. By then you would have been onroad and offroad enough to know exactly what you need. You can form your own opinion instead of relying solely on other's recommendations.

 

Excellent advise.

 

Thanks to everyone else for all the good advice I will definitely do some more research and try and get a better idea of what my end goal is. As to this quote I asked for advice not a lecture... If you must know none of my purchases will be on a credit card as I don't have one so if this is the smart condescending advice you have to offer I think I could do without it next time thanks. I work hard for my money and will spend it as I see fit.

 

I don't think anyone meant it as a lecture, so you shouldn't take it that way. Some of us, self included, have spent a lot of money on this Jeep or an earlier one and what you find out is that most of these parts are all related one way or another, I believe that's the comment made about doing a lot of research first. I know my first Jeep was a Sport model and about, oh say $8,000 later I ended up with a vehicle that I truly had a love/hate relationship with - so, I ended up selling it. Lots of companies sell budget kits for this or that and later we end up ditching those parts soon after we buy them because the end result isn't what we wanted. Total cost of improvements some time is actually buying a complete and more expensive package upfront because it gets you where you want to be at end of day.

So, ask for all the free advice you want on the board and take it as just that - free advice, nothing personal to it.

Enjoy your new Jeep!