I have been searching and reading this site for hours on end and have came up with several questions. I want to go with 37" tires because they look bad a$$ on the JKU's but I don't know if that is the right choice for my situation.

I want to build a well rounded rig that is very capable off road but I can also drive coast to coast. I plan on taking my family to the rockies and Moab a few times but I have to take into account the fact that I will be driving my JK 2days to get there. I don't care to do any hard core rock crawling, I would just love to hit some rugged mountain passes in the rockies and do some easy maybe moderate trails around Arches National Park. Keep in mind I will have 2 small children with me so I won't feel comfortable going anywhere near the extreme trails I see pictures of.

I guess my 3 choices would come down to:

1) Leave tires/suspension stock. I don't think anyone here will want me to go in this direction but the JK IS already a BA off road vehicle! Is stock suitable for the types of trails I am talking about? I know this would give me the best on highway performance of the 3 options.

2) A 2.3" BB with 35" tires. This would, for me, be the middle of the road economical way to go. I am ok with going this route if it is going to show me significant gains off road. The little voice in the back of my head just keeps telling me "Go big or go home".

3) A 4.5" lift with 37" tires. I know this would be the best option for off road, but what about on road? I live in Illinois so it is extremely flat but I am going to make the trips out west as well. I also don't like all the additional costs of 37's. I was reading a thread that made me nervous about the D30 axle. I know it would be fine for my daily flat driving but I don't want to be 1,300 miles from home with my wife and 2 kids and break an axle. Would this be an issue on the light to moderate trails?

Thank you for reading and I really hope you can help me make up my mind. I am sorry if this information can be found somewhere else but I really tried to find it.

Cheers

 

If you are concerned with durability and costs then I would forget 37s on a D30. It may last for a while or it may grenade on a dirt road going over a bump. 4.5 inches of lift is going to add 1k dollars in driveshafts to your cost base as well as the rims, tires, stubby front bumper, bumpstops, trimming, sleeving, gusseting and then 1500 dollars to regear so your Jeep will actually move etc.

A BB and 35s or some flat fenders would give you a badass looking Jeep that will still perform very well and cost you almost nothing compared to the above.