For those that have personally owned or drive comparably equipped 6sp JK and JKU ---

I had a 07 JKU Sahara 6sp 4.10 stock gears and 33s - 6th was mostly unusable on road in the hills of VT.
Now have a 09 JK X 6sp with 3.21 and D30 front and will be adding larger wheels and a regear.
Question - how much does the vehile weight factor in to the driving expereince? Gut says got for 4.56 on my current JK X build, but soooo much cheaper to buy Rubicon crate axle with 4.10...
Looking for first hand experiences...

 

I can't help with direct experience on the weight difference, but how can it be cheaper to buy a crated rubi axle vs. regearing. Regearing is usually $1500+/- in most parts of the country, course adding lockers would increase the cost. Crated front Rubi axles these days are what...$2200+? And then you still have to deal with the rear end? Even then, I'd submit you're stuck with the rubi e-locker which is less than ideal. I'd stick with the regear idea if I were you. That is coming from someone that swapped to rubi axles few years back.

 

what size tires are you going to with? that will determine gearing. for me personally, i don't believe in touching the D30 at all. grab some rubicon takeoffs or better yet save up for a Prorock 44, UD44, Rockjock, etc.

 

tire size 33 or 35
PR44 out, too $$$$$
UD44 a less than desirable option at $3500ish

 

You're mainly wanting gearing for on-road manners and you're not wheelin hard? I don't think there's anything wrong with regearing a D30 if you're mainly on-road and/or running light trails. If you're out playing in boulders and such.....then I'd side more with the "don't put money in to a D30" argument.

 

I put 4.56 in my D30 with 35's and have wheeled it hard, on rocks, a few times a year since 2012. I know the common knowledge about D30, but it also depends on your wheeling style (do you drive or bounce it up obstacles?). If I ran larger than 35's, or did more aggressive driving, I might get a new axle. But I got my money's worth so far.