My Situation:

I have a 2014 JKU Rubicon. I recently put 295/17/17 Duratrac tires on it (stock wheels with 1.5" spacers) along with a mid width JCR bumper and warn Zeon winch.

I knew that adding the bigger tires would cause fender rub during articulation, and I experienced it just a couple times going over big Michigan potholes. Although I liked the look of a 3" lift on my last JK, I'm really appreciating the day to day utility of the stock height and the lower center of gravity. Furthermore, there aren't many hard core trails in my area so a 2.5" lift wouldn't really add any utility. The only thing close are the silver lake dunes. So to accommodate the tires I was planning on a 1.5" leveling spacer kit and then trimming and/or new fenders if I needed any further clearance for articulation.

However, after adding the bumper and winch the front is definitely sagging a bit, but what's more alarming is that I'm bottoming out far more frequently. The stock Rubicon springs are compressing a lot more on bumps with the added weight. Right now the front sits about 1.75" lower than the rear at standstill on level ground (measurements for comparison were taken from center of axle to bottom of stock fender. 19.75" front, 21.5" rear)

An addition factor that may play into my performance is that I am at 70k miles with the original Rubicon shocks. They may be on their last legs. I've noticed that the back end seems a little "hoppy" when going over things like railroad tracks. Though I'm making this comparison to the feeling of the AEV 2.5" dualsport lift that I had on my old JK.

What I'm considering:

I'm thinking that to counteract the heavy bumper and winch, I will need a front spring upgrade instead of just a spacer lift. I don't plan to add anything heavy to the rear so I think a spacer with the existing Rubicon spring will be just fine in back. Additionally, I'm trying to keep costs down, and only upgrade what is needed. I've focused on Teraflex parts for now because I'm confident of their quality.

I'm thinking that the following might be what I want, but I'd like a second opinion before pulling the trigger.What I'm unsure about is how much height the Teraflex 1.5" front springs will get me, considering I'm already slightly lifted with the Rubicon springs. On paper this looks about right. I figure worst case scenario, if the 1.5" coils give more lift than expected than I can just not install the extra 1/2" spacer.

Questions:

Do you think this will achieve the leveled height and spring performance upgrade that I am looking for/needing to compensate for my upsized tires and added front weight? Is there a different setup that anyone might suggest instead?

If I go this route, how likely is it that I will still need to trim fenders and/or buy flat fenders to avoid rubbing while articulating disconnected? Does it make more sense to just skip this nonsense and go with a 2.5"lift like this popular setup from Wrangler Forum?

Open to all thoughts, opinions, and suggestions.

 

You may want to think about adjustable Lower control arms on the front to adjust caster and what about a new track bar to re0center the front diff after the lift.

 

The Rock Krawler lift that I will get has adjustable arms all around. Regardless I’m getting a new front end which will have more caster already built in.

 

I did think about the control arms for caster. I’m not sure if I’d go that route or drop brackets. Either way, I figured I’d start with the springs and spacers and then see if that was really necessary.

Do you think the front track bar is needed? My understanding is that it wouldn’t shift that far for a lift of 2” or lower.

 

Also:

Should I get longer shocks for just the front? Or is mixing shock types unadvisable?