Hey guys! New jeeper here and first post

I have a 2011 JK 2 door auto that I recently bought. It looks like it’s got a 3-3.5” lift on it and it’s got 35” tires. I’m not sure of the lift brand, but I know it’s got Rancho shocks on it.

it’s SUPER sluggish on the highway but overall doesn’t want to go above 60 at any given time. I can also feel every little pebble in the road. I know it’s a Jeep, but some of these bumps will make you pucker up haha. It gets roughly 12mpg, unless I put non-ethanol gas in it, which really sucks in this economy.

I ended up installing a HikeIt throttle control module, but there’s really not too much of a change in performance.

I wouldn’t consider myself a full time crawler, and it is my daily driver, but I do take it out on trails every now and then. Nothing too hardcore though.

I am debating a re gear or smaller rims/tires. Would it look silly if I downgraded to 33’s for a smoother, more powerful acceleration? Or should I just go ahead and re-gear it, because I may want the 35s later? Just looking for a ride that’s a bit smoother

 

You probably have the high gear ratio -- And with 35's, especially with an auto, it's going to be sluggish with low MPG. Hopefully the tire size was changed correctly, is the speedo correct? Lifts are often done poorly, especially when they are that much. The tire pressure may be way too high -- Try lower (say 30 psi or a bit lower) and see if the "feel every pebble" goes away. All in all, what you have are common problems. It just takes a lot more time, money, and talent to do things right.

Suggest spending some time thinking about where you want to take this Jeep, both figuratively and literally. There are a lot of options, and plenty of good opinions. Take a look at some of the write-ups and build-threads here. For example, a link to mine is below -- Maybe use the video in the first post as sort of a metric for what a 2" lift and 33's (actually slightly less) can do fairly easy, and still pull a 2000 pound camp trailer (not a pop-up) at 75 mph with the same 3.8L engine you have. On the other hand is pure looks, but most people want both.

 

+1 on Mr.T's comments.

There is no replacement for mechanical gearing, and it sounds like you are too high (as in lower numbering gear ratio, not physical height). Many previous owners threw large tires on for looks and lived with the poor performance. In regard to decreasing tire size, 33s don't look bad on a JK, but with 3.5" of lift you will have a lot of wheel well showing which may or may not look a little wonky to you.

What you might do is snap some pictures of everything from front axle, steering components, driveshafts, suspension components, and rear axle. If the jeep was lifted pretty cheaply, you really might just be better off going to 33s and reworking the suspension altogether which could leave the current gearing bearable. If the jeep has quality things on it then the better option might be to regear and stick with 35s. As Mr.T notes, most of these jeeps aren't modified very well. Regears used to run $1250-1500 in most parts of the country, but just like everything else in the last few years, those prices seem to have increased.

 

Thanks guys, I really appreciate the input. I’m really not sure what it has on it, so I think I’ll just suck it up and re-gear, maybe take it to my local Jeep shop and see what they have to say about the lift quality. Once again, thank you.

 

we can often identify a lot with a few pictures, and unlike any local shop, we are not trying to sell you anything.

I'd go so far as to suggest local shops are often the problem.....pushing product they sell rather than better things that might be on the market. That is how a lot of headaches are created, by folks walking into something like a 4WP and wanting a lift but not knowing much.

 

Yeah, you’re right. I will snap some pics when I get home tonight, I appreciate your willingness to help a noob out 🤘🏻

 

Tip: to find out what the other members are asking here get a GPS app on your cell phone then go for a steady drive at 30/40/50/60 on the GPS and note the RPM's in either D or OD and advise back.