How much lift should i get

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Longshot270

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Last time I was in Matagorda, I followed a trail from a set of highway terrains properly aired down and driven by someone that knew what they were doing. That beach often has deep fluffy sand that is easy to get stuck in. For that, here's my ranking:
-Pressure
-Tread will help you either get along faster or get stuck faster.
-lift will marginally reduce risks of unseen debris breaking something vital and let you dig underneath easier.

Last trip we did over 60 miles on the sand without airing down so that my wife could get practice driving in less than ideal situations...but airing down would have made things a bit more easy.

Shovel and good kinetic rope would be more important to me than a lift. The shovel will get you out eventually if you are alone, the rope if a second vehicle rolls by willing to help. Don't be stingy, they pay for themselves on the first use when you get a quote from a tow company while stuck.
 
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Boostpowered

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If you go over 3" expect to spend some coin, and expect breakage sooner than later. All ifs vehicles suffer this fate, over 3" and you will need longer front half shafts at the very least. 2-3" is what your looking for to fit the 33" tires and look right. Not sure on your specific vehicle but some front fender trimming may also be necessary to fit 33s. Lifting ifs vehicles also makes the front end skinny so unless the kit your looking at has half shafts and lengthened control arms you will likely want some wheel spacers up front to make it look right. 3" lift and 33" tires is the bare minimum recommendation to go down most named jeep trails.
 
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Andrew95

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If i ever was to get a lift it would be 2-2.5" at most. Thanks for the advice
Boostpowered said:
If you go over 3" expect to spend some coin, and expect breakage sooner than later. All ifs vehicles suffer this fate, over 3" and you will need longer front half shafts at the very least. 2-3" is what your looking for to fit the 33" tires and look right. Not sure on your specific vehicle but some front fender trimming may also be necessary to fit 33s. Lifting ifs vehicles also makes the front end skinny so unless the kit your looking at has half shafts and lengthened control arms you will likely want some wheel spacers up front to make it look right. 3" lift and 33" tires is the bare minimum recommendation to go down most named jeep trails.
Click to expand...
 
Andrew95

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Longshot270 said:
Last time I was in Matagorda, I followed a trail from a set of highway terrains properly aired down and driven by someone that knew what they were doing. That beach often has deep fluffy sand that is easy to get stuck in. For that, here's my ranking:
-Pressure
-Tread will help you either get along faster or get stuck faster.
-lift will marginally reduce risks of unseen debris breaking something vital and let you dig underneath easier.

Last trip we did over 60 miles on the sand without airing down so that my wife could get practice driving in less than ideal situations...but airing down would have made things a bit more easy.

Shovel and good kinetic rope would be more important to me than a lift. The shovel will get you out eventually if you are alone, the rope if a second vehicle rolls by willing to help. Don't be stingy, they pay for themselves on the first use when you get a quote from a tow company while stuck.
Click to expand...
I have some traction boards and a shovel. I just need a recovery rope and maybe a snatch block. Hopefully in the near future i will be fully decked out. Lol
 
Longshot270

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Andrew95 said:
I have some traction boards and a shovel. I just need a recovery rope and maybe a snatch block. Hopefully in the near future i will be fully decked out. Lol
Click to expand...
I'm not following how you'd use a block with a rope, sounds like a bad idea. I've only used my block for indirect pulling of small stuff like bogged utility trailers, logs, etc. with my 3500 pound hitch mounted utility winch.

Boards are handy. I carry a 2x12 wooden board with aluminum ramp bracket and end cut to fit in my truck bed. It's primarily used for sliding coolers and heavy boxes in an out, but it has been useful in many recoveries.
 
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Longshot270 said:
I'm not following how you'd use a block with a rope, sounds like a bad idea. I've only used my block for indirect pulling of small stuff like bogged utility trailers, logs, etc. with my 3500 pound hitch mounted utility winch.

Boards are handy. I carry a 2x12 wooden board with aluminum ramp bracket and end cut to fit in my truck bed. It's primarily used for sliding coolers and heavy boxes in an out, but it has been useful in many recoveries.
Click to expand...
Would use a snatch block on some trails not necessarily on the beach. Would like to have one. The recovery rope would be if someone was nice enough to pull me out or vise versa
 
WAYAWAY

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Of course, going out to the beach and getting stuck is great recovery practice, so go crazy man.
 
WAYAWAY

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Andrew95, what it really comes down to is (and Bama_Kiwi touched on this) do you wanna look cool (for the 'gram) or do you wanna have a reliable, functional tool for Overlanding?

A 2" lift will allow for taller tires. That will raise your sensitive bits farther away from sharp things on the road and allow you to hit rougher roads.

Any higher and you will need to make changes to the pickup to compensate for the geometry changes. I've broken all kinds of stuff because of my lift, both on the Subaru I had and on my current 4Runner.

I've done some hard thinking about what I want to do differently on my next project.
I would only lift the rig to level it out.
Better springs and shocks.
2" taller on the tires max. Maybe lighter, stronger wheels.
Ronny Dahl posted a really great video talking about steel vs. alloy wheels.
Add a winch and good recovery points.
Change the bumpers for entry and exit angle improvement (move the spare, too).

Those changes will allow me to keep the CV angle similar to OEM. The wheels and tires will be close to the OEM weight. Brake lines, steering and all other components will remain close to OEM.

As you spend more time in the wild, your needs/ wants will change. Those beach trips will still be fun, but you'll start dreaming about Alaska or some other remote destination. Reliability will be key.

 
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WAYAWAY said:
Andrew95, what it really comes down to is (and Bama_Kiwi touched on this) do you wanna look cool (for the 'gram) or do you wanna have a reliable, functional tool for Overlanding?

A 2" lift will allow for taller tires. That will raise your sensitive bits farther away from sharp things on the road and allow you to hit rougher roads.

Any higher and you will need to make changes to the pickup to compensate for the geometry changes. I've broken all kinds of stuff because of my lift, both on the Subaru I had and on my current 4Runner.

I've done some hard thinking about what I want to do differently on my next project.
I would only lift the rig to level it out.
Better springs and shocks.
2" taller on the tires max. Maybe lighter, stronger wheels.
Ronny Dahl posted a really great video talking about steel vs. alloy wheels.
Add a winch and good recovery points.
Change the bumpers for entry and exit angle improvement (move the spare, too).

Those changes will allow me to keep the CV angle similar to OEM. The wheels and tires will be close to the OEM weight. Brake lines, steering and all other components will remain close to OEM.

As you spend more time in the wild, your needs/ wants will change. Those beach trips will still be fun, but you'll start dreaming about Alaska or some other remote destination. Reliability will be key.

Click to expand...
Really great advice. I dont care so much about looking cool. I just want to trust that my rig will be there when i need it. 2" leveling kit with 32's maybe 33's if it would fit would be great for me. For now and into the near future i just want to get away on the weekends and enjoy nature, not necessarily test my limits. Im sure one day i will be looking back at these simple times and reminiscing. But for now i dont want to invest an arm and a leg just to have some fun on the beach and a few easier trails.
 
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WAYAWAY

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Andrew95 said:
Really great advice. I dont care so much about looking cool. I just want to trust that my rig will be there when i need it. 2" leveling kit with 32's maybe 33's if it would fit would be great for me. For now and into the near future i just want to get away on the weekends and enjoy nature, not necessarily test my limits. Im sure one day i will be looking back at these simple times and reminiscing. But for now i dont want to invest an arm and a leg just to have some fun on the beach and a few easier trails.
Click to expand...
Get out there and have some fun!
 
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Boostpowered

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If your just going to the beach you really wont need any modifications just air down between 15psi to whatever you run on the road depending on beach conditions and if you have 4x4 put it in 4 hi. I lived on the bolivar peninsula for a while and have seen just about every type of wheeled vehicle both do fine or get stuck at some point.
If the sand starts to get squishy stop and put it in reverse till your back on safer feeling sand the squishy stuff is basically quicksand, youll feel the shish bit think everything is fine and next thing your too the doors in wet sand. If the sand is really dry and powdery usually up near the top of the beach youll dig in till your sitting on your axles, this is easy to get out of if you have a shovel or someone to pull you out.
Stay about halfway between the water and the dunes and you should be fine on hardpack sand venture off that and you up the chance of getting stuck.
Dont end up like this.
20191130_121141.jpg
Drive in the tracks of others if you can.
20191129_145441.jpg
If the sand feels weird be safe and turn around unless you want to have fun getting unstuck.
 
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WAYAWAY

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Boostpowered said:
If your just going to the beach you really wont need any modifications just air down between 15psi to whatever you run on the road depending on beach conditions and if you have 4x4 put it in 4 hi. I lived on the bolivar peninsula for a while and have seen just about every type of wheeled vehicle both do fine or get stuck at some point.
If the sand starts to get squishy stop and put it in reverse till your back on safer feeling sand the squishy stuff is basically quicksand, youll feel the shish bit think everything is fine and next thing your too the doors in wet sand. If the sand is really dry and powdery usually up near the top of the beach youll dig in till your sitting on your axles, this is easy to get out of if you have a shovel or someone to pull you out.
Stay about halfway between the water and the dunes and you should be fine on hardpack sand venture off that and you up the chance of getting stuck.
Dont end up like this.
View attachment 136797
Drive in the tracks of others if you can.
View attachment 136798
If the sand feels weird be safe and turn around unless you want to have fun getting unstuck.
Click to expand...
#ranwhenparked
 
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Lol. That'a how I've gotton rid of my jeeps. I've never sold or scrapped a jeep ever.

Beaches are cake. Stay off the dunes. You can tell by walking it, what's hard pack and what's soft. If you struggle to walk it, so will your truck.
 
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Dave K

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A compressor, a shovel, a tire pressure gauge and the tires you have. Traction boards if you have a heavy foot. Lots of bait money left over. Enjoy.
 
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