[Wickyup2]

What size tire can you run after a economical Day star lift is installed? I think the 225-65R17 is the limit anyhow and that is what your running now, so why bother with the lift if you have to lower your exhaust and lose any height gain and lose any gain on your departure angle?So it wouldn't change your trail rating at all. For looks it's just fine ,that's ok,if that's is what you want, but that is about all that a lift will do for this Renegade

 

[ibeb]

What size tire can you run after a economical Day star lift is installed? I think the 225-65R17 is the limit anyhow and that is what your running now, so why bother with the lift if you have to lower your exhaust and lose any height gain and lose any gain on your departure angle?So it wouldn't change your trail rating at all. For looks it's just fine ,that's ok,if that's is what you want, but that is about all that a lift will do for this Renegade

Daystar says that you could run a 235-65R17 - with a spacer or different rims. In my case, it would give me a whopping 0.25" of extra lift. That is the same that I got from switching out the stock tires, so it would be 0.5" total from the OEM tires. Only problem is that they do not make the BFG in that size, yet, and I personally prefer the BFG over Yokohoma. For me, on this particular vehicle, the lift would be primarily for looks only. There is not anywhere near me that I could go and really play that I would need more than what I already have.

Erik

 

[YellowRenegadeATX]

So here's the lift kit with 225/70/16 BF Goodrich KOs on a Sport. Next investment is a roof rack with a cargo basket.

 

[LittleRedJeep]

So here's the lift kit with 225/70/16 BF Goodrich KOs on a Sport. Next investment is a roof rack with a cargo basket.

Looks good... I'm looking forward to this upgrade this spring, but am also curious to see what other lift options will be available by then,

 

[Wickyup2]

What does the factory use to give the Trailhawk its extra .3" lift on the body?
If you you install a 1.5" daystar lift on a TH do you end up with a total of a 1.8" lift?

 

[czacha]

Are you sure it's body or perhaps just larger tires?

 

[Wickyup2]

the Trailhawk suspension is .3" higher but since it is running larger tires it gains another .5" which totals .8" over the other models.

 

[White_THawk]

*** UPDATE ***


So I've been driving around for a bit and finally got it out to the trails. It's been driving great so far. The suspension likes to creak at slow speeds, when stopping, and taking off. The spacers are stretching the suspension out more than they normally do, which is causing the creaking noise. It's not as bothersome as the mud tires though.

The Kenda are definitely louder than the BFG. From a scale to 1-10, where ever the BFG lands, I would say the Kendas are 1.5-2 notches louder.

I got the Renegade out to a new trail with a pretty challenging climb. It was a long continuous climb and mostly rocks. The lift kit, mud tires, and skid plates helped out a lot. Without the lift I think I would've had a harder time and definitely would've did more damage to the underside. But after crawling up this rocky slope and driving through a rocky stream bed, the extra clearance was welcomed. The Renegade still drove straight and true. Even at speeds through slaloms of the soft sandy trail. The steering response was just as good as the stock feel.

The wider stance with the 1" spacers and larger mud tires feels better than the stock wheels with no spacers. But the traction of the mud tires on pavement doesn't feel as good as the stock height and stock tires. That's not to say the lift kit with any combination of wheels/tires make it dangerous. It's that I can feel the limits approaching sooner than a completely stock Renegade. I'm use to low cars that stick to the surface of the road and not high cars with body roll. So my driving style for the Renegade is different. I take it steady on the mountain road and pullover to let cars by when I can. That's not to say I drive slow, just slower than I would in my other cars. I still drive fast enough to eventually get stuck behind a lot of drivers. It's only the speeders that catch up to me.

 

[Kalbo]

Before and after lift

 

[czacha]

*** UPDATE ***

The wider stance with the 1" spacers and larger mud tires feels better than the stock wheels with no spacers. But the traction of the mud tires on pavement doesn't feel as good as the stock height and stock tires. That's not to say the lift kit with any combination of wheels/tires make it dangerous. It's that I can feel the limits approaching sooner than a completely stock Renegade. I'm use to low cars that stick to the surface of the road and not high cars with body roll. So my driving style for the Renegade is different. I take it steady on the mountain road and pullover to let cars by when I can. That's not to say I drive slow, just slower than I would in my other cars. I still drive fast enough to eventually get stuck behind a lot of drivers. It's only the speeders that catch up to me.

And that's the reason why I won't put lift or KO2 tires on my Renegade.. Safety and handling on the road is most important to me. Whish there was some magic lift and magic tires that are great off road and on road

 

[txjeeper35]

And that's the reason why I won't put lift or KO2 tires on my Renegade.. Safety and handling on the road is most important to me. Whish there was some magic lift and magic tires that are great off road and on road

This is why the lift isn't anything crazy, less than 2". The companies have to do their side of making sure the vehicle handles to almost factory specifications. If you've ever driven a Jeep, or truck for that matter, it is not a car, be it a sports car or a touring car. You wouldn't take the rene through a uturn going 45mph (unless youre me) so why go any faster or be more reckless with a bigger tire/lift?? The limit will more than likely be torque delivered to the tires at off camber angles, which will only get you so far, and at that point, why not just get a Wrangler? A grippier tire will give you loads more traction than the stock wrangler sras

 

[White_THawk]

And that's the reason why I won't put lift or KO2 tires on my Renegade.. Safety and handling on the road is most important to me. Whish there was some magic lift and magic tires that are great off road and on road

You gotta find the fine line for yourself. Everybody leans one way or the other. Street vs Dirt.

If your not willing to sacrifice Street too much, stick with the Trailhawk's stock lift and use slightly more aggressive All Terrain tires.

The Trailhawk's stock height has been pretty adequate for the trails I've done. You just got to pick the better lines when going through obstacles. I tend to chose the bad lines to play in and found the height clearance and tires to be a limitation. Every time I find myself stuck and the tires having trouble finding grip, I just back up and chose another line. With the lift kit and tires, I have more lines to chose from.

The Renegade is used for getting to work and does a 45 minute round trip through a winding canyon 5 days a week. At commuter speeds it drives just fine. It's when you push it, you find the limits. Comparing the stock Trailhawk to the lift kit plus mud tires, is like comparing the stock Trailhawk to a regular sedan. The limitations in speed, g-force, etc are different in both. So when you get behind the wheel of either car, your driving style should adapt to what you are driving.

The Renegade is now our main go to car for outdoor adventures and we equipped it with the tools we think will benefit us the most. We turned to the Renegade because it was a entry vehicle to offroading. We needed something that can commute to work with decent MPG and still be capable offroad when we needed it. We considered a Wrangler for years, but never pulled the trigger because we didn't want to do payments on a weekend warrior. The Renegade Trailhawk was the only car that fit that perfect little niche that we were looking for.

 

[ms_paint]

Regarding your BFG KOs: did you notice a drop in mpg with them?

thank you!

 

[ms_paint]

sorry meant to ask regarding Erik's BFG 225/70/r17s

 

[ibeb]

sorry meant to ask regarding Erik's BFG 225/70/r17s

I don't know if it is a true drop in mpg's, or just more accurate. I was getting between 26 to 27.5 with the oem tires, but the speedometer also ran fast according to the gps (like most cars do). Now that I have swapped out the tires my speedometer is dead on with my gps speed. I am getting about 24.8 mpg with the new tires. This is a mix of having the 4-wheel lock on and off. This tank of gas I have not needed the 4-wheel drive and it has risen up some. So, it did drop, but without having a way to calibrate the ECM for the tire diameter change, there is no easy way to tell the exact difference.

Hope this makes sense.

Erik

 

[ms_paint]

It does, thanks! Sounds like an incremental rather than dramatic dip in MPG

 

[Mojave]

So I got my Sport lifted today. Came out great. Had to move muffler though so there was a little more work than anticipated. I was worried because I didn't have spacers but I didn't need them. I fit a 225/70/16 BF Goodrich KO tire. Pics to follow! Anyone know where to get some more awesome parts for the Renegades?

Why did you have to move your muffler?

 

[Wickyup2]

So I got my Sport lifted today. Came out great. Had to move muffler though so there was a little more work than anticipated. I was worried because I didn't have spacers but I didn't need them. I fit a 225/70/16 BF Goodrich KO tire. Pics to follow! Anyone know where to get some more awesome parts for the Renegades?

Why did you have to move your muffler?

This pic shows you why

 

[ms_paint]

So here's the lift kit with 225/70/16 BF Goodrich KOs on a Sport. Next investment is a roof rack with a cargo basket.

Was this 4wd or FWD? Trying to get more information about satisfaction/usefulness of lifting a 2wd Renegade.

 

[sportsjunky2]

I like the lift kit but it just isn't enough for me. Any word on a Daystar or other company lift kit that will add more "lift"?