[visitador]

First world decisions, eh? Get the skid plates and 18" wheels or the 20" without the skid plates. The difference is $178. Leaning towards the AWY package. What is the point of getting QuadraDrive II if you do not think there is a chance you'll do a Jeep Jambolee sometime, right? But then, the 20" looks nice. :lol:

 

[SnoFire]

added weight with skid plates if your never going to use them.

 

[visitador]

added weight with skid plates if your never going to use them.

I thought about that. Our WJ has the "trail rated" skid plates and it does not makes a difference with the gas mileage (as advertised by Jeep). The skid plates did save me a couple of times when I miss-judged the height of an obstacle.

I guess if not thinking about off-roading, why bother with the QuadraDrive II. QuadraTrack II is good enough for what we normally do with the car, even in snow, right?

 

[SnoFire]

I'd say so...your answering your own question.

 

[Truck11]

20's look SO much better on these Jeeps.... but if your doing off-road, then get the 18's.
I speak from experience - the 20's seem to attract curbs (wifey has introduced both right side rims to the curbs 3 times already!)

 

[f1anatic]

Well 20 inch tires are more expensive and fewer selection. The 18s provide more cushioning over bumps due to the taller "balloon" but I think the overall tire diameters are about the same.

I thought the skid plates are plastic...so there's not much weight there. Also they might protect the undercarriage against road salt etc.

 

[gwnewman1]

I'm not a fan of bigger wheels, but that's just me. I don't off road much, but I have the skid plates. They've saved me a few times when there's been debris on the road. More than once I've heard/felt that debris bang into one of the plates. Rather it hit a steel plate than something expensive!

When I bought my '14, one of the requirements was ORA-1. I wanted the plates.

 

[rovinrail]

Don't think about it, just get the ORII. The 18"s look more jeepish (IMHO) and you can't go wrong with the skid plates.

 

[Technosavant]

T'were I to do it again I'd get the off road package. I had the plates installed and put the tow hooks on myself but am still rocking the 20" rims. When I replaced the tires there was exactly one reasonably priced option... the OEM Goodyear Forteras.

I'd prefer the 18s, honestly. The 20s do handle a bit sharper but give a rougher ride (I use 18" rims with Blizzaks in the winter and there is a notable difference when I swap them over). If my WK2 was stolen tomorrow its replacement would have the off road package if at all possible. Not because I plan to offroad, but well, if you toss that capability out there then you're left with an overly heavy butch looking grocery getter.

 

[JTS97Z28]

I think the 20's look way better. So much better than when I see a new WK2 going down the road with the smaller wheels im just like ehhh, but you instantly know when one has the 20" wheels. The entire thing just looks better! Here is a plan, get it with the 20's, and if you feel that you may offroad and the 20" wheels wont cut it, get yourself an extra set of the smaller wheels and tires and throw them on sometimes. I have seen complete sets of new takeoffs for sale on ebay and craigslist for great prices. Have the best of both worlds
As for curb rash, even the 20" wheels have plenty of sidewall so I dont see curbing being an issue. If people still manage to drag their wheels along curbs with that much sidewall, then they probably are just crappy drivers all together lol.

 

[SMG1]

I'm with SnoFire on this one. Only you know whether it's really worth it or not for your purposes. But not having the barely-more-substantial-than-plastic factory skid plates isn't going to make the Jeep any less capable. We have a lot of people on this board who need nothing less than a rear locker, skid plates and air suspension to do nothing more than drive through an occasional 8" of snow.

 

[ColdCase]

What many of us eventually end up with is two sets of wheels/tires. The 20s for the street and mild off road logging trails or the beach (there are several alternative very good tires now), and 18s for more serious off road and or winter.

For 2011 it was way less expensive to purchase a WK2 that included a OEM 20 inch wheel package and then buy 18 inch wheel/tires and skid plates. If you also want front tow hooks, the difference was not as much. There may be an ELSD availability issue now, however, that forces you into an ORA package unless you are looking at the summit. V6s wouldn't have that issue as ELSD is not available even if they had enough power to spin the wheels

As far as 18s vs 20s, been lots of discussion threads. Soft/hard comparisons are BS, my 18s ride harder than my 20s, but turn in is still sloppy. I can't wait to take off the 18s and put on the 20s as the 20s feel and perform so much better on the street and make the WK2 look so much better.

If you can't afford to do both wheel sizes, pick the one optimum for your kind of use. There are many here that run 20s on and off road and are well pleased.

 

[DirtyDuc83]

I personally would have gone with the ORII if I could do it again....I did have every intention going in to it that I would be purchasing a set of SRT Reps also and use the 18s for the winter/offroading. But I have run my 20s offroad and they performed fairly well. If I hadn't been offered exactly what I wanted out of my trade and price for the JGC that day I would probably have waited for an Overland with ORII to come to the lot.

For $178 which is only $30 more more than the tow hooks by themselves...I would go for it....Or convince/negotiate them to swap for the 20s when the vehicle comes in. My dealer had 18" JK wheels/tires from a Jeep they put some aftermarket wheels and tires on. If I had seen those in the service department I probably would have negotiated those in to my purchase.

 

[visitador]

Ah! How time change things. In my WJ, the plates are all metal. So they are plastic now?

Thank you all for your opinions.

 

[TurboWarp]

Isn't there a problem changing wheel sizes? I thought that with 4 wheel drive (I have a 1997 JGC TSi V8) you had to use the same tires or have problems with the rear end and transmission.

 

[SMG1]

The 18 and 20 inch tires on the WK2s have the same outside diameter since the sidewalls are different.

Sent from my Galaxy S3 using Tapatalk 2

 

[AAAA]

Ah! How time change things. In my WJ, the plates are all metal. So they are plastic now?

Thank you all for your opinions.

No.

 

[moosehead]

+1 to ColdCase's comments. Have your cake and eat it too.

Keep the twennies for all season street style, and add skids, hooks, and 18" for OR or winter season. Many here do just this.

Booyah.

 

[visitador]

+1 to ColdCase's comments. Have your cake and eat it too.

Keep the twennies for all season street style, and add skids, hooks, and 18" for OR or winter season. Many here do just this.

Booyah.

I got the feeling that it is cheaper to have the 20" and then add the plates, rather than the other way round.