Is that one the only option still available? Wouldn't mind paying the 200 bucks or so they say it costs but that shipping charge is rape. The freight on my brush guard/winch mount wasn't even close to that much. What about putting poly bushings instead?
Edit: If I try to purchase it, it says sold out anyway.
The drop down you see with the two prices isn't the shipping rate itself, it's the price plus shipping depending on if it's going to an address here in the US or outside of the country. So it's $212 out the door, shipped, total. I think they send it in a flat rate USPS box.
And yes, they are pretty much the only ones these days offering anything like it anymore. The owner, atv4speed, is a member on here and might chime in about availability, or you can message him to see when he expects to have more in. Supply chains are still screwed right now so I am not surprised he's out of stock.
As for the upper ball joints don't believe everything you hear. Yes, they don't last as long as people would like, but unless you are wheeling every weekend you're going to be fine. I've had 2 H3's over the last 7+ years and have only replaced one set with the +100K miles I have driven them. They're pretty inexpensive relatively speaking to buy new ones, and they're easy to replace.
The fuel gauge is nowhere near linear so don't go by the gauge, you either need something like an Ultragauge (highly recommend this) or a ScanGauge (much pricier and not as feature rich as the Ultragauge) that can actually track realtime fuel usage, or just use the old tried and true method of filling the tank back up again to see how many gallons you actually used. I can guarantee you probably used more than 6 gallons, +18mpg with 35's in New England (I'm a NH native btw, live in UT now) is really optimistic unless you filled up at the top of Mt. Washington and then drove down. I couldn't get that with my base 3.7L on 33" Duratrac's on the highway here in UT (where it is much flatter on the highways) unless I had a tailwind the whole way. I think the average is around 15mpg at best.
Going to 35's, with a 3.7 no less, your fuel economy is going to suck, period. Not that it was great in stock form (3.7L is rated at 14mpg city, 18mpg highway, and that was with the stock 31" SUV tires). So without changing gears in the differentials (which you can't in the 5 cylinder models, you already have the tallest gears possible that will fit in the front diff housing) you effectively decreased your gear ratio by going to the larger tires, which as you pointed out are also heavier and wider so the contact patch is greater. Combined with the tread pattern and softer compound for a much higher rolling resistance, you're not going to see the MPG you used to have. That's the trade off for making your rig more capable offroad. If you want good fuel economy in a truck you need to go buy a Ford F150 with the EcoBoost 2.7L.
And yeah, it's going to be a dog in the mountains with the 3.7L and 35" tires. Even having 33" tires my old 3.7L would struggle badly on the steeper grades. Vail pass in Colorado was the worst one I went over. I had my wife and daughters with me and luggage in the back and I struggled to keep it anywhere close to the speedlimit without the thermostat swinging wildly open and shut in the middle of winter. I would watch the temperature gauge needle swing up and down every time the thermostat would cycle, about once every 20-30 seconds. Gave up after a bit and just went 45mph up the pass. My Alpha (5.7L) on 35's on the other hand is a totally different story and will bomb up passes like they're nothing, but I am running a hotter cam and regeared the differentials to restore the stock ratios (Alpha comes with a shorter gear set than the 3.7L to help with fuel economy).
Not to say that you can't enjoy it still. Alrock has had his for years on 35's and still enjoys driving it regularly. Just know that you're going to be slower up the mountain passes than most everyone else, so instead of worrying about when you'll get there, just enjoy the beauty of the White Mountains and take your time. We don't buy these rigs to win races (well, maybe except for Chris, 06 H3, but he's an edge case!
), so just enjoy the ride in a rig that is far more comfortable to ride in than any Jeep, and just as capable depending on how much money you throw at it (again, see Chris for the edge case!). Only reasons I upgraded to an Alpha was the price was right, it gave me a bunch of other upgrades from my base model H3, and I wanted to be able to better tackle the Rockies while towing a trailer.
