Largest Functional Tire Without Mods

[Ferrugenfish]

Hello ladies,

Anyone know what the largest tire size is that can be used without rubbing, binding, and without cutting the vehicle to make it fit?

I'm also wondering if there are any options out there for upper control arm replacement to properly lift the truck say... 4 inches, while retaining correct angles. 

Lastly... I see that spare tire upgrade size will likely be limited by the left rear access door needing room to open before the right side... looks like about 2 inches further would be the max...?

 

[Paachi]

I think a 33” will fit with no mods what so ever. A 35” will fit the wheel wells easily with a 1.5-2” lift. The 35” might struggle with the rear door especially if you get the ladder. I don’t think you can go larger than that and have a same sized spare mounted

 

[Spjnr]

Im hoping to fit 285 70 17 (33) from the get go

 

[Elijah]

For what it is worth they put 35's on it with "minor trimming". 33's should fit nicely 

 

[Ferrugenfish]

Okay so it's good to know that "minor trimming" is required to fit 35's...  ground clearance is not impressive and needs a little help.  It sounds like one would need to upgrade the springs/dampers and probably control arms and give it a decent lift in order to fit 35's to fit without cutting in order to get both increased travel and ground clearance.... which is a shame.  IMO, Ineos should have expected people to want to fit 35's... but hey, 33's don't suck, and as noted above, 35's might not even fit on the rear door anyway. Looking forward to someone trying all of this and finding the best solution to maximizing ground clearance without screwing up articulation/geometry. 

 

[Spjnr]

[QUOTE username=Ferrugenfish userid=9004165 postid=1332800035]Okay so it's good to know that "minor trimming" is required to fit 35's...  ground clearance is not impressive and needs a little help.  It sounds like one would need to upgrade the springs/dampers and probably control arms and give it a decent lift in order to fit 35's to fit without cutting in order to get both increased travel and ground clearance.... which is a shame.  IMO, Ineos should have expected people to want to fit 35's... but hey, 33's don't suck, and as noted above, 35's might not even fit on the rear door anyway. Looking forward to someone trying all of this and finding the best solution to maximizing ground clearance without screwing up articulation/geometry. [/QUOTE]

In all honesty, INEOS hasn't built this as a bronco/wrangler competitor. 35s are not needed for any workplace, overland trip, or other utility usage. The only place where big tires are NEEDED, are arctic expeditions etc. I had a wrangler on 35s, it looked great, but realistically never needed anymore than 33s to go anywhere. 

35s with a small lift etc is still better than most other 4x4s. but ill be sticking with 33s on mine! 

 

[Ferrugenfish]

[QUOTE username=Spjnr userid=8443805 postid=1332804641]

In all honesty, INEOS hasn't built this as a bronco/wrangler competitor. 35s are not needed for any workplace, overland trip, or other utility usage. The only place where big tires are NEEDED, are arctic expeditions etc. I had a wrangler on 35s, it looked great, but realistically never needed anymore than 33s to go anywhere. 

35s with a small lift etc is still better than most other 4x4s. but ill be sticking with 33s on mine! [/QUOTE]

You're not lying.  I think it's just cause I think I'll only be able to afford one new car in my life lol and it's so rare I want it to have everything... rock crawling AND towing, for example.  But just like everything else... it's gotta be pros and cons, not pros and pros. BUT... I do think a vehicle that weighs as much as the Grenadier  would do well with wider 35's... it's a HEAVY GIRL.  35's are the new 33's. I'll be satisfied with 33s... but do think the ability to place 35's without cutting should be built in.

 

[RoadBuilder]

I am not a fan of wide tires on a 4x4. Sure, they may look good and can improve traction and handling on dry pavement (tarmac), but for most conditions that are encountered off road  it is my opinion that wide tires are a detriment. 

When the original tires wear out, I will probably replace them with BFG KO2 34 x 10.5 tires. These are rather expensive per tire, because of the unusual size. However, from my observation of the wheel wells at a 2B Tour event, I believe that they would fit with no modifications required. This should give  me all the ground clearance that I will ever need for my intended purpose.

 

[Ferrugenfish]

[QUOTE username=RoadBuilder userid=8631835 postid=1332806717]I am not a fan of wide tires on a 4x4. Sure, they may look good and can improve traction and handling on dry pavement (tarmac), but for most conditions that are encountered off road  it is my opinion that wide tires are a detriment. 

When the original tires wear out, I will probably replace them with BFG KO2 34 x 10.5 tires. These are rather expensive per tire, because of the unusual size. However, from my observation of the wheel wells at a 2B Tour event, I believe that they would fit with no modifications required. This should give  me all the ground clearance that I will ever need for my intended purpose.[/QUOTE]

Good point... there's usually a con to every pro. I'm just a bit concerned about the 5,875 pound curb (without driver or gear) weight when placed on mud/snow/soggy grass in terms of weight to surface area. It's a heavy rig... which can also be a pro... just something to consider. 

 

[RoadBuilder]

As long as your tires have an appropriate weight rating, pounds per square inch on the tire contact patch can be your friend in off road conditions.

 

[Paachi]

Yeah I see how the 35”s are the new 33”s. But from an availability and weight standpoint 33 is the sweet size for me. Also, maybe it’s my bad back but have you tried to heft a 33” tire on to the lug bolts on the spare tire door mount? It’s a fucking PITA. I can only imagine how hard 35” will be. Plus larger tire size and mass means lower acceleration in an already heavy vehicle. 33” is where I’ll be sticking. 
When I saw the Grenadier in person with 31.5” tires the lowest point was ~10.8” off the ground. By going up to 33” you are adding another 0.75”. So the ground clearance is 11.5”. 35s will get you to 12.5”.. but at that level of tip toeing a good line will solve 99% of the issues anyway. @Spjnr called it right that the Grenadier isn’t designed to be a rock crawler like the Jeep. It’s probably first designed with overlanding in mind (why they gave it a puny tank range still befuddles me)

 

[emax]

> why they gave it a puny tank range still befuddles me

I agree. But here in Germany also filling this puny tank costs already a fortune to fill at $9/gallon: about $177. ?

 

[Disco Dave]

I will be doing 33’s or 34’s, when my KO2’s wear out. I doubt the KO2’s will be good enough off road for me, but will give them a chance.

 

[Paachi]

[QUOTE username=emax userid=8900646 postid=1332808943]> why they gave it a puny tank range still befuddles me

I agree. But here in Germany also filling this puny tank costs already a fortune to fill at $9/gallon: about $177.

[/QUOTE]

we’ll at least here in California we are at $7 for premium 91 octane petrol. Joy :-(

 

[Disco Dave]

Grenny doesn’t run on US 91 octane, I think your equivalent is US 85, or maybe 87. Well it does run 91, if you want to pay that much.

 

[ECrider]

[QUOTE username=Spjnr userid=8443805 postid=1332797450]Im hoping to fit 285 70 17 (33) from the get go[/QUOTE]

I'm hoping to fit those in KM3 version. Will keep the standard 265/70/17's for summer and hop onto the larger KM3's for the winter.

 

[Tazzieman]

Tread patch length overrides width. Adjusting pressures is the key.

 

[NoGaBiker]

Several thoughts on some of the above comments:

1) If you want a skinny 35, to my knowledge there is one option, and I loved it on my last Jeep. Kenda Klevar RT601, in 35x10.5. Usually at least a hundred bucks a tire less than Toyos, Nitto’s, or BFGs, and an inch-and-a-half skinnier. It’s an “RT” or Rough Terrain tire, which fits into the tiny sliver of space between AT and MTs, same as the Ridge Grappler and the Cooper Discoverer Rugged Trek, which I have on my current L663 Defender (Kenda doesn’t make a RT601 in a size I can use on the Defender.) Here it is on my Jeep:

 

If you want a slightly smaller but still skinny tire, BFG makes a 34” metric equivalent, or at least did a couple years ago, in the KM3. Here is the same Jeep on 285/75-17 KM2s. Fit the Jeep with a mild (2”) lift, but benefitted from flat fenders which I installed a couple weeks after getting these tires:

 


And here’s that same 34 with stock fenders — they worked on the street for a few weeks, but I never tried them at full articulation. 

 



Finally, the question of fitting the spare without blocking the left door. On Jeeps, particularly with stock bumpers, the limiting factor is the crescent cutout in the top of the plastic bumper. Stock tires are 32s (255/75-17) and even a 34 won’t fit on the spare hanger because of that. But many aftermarket companies make a spare re-locator bracket, a simple steel bracket that attaches to the 3 factory spare studs and then angles up and out slightly, moving it’s own 3 studs to a point a couple inches higher than the factory. Like this:

 


With that I was able to fit 34, 35 and even 37s as shown:

 

These brackets are, like, $30 for Jeeps. Of course, one made for a Defender or Grenny will be 4 times the Jeep cost, but still won’t amount to much if that’s all that’s keeping you from hauling a 35” spare. An Ineos bracket would presumably lift and rotate the spare to the right.

 

[emax]

Looks great! ?

However, I want a tire which
- is noiseless
- comfortable
- robust
- good for Mud, Tarmac, Gravel and whatsoever
- has an excellent performance in summer, winter, snow, on ice and in the rain
- looks good
- is good for 70000 kms
- and doesn't cost much.

Any ideas? ?

 

[NoGaBiker]

[QUOTE username=emax userid=8900646 postid=1332812600]Looks great! ?

However, I want a tire which
- is noiseless
- comfortable
- robust
- good for Mud, Tarmac, Gravel and whatsoever
- has an excellent performance in summer, winter, snow, on ice and in the rain
- looks good
- is good for 70000 kms
- and doesn't cost much.

Any ideas? ?[/QUOTE]

I think you are one who needs a fast horse...