Tire questions

[grabeb]

Recently bought what appears to be a stock 2001 TJ sport for our soon to be 16yr old daughter. Needless to say she loves, but i want to start researching tires as i might need to replace these before winter. We live in south central Kansas, so we get a mix of snow and ice.

The current tires on the jeep are 235/75 r15. I could've sworn that equated to 27" tall tires when i checked yesterday. Today I'm getting 28.9" tall. Not sure what's going on I'll put a tape next them later, but in any case, looking for recommendations for when i replace them.

I read that a 31x10.50 r15 is about the biggest we can safely go without lift, which is out of question until she gets more experience driving. I used to have a stock height cj5 with 33x12.50s BFG all terrainss on it and it did great with whatever i threw at it.

Will a larger tire like a 30 or 31" affect stability much on these TJs? Again shes a new driver and still trying to learn the ropes and slowing down on turns and such.

The spare is a BFG AT and 30x9.5. Like at another jeep tj with 30x10.5s on it and liked the stance. I don't want to change fender flares or anything yet, so looking for feedback, maybe pics.

Should i look at other tires or go with the BFG AT? Someone suggested toyo, don't recall tire though.

 

[Trevlaw]

For rain snow and ice, I think it's hard to beat a duratrac. I'm on my third set, got near 80k miles out of the last set

 

[grabeb]

Oh yeah, still stock rims as well. Unless of course i find some take offs from someone else. So will 10.5 width work on these rims and clear? The other jeep with that had aftermarket wheels, so no clue if offset rim was used.

 

[grabeb]

For rain snow and ice, I think it's hard to beat a duratrac. I'm on my third set, got near 80k miles out of the last set

I like that duratrac and I've also had great luck with my Goodyear tires I've used on my suburban.

 

[deadbeat son]

Recently bought what appears to be a stock 2001 TJ sport for our soon to be 16yr old daughter. Needless to say she loves, but i want to start researching tires as i might need to replace these before winter. We live in south central Kansas, so we get a mix of snow and ice.

The current tires on the jeep are 235/75 r15. I could've sworn that equated to 27" tall tires when i checked yesterday. Today I'm getting 28.9" tall. Not sure what's going on I'll put a tape next them later, but in any case, looking for recommendations for when i replace them.

I read that a 31x10.50 r15 is about the biggest we can safely go without lift, which is out of question until she gets more experience driving. I used to have a stock height cj5 with 33x12.50s BFG all terrainss on it and it did great with whatever i threw at it.

Will a larger tire like a 30 or 31" affect stability much on these TJs? Again shes a new driver and still trying to learn the ropes and slowing down on turns and such.

The spare is a BFG AT and 30x9.5. Like at another jeep tj with 30x10.5s on it and liked the stance. I don't want to change fender flares or anything yet, so looking for feedback, maybe pics.

Should i look at other tires or go with the BFG AT? Someone suggested toyo, don't recall tire though.

235/75-15 tires spec out to about 29”. However, that isn’t what they’ll measure mounted on the vehicle with its weight sitting on it. So both the 28.9“ spec and your 27” measurement are probably correct. Jeep equipped these Wranglers with 30x9.50x15 as an optional size, and either of those sizes will fit on a stock rim without issue. I’m running 31x10.50 on stock wheels with a 2.5” lift, and they replaced a set of 235/75-15 Duratracs.

 

[grabeb]

235/75-15 tires spec out to about 29”. However, that isn’t what they’ll measure mounted on the vehicle with its weight sitting on it. So both the 28.9“ spec and your 27” measurement are probably correct. Jeep equipped these Wranglers with 30x9.50x15 as an optional size, and either of those sizes will fit on a stock rim without issue. I’m running 31x10.50 on stock wheels with a 2.5” lift, and they replaced a set of 235/75-15 Duratracs.

I didn't measure them yet. I entered sizes on online calculator yesterday. Was sure that was the size i entered. No clue now.
Do the 31x10.5 require a lift or should that work without? I would think the extra width would add stability back where the added height might take it away. Maybe i look at 30x10.5. Hmmm

 

[pagrey]

I'd get the smallest size you can tolerate. The 30" tires were stock on some Jeeps and are probably great. No need to get all the way to the cutting edge when you are learning, braking and handling will be better with the smaller tires and that's a big help to an inexperienced driver. I ran the stock 30" tires on mine for years and had plenty of fun with them.

 

[grabeb]

I'd get the smallest size you can tolerate. The 30" tires were stock on some Jeeps and are probably great. No need to get all the way to the cutting edge when you are learning, braking and handling will be better with the smaller tires and that's a big help to an inexperienced driver. I ran the stock 30" tires on mine for years and had plenty of fun with them.

Then maybe I'll just look into the 30x9.50s and go from there. Something like the BFGs or the Duratrac would look great.

Thanks

 

[Fishtaco]

I asked this question a few weeks ago and if you go 10.5 the tire will rub and you have to put washers on the stops.
235/75/15 are more common a tire so cheaper.
I wanted the Duratracs but I had to order them so went with the Falken Wildpeak AT3W,s which are an excellent tire and look a bit more aggressive than what's on your daughters jeep now and ride very quiet
If she is considering a lift then she will want 31,s as soon as its lifted so it doesn't matter if you go 29,s or 30,s because they will get changed again.
Look at your sticker and it will say 215/75R/15 or 225/75R/15, I think the 30,s only came with the Sahara and Rubicon's? and the 235,s are already bigger than stock recommendation.

Do you really want to go changing things up for a New inexperienced driver? bigger and wider doesnt mean better or safer usually its the opposite.

 

[Fishtaco]

Also the 235/75R/15 or 29/9.5 (28.9x9.3) are listed as the max sizes for stock TJ,s. If you go above that size on a tire shop calculator it will often say "Does not fit this vehicle" so if having them bought and fitted at a tire shop it may affect tire warranty.

 

[grabeb]

That's all good info.

I likely won't let her lift it anytime soon and don't think it's even on her scope yet.

If the 10.5s will rub, then that's a no go. 30s seem common, which is why i thought and maybe it was the 215s that were 27" tall. When i saw that i thought ohhh geeze the 30s would be like a 3" lift, but guess really only 1-1/2" since it would be radius, not diameter.

I'll see what tire store says when i go look. I'm hoping she can get to next summer on these to gain experience. No, i don't want to throw a wrench on things and throw her off.

 

[Jerry Bransford]

Also the 235/75R/15 or 29/9.5 (28.9x9.3) are listed as the max sizes for stock TJ,s. If you go above that size on a tire shop calculator it will often say "Does not fit this vehicle" so if having them bought and fitted at a tire shop it may affect tire warranty.

I dunno who is saying a 29/9.5 is the max size but they're wrong, unless that's some sort of Australian law. The factory offers a 30x9.50 tire size as a factory option (my '97 TJ came new with that size tire) and Rubicons comes with 31" equivalent tires with the same exact suspension and height as a standard Sport TJ.

Having

I asked this question a few weeks ago and if you go 10.5 the tire will rub and you have to put washers on the stops.

Placing a washer under each of the two bolt stops for a 31x10.50 tire is a complete non-issue that takes 5 minutes total to do. It does not increase the turning radius enough to notice, it still "turns on a dime" afterward.

http://www.4x4xplor.com/steerstop.html
And @grabeb no worries about stability with minor tire size increases like we're talking about here. CJs were more sensitive to lift height and tire size due to their narrower suspension but that was fixed with the introduction of the Wrangler with its wider track width.

This shows a Jeep (built by mrblaine) I have wheeled with, it's a TJ with something like 40's on it. This photo is not angled or photoshopped, he was truly over this far without it flopping over onto its side.

 

[deadbeat son]

I didn't measure them yet. I entered sizes on online calculator yesterday. Was sure that was the size i entered. No clue now.
Do the 31x10.5 require a lift or should that work without? I would think the extra width would add stability back where the added height might take it away. Maybe i look at 30x10.5. Hmmm

I'm not familiar with a 30x10.5; as I stated previously, the 30x9.5 was an optional size from the factory. You can likely fit a 31x10.50 without a lift, many have. I like them with a little lift, it's personal preference. See below for mine.

As for @Fishtaco's comment, my tire shop's computer also showed the 31x10.50 wouldn't fit with stock wheels, but that's because their computer mistakenly shows the Wrangler comes with a 15x6 rim. Once I showed them my rims were 15x7 (stamped on the back), they were happy to install them without issue. Besides, many Wranglers came with OEM 15x8 wheels.

 

[Fishtaco]

That's all good info.

I likely won't let her lift it anytime soon and don't think it's even on her scope yet.

If the 10.5s will rub, then that's a no go. 30s seem common, which is why i thought and maybe it was the 215s that were 27" tall. When i saw that i thought ohhh geeze the 30s would be like a 3" lift, but guess really only 1-1/2" since it would be radius, not diameter.

I'll see what tire store says when i go look. I'm hoping she can get to next summer on these to gain experience. No, i don't want to throw a wrench on things and throw her off.

The 30,s will give you 1/2" lift over the 29,s The 235/75R/15,s are classed as 29,s so you will only gain 1/2 an inch so if cost is higher for the 30,s there would be no real point other than the tires looking a bit bigger but not by much,
The rubbing with a wider tire is a simple fix apparently.
I think a costly mistake is tires, too many want bigger and then bigger again as they lift, best to wait until you know what you or your daughter wants else you could be up for 3 sets of tires in a relatively short period.
Also what is your diff gearing?
Simple equation!
new tire size times by Gear ratio divided by lowest stock tire listed on door, so for my TJ
30 x 3.07 divide 27 = 3.41 or closest so my gear ratio is out on 30,s and worse on 31,s.

 

[deadbeat son]

That's all good info.

I likely won't let her lift it anytime soon and don't think it's even on her scope yet.

If the 10.5s will rub, then that's a no go. 30s seem common, which is why i thought and maybe it was the 215s that were 27" tall. When i saw that i thought ohhh geeze the 30s would be like a 3" lift, but guess really only 1-1/2" since it would be radius, not diameter.

I'll see what tire store says when i go look. I'm hoping she can get to next summer on these to gain experience. No, i don't want to throw a wrench on things and throw her off.

I saw the photo of your new Jeep in another thread. It has the optional 15x8 Canyon wheels; unless someone added those, it was likely equipped with 30x9.5-15 tires from the factory. You can check the original specs, including gearing and tire size, by pulling a build sheet by entering your VIN at https://fcacommunity.force.com/RAM/s/equipment-listing.

 

[TJRick]

I'm not familiar with a 30x10.5; as I stated previously, the 30x9.5 was an optional size from the factory. You can likely fit a 31x10.50 without a lift, many have. I like them with a little lift, it's personal preference. See below for mine.

As for @Fishtaco's comment, my tire shop's computer also showed the 31x10.50 wouldn't fit with stock wheels, but that's because their computer mistakenly shows the Wrangler comes with a 15x6 rim. Once I showed them my rims were 15x7 (stamped on the back), they were happy to install them without issue. Besides, many Wranglers came with OEM 15x8 wheels.

View attachment 263011

That is really nice looking Jeep!

The proportions look just right. I love the fact that you kept the stock steel wheels; they look very Jeep-like and suit the simplistic nature of the "X" model.

I actually made a thread about this about a year ago asking for pictures of Jeeps with the stock steel wheels with a lift:
https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/who-has-a-lift-with-stock-steel-wheels.34841/#post-574917
The only thing I would change on it if it were mine would be to use the earlier center caps:

 

[Fishtaco]

I dunno who is saying a 29/9.5 is the max size but they're wrong, unless that's some sort of Australian law. The factory offers a 30x9.50 tire size as a factory option (my '97 TJ came new with that size tire) and Rubicons comes with 31" equivalent tires with the same exact suspension and height as a standard Sport TJ.

Having

Placing a washer under each of the two bolt stops for a 31x10.50 tire is a complete non-issue that takes 5 minutes total to do. It does not increase the turning radius enough to notice, it still "turns on a dime" afterward.

http://www.4x4xplor.com/steerstop.html
And @grabeb no worries about stability with minor tire size increases like we're talking about here. CJs were more sensitive to lift height and tire size due to their narrower suspension but that was fixed with the introduction of the Wrangler with its wider track width.

This shows a Jeep (built by mrblaine) I have wheeled with, it's a TJ with something like 40's on it. This photo is not angled or photoshopped, he was truly over this far without it flopping over onto its side.

View attachment 262994

It may be rubbish but all chain tire stores in Australia have a calculator (seems US have them as well) for tire size and 235 is the biggest for a TJ and they do not recommend going over that size
Of course you can put what tires you like on but you void your warranty.
Australian laws are 2 sizes above stock max and 2" lift allowed Max the reason the 65th came out with 225/15s in Australia one size above stock 215/15, it comes down to passenger vehicle safety laws.

And I thought the Rubicon came out with 30,s on 16? There is a lot of conflicting info given the consensus is 31,s are really too big for stock suspension but that's what the Rubicon came with?

 

[Jerry Bransford]

And I thought the Rubicon came out with 30,s on 16? There is a lot of conflicting info given the consensus is 31,s are really too big for stock suspension but that's what the Rubicon came with?

Yes, the TJ Rubicon came with the metric equivalent of 31's.

 

[Fishtaco]

Yes, the TJ Rubicon came with the metric equivalent of 31's.

So I can then fit 31,s 267/75/15 to a stock height stock suspension unless the 16 wheel plays a part over the 15?

 

[CharlesHS]

IF the Jeep will be driven in a lot of SNOW and ICE during the Winter months; then ensure whatever tire you decide on has the Three Peak Mountain Snowflake symbol.

https://www.discounttire.com/learn/...VHfpWEVDU1cCj1RSOflQdJb73BUCzstxoCKvYQAvD_BwE