Tire sIze

[GORM]

I've read quite a number of posts and sites; a bit dizzying for the neophyte. I have 2008 LR3 HSE w/ 19"'s tires that need replacement. I've already picked up and installed a set of Johnson Rods and it was a quick and easy install; might have been less than 15 minutes. I will be buying refurb 18" wheels and looking for someone who thinks 19"s are a cool upgrade. This is all in prep for taking Mortimer off roading in the northeast. Nothing crazy but would like base option that gives me comfort and confidence to take him off-road with good overall performance. This rover is my daily driver and he'll get an alignment as new tires are replaced because of the rods.

Size: I'm thinking 265-65-18. This seems the biggest question. Sure I may be able to fit larger ones, especially with the lift but I am reading that with a bigger tire, I cannot fit the full spare underneath the truck without airing them down(deal killer). Rear tire carrier is a nice future upgrade if the truck gets dirty often but will not be the first upgrade. I figure 265-65's are going to get me up another 3/4" from my stock tires so in all I'm getting over 3" of lift, good sidewall protection and new tires after finishing the winter with a few mm left. This size gets me most of the pluses and few minuses.

Tire Brand leaning towards: BFG ATs - no idea of the difference between the KO and KO2 (Rationale: lots of reading seems it is between bfg, Cooper Z and nitto grapplers. I cannot imagine that my usage will mater which of those 3 I select.

I'm assuming I do not need to relocate wheel sensors at this tire size.

Would appreciate any comments on tire size or other items above. I'm hoping I've been researching all the right items on this "most important" upgrade before going off road. After this new lights, just kidding.

Thanks
Kent

 

[Derel1cte]

265-65-18s shouldn't give you any problems. It should fit in the stock spare location without issue and you will not need to move the sensor wire.

I run 285-65-18 and can still fit in the spare location (mind you it is fully aired down and needs a lot of dish soap to slide up in there). I also had to move the left front sensor wire to the top of the frame rail. I do not have rear A/C, but I think I would have run into issues in the left rear if I did.

 

[tarditi]

If you have the space and don't need the money, keep the 19s with a set of road tires for regular DD duty.

A smaller diam spare isn't the end of the world, but it can play with wheelspin sensors on some vehicles - at worst, it can get you out of a predicament, but many swear that 1 spare is a bare minimum anyway.

Aside from the dizzying debate about tire tread and size, sidewall thickness also comes to play - some insist on nothing less than load range "E," others insist that E won't deflect enough when airing down, so opt for a thinner sidewall design which is cheaper and less mass (unsprung weight) for a given size/model.
I've had BFG ATs and BFG MTs - both are great, but I think the road noise from the ATs are more than the MT tread FWIW. I've heard some great things about duratracs, too - may want to consider them.

I drive my rig every day, so I want a tire that is great at a lot of things, not just mud or rock crawling... most rigs here are not hauled to a recreation trailhead on a trailer (many are dragging a trailer themselves) and need a tire that is durable, reliable, and tractable on a multitude of surfaces and weather conditions.

 

[srschick]

most of the main brands\tires will work fine: BFG KO2, GY Duratrac, Nitto Terra Grappler G2, Toyo Open Country, Cooper Zeon, etc.
265/65-18 and 285/60-18 seem to be the more popular sizes, if you want to be safe if there's issues.
A little larger if you have done mods to mitigate those issues.
Agree on the LT spec, you can't go wrong with a sturdier tire (well, except for the weight penalty you take with mileage)

I went with the Nitto TerraGrappler G2 in 285/60-18 and couldn't be happier.

 

[Mx468]

Hankooks 265/65/18

I have hankooks 265/60/18 and they ride/look and handle awesome. IMO.

 

[Colin Hughes]

Currently I have these wheels and tires listed locally on Kijiji. http://www.kijiji.ca/v-view-details.html?adId=1073740502 Prices are in Canadian dollars so a good savings for you US guys as we're at about a 25% disadvantage right now with the exchange rate. Not sure what shipping would be but I'm in Toronto, Canada. Because I do so much highway driving and nothing really nasty offroad, I'm going to just get a set of 19" mild AT tires for my stock rims. If they don't sell shortly, I'll be putting them back on for the summer as it's about time for the winters to come off.

 

[zelatore]

Currently I have these wheels and tires listed locally on Kijiji. http://www.kijiji.ca/v-view-details.html?adId=1073740502 Prices are in Canadian dollars so a good savings for you US guys as we're at about a 25% disadvantage right now with the exchange rate. Not sure what shipping would be but I'm in Toronto, Canada. Because I do so much highway driving and nothing really nasty offroad, I'm going to just get a set of 19" mild AT tires for my stock rims. If they don't sell shortly, I'll be putting them back on for the summer as it's about time for the winters to come off.

Wow, for a moment there I thought you had the wheels AND tires for $800....now even with shipping that would have been a deal!

I'll agree with everybody above. 265/65-18 is a good safe size that generally requires no mods. I run 275/65-18 (GY Duratrac) and I've had to do some mods, particuarly around the small protruding frame horns at the back of the front wheel wells and the fwd part of the inner fender liners at the rear wheel wells as well as the passenger side AC lines. Of course I also moved the sensor wires on the front, but that hardly counts as a mod...just undoing a clip and ziptieing the wire to the tip of the frame instead of the outside of it.

I would also agree that most of the AT tires in this size would be fine. I'm not really a huge fan of the old BFG AT as it wasn't great in the snow from what I've seen, but the new KO2 version is supposed to be excellent in the white stuff. I do favor an E rated tire as my truck weighs in over well over 7K lbs and I use it fairly hard, but this will limit your tire selections and of course the added weight will cost you mpg.