315's vs 285's, R16

[offthebeatenpath]

Okay, aside from clearance issues and gearing (I'll address that later) what the opinion around here on tire size? I couldn't find much on 315's here, and I don't really want to ask on TTORA, because I'm anticipating carrying more stuff than most of those guys do.

My truck is an '03 DC, V6. I've had it for about 2 months now, and I'm far from thrilled with the way that my current tires are performing in the snow. I've narrowed my tire search down to Goodyear's, still wavering on the DuraTrac vs. MT/R Kevlar's, but that's not my question. I know a lot of guys on here run the DuraTrac's and love them. I would love something more like a 33 or 34 x 10 or 11, but Goodyear doesn't believe in those sizes, so I'm choosing between 285/75/16's and 315/75/16's.

My question is more towards experience with running either size, fitment issues, accelerated wear on steering and drive parts, etc. I'm willing to do the work to clear 315's if the truck will handle it. Basically, where I'm looking at it from is this: if I'm buying a new set of tires, and I'm going to have to do some work to clear either size, but it seems natural to want to clear the biggest set I can. The truck came with aftermarket rims on it, they're 8" wide, so the 315's should mount up okay, from what I've heard.

The truck is my DD, with family expo trips in the works. Currently running 265/75's, from what I can tell, there is a 2" spacer lift on the front end, and an AAL in the rear. I know it's far from ideal, and I will address that according to what I decide on tires, but Montana winter is forcing my hand to decide sooner on tires. I love the way a big pair of shoes looks on these trucks, so I'm leaning towards the 315's, but I'd love to hear some thoughts, opinions, and better yet experiences first. Thanks guys-

 

[Runt]

I believe you will require a body mount chop to run the 315’s. Another issue may be the Upper Control Arms recieving rubbage from the wider tires due to the OEM rim offset on the Tacoma's rims. The 2” budget lift might not be enough when flexing that suspension. My experince comes from a FJ which is slightly diffrent. Running gear will be fine but parts do wear out quicker for sure....extra weight harder on parts, brakes etc. I would recommend a 255/85/16 which is a ~ a 33”X 10” tire.

 

[offthebeatenpath]

I think I'd like to stick with Goodyear, but they don't produce a 255/85. I do have aftermarket rims, they are 8" wide, not the stock 7" wide, but I'm not sure what the backspacing is, so right now I don't know how well the wider 315's would play between my fenders and my upper control arms.

 

[alexrex20]

you're going to need a LOT more than a 2in lift to fit 35s (the 315/75-16) on your truck. do your research.

 

[maxama10]

http://www.ttora.com/forum/showthread.php?t=166040&highlight=35s+stock+ifs

http://ttora.com/forum/showthread.php?t=144760

 

[targa88]

IMHO not worth the extra geometry/dynamics.
Without even getting into the debate about: re-gearing, weight, etc.
315s are oversized - not required to navigate the snow.
255s/265s quite adequate. 265 being the common size.
IF you need the larger size then 285s.
Replacement cost and availability are always factors for me due to travel.

 

[redthies]

We ran 285s on my wifes 01 Doublecab with a 2" spacer lift. It was just fine and no need to re-gear. 265 are quite a bit smaller. If you are looking to do moderate off-roading expo style, I would go with 285s and be done. We took our truck a ton of places. You would be surprised how far you can go with the set-up you have. We had the TRD with locker... Makes a big difference. I would go 255 BFG KM2s if you had the stock wheels, but, you don't...

 

[austintaco]

I don't know if this would work, but it seems that the hiccup is that you want a tall skinny Good Year tire. I know that the stock Toyota 15" rims have a problem with clearing the brake calipers on the newer Tacos. If that can be solved by the proper back spaced wheel, you could go that route with a 33/10.50/15. However, I don't know if Good Year even makes that size.

 

[freeze]

With 315's on your 03 you'll need to tub your firewall in the front of your cab to get full up travel lock to lock. You can still run a 2" lift after doing the procedure.

This is one of our Member's with 315's on his Tacoma.

If you have the V6 it's not necessary (however, encouraged) to run gears, performance mainly suffers on the trail and climbing 3'+ obstacles. The V6 has enough grunt to carry you at a very good pace on the highway and still pass people at 150KM+ whilst running medium difficulty trails. You can do lower gears in your transfercase and leave your thirds stock if you wish. The weight of the tires/wheels/rotating mass power loss can't be regained fully with re-gearing your thirds. It'll put you in the proper rev range.... If it's in the budget do both... gears and transfercase. If you have an automatic... it's mandatory to re-gear.

Do you have a list of the places you'd like to go? Most trails and locations you can definitely still get around with 285's without any worries. The one nice thing with increasing the tire size is being able to clear your axle and provide better break angles.

For tire choice especially if you're hitting snow/ice, the Duratrac (which is stud-able) is a better choice and it also has pretty large voids for the trail which is nice. It's becoming a popular tire here along side the Mickey Thompson MTZ as siping is important. The new MT/R doesn't have enough siping in the outer tread blocks for compact snow/ice.

You will want to run a wheel with 4"-3.75" back spacing to ensure the tire clears your LCA's and UCA.

If you're looking to travel in remote areas with deep snow... it's better to run a larger/wider tire as creating a large footprint to float on top with adequate axle clearance is important. (This is more in the 2-4' of snow category with beadlocks)

Perhaps try running 285's... see how far they will take you. If you have desires to do more or want to go more remote, then you can always sell the 285's (or run them till they're gone) and go up a size.

It's always a really good idea to start small and get extremely proficient with it then go a little bigger later. Every change in size/component/gear carries a learning curve and provides the driver with a different experience.

There is quite a bit involved with the first gen Tacoma's to fit 315's with around 2-2.8" of lift, you'll have to commit and do it properly as it is your daily driver and it'll have to be reliable.

285's still look great and is enough tire to get you through the hardest of trails. It will also provide a better learning experience for picking lines and looking ahead.

If you'd like... this is our YouTube channel with video's of the various set ups. Majority of the driver's run 285's on their Toyota's. Very few run 315's on the newer style Toyota's unless they're on the trail more than 150 days out of the year in all conditions and varying locations.

http://www.youtube.com/user/CT4WD

 

[sasaholic]

i have 35 12.5 15 km2's on my tacoma and i love them, but most stuff i could do just fine with 33's honestly. that said i dont regret doing all the work to get them to work correctly. i have about one inch in the front and with the work i did to tub the firewall i can truely clear a 37 inch tire at full stuff and lock. i do have 5.29 gears to turn them. i trimmed 1 inch off the fenders all the way around also, so i dont come close to rubbing anywhere. heres a pic of it right when i put the tires on pre sliders, and finished front bumper(before all the trimming all the way around, just trimmed at the bottom 7 inches to clear enough to drive on the street)in the pic i had 3 inches of lift in the front and dropped that to 1 to keep all the angles a bit better as there is enough stress on them with the big tires.

heres a pic of the tubbed firewall. just to give u an idea how much u have to cut look at how far back ur body mount is in comparison to the firewall and look at mine. alignment plays a bit of a factor also depending on how far ur tires are pushed forward. i had to actually trim the body mount on the passenger side.

 

[offthebeatenpath]

alexrex20- Um, I think this is part of doing research, thanks for the input.

maxama10- Thanks, for the links, I'd read those awhile back, good refresh though.

redthies - Just what I was looking for. We have the locker as well, and I know I haven't pushed this truck to it's limits as it is, but I've only had it 2 months.

Austintaco - Exactly. A tall skinny Goodyear tire. Sort of like hunting for Yeti. Looking for something that doesn't exist....

Freeze and SASaholic - I was hoping you'd chime in, and that's exactly the kind of feedback I was looking for. This pretty much confirms what I was thinking, and that is, I don't want to do anything that's irreversible to my truck (i.e. tubbing the front fender wells). I think it's awesome to be able to fit a 35+ tire on 2" of lift in an IFS truck, if you want to do the work to get there. The low center of gravity would be incredible. That's one thing that I find a bit humorous about the whole SAS scene is the number of people that do the swap and then run a tire size they could have run without the $7k they put into the swap. Not that tire size is the only reason to SAS, but anyway....The notes on the tread siping and tire backspacing were excellent, things I know I need to keep in mind. If I was more confident in how long I'm going to keep this truck, I might consider doing more work, but I'm still adjusting to owning this so I don't want to lock myself into this truck for years. I know sixstringsteve over on TTORA had his tubbed Taco for sale for months, and I don't want to be stuck in that spot.

 

[alexrex20]

so you knew the answer before you asked the question, but asked anyway, and now got the answer you were expecting and are agreeing with it. ok.................

 

[freeze]

so you knew the answer before you asked the question, but asked anyway, and now got the answer you were expecting and are agreeing with it. ok.................

Which shouldn't be an issue.. should it?

It's better to ask questions about something that you're not 100% certain than to make a decision and state after.... Shoulda?

A Toyota 4WD with 285's is still very amazing in terms of capability and looks.

Perhaps take a look into armour before getting too deep into the going aspect.

Steel skid plates, sliders... if you have an e-locker, you'll want that protected asap as well.

 

[laxtoy]

alexrex, this isn't the nissan section, i don't see how your opinion is even pertinent this isn't ttora, which is why he came to ask this question here to begin with, so be nice. i run 285's and they do just fine, they keep the balance between offroad and streetability adequately, although at times i would prefer a 255 if it would make a difference on the street. oldsven is actually going the other direction, he had 255's and they were still too big for the street, and ruined his mileage (there may have been some other factors) to the point he decided to go down to a 265, and more than likely he'll still be able to go any of the places he wants. i felt very few limitations when i was on 31's, it just takes some common sense to know where you can't go and an eye for the line you take when you decide you can.

 

[alexrex20]

If you'd like... this is our YouTube channel with video's of the various set ups.

http://www.youtube.com/user/CT4WD

great channel! cool videos with excellent editing. :smiley_drive: