lasemase72

Hey all,

For the past 3 or 4 months I have been doing research to make sure I would be happy buying 35s for my more or less stock X. I have read countless threads and talked to many people but after all my research I still felt uncertain whether or not I should get 33s and play it safe or go with the 35s. So last week I got a discount tires credit card, went on their site, loaded up my shopping card with 35s, closed my eyes and clicked the place order button. Extremely happy I did!

So I decided since this site helped me out so much with the decision I would put a little report together with all of the info I was unsure about so people wrestling with the same decision might be enlightened.

Setup:
Stock X
Trimmed fenders
2" ebay wheel spacers
Stock 17" Rubi wheels
315/70R17 Kumho Road Venture MT
Hand thottle
6sp tranny
3.21 gears

Parts:
The only real mods I made to stuff these tires are were chopped fenders and spacers.

Below are pictures of the ebay 2" spacers. These were CNC'ed and great quality. Would definaly recommend to anyone. Also only about $90 for 4.


Here is a comparison of the stock tire to the Kumho.

FYI... After measuring the tires with a tape measure I found that they measure to 33.75. This was to be expected

Appearance:


What more is there to say? The 35's are a huge upgrade appearance wise. Really balances out the look of the jeep.

Suspension/tire compatibility

While I was researching the 35's I read alot about people pinching or bending over the pinch seam in the back. I absolutely did not want to do either of theses things so I could avoid rust and avoid the chance of compromising the integrity of the pinch seam welds. I found after flexing the X up to full stuff it... these tires could not have fit any more perfectly into the wheel well.


I found the there is about 1/4" tp 3/8" clearance using the eyeball ruler at the minimum. So bending or cutting the pinch seam will not be needed after all.

Performance:

This seems to come up as the biggest question among people considering bigger tires with 3.21 gears. I to was very nervous about it seeing as how I do alot of highway driving and alot of people said 35s make 6th gear useless. I paid for that 6th gear and I wanted to use it damn it!

A little about my driving conditions:

I live in worcester, ma. Those who know the area are aware that there is not much in terms of flat roads. Especially on the highways. Lots of rolling hills between my apt and work which are 27 miles apart. Also, my girlfriend lives in Groton, CT which is on the waterline about 60 miles away and 480 feet below my elevation. Obviously not a huge difference in elevation but when I am coming back from her place I am driving on a slight incline most of the way.

I use 6th gear most of the time. It is most definitely usable. The jeep is by no means a rocket but it is definitely the gear I am in most of the time. Going up steeper grades I just downshift to 5th. I used to downshift with the stock tires anyway so no biggy there. On the really steep hills I will sometimes shift to 4th but very rarely.

So has the performance has been effected? Yes. Around town it feels the same but its a little slower on the highway. Is the jeep so power deprived now that I am kicking myself for not getting 33s? Hell no!

Also, the tires have obviously effected my gas mileage. I have no recalibrate my speedo yet. Flashpaq is being ordered next week. But I took the measured height of the old and new tires and got a size ratio of 1.07 After one tank of gas and lots of highway driving for Easter weekend my MPGs were reading 14.5 I applied the ratio I found to the gas mileage and I get 15.5 MPG. By all means this is a rough estimate of what I am getting for gas mileage but it gives me a good idea of where I am at. Before I could constantly pull 19 MPG. So roughly a 3.5 mpg loss.


To sum up my purchase of 35's I would say :br ows:

I am not regretting it in the least bit and would recommend it to anyone who is considering it

Thanks again to everyone who helped with my decision.

powerlifter

wow, very comprehensive report and post.

one reason I love jk-forum... always a TON of good info for solid ppl.

cheers

Dr.McNinja

I've had the ebay spacers for more than a year now, no problems.
Great setup lase.

BiTMAP

is that the front? stuff the tire then turn it full lock either way. thats where the cutting usually comes from I believe.

lasemase72

Its the rear. I stuffed the front and didnt have any problems either

TRAUMAhead

Any side pictures? And what bumper are you running?

lasemase72

Yeah ill get some more pics. These are just some pics I randomly took the other day. The rear bumper is the Olympic 4x4 BOA and the front is just the stock steel bumper with the Olympic 4x4 stinger. Im at work right now ill get some more pics this afternoon if im back before dark.

spinlock

Just make sure you inspect the torque of the spacers and the wheels on a regular basis since the stock wheels are hub centric and those spacers are not. That is one of the advantages of the Spidertrax spacers.

lasemase72

My sister just sent my this photo but this is with the sway bar connected

codyjames

I'll keep an eye out for you. I just moved to groton!