I have a 2012 sport with 17 inch rims on it. Thinking about going to a 16 inch rim when I put 33s on it. The cost is so much different when buying new rims. And also for the tires. Has anyone else done this? Would it look like too much rubber?

 

Well, I've gone from the Sahara 18s down to 17s for cheaper tires. Then from those 17s to 15s for even cheaper tires.

 

You didn't have any problems with the rums hitting the brake caliber?

 

I've had 15" rims on mine for 4 years. No problems

 

There are plenty of threads to read through on this. 15's can have clearance issues with the brakes. Both 15's and 16's can have clearance issues with aftermarket brake upgrade kits and with aftermarket steering components. Tire selection is decent with 33's and 35's, but if you think that 37's are a possibility, the selection is minimal.
For 15's, alloy seems to be a safer bet than steel due to the machining process, and you want a maximum of a 4" backspace. 3.75" would be better. But, it depends on the specific rims and your specific brake calipers.

Here is one of the longer threads on 15" wheels.

https://www.jk-forum.com/forums/spon...wheels-120933/

 

if you plan on wheeling in rocks, having more rubber on the sides will help protect your wheel from getting bent and/or cracked. The sidewalls on most aftermarket tires that you would use for wheeling are much stronger and can take the abuse.

I've run 16" wheels for 5 years on 35's. It looks great, I had tons of tire options and saved a lot of money compared to tire cost for 17" wheels. However, like nthinuf said, if you go bigger, you really need to run a 17" wheel if you want a good amount of tire options. Not many brands make 37's or larger in a 16" or 15" wheel.

15's MAY have rubbing. 16's won't unless you upgrade to a big brake setup. So the safer bet is 16's in my opinion due to that plus getting access to heavier load range tires....however, a 35" tire looks mean as hell on a 15" wheel due to how much sidewall you get.

 

I love my 16 inch rims. No rubbing issues, more sidewall, less money. There are not a lot of options larger than 35 inch tires but there are enough if you choose to go larger.



An older picture, I now I have flat flares.

 

I looked at 15s and 16s the problem I found was the lack of tires made for 16s. Ever shop I went to said 35 12.50 16 were almost impossible to get and you pretty much had to get whatever they could find. They said that 17 18 20 and 22s were easy to get because that what comes on every new full sized truck which is who buys the majority of tires.