I would go 17x9 as well. a 12.50 wide tire works well with 8 1/2" to 9".

The 18's you talked about will cost you more for tires. 18's look good IMHO. price out the 35" tires in both 17" and 18""/ quite a diference. Depends how much you plan to spend and the look you want for your rig.

If it were mine, I would not do a 8" wide wheel with the plan to do 35 12.50 down the road.

 

NICE rig for sure!

 

Can anyone confirm that 17x9 on a 2 door will rub on the LCA,frame and sway bar with 35x12.50s & 2.5 lift?
(4.75 BS)

 

This would depend on the wheel backspacing as well.

 

Sorry wasn't quick enough to edit, 4.75BS

 

Having spent quite a bit of time looking at tire prices lately I'd be (and will be) going for a 15" or 16" wheel when it comes time to ditch the stockers. The prices of a metric 33" on an 18" wheel are ridiculous compared to a good old 33x12.5R15.

 

I went through this and decided on the 8" rims. I believe it give you the best flexibility with regards to tire size. I landed the set of 255/75R17 Rubi takeoffs in my sig for $50, and they fit perfect on an 8" rim. I will be moving to 33's or 35's once I wear them out, so I researched potential replacements and found that just about anything I would choose tire wise will easily fit on either an 8" or 9" rim. The problem was that I really didn't want to put those 255's on a 9" rim. They would have been OK on the street, but I know I would have bead issues once I was aired down. As was mentioned earlier, the 8" rims also keep more of the tire away from suspension parts and more of the tire under the stock fender (a requirement for my state inspection).

Getting 9" rims would have given me issue with the tires I already had, potentially rubbed suspension parts once I replaced the tires, and would have caused me to spend more money on aftermarket fenders.

Getting the 8" rims removed all of those issues and will still safely allow me to pick the tire of my choosing in the future. Plus they were cheaper to buy in the first place. Your situation might be different, but it was a win win for me.

 

If you weren't airing down would you put the stock 10" tires on 9" wheels?

 

Me personally, I still don't think I would. A wide tire on a skinny rim is one thing. That can be addressed somewhat by lowering your tire pressure to get a flat contact patch. Putting a skinny tire on a fat rim is a different animal. A 9" rim is wider than BFG specs out as the widest rim recommended for their 225/75R17 KM's......which is what I'm running presently. Other makes, models, and sizes might be different, but that was my situation and the decision I came to. I know some guys have run them on 9" wheels and say they are fine. I have personally seen stock Rubi tires on a 9" rim lose their bead 3 times. Twice the bead rolled off the rim. The third time, the wheel spun while the tire stuck. All three were a royal PITA to fix on the trail. Yes, they were all aired down......probably too much. I have not heard or have seen any street issues from someone doing it. I would think you would really want to keep an eye on your air pressures and contact patches to make sure you are getting good wear and not overheating the edges of the tires, but have no hard data to back that up.

Not trying to sound like I'm on a soapbox, its just a personal decision. I'm sure someone else will chime in and say they have been doing it for X number of miles and all is well. I just wouldn't do it on my Jeep.