My buddy has a YJ and wants to upgrade his tires. his rim is a 15x8 and he wants 33" tires. The tire shop is telling him that he has to run a 33x10.50 (hard tire to find). They say a 33x12.50 is too wide for the rim, but I see a lot of people on the forum running that combo. Has anyone had an trouble with 12.50 tire on a 15x8 wheel?

 

That tire will fit the rim. Lots of folks with 12.50's on 8" wide rims. (The mfg's specs may list a wider rim width range, so the shop may decline to mount them. Just find a different shop)

But - While that tire may not be too wide for the rim, it could very well be too wide to run without rubbing. You'll see below that even on a JK, you need to adjust the backspace (push the wheel/tire further out) to fit a 12.50

Here is a link to the JK tire & wheel FAQ for some added info:

https://www.jk-forum.com/forums/show...74&postcount=3

Q: What is the biggest size tire I can fit on my stock Jeep JK Wrangler?
A: The largest tire size that the factory recommends is a 255/75R17 (which comes standard on Rubicon models) or a 32x10.50. However, there are many Jeep JK Wrangler owners who are currently running as big as 285/70R17 or 33x10.50's with little to no rubbing issues.

Q: What back spacing will I need on my wheels in order to clear 12.50 wide tires?
A: I would recommend that you do not exceed 4.75" of back spacing and even at that, you may still have some minor rubbing up front at a full turn. Also, I would recommend that you do not go any less than 3.75" as anything less would cause your tires to stick out very far past the fender flares. Any back spacing within this range should work out great.

So, it could be that the backspace on your buddies rims are not sufficient to run a 12.50...

 

The tire is probably not too wide for the rim, the shop probably just doesn't want to do it. I had 33x12.50's on my 15x8's on my truck. It was great. The thinner wheel made the side of the tire bulge out to protect the wheel more. Better to scrub a tire through the mud and against the rocks than to scratch/bend/break a wheel.

It will work, though.

 

thanks for the input guys. i'm gonna tell him to go ahead and roll with the 12.50's.

 

Ya, tell him to go for it. 12.5s look way better. I am running 315mm (12.4") tires on my 7.5" rims. Have been for ~30k miles and no problems except for they are hard for the shop to balance. Don't know why, that is just what they all keep telling me. I think they are full of it. I'm getting some 17X9 inch rims soon though. Just cause I want new rims, not cause I'm having any problems with the 7.5s.