Okay guys, I was wondering how much of a difference the width of a tire makes when the size is kept consistent??? I am running an LT295/70/17 Toyo M/T right now and was wondering if a wider tire would look better and if so, what tire is the best for daily driving and weekend runs??? Thanks ahead of time for the help!

 

Your tires are equivalent to a 33x11.5x17. A lot of tires are offered in 33x12.5x17 for example.

IMO that aspect ratio (width/height) is almost ideal from an appearance perspective. However, even an inch more of width may cause interference particularly because you are running 9" wide wheels.

It depends on your wheel backspacing. What backspacing do your Pro Comps have?

 

i personally think wider always looks better but it depends on what you are going to use it for. sometimes if your tire is to wide i would think you could have rubbing issues depending on size lift. Something to consider mainly when you have a bigger tire it works awesome in sand for example. but if your running a skinner tire it would be better in snow. There are different variances. what do you use your jeep for? daily driver? offroad a lot? wider tires i think would work better offroad to have that sidewall grab on to everything but like i said it depends. On my JK im running 35x12.50 inch wide which i think its perfect considering its my daily driver. i dunno though im new to all of this ha! i figured id be ur first reply

 

I wanna say that my rims have about 4 inches of backspacing but I don't know for sure. The Jeep is a daily driver and a weekend warrior. I live in Texas so don't see much snow haha and I really wanna throw on 35s but I am afraid that if I do I won't be able to disconnect the swaybar offroad.. I have a 2 inch leveling BB on top of springs from a 4 door Rubi but I don't know if that is sufficient for 35s and disconnecting

 

I think wider looks better for tires...but be sure of your laws in regards to how much rubber is allowed outside your fender flares.

Look at upgrading to a HD coil springs and add LT shocks to fit 35's to avoid rubbing at full flex disco'ed. go with a 2.5" coil spring lift and you can keep your bump stops from your 2" BB. Other components you would need would be longer rear swaybar links, rear track bar bracket, adj. front track bar, and if the ride is not great you may want to look at control arms.

 

That's the main issue though haha none of that will be happening, I'm stuck with what I've got for a looong time so just trying to make the best out of my situation!

 

If you are running identical tires, say a Toyo MT 35x9 R17 compared to the 35x12.5 R17 The contact surface area of the 12.5" tire will be greater, also assuming you are running them at equivalent psi to their respective volumes. This will give you marginally greater traction depending on the type of surface you are on. It can also put more strain on your axles because of the added width, there is also added weight to consider. I'm not sure on the exact weight figures between 12.5" tires and (x) width tires, but the added contact surface area will add more strain.

The other piece to consider is that larger tires vary greatly between brands and types. MT's will generally run the full size stated while AT's may be a bit smaller, and all of this depends on what psi they are running at.

If you have a reputable tire store in your area they will let you pop on/off sets of tires. If you're serious about throwing down the usual amount of cash for a set of oversized tires (~$600-$1000+) the store damn well better let you run them around the parking lot to see if you like them.

 

Well my LT295/70/17s are supposed to be '33' but really measure 33.5. And the 35x12.5x17s are really 34.8... So the queston is would a difference in 1.3 inches really be that big of a deal? After all that is only .65 inches on top and bottom and like a half inch on the sidewalls. I love my Toyos and if I could bump up to the 35 that would be awesome

 

I would find a place to flex its out and then look at what you got. After I put 35s on I found a nice ditch by my house where you can easily but the jeep on two wheels tettering back and forth. Its the best way to know if your actually going to be able to fit the larger tire. I used this method to figure out how much bumper to hack off.

 

If finding an area like that is difficult a floor jack on a level surface (put your e-brake on) might get you to full flex, or at least a flex to show where/when you would grind.