Another tire thread? 285 vs 255 pros and cons?

[Funner]

If you want 35's you may want to consider them now. You could add coil spacers if needed and lift/re-gear later when time or funds allow. It just seems like a waste to get the tries you don't ultimately want. You said yourself that you don't drive much, so would you wait to lift/re-regear when these are worn out in 4-6 years, or would you chuck them when they were half used?

 

[tromz]

Lift re-gear later. Babys steps . Wheel stock....Wheel 33s ...wheel 33s and a 2.5 ...all while fitting in the garage. One day when there is money re gear 35s and 4in lift. Or another 80. Plus I wanna own a second cruiser in another model at some point. Im sure the disease will have me wheeling a trailer queen eventually. But the journey there is all part of the fun and learning process.

 

[Gfresh]

Hey BR13,
Yeah, that ice thing. Well, damn few and only very specialized tires work on ice anyway. Or just go for the chains, which may be a better solution for Montana. But...

On ice, the KM2s are an improvement on the old MTs. The rubber compound seems to be softer, although it's still not what I'd call grippy.

So, Greentruck, have you ever had your KM2's siped? Has anyone else? I'm just thinking/wondering if siping won't help the KM2's snow/ice performance. Maybe it comes at the expense of more chunking on the trail???

 

[greentruck]

Nope, haven't siped them. But I very well might if I lived somewhere it was more of an issue. We've had like 2" of snow all "winter" so this may get to be even less of an issue...Seriously, I have heard of people siping KM2s and having good results. But it will lend itself to chunking in the rocks, so pick your poison.

As for baby steps, I'd agree, but I'm not going anywhere. The 80 won't fit the garage here without major structural adjustments, which I have considered. But it does throw a big twist in your lift budget, if you have a similar situation...

But when we go to the big city, we still fit in just about any garage. I'm pretty sure we've got more ground clearance than any other vehicle parked in one of those places, though

 

[Black Rhino 13]

A guy here, Hawker7, had his 255/85-16's siped. Not KM2's, maybe Toyo? I forget what he said about it exactly. He has still had some traction issues on ice. Someone else I talked to said it just reduces the life of the tire without adding much value.

I think the easy answer is chains or cables or whatever is appropriate to the situation.

 

[serenity]

I don't have KM2's but i have run both 285's and currently have cooper ST in 255's.
They do get a fraction better fuel economy, they also run better on sand than my 285's did and 315's do.
The biggest drama I have had relates only to running an 8" wide rim, which left the sidewalls exposed to staking. Which is easily fixed of course by going back to a narrower rim.

 

[tromz]

Jee I scrape the tree catcher in a parking garage already and I'm stock. They dont build 'em for SUVs