BFG size recommendation for 08 LX?

[Dan Lee]

Hi,

I'm new to 4wd vehicles but trying to learn. Primarily will be used off pavement for things like: kayaking on rivers / lakes (soft/mud ground), beaches (soft sand), fire roads (ruts/grooves, sand/gravel, mud during rainy seasons), snow (both on pavement and off pavement). Relatively tame off pavement stuff; no intention of rock climbing and doing more advanced things that may be risky for me and/or the car.

I'm looking to get BFG K02 - they seem to be the most recommended in terms of hardiness and traction for paved and non-paved terrains (wet and dry).

But not sure what size to get. Currently have 285/50/20. I'm thinking about:
1) 285/55/20 - a little extra sidewall height to air down slightly if needed?
2) 285/50/20 - keep stock dimensions
3) 285/65/18 - maximize sidewall height without sacrificing width and/or not requiring other changes to avoid rubbing (do I need offset?). Sounds like this would fit (32.6" total diameter?)

Given "easy" to "easy-moderate" usages, what is generally indicated here?

 

[Battleship]

There's a nice spreadsheet in this thread that lets you compare a lot of sizes people have tried:
200 Series Tire and Wheel Size Database

I'm interested in a 275/70/18

 

[EverywhereBear]

I have 285/55/20 on my LX with stock rims. I do not believe KO2 are available in the stock 285/50/20 size. I am happy with them but the change from stock Michelin Latitudes to the KO2s has resulted in a small 2 km/hr impact on the speedometer and a small impact on gas consumption (0.5-1 litre/100kms)

 

[Dan Lee]

Thanks. I looked at that table. It helped to confirm that 285/65/18 would fit without modifications. But it's not clear, for my usages, whether 20" is okay or whether I should spend the money to get 18" and the additional sidewall height.

Is 4cm of additional sidewall significant for my minimalist usages? Or can I save the money by avoiding the purchase of 18" wheels, stick with 20" and just get 285/50 or 285/55 tires?

 

[Dan Lee]

I have 285/55/20 on my LX with stock rims. I do not believe KO2 are available in the stock 285/50/20 size. I am happy with them but the change from stock Michelin Latitudes to the KO2s has resulted in a small 2 km/hr impact on the speedometer and a small impact on gas consumption (0.5-1 litre/100kms)

You're right. 285/55/20 would be the 20" choice. I'm not too concerned about the speedometer delta or mileage. For me, safety is priority. I think those incremental differences would influence decisions between two equally safe tire choices as tie breakers, not necessarily first order influences.

Good to hear that your happy with the choice. Leaning that direction.

 

[TeCKis300]

The 285/55/20 would be the best choice in my mind. A 285/65/18 would be arguably better at best, cost a lot more (requiring a set of wheels), and certainly trade off some on-road handling behavior. There's likely nothing you can't do with a 285/55/20, that a 285/65/18 would open up.

 

[SWUtah]

You can go 275/60/20 BFG/At KO2's with stock wheels and they are close to $100 per tire cheaper per tire then the 285/55/20's. You also get more side wall. Other members are using this size with no rubbing and no mod's on stock rims

 

[Dan Lee]

Thanks guys. So, sounds like I can stick with the 20" and be okay for my intended usages. 285/55 or 275/60 are good options depending on how much sidewall I want/need. Not sure how I'll decide -- I'll make a run time decision at time of purchase maybe.

 

[SWUtah]

The 275/60/20 is a 33" tire

 

[richxd87]

fyi, 275/65/20 BFG ko2s will rub on upper control arm at full lock without a small spacer, so I think you're right on with the 285/55 or 275/60

 

[SWUtah]

Another member is running the 275 6020 BFG a TKO's for about 6000 miles now takes them off road and says no rubbing no issues standard Lexus wheel. He just came back from a trip to the Colorado mountains Offroad rocky trails and then drove back to Houston said no problem

 

[SWUtah]

At this point I think when I switch I'm gonna go to 275 5520 because my off-road Ing would be a dirt road and I want more for the durability and look so I don't want 33 inch I'm thinking more of a 32 inch. Plus 275 5520 is a recommended alternate size by Lexus for our LX 570 all three of the sizes that we talked about on here are D rated light truck tires and all weigh between 54 and 57 pounds

 

[Ali FJ80]

have had the 275/60/20 falken at3w on the wife LX for a while now and there is zero rubbing since its a bit narrower. The extra sidewall fills out the wheel well nicely and gave the truck a little lift compared to the stock 285/50/20

 

[Dan Lee]

So 285/55/20 is the way to go for 20"? 275/65/20 is not advocated - rubbing? The factory recommended sizes are: 1) 285/50/20 or 275/55/20?

Dumb questions:
1) what is the factory spec max diameter (for a given width? Assume 285?) to avoid rubbing / mods?
2) does the diameter include the tread or just to the top of the tire base (ie - slick)? I assume that varied tread depth is factored into the total diameter but not sure (never really mattered to me before).

 

[Dan Lee]

Hi guys, sorry to raise this again. I'm about to pull the trigger on the K02s (replacing the HT Plus 285/50/20). Based on above, I'll stick with 20" but I'm still a little undecided on width / profile. Sounds like the common choices are (no mod / no rubbing):

1) 285/55/20
2) 275/60/20
3) 275/55/20 (durability?)

I'd lean toward #1 for on pavement. And sounds like it'd be okay for my intended off pavement usages.

I understand conceptually that 275/60 would enable more room to air down as well as a longer tire patch when aired down. That would be beneficial for certain situations at the expense of a wider patch for on-road. The benefits may be geared to more challenging situations than I'd anticipate doing. If so, perhaps #1 is still the better choice for me. Is there something else I need to consider if I'm sticking to the Jeep 1-2, maybe 3-4 rated trails that would push me to this size?

For the 275/55, there was a comment about durability? Is this a comment about durability vs the 275/60 when aired down to avoid the tire coming off the rim? Or something else? If something along these lines, is this appreciably different from 285/55? Or why 275/55 vs 285/55?

These tires are really expensive so hoping to just do this once. Any info you can provide along the lines of function (don't care about cosmetics much) between these sizes that I should consider for my purchase is appreciated.

 

[SWUtah]

I’m going with 275 5520 there’s no difference and durability I guess if your rock crawling and want to air down i’m going with 275 5520 there’s no difference and durability I guess if you’re rock crawling And air down there could be some difference but don’t sound like that your situation 285 5520 cost over $100 more per tire in their D rated just like the 275 5520 I don’t see an advantage there

 

[Dan Lee]

If I'm understanding correctly, barring rock climbing, you're saying that there is no off pavement functional / durability difference between 275/55 and 285/55 but the former realizes some cost savings ($100/tire). So just go with the cheaper option.

 

[SWUtah]

275/55/20

 

[SWUtah]

275/55/20. Looks balanced

 

[TeCKis300]

Based on your comments, for your purposes, there are no functional differences to any of these choices in terms of capability. Jeep 1-2, and 3-4 trails can be done with with stock tires and config. It's more about personal preference at this point.

If we're talking about "upgrades", in my mind, I want the upgrade to be a win/win. Going down to a 275 (from 285 stock) is not that in my mind, doubly compromising on-road handling/traction, with a smaller contact patch and AT oriented tire/tread.