Lift / Tire Opinion Wanted (1 Viewer)

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If you are going to lift, do 315s (35ish) now.

295s (34ish) and 285s (33ish) look fine with stock and 2-3" lifted rigs.
 
Any chance of a pic with 3” lift and 285’s? Thinking of doing this but don’t want to look stupid as .....

BEFORE LIFT:
Before.jpg



AFTER LIFT:
After.jpg


These are the OME 850 / 863's. (Heavies front/rear)
 
Don’t need a lift to run 315s and off-road it. No rub until full flex, kept the flares to
CBD7FDA1-CD19-4271-A35D-40D7542255F0.jpeg

01604BAF-DD38-46D9-84F1-D831931F4F5A.jpeg
 
And here’s 315s with a 3 inch lift for future reference
FBDDF79D-2028-4991-9A9D-EB64A796BC0C.jpeg
 
Got those with 315s and no swing out, how do you handle carrying a spare?

Before I had the swing out I tried two options.

First was the roof rack. That was out of desperation and a full truck. Poor choice with too many downsides to list.

Eventually I settled on keeping it in the cab for a while. I think there are a few vendors here making a interior stand that will hold a 315.

IMG_20190707_135038.jpg

MVIMG_20190707_145755.jpg

After adding the drawers I found a 315 sits nicely in front if you remove a seat. Ratcheted to the drawer and to an l bracket on the seat mounts.
 
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if you're not wheeling it and your oem springs aren't too sagged 315's would be my call..... then do a 2-2 1/2 " lift .... avoids many of the pitfalls of the larger lifts generally....but still gives enough clearance and looks great. Caution on the swingout if you've got kids or dogs and often need to get into the rear..... it does add complexity and hassle....
 
Any chance of a pic with 3” lift and 285’s? Thinking of doing this but don’t want to look stupid as .....

Not exactly 3", but really close. 285/75-16s... It looks fine.

LC_runningb.JPG
 
Got those with 315s and no swing out, how do you handle carrying a spare?
I bought a 35x10.5x16 interco and put it on a tacoma steelie. It fits in the stock spare location (with like 1mm to spare). It is a very expensive tire, but cheaper than a swing out bumper :hillbilly: But it will not work with any sort of receiver type tow hitch, even the kind that bolts to the pintle holes. Pintle may actually work, haven't tried it.

Since I need to tow, I ended up strapping it down in the back to the 3rd row seat brackets. It's snug against the side of the cargo bay and still allows me to pack up a lot of cargo.

I also carry a patch kit--would it be dumb to ditch the spare? Probably, but I'm pretty dumb.
 
this is 315's with 2 1/2"
new ARB rack # 2.jpg
OME heavies - can't say I suggest the SST's after 15k ..... they're getting really loud.
 
Got those with 315s and no swing out, how do you handle carrying a spare?

That’s what fix a flat and a compressor are for 😁 swingout hangs out a bit more than what I wanted
 
That looks great. What suspension setup is that?

Thanks! The lift is a 50 mm TJM. Before I installed my bumpers and sliders, the actual lift was 3-3.25". With everything installed, it is pretty much right at 2" (50 mm).
 
I don't understand the aversion to 35's on a daily driver. 35's fit just fine with the same setups to fit 33's. In all actuality there is very little difference in how the truck drives. I've been daily driving my 80s for the past 20 years and they've been on 35's (or larger) nearly the entire time. I bought my last 80 with 2.5" lift and 35's and it was never on anything smaller, and it was on stock gears. It was actually my wife's daily driver for more than a decade and she still says it was her favorite car to drive. My current 80 had 33's when I bought it and I drove it that way for a few weeks until I got a new set of 35's. Felt hardly any difference in driveability after putting the 35's on. Even with stock gears. But if it bothers you, either regearing the diffs or the tcase will bring back a bit of pep for road driving. I also saw almost no change in fuel economy. It's never good, I've always been in the 12-15mpg range no matter what the setup. I still get 14mpg on 37's which is as good or better than many on 33's. I honestly see no real benefit to 33's over 35's if you're going with a larger tire.

Back to the OP's original question, I think it's been answered pretty well. Spacers will work but are not an ideal long-term setup. I've had lift heights from 2.5" up to 6" (and pretty much everything in between) over the years and from all the different lift heights I've had I believe that 3" of lift is the sweet spot for 80s. Taller heights, introduce additional issues to address, like more caster needed, double cardan driveshafts are often needed, different control arms if you want the wheels centered in the wheel arches. That's not to mention the driving characteristics get worse the taller you go. 3" lifts will allow for up 37" tires with minimal effort and gets the chassis up and away from the ground to an acceptable amount. Taller lifts will keep you from dragging the undercarriage on big rocks as much but personally I prefer the better driving characteristics of the shorter lift and put up with occasionally dragging on big rocks. A good skidplate and sliders and it really isn't much of an issue. Shorter than 3" isn't bad either but with 35's and larger tires there's the potential of more tire rubbing offroad depending on wheel/tire setup. So from my experience I've had the best performance with the fewest drawbacks with a 3" lift. Lots of suspension options to get you the 3" depending on your budget and what level of performance you find acceptable.

Here's a few images for reference of my 2 80s. First one is my last 80 with 2" lift and 35's
80towing2.jpg


Current cruiser with 2.5" lift and 33's
Firstday.jpg


current truck with 6" lift and 35's
6inch35s.jpg


Then back down to 3" lift and 35's
IMG_5860.jpg


Currently 3" lift and 37's
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Keeping total height low enough to be able to get in and out of parking garages and keeping spare tire in stock location under the vehicle are also important when considering daily driving with certain lifestyles.
 
I'm going to respectably disagree with Box Rocket. I think there is a big difference between drivability of 35 inch tires and stock tires. While 35s are livable, they definitely impact acceleration and all-around driving. And it you don't go off the pavement, why would you even want them?
 
I'm going to respectably disagree with Box Rocket. I think there is a big difference between drivability of 35 inch tires and stock tires. While 35s are livable, they definitely impact acceleration and all-around driving. And it you don't go off the pavement, why would you even want them?
Because they look cool. I'll be the first to admit that. I mean come on. 🍻
 
Because they are awesome.
I'm going to respectably disagree with Box Rocket. I think there is a big difference between drivability of 35 inch tires and stock tires. While 35s are livable, they definitely impact acceleration and all-around driving. And it you don't go off the pavement, why would you even want them?


Because I am 6'8". I like things to be bigger. The world is full of crap that is too small. Heck, 35s are small. Let's do 37s. :cool:
 

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