Recommend a cheap wheel + mud tire for 03' LX470

[cowfountain]

Apologies if this has been covered elsewhere, but I've read through countless threads trying to find some resolution on offset and if I need a "Tall Cap" etc etc

I'm just trying to find a cheap set of wheels and tires to put on the LX so that I can get down a fire road that has a few creek crossings with ribbons of clay to get to our cabin. I have more street oriented all terrains on the car right now which is probably fine especially with some max tracks but I hate to chance getting stuck since there's hardly anything to winch off of and no one for miles.

I was looking at getting a 16" wheel and otherwise stock height tires to keep it simple. I don't have a lift or any mods really to mention. Thanks in advance and any links to online shops would be awesome.

 

[Mike NXP]

Apologies if this has been covered elsewhere, but I've read through countless threads trying to find some resolution on offset and if I need a "Tall Cap" etc etc

I'm just trying to find a cheap set of wheels and tires to put on the LX so that I can get down a fire road that has a few creek crossings with ribbons of clay to get to our cabin. I have more street oriented all terrains on the car right now which is probably fine especially with some max tracks but I hate to chance getting stuck since there's hardly anything to winch off of and no one for miles.

I was looking at getting a 16" wheel and otherwise stock height tires to keep it simple. I don't have a lift or any mods really to mention. Thanks in advance and any links to online shops would be awesome.

I agree with keeping the 16 inch wheel. That will allow for a beefy tire sidewall that you could air down if needed and it stick with the stock tire size.


Now a days really any name brand tire will accomplish your goal. After trying out a few different brands I do prefer the BFG KO2 tires. They come in an All Terrain and Mud Terrain. Each tire has it's own pros and cons.
The AT tire will of course be good all around and it really is a solid off road tire. BUT you mentioned some clay gumbo and a mud tire would really perform well there but it would kind of suck when on paved roads. They would require more attention in regards to rotating and keeping the tred to wear evenly.


If you think your current street tires could probably handle it, and you have max trax, you'd probably be happy going with the KO2 AT. The 100 is predictable but it's also very heavy and likes to sink. It takes a few times of getting stuck to know when to stop.
>> You mentioned a winch, do you have one on your rig? Do you have a trailer hitch that could support one of those hitch-mounted winches? That paired with a land anchor might be a bit of gear you could look in to.

If you start sinking, just stop. Stop and setup max trax to reverse out and reconsider your line. Don't just spin tires you're more than likely going to sink to the frame rails and have a bad time. Of course this is all dependent on the situation / terrain

>>> My rig is stock tire size with those KO2. I've tried coopers and a few other brands but always come back to the KO2. I've been through a lot but in deep much they do cake up sometimes. Costco has the best pricing.

 

[cowfountain]

I don't have a winch on this vehicle, no.

I do love the KO2's - had them on the 4Runner which the LX470 has since replaced.

I should have said this more clearly: I'm looking at getting a second set of wheels and tires. I don't really want to drive with heavy, rough, noisy tires all the time when we only go to the cabin a few times a year. We do a lot of highway miles and I really appreciate the quiet, comfortable ride of the LX. Not that the KO2's are harsh, but I have a set of Michelin Defender LTX M/S (275 /65 R18 116T SL BSW) which I'm pretty happy with and have a ton of life left on them.

I might keep those for daily use and get something more mud oriented for occasional use when I don't mind the downsides. But maybe I'm overthinking this

 

[Mauser]

If you want some mud tires at a pretty decent price check out the Milestar Patagonia MT tires. I put a set in my wife's lifted GX470 a couple of weeks ago and am pretty impressed.

I have Nitto MTs on my LX and they are quite a bit noisier than the Milestars.

 

[cowfountain]

I really need a wheel recommendation though.

Tires I get, but I don't know what offset wheel I should get.

 

[zcostilla]

Quick question: if you’re trying to save money why replace the wheels? Think you’d be happier keeping your stock wheels and getting better tires. I just bought 275/70R18 KO2s and love them. I reached to go down to 16s, because of the bigger sidewall and the fact that 16” tires are usually cheaper, even at the same overall diameter. But the performance difference between the 16” and 18” tires is negligible. I doubt that you’d even really notice it.

 

[cowfountain]

Sorry I think I wasn't clear enough. I want to keep two totally separate sets of wheels and tires. I'm not going to get rid of my current set - just put them in the garage until I return.

I think I'm just going to buy a set of used Tundra wheels and put on the chunkiest mud tire I can find and use that for times like this when I expect there to be deep creek crossings with clay mud

 

[cowfountain]

18” Toyota Land Cruiser Stock Wheels (set of 5) - auto parts - by... - https://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/pts/d/fremont-18-toyota-land-cruiser-stock/7617488788.html here's someone selling a set of 5 for $300 but it looks like they have some damage to them. But I might just grab something like this even if it's not a 16" and just get tires to throw on them.

 

[cowfountain]

I ended up finding someone locally selling a set of OEM 16" wheels - they had KO2's on them with some lift left but I ended up getting a set of brand new KM3's 285/75R16 because we were going to need the extra meat for the mud and clay we were going to hit. Ended up raining as well so I'm really glad that we did. Even with airing those down to ~20psi there were still sections that were struggling for traction but made it without getting stuck at all.