Exactly what I came to comment lol
Save the 1,400 from the set of wheels and get something else
Build The adventures of Otis the '76 FJ40
- Thread starter drooartz
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Exactly what I came to comment lol
Save the 1,400 from the set of wheels and get something else
- Thread starter
- #42
7-8 years is generally my limit on tires. While these don’t look that bad, I don’t trust them. I’d rather spend the money and be confident than risk a freeway blowout. I factored in the cost of new tires in when I bought the 40, the research process has just sent me down the many forked trail of suspension/wheel/tire options. If I’m going to spend, I’d rather put it all towards the final goal if I can.
I do wish the tires were a little newer so I could do just that, but you get what you get. I am going to try and make the Cruisers and Coffee as well as some of the Wasatch Cruiser events. Looking forward to meeting some local cruiser folks.
- Thread starter
- #43
Definitely considering this as an option. Particularly with shipping and possible tariff costs (I believe the wheels ship direct from Japan) those wheels are much closer to $2k. I’m also still considering just getting a new set of 30x9.5 KO2’s and some take-off 3.70s and calling it a day. It’s a long winter here in the UT mountains, so plenty of time to ponder the plan and save lots of pennies. Talking through the options is free, actually doing it is what gets expensive.
I consider all these things as investments in my future use, so I’m not against saving up and spending the big dollars up front if it’s the right move. I don’t have the budget to just send Otis off to @wngrog to do all the work (I know what quality work costs), luckily I have good shop space, a lift, and the ability to learn.
Your RPM's will basically be identical with 30" tire and 3.70's or 33" tire and 4.11. I kind of understand if you don't want 33's and a lift because not everyone wants larger tires, but I think they just set the proportions of a 40 series perfectly. A mild lift could be had with some extended shackles to make the 33's work without a whole new suspension kit.
29" actual tire diameter w/ 3.7 diff gears:
| Road speed at given RPM in miles per hour | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gear | 2000 RPM | 2500 RPM | 3000 RPM |
| 1 | 13 | 16 | 20 |
| 2 | 20 | 25 | 31 |
| 3 | 33 | 41 | 50 |
| 4 | 47 | 58 | 70 |
| Road RPMs at given speed in miles per hour | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gear | 10 MPH | 35 MPH | 65 MPH |
| 1 | 1526 | ||
| 2 | 982 | 3436 | |
| 3 | 604 | 2116 | 3929 |
| 4 | 429 | 1500 | 2786 |
32" actual tire diameter w/ 4.1 diff gears:
| Road speed at given RPM in miles per hour | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gear | 2000 RPM | 2500 RPM | 3000 RPM |
| 1 | 13 | 16 | 20 |
| 2 | 20 | 25 | 30 |
| 3 | 33 | 41 | 49 |
| 4 | 46 | 58 | 70 |
| Road RPMs at given speed in miles per hour | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gear | 10 MPH | 35 MPH | 65 MPH |
| 1 | 1533 | ||
| 2 | 986 | 3450 | |
| 3 | 607 | 2125 | 3946 |
| 4 | 431 | 1507 | 2798 |
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Don't do 30s. Run 33s. Lift or no lift. Best money spent. 33x9.50-15 Kendas.Definitely considering this as an option. Particularly with shipping and possible tariff costs (I believe the wheels ship direct from Japan) those wheels are much closer to $2k. I’m also still considering just getting a new set of 30x9.5 KO2’s and some take-off 3.70s and calling it a day. It’s a long winter here in the UT mountains, so plenty of time to ponder the plan and save lots of pennies. Talking through the options is free, actually doing it is what gets expensive.
I consider all these things as investments in my future use, so I’m not against saving up and spending the big dollars up front if it’s the right move. I don’t have the budget to just send Otis off to @wngrog to do all the work (I know what quality work costs), luckily I have good shop space, a lift, and the ability to learn.
- Thread starter
- #46
Thanks for posting that chart, very helpful. I do go back and forth on the lift — if I’m honest with myself I probably don’t need the extra clearance for what I do and the larger tires add unsprung weight.
On the other hand, a bit of extra capacity is a good thing, and the suspension Otis is 50 years old and leaning/sagging quite a bit so it really should be upgraded anyways.
- Thread starter
- #47
Price aside, do you have any preference for the 33x9.50-15 Kendas vs the 235/85R16 Yokohamas? Actual diameter seems quite similar at around 32” and the weight also seems to be in the same ballpark.
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- Thread starter
- #48
After much thought and some budget considerations, I just ordered the 16" wheels from CityRacer. Will order the 235/85R16 Yokohamas next. Tall skinnies keep the stock look with just a little more. Going to space out the purchases over the winter to ease the cash flow a bit.
Next up will be serious thinking about suspension. Otis has quite the lean, so suspension does need to be addressed one way or another. If I'm going to spend on suspension, a modest lift does make sense to gain a bit of ground clearance and make room for the taller tires. So some more research to get to.
Next up will be serious thinking about suspension. Otis has quite the lean, so suspension does need to be addressed one way or another. If I'm going to spend on suspension, a modest lift does make sense to gain a bit of ground clearance and make room for the taller tires. So some more research to get to.
Why did you get 16" rims? Your 15s looked nice.
cstav86
SILVER Star
@drooartz Post up some real world height and width of those tires once you get them mounted up.
- Thread starter
- #53
I spent a bunch of time thinking this through. I tend more towards a stock look and was originally thinking of just replacing the 30x9.5 KO2’s that are on the truck now. Then I started thinking about going a little taller to gain a small amount of clearance and also lower RPM a bit on the road. There just are not a lot of options anymore in a 33x9.5 as I want to keep skinny tires. Hence the move to the 16” CityRacer wheels, keeping the stock look and hubcaps while opening up a bunch of tire size options. The more I looked at the 235/85R16 tires the more I liked both the look and the advantages that tire size would give me.
This fellow’s experience was one that pointed me in this direction:
The Holy Grail of FJ40 wheels and tires? — Exploring Overland - https://www.exploringoverland.com/overland-tech-travel/2017/4/25/the-holy-grail-of-fj40-wheels-and-tires
I am keeping the original wheels so I can always switch back if I want to later on.
Will do. I’ll get some comparisons with the 30x9.5 KO2s as well. I’m curious what the final, actual size will be.
- Thread starter
- #54
Adult Christmas — where you’re still excited to open boxes even though you had to pay (a lot) for them in the first place. 
New CityRacer 16” wheels arrived yesterday. Very excited to get the tires mounted and get them on the truck. I’ve got some time off around Christmas and New Years so should be able to get that handled. Also got my headlight bulbs for the Koito housings. Good to have some projects lined up for the winter.
New CityRacer 16” wheels arrived yesterday. Very excited to get the tires mounted and get them on the truck. I’ve got some time off around Christmas and New Years so should be able to get that handled. Also got my headlight bulbs for the Koito housings. Good to have some projects lined up for the winter.
schuy2147
SILVER Star
Awesome! My order for a set is right behind you!Adult Christmas — where you’re still excited to open boxes even though you had to pay (a lot) for them in the first place.
New CityRacer 16” wheels arrived yesterday. Very excited to get the tires mounted and get them on the truck. I’ve got some time off around Christmas and New Years so should be able to get that handled. Also got my headlight bulbs for the Koito housings. Good to have some projects lined up for the winter.
View attachment 4046796
- Thread starter
- #56
Exciting day, new wheels and tires are on! First off, yes, you can fit 5 235/85R16 Yokohama Geolandar tires and 5 CityRacer 16" wheels inside a FJ40.
I dropped the truck off at the tire shop yesterday, and they called this morning to let me know everything was done. Back home in my shop now and it looks good!
This is all on stock suspension at this point. For me, this is the perfect tire size. Fits a stock look, but with a modern size and a small gain in ride height over the previous 30x9.5x15 KO2. I will be doing new suspension coming up, but this was a real upgrade particularly over the 9 year old tires that were installed when I bought the truck.
So here are the numbers. I measured ride height to the bottom of the fenders, running a line through the center of the wheels. Gives a repeatable spot I can measure. I gained about 1.5" in ride height with the new tires.
You'll also notice I've got about 1" of cruiser lean towards the driver side. Another reason for going through the suspension.
I need to take Otis out again and measure the speedo against GPS to see how much rubber overdrive I've actually gained. I did a quick check on the way home and it definitely seems a little more relaxed at a GPS 60mph. With old tires the speedo was right on accurate, so that's a nice baseline to see how things have gone.
The 235/85R16 Yokohama Geolandar measure 31.25" mounted on the wheel and installed on the truck. This is at about 38psi as set by the tire shop (I'll adjust that down a little I think).
I dropped the truck off at the tire shop yesterday, and they called this morning to let me know everything was done. Back home in my shop now and it looks good!
This is all on stock suspension at this point. For me, this is the perfect tire size. Fits a stock look, but with a modern size and a small gain in ride height over the previous 30x9.5x15 KO2. I will be doing new suspension coming up, but this was a real upgrade particularly over the 9 year old tires that were installed when I bought the truck.
So here are the numbers. I measured ride height to the bottom of the fenders, running a line through the center of the wheels. Gives a repeatable spot I can measure. I gained about 1.5" in ride height with the new tires.
You'll also notice I've got about 1" of cruiser lean towards the driver side. Another reason for going through the suspension.
I need to take Otis out again and measure the speedo against GPS to see how much rubber overdrive I've actually gained. I did a quick check on the way home and it definitely seems a little more relaxed at a GPS 60mph. With old tires the speedo was right on accurate, so that's a nice baseline to see how things have gone.
The 235/85R16 Yokohama Geolandar measure 31.25" mounted on the wheel and installed on the truck. This is at about 38psi as set by the tire shop (I'll adjust that down a little I think).
- Thread starter
- #57
Just got back from a speed check and last-of-the-season drive up to the top of my favorite pass near my house (about 9500' elevation at the top). Otis did well, a bit of climbing loss in 4th due to the taller tires, but still pulled the steep pass in 3rd at 40MPH just fine. A fair trade for lower top end revs and a more useful 1st gear on the street and on the dirt roads I'm likely to see.
Here's the new speed calculations, based on my phone GPS. For reference, my speedo with the old 30x9.5 KO2 tires was essentially spot on. New tires set to 35PSI.
Speedo reads => GPS speed
40 => 44
45 => 50
50 => 55(56?)
55 => 61
60 => 67(66?)
Rough numbers, but a very useful improvement for my usage. Gives me a cruising speed in the 60-65 range, that's all I was looking for. Even for a drive down to southern Utah from here that is a workable speed.
One last glamor shot from the top of the pass:
Here's the new speed calculations, based on my phone GPS. For reference, my speedo with the old 30x9.5 KO2 tires was essentially spot on. New tires set to 35PSI.
Speedo reads => GPS speed
40 => 44
45 => 50
50 => 55(56?)
55 => 61
60 => 67(66?)
Rough numbers, but a very useful improvement for my usage. Gives me a cruising speed in the 60-65 range, that's all I was looking for. Even for a drive down to southern Utah from here that is a workable speed.
One last glamor shot from the top of the pass:
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- Thread starter
- #58
Just noticed that this thread has earned the "Build" tag. Go Otis! What can I say, I’m a cheap date and I’ll take a tiny win for the day.
In Otis news, I’ve just reached out to @orangefj45 to figure out what Otis will need for new suspension. After lots of reading I’m sold on the Terrain Tamer parabolics, just need to figure out what else I need. Otis has newish shocks from the PO so at least those bolts have come off in recent memory, but I’m working on the assumption that everything else is likely stock/original or at the least quite old. So likely all the hardware will need to be replaced as well.
Intention is to do this myself. Have another car on my lift right now, need to get that work done first and then Otis goes on the lift for this suspension work and a good full servicing. Gives me something to do in the winter.
In Otis news, I’ve just reached out to @orangefj45 to figure out what Otis will need for new suspension. After lots of reading I’m sold on the Terrain Tamer parabolics, just need to figure out what else I need. Otis has newish shocks from the PO so at least those bolts have come off in recent memory, but I’m working on the assumption that everything else is likely stock/original or at the least quite old. So likely all the hardware will need to be replaced as well.
Intention is to do this myself. Have another car on my lift right now, need to get that work done first and then Otis goes on the lift for this suspension work and a good full servicing. Gives me something to do in the winter.
- Thread starter
- #59
Just had a lovely chat with Georg, we’ll put together the order and get this next project started. Should motivate me to get the radiator replaced on the TR3 so that I can get it off my lift to make room for Otis.