i have dick cepek fun country tires on my fj62. i love them. bit more expensive that bfg but i think they’re a bit better off-road than my old bfgs were. they’re quieter handle better and are soother than my bfgs were too
Tire Choice (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter MOC
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Yes. Sorry for any confusion. Totally forgot that I did get the 16” steely from Cityracer. Can’t speak to drive-ability yet but do like the proportions on my in-process restoration.
Chestcutter
SILVER Star
Interesting discussion on the "ideal" FJ40 tire here: 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
Lot's more options in 16" than 15" I ended up going with the BFG AT 235/85/16's on the cityracer wheels. Definitely a retro look.
Lot's more options in 16" than 15" I ended up going with the BFG AT 235/85/16's on the cityracer wheels. Definitely a retro look.
Skreddy
SILVER Star
I did end up getting the 31x10.50 BFG KO2’s on all 5 stock wheels. Could’ve chosen a different tire and saved a little, but saving has kind of gone out the window with my resto anyway.
Pura Vida
What an absolute noob
yea........I would say when the tire is almost the same age as one of the users on the site (me), its time to replace em haha. I am running mud terrain 31.5 inch tires, but they aren't very good if you wont take it bogging. all terrains have better looks and decent capability off road, all seasons drive better on the road and not very good off the path.
rkymtnflyfisher
Trout Bum
You're not alone, I was just trying to adjust the valves!
I tried out Grainger 8 x 2 x 14 wheels with a 2' lift this week. Gotta say that I wasn't a fan. Particular at the highway speeds.
Skreddy
SILVER Star
Stretch the wheelbase back out to stock and give it another try. Might be pleasantly surprised.
merbesfield
SILVER Star
What was your reasoning for the skinny size? Trying to choose which tires now for my new 16” ICON alloy wheels I just received.
Gwagg
SILVER Star
What is the weight difference between the 16" ICON alloy rims and the 16" CItyRacer rims?
General Grabber X3‘s on Rock Crawler steel 15 x 8 wheels for my rig. I’ve tried many different tires over the last 45 years and these Generals are hands down the best I’ve had on my 40. They are great on the road, not too loud and very smooth but air these down ( not mandatory )and hit the trails and this is where they shine. Five years later and they still have over 50% of tread and have worn pretty evenly for my old 40. They don’t cost a fortune and can be found in the smaller 31-10.50-15, I’m running the 33-12.50-15 with 4 inch lift. Just wanted to throw another great option out there. Desert Rat delivered mine to my door mounted balanced and ready to go.
Gwagg
SILVER Star
New reason to visit France, that looks awesome. I think that tire is made for quarries and mine trucks. I do not find that size you reference.
I do see a 255r100 x16
I do see a 255r100 x16
That's actually a bit complicated.New reason to visit France, that looks awesome. I think that tire is made for quarries and mine trucks. I do not find that size you reference.
I do see a 255r100 x16
The original O/R (for Off Road) XZL was available for both trucks and 4X4. In 4x4 sizes you had 205R16, 7.50R16 and 235/85R16 but for some years now only the 7.50R16 has been available : Pneus MICHELIN 4X4 O/R XZL | Pneus Auto AFRIQUE - https://africa.michelin.com/fr/auto/tyres/michelin-4x4-o-r-xzl
On truck sizes there is a new XZL (non O/R to recognize it) from the X force family (for non-paved terrain) : MICHELIN X® FORCE™ Z & ZL / XZL / XZL+ - https://pro.michelin.fr/pneus/michelin-x-force-z-zl-xzl-xzl-plus
But there is also a new XZL2 specialized in sandy tracks only available in 1 size : MICHELIN X® FORCE™ 2 / XZL2 - https://pro.michelin.fr/pneus/michelin-x-force-2-xzl2
All those tires are used on forest fire trucks, specialized trucks, pro applications, etc. but the main application is really military vehicles that use a lot the various XZL. That includes the US army so I don't know why they are hard to find on the civilian market in the US
The 7.50R16 O/R XZL was also a stock mount on the old Defender (when you ordered it with steelies).
To come back to the tire itself, I can't talk for the new truck variations but the original O/R XZL has some interesting properties.
It's a mud tire designed at the end of the 90's so probably not at the top of the modern tread designs, which means you should really be careful when you drive on wet roads (it's also reputed noisy but not enough to make a difference on the original noise of the FJ40 xD).
But on the positive side it's a mud tire that works great on both mud and sand, it has reinforced side and is very hard to puncture, while reinforced the sides are still flexible and it reacts very well when underinflated. The flexible side also make it a confortable tire (and on a FJ40 you can tell the difference from a non-flexible tire).
Oh and last point that is hard to verify in practice, because of the military application and the fact that military vehicles are often stored for a long time before to serve it is supposed to have a rubber compound made to last longer (in time not miles)... will report on that in 15 years
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Gwagg
SILVER Star
I really appreciate your reply and thorough explanation of the O/R XZL. They do look awesome, but I agree they may not be practical even for an old HJUTE.
