Tire / rim size recomendation 16" vs 18"

[aa2300]

Hi Folks,

Sure this has been covered elsewhere, but the search...well I haven't unearthed it yet. New to me '99 100 series. Came with 18" rims off of a 200 series with street tires. I'd like to get K02s on there ASAP. Looks to me like the most cost effective route on the 18" would be the 285/60/18 at around 220 per tire. If I look at a 265/75/16 the cost gets down to around 180 per tire. Or am I missing the best size K02 for the 100? My last 100 had the 265/75/16 and 4.88 gears, this is bone stock, so I don't think I'd want to go much bigger....
My gut tells me that moving to a 16" rim with a bigger sidewall would be better. I would think it would ride a little better around town, and also allow for airing down more on the trail. Worth the effort of swapping out the rims on this? Or am I splitting hairs here? Appreciate any and all insight, thanks in advance.

Cheers

 

[r2m]

When I bought my 1998 LC it had 20" chrome wheels with some low profile tires.
That would not fly....
I looked into 35" x 20" tires and the price was just stupid! So I knew I had to get rid of those rims, but what to get???
I did my research and found that 17" rims are the most popular wheel size and generally most affordable for both rims and tires.
I run 35" BFG M/T's on 17" rims and with that size tire and rim, I can be almost anywhere in the country, blow out a tire and should be able to find that tire and and rim size combination. Albeit, it may not be a BFG but it'll be a 35" tire on a 17" wheel and will get me home.
If you look up my name on MUD, there should be some photos of my rig with this setup.
I just did a quick search and found the thread: larger tires without lift
Scroll down a wee bit and you'll see my my rig and a description for the body lift I made also.

Cheers!

 

[Ohthetrees]

Only you can tell if the extra money for rims is worth it, but in my opinion 16 inch is best for trucks that overland and wheel, and 18 inches is best for pavement princesses because they will handle a little bit better. Separate from performance, I think smaller rims and more rubber look better on a truck setup for off road.

 

[Ohthetrees]

You might be able to get somebody to trade 200 wheels for 16 inch wheels as a straight across trade.

 

[geanes]

I run 275/70/18 KO2s on the SR5 18" wheel. It works out to be a "true" 33 inch combo. It handled all of the rocky passes of Colorado very comfortably with zero loss of traction. Aired down to 18psi. I think that combo is the best for a rig that will be a DD and spend some time offroad....you get the best of both worlds. If my rig was a dedicated overlander and offroader only, I'd probably go 16" wheels with 34" overall mud terrain tires.

 

[aa2300]

Only you can tell if the extra money for rims is worth it, but in my opinion 16 inch is best for trucks that overland and wheel, and 18 inches is best for pavement princesses because they will handle a little bit better. Separate from performance, I think smaller rims and more rubber look better on a truck setup for off road.

All really good points. This is a secondary vehicle for me. For hauling the dirt bike around, trails, long highway trips. Not a fun car to drive around Seattle. I agree, more rubber, looks better!

 

[Manhattan]

...and 18 inches is best for pavement princesses because they will handle a little bit better.

Okay, that was just stupid. 20s, 22s, sure. But 18s? Come on.

16" are better off road. 20s are great on the street. 18" wheels with a 33" tire (275/70/18) are a pretty good compromise.

 

[Ohthetrees]

Okay, that was just stupid. 20s, 22s, sure. But 18s? Come on.

16" are better off road. 20s are great on the street. 18" wheels with a 33" tire (275/70/18) are a pretty good compromise.

You will notice that I said “best”, but I think both 16 inch and 18 inch will work just fine in either environment. For example, I said 16 inch is “best” for off-road, but with a little bit of extra air to stiffen up my tires, I think 16 inch handles very well on the street too. I don’t love that you describe my opinion as stupid. Not a very civil or friendly way to announce a very minor disagreement, on a topic where reasonable minds can differ.

 

[bigredmachine]

personally i would go form more sidewall with the 16s, but as mentioned above 17s are also a good option. 17s are going to be a but easier to find and price is going to be comparable with the 16s

 

[SlowBuild]

This exactly:

I run 275/70/18 KO2s on the SR5 18" wheel. It works out to be a "true" 33 inch combo. It handled all of the rocky passes of Colorado very comfortably with zero loss of traction. Aired down to 18psi. I think that combo is the best for a rig that will be a DD and spend some time offroad....you get the best of both worlds. If my rig was a dedicated overlander and offroader only, I'd probably go 16" wheels with 34" overall mud terrain tires.

 

[Slashzero]

Hi @geanes, or anyone else willing to advise: I'm considering picking up some Continental TerrainContact ATs in 275/70-18. At least that's the way I'm leaning, over the BFG KO2s.

Is it staright replacement on my 18 inch wheels, or do I also need to make other adjustments? Stock suspension on my 2003 LC, stock 18 inch Toyota alloy wheels.

Should I also pick up a fifth tire? I currently have a Dunlop OEM tire mounted under the truck as a spare. Will a 275/70-18 tire fit in the spare cavity? I saw a mod posted on here in another thread on how you can add some spacers for additional clearance on the spare.

I will have some barely used (~2-5k miles) Michelin Latitude Tour HP (275/60-18) all season street tires up for sale, if I end up pulling the trigger on A/T tires. Hoping to recoup some of the cost of new tires.

I run 275/70/18 KO2s on the SR5 18" wheel. It works out to be a "true" 33 inch combo. It handled all of the rocky passes of Colorado very comfortably with zero loss of traction. Aired down to 18psi. I think that combo is the best for a rig that will be a DD and spend some time offroad....you get the best of both worlds. If my rig was a dedicated overlander and offroader only, I'd probably go 16" wheels with 34" overall mud terrain tires.