How big of tires can I go?

[nosigma]

I suggest staying with the 30's until you wear them out and focus on more important things like rock rails, some armor and a D44 rear. If you are running primarily mud then you need big tires and big hp, way bigger than you are going to run on a 3" lift with a Dana 35. If you run more trails with rocks, logs and streams then armor, rock rails and waterproofing are more important. There will always be a rock or log that will rip out your transfer case, smash your rocker panels and turn your 15 gallon tank into a 10 gallon tank. Most folks make the mistake of going for big tires on stock gears with no armor or extra coolers and then blow up their tranny and destroy everything underneath before they get religion and armor up, add coolers and gear down.

Running open/open on 30's will make you a much better driver and will allow you to embarrass everyone on 33's and 35's with lockers when you carefully crawl right past them or offer them a strap. You can do a lot on 30's, think carefully about how you drive your rig and what will really make you weekends more enjoyable/reliable.

John

 

[MudDawg]

My biggest concern is the stock gear ratio....it will murder the performance with 33's....if you do it, make sure you have or get a good trans cooler or the tranny may go poof...big tires and high gears really make a trans run HOT...at least with the auto you won't shock load the axle like a manual trans....but still drive gingerly, especially when the tires have a solid bite...like on rocks, roots and ledges...and don't engage in Mall parking lot burn-out contests:nono:

I ran a 3" lift with 33's and the trimming was very much like what Chero-king did. Worked fine for me.....but all I used it for was MUD...don't need a whole lot of flex for that...be careful and use enough bumpstop to keep the tires off the body.

 

[lectrode]

depends on how much you think is alot of cutting, i thought it was a good bit, but certainly not overdone

im not saying it couldn't flex because it definately did and the setup was really nice, but i wouldn't like to be running a 3" lift with teh same tires.

edit: may have exaggerated a little on the first post, but i wouldn't run 3" and 33's but some people run huge tires stock so its all opinion

I seem to be flexing ok with 35's on a 3.5" lift and bumpstopped.

 

[Trailbst]

auto 6cyl with 33s will be fine as long as you dont floor it through everything. but thats beside the point,

you're NOT going to be able to flex with a 3" lift and 33s... thats WAY close. 33's was close on my brothers 89 with a 4.5 rubicon kit. and lots of cutting.

SPOBI

What size 33s? 9.5, 10.5, 12.5 or wider. You can run 33s with 3"s without cutting, if you are using a 9.5 If you plan on using a 12.5, well, break out the sawzall and be prepared to take a lot off.

The right tire and rim choice, you'd be surprised what will fit. I have 4.5"s of lift with 35x12.5s and barely rub. Yep, there's some trimming, but it's not hacked and looks stock and clean.

There are thumb rules posted in the FAQ and it's a good place to start, but there are other details to consider.