When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
GLAD your liking them so far. I decided to do one more winter with mine (#4). I can honestly say that with the exception of the balancing which is minor I've been very pleased with them in all conditions I needed a tire to perform good in. If you don't already know the life of a set of tires is monitoring the air pressure and a steady interval of rotation. I rotate the tires on our vehicles twice a year which amounts to under a 5K mile interval.
I’m about due for tires, and I’m looking for input. I have rubicon express 3.5 lift, currently have desert rat tracker ii 15x8 wheels with 31”bfg at KOs. They’ve been good tires. I’m looking to run something quieter and thinking of going with a more narrow stance. We live in the mountains a couple miles up a steep windy gravel road, but I don’t do a lot of wheeling otherwise. I’m looking for a tire that’s better on road and looking to bring the wheels in to sling less dirt on the jeep when just going up and down our road. I don’t need to look like I just got back from the trail all the time. So I was thinking of running Cooper Discoverer AT3 235/75 r15s with no spacers.
So looking for input on the tires and also is it ok stability wise to have 3.5 lift without spacing out the wheels?
Thanks
I run the Coopers on my truck and like them. It’s a GM C Duramax and I was in the tree business at the time. Needed a tire that offered good off road traction, low noise and good wear patterns. The AT3 fit the bill and did not tear up customers yards, also gave good enough traction to pull the fully loaded dump trailer out throgh loose sand. Have them on my newly aquired 99XJ and they are good tire.
I run basically the same tire in the Mastercraft Courser AXT2 on my 96 F150. https://www.mastercrafttires.com/tir...y/courser-axt2
Mastercraft is a slightly less expensive brand of Cooper and the tread pattern is almost the same. Normally you can find them for a little less than the Coopers. The little shop I got mine at sold both and I think I paid about $20 less for the Mastercrafts per tire.I put 30s on the truck but now I am thinking about moving those to the XJ and getting 31 for it.
In his book " Jeep Cherokee Performance Upgrades" by Eric Zappe, he makes the case for 7" wide rimes and advocates there use on an XJ even for wide sizes. Note that due to the narrow wheel-wells on XJ's, wide tires are only possible with fender trimming if you don't want them to rub off road. Simply put, a 7" rim holds a tire better:
a 235/75/r16 on an 8" rim chosen by the previous owner
With the wider rims, more flat tires
more destroyed tires
235/75/r16 on 7" rims - haven't had a flat in years
Now with the top rated 245/75/r16 BFG KO2's on 7" rims
Last edited by Very Red XJ; 08-31-2021 at 04:01 PM.
Hi all -- What kind of tire life do you generally see these days? I mostly mean for the "On/Off-Road All Terrain" category, examples of which include the Goodyear Wrangler series, Bridgestone Dueler A/T Revo series, Pirelli Scorpion All Terrain Plus, etc. This is the category that's less extreme than mud tires or "Maximum Traction" off-road tires, more balanced for both street and trail. But not pure street light truck highway or crossover/SUV touring tires.
The models I mentioned are expensive, premium tires costing about $200 each, and the warranties run about 50,000 - 60,000 miles, and 5 - 6 years. What life do you typically see? What kind of tires? How hard did you use them as far as dirt, off-road, etc?
Also, have you noticed any trends over the years re: tire life? Are today's tires lasting longer than they did in the 1980s and 90s?
What would be the equivalent size tire to a 30X9.5R15 for a 16" rim?
235/75/r16 Most 30 x 9.5 r15 tires are actually smaller then 30" . For example, in a BFG KO2, they are 29.5" tall. A 235/75r16's run around 29.7" tall and they are 9.3" wide. However, BFG doesn't make one in that size in a KO2. That's why I ended up with Hankook Dynapro AT2's my 2" lift
ahh gotcha. Are the hankooks why you would recommend if I have 16” wheels?
Originally Posted by Very Red XJ
235/75/r16 Most 30 x 9.5 r15 tires are actually smaller then 30" . For example, in a BFG KO2, they are 29.5" tall. A 235/75r16's run around 29.7" tall and they are 9.3" wide. However, BFG doesn't make one in that size in a KO2. That's why I ended up with Hankook Dynapro AT2's my 2" lift
ahh gotcha. Are the hankooks why you would recommend if I have 16” wheels?
Three years ago Hankooks were the most agressive AT tires I could find and they are good tires - but I just checked and 235/75/r16's are now available in KO2's!!!!
Nice, these are the wheels I currently have. I was thinking of just keeping these for now. Otherwise, how much do you think these wheels are worth, I might consider selling them & getting different wheels.
Nice, these are the wheels I currently have. I was thinking of just keeping these for now. Otherwise, how much do you think these wheels are worth, I might consider selling them & getting different wheels.
The center dimpled portion of my Concave Steel wheels are heled away from rocks on the trail while your convex wheels protrude out to embrace the stones on the trail. Your wheels were designed for looks, but I'm afraid their looks will suffer on our California trails. My wheels are not expensive - why not put yours on crags list for what mine cost and break - even ?
The center dimpled portion of my Concave Steel wheels are heled away from rocks on the trail while your convex wheels protrude out to embrace the stones on the trail. Your wheels were designed for looks, but I'm afraid their looks will suffer on our California trails. My wheels are not expensive - why not put yours on crags list for what mine cost and break - even ?
You do realize that you'll have to get a SYE kit for your transfer case, a new drive shaft, re-gear your diffs - or better replace them as the kindest comment I've heard about a Dana 35 is: "they're not worth rebuilding". It was designed for a 36lb tire and you're replacing it with a 63lb tire!? The chances for snapping week axels are too great for anyone who doesn't want to walk home. 12" wide tires require a lot of trimming on stock finders if you don't want them to rub badly of give up on any articulation.33's are typical tires with a 4.5" lift. When your through with all of that, you can worry about back- space
I ended up just going with spacers in the front 1 3/4" & an adjustable shackles kit in the back 1.5-2" along with Bilstein 5100's all the way around. I'm going to go with 30" tires as well. It just came down to cost & the fact I don't do a lot of wheeling yet, so I wanted to start small & affordable.
I was just curious, with this type of setup, is there anything else that is really needed? Should I get an adjustable track bar or is that not really necessary with this setup? And is there anything else I should get or consider?
Also, just installed the Big 7 upgrade yesterday. It was relatively simple to do & I noticed an immediate difference upon startup. If you haven't done this upgrade, I'd highly recommend it. The next upgrade is the Headlight harness upgrade. For $25 to improve your headlights by 50% brightness is insane.
What are some other basic/inexpensive upgrades you guys have done that made a significant difference in your Jeep?
09-21-2015, 02:17 PM
BFG KO2's
