tire upgrade question

[Mirror]

Keeping stock rims on my 03 LT, how big of tire can i get to give myself a bit more height without compromising ball joints and tie rods?

 

[djthumper]

What do you mean without compromising your ball joints and tie rod ends? If you mean not cause extra wear and tear then nothing, stay totally stock. If you are asking what the largest tire is that you can put on there and not have to modify with a lift or spacers then the answer is on the site numerous times and is 30.6" is your maximum diameter.

 

[Mirror]

Ok thanks. I know lifting causes major issues with tie rods that's why i don't want to do that.

 

[Mirror]

from a 245 70r16, what tire do i go up to on a 16 to meet the 30.6". Sorry not too keen on tire sizing.

 

[blazinlow89]

245/75/16, 265/70/16 may fit, but being wider could cause issues. Tons of options in either size.

 

[djthumper]

Ok thanks. I know lifting causes major issues with tie rods that's why i don't want to do that.

Since when? There are quite a few of us that are lifted and have no issues with our tie rods, unless they are damaged on the trail.

 

[Mirror]

I always heard lifting a truck causes tie rods/ball joints to wear out really fast.

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245/75/16, 265/70/16 may fit, but being wider could cause issues. Tons of options in either size.

Don't need wider, just taller.

 

[djthumper]

Sooner maybe, but not really fast. I have been lifted just over 3 years and haven't had to replace them yet.

 

[The_Roadie]

I always heard lifting a truck causes tie rods/ball joints to wear out really fast.

People qualified with what credentials are telling you this?

USING the truck hard offroad, whether it's lifted or not, will accelerate wear on almost all elements of the suspension and driveline. Driving a lifted truck to the mall won't so much. All depends on your offroad mission and aggressiveness.

 

[IllogicTC]

I always heard lifting a truck causes tie rods/ball joints to wear out really fast.

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Don't need wider, just taller.

To help clarify on what the above are posting on the falsehood behind the people telling you this, it's generally the CV axles which experience accelerated wear, sometimes aggressively so if you go beyond particular thresholds and don't plan your setup correctly.

I'd figure anyone who's constantly popping in new tie rods and ball joints are either using their newly-lifted vehicle to do a lot of stuff it formerly couldn't, or has somehow managed to do something so egregiously wrong that this is one of the end results they've seen but they're too dead-set on believing their job was perfect to accept this fact.

 

[HARDTRAILZ]

To help clarify on what the above are posting on the falsehood behind the people telling you this, it's generally the CV axles which experience accelerated wear, sometimes aggressively

I find this as a falsehood. Our CV's are rather stout. They really don't wear out faster with lifts. If they need anything its a clamp upgrade for the boot. I have only replaced mine for ripping the boots on the trail not ever wearing one out.

 

[glfredrick]

Back to the tire size question... Over the years, I have run 235, 255, and 245 series tires on the factory 16" wheels with a 3.73 gear.

All fit with just a tad of rubbing when turning hard (no lift) when they hit the inner fender liner and that is no big deal.

Biggest problem running the largest set of tires was the overdrive issue. It was hunting and going in and out of lock up and overdrive at 55 miles per hour CONSTANTLY and really started to drive me crazy, not to mention the fuel mileage issues from always being between shifts.

I went down to the 245 tire which still fills out the wheel well nicely and gives just a bit of extra tire lift and it works our well for shifting, etc. I've now run 2 sets of tires in the 245 X 16 size and like them. Currently running Firestone Destination AT at 245X70X16. Firestone made a believer out of me with these tires -- formerly I would have used Firestone tires to burn a brush pile, never for my daily driver -- but these new ones really perform well in almost all categories that one might care to measure!

 

[blazinlow89]

I have been running 265/70/16 ' s as my DD tire and have never had an issue with tcc lockup. Also run 265/75/16 on some trips and have had no issues with those either. That is with 3.42 gears. Also never rubbed with the 245/75/16 AT2's.