Advice Needed.. 1st gen with 17" wheels

I recently purchased a 1998 SR5 4wd that came with 17" (i think TRD Sport) wheels on it. From what I've researched, the positive offset is much greater on the 17" wheels than on the stock 16" that would have been on the truck, so currently my wheels are approximately 1" further inside the wheel well than they should be. They are very close to the Upper Control Arm, which is unnerving to me. I've read that people are using 17" wheels on 1st gens, but how is everyone getting around this clearance issue? I'm looking to get some new tires, and I'm concerned that any size bigger than 265/65r17 (which i have on there now) is going to rub the upper control arm. I've considered spacers, but since I have manual locking hubs up front, I cant buy hub centric spacers. Currently i'm at a dead end. Would definitely appreciate any help you guys can give me here. I'm not looking to put really big tires on it either. Considering maybe a 275/70r17 or a 265/70/r17, but UCA clearance is definitely an issue with these 17" wheels.

Has anyone else run into this issue? Should I shop around for some 16" wheels and just go from there or am i stuck using smaller tires with these 17's?

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

I would get 16in wheels. Tires are cheaper and you can get the offset/backspacing you want. Check out the tires and wheels section for some ideas.

 

I'd prefer to do that as a last resort. If there's a way to work with what I have, I'd like to do that. I'm hoping there are a few people on the forum with a little experience with this. Still trying to consider all my options.

 

I have the 17" TRD Sport wheels with 265/70/17's. To bring my wheels out slightly, I installed 1" Spidertrax. Now I have no fear of rubbing the UCA. Good luck.

 

Thanks Pheonix ray. Glad to know that wqsn't an issue. Do you have manual hubs? I was told that spidertrax wouldnt work with them.

 

I can confirm. I'm running a set of 17" wheels off of my old 2005 4Runner Limited (Same as the TRD Sports) and they are close to the UCA's with the stock diameter tires.

If you want to run a bigger tire, get a different set of rims instead of spacers. Just my two cents.

 

Wheel spacers will cause more stress on your wheel bearings and may cause them to fail prematurely

 

What about adding 16" wheels from a second gen tacoma? Are there any compatibility issues there? I have manual locking hubs.

 

Find somebody with a lathe and bore the ID of the spacers a little to clear the hubs. Easy fix.
I've done it on my past trucks and had no issues.

 

2nd gen tacomas typically have the same offset on the 16 and 17 inch wheels, they were designed for the more outward suspension. the first gen wheels stick out on a 2nd gen and vice versa when you swap 2nd gen wheels on a 1st gen the wheels suck inward.

I strongly recommend against spacers as they do more hard than good and require constant maintenance to ensure they dont just randomly make a wheel fall off while driving.

Sell the wheels you have a get a nice wide offset wheel in its place like the ones your truck came with.

 

this person tried a few

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/wheels-tires/246798-tire-wheel-combos-1st-gen.html

FJs (same measurements as Tacoma wheels)

http://www.yotatech.com/f2/fj-cruiser-wheels-3rd-gen-4runner-126281/index3.html