Advice on a modest tire/wheel upgrade 2WD

I have a 2.4l 2WD 5-lug taco that was running 15"s. I purchased some 16" Ford Escape alloy wheels running 235/70/R16's that fit the truck. I'm noticing some slight rubbing when hitting a bump or on tight turns. Overall tire diameter went from 25" to 27.2", so figured this was a pretty modest change.
Most of the posts out there are from folks looking to run giant tire setups or get the truck ready for offroading, which is not me, hence my post.

So my questions are:
- Do I need a lift to stop rubbing, and for my purposes will a levelling kit or blocks suffice? I'm not in the market for a full suspension swap or inverting my axle to over-frame, trying to keep this simple & cheap where it makes sense to.
- To get the "peppy" acceleration back into this MT truck, should I also be looking at a diff swap (I believe this is a 7.5" open diff with 45mm carrier journals, I'm not sure the exact ratio)? Any way to get an Eaton limited-slip in this thing?

Thanks!

 

I too have been looking to find replacement rims.
My originals have rusted so horrably.
But the real issue is all the aftermarket rims have hub openings that are way too big.

Regarding the Ford Escape rims; how well does the hub bore fit the hub?

Thanks, Red

 

Oh yea...
Factory rims are $250 each.
That's a bit too rich for this ol'fart.

 

The Ford Escape wheel has a 67.1mm center bore diameter, and 5x4.5" lug pattern so it bolts up perfectly. These wheels are cheap to find used.

 

It's not always the diameter, it's also the width and offset of the wheels.

I run a 235 75 15 on OE wheels with no issue. Since your dia is close to mine, I suspect the wheel fitment is the issue.

Post where the rub is happening, you should be able to find witness marks. Then someone can suggest corrections. More than likely a cab mount chop or some trimming will be needed, highly unlikely lift will help anything. Possible an alignment with max castor, again depending on the rub spot.

Also, we have a 5 lug forum which you may find helpful for many things, since our trucks have significant differences from the 6 lug ones.

 

Do you have a 5 lug? Your profile is pretty lean. There were multiple '01 configurations.

 

Looks like those Escape wheels have deep backspacing (meaning too inset), along with the tall profile no wonder they rub.
The 2" diameter change is significant on a stock height 2wd/5 lug Tacoma, esp when it comes to gearing.

I run stock Tacoma S-Runner wheels (16 x 6.5) on my commuter 2wd/5 lug Tacoma, with 215/65-16 tires, same OD as stock.
Proper backspacing, stock suspension height, they fill out the wheelwells width-wise, could probably bump up to 225/60-16 w/o issues.

There are a number of non-Toyota wheels that could fit, go over to the 5-lug forum, I think there was a thread on this subject...

 

Sorry for the lean profile. This first reply came a few minutes after getting on here.

Yes, I have a 15x6 wheel with a 5 x 4.5 lug pattern. 4" offset.
My Taco is a base 2WD MT std cab.

 

¿Dónde están los foros? 5 lugs??