Benefits of a 17in wheel vs 16in

The 4Runner TRD Pro and Trail both come with 17's stock.

16's vs 17's isn't nearly as important as rotational mass or overall height.

 

4runners are advertised to families so the 17's make sense handling well on road and to Tahoe in light snow. I'm not saying they aren't capable machines, just that they are sold from the factory to satisfy a certain demographic. When it comes to offroad you want as much sidewall as possible to absorb terrain and grab around obstacles. On road you want as flat a tread pattern as possible (drag racing aside) to get as much tire on the tarmac as you can, and this comes from a lower profile tire.

 

Im on 305/70/17 with 5th gen 4runner sized rotors and calipers. My truck could hardly stop going downhill (sometimes it didn't at all) before the upgrade. Night and day difference so I'm glad I had 17s.

 

It wasn't that many years ago that most small cars came with 13" wheels, standard cars with 14" wheels, most light duty trucks had 15" wheels, and you didn't get to 16" until you had a 3/4 ton or bigger. The trend towards larger wheels on vehicles was primarily to allow larger brakes.

Today we have a wide range of wheels on trucks between 15" and 20" from the factory with even larger aftermarket options. There are advantages and disadvantages, but the wheel size has nothing to do with the overall diameter or width of the tire. If someone wants a 33" tall tire that is 12" wide they can make that happen with a 15", 16", 17",18", or 20" wheel. The only difference is the size of the hole in the middle and how much rubber is between the ground and bottom of the rim.

And that is important. For off road driving you want more rubber between the ground and the bottom of the rim. That is why the Off Road Tacoma's come with 16" wheels. That extra rubber protects the wheel, provides cushioning, and when running low air pressures off road provides more rubber to grab the ground.

For high speed street driving especially with aggressive cornering you want less rubber between the road and rim. This provides a more stable ride and less tire flex when aggressively cornering.

 

For your consideration and testing.

Load a cart with 4" wheels, push it over rough surface....say a gravel driveway. Now, put the same cart with same load, but with 10" wheels, push it over the same rough surface.

Which one requires less push?

Now, if you need to discuss rubber or brakes (breaks for some), then that is a different topic.

 

Your theory is correct. I think we're just splitting hairs here because in practical application it's the tire size that will determine how easily it rolls over stuff, not the diameter of the wheel itself.

 

Agreed. Already stated in post #3.

 

@Knute is imparting wisdom. It might serve you well to pay attention. There are times when function over form is better.

 

More correctly, you have to go down 1" on the inside diameter of the tire. The whole deal with changing wheel diameters is to keep the outside diameter of the tire equal.

 

Oh ok gotcha! Dang that was a deal and then some
Thanks for the info. I've always had pretty good luck with General Tires.

 

This is siiiick

 

17s take the W cause you cant do a big brake kit with 16s. But 17 inch tires cost more. If that sorta thing matters to you.

 

tire + rim = wheel.

Careful about mixing terms. Confusion can follow.

 

If we want to get the technical, a wheel doesn't necessarily have to have a tire. "Wheel" is a more general term that can apply to just the "metal part", or the "metal part"+the "rubber part".

Although in casual usage, I most often see people using wheel to mean only the metal part. For example people often say things like "I bought new wheels and tires" and not things like "I replaced the rubber part of my wheels".

I would also consider the "rim" to be the actual rim of the metal part. In other words, the outer edge of the metal part that holds the rubber part.

 

I agree with bigger rotor upgrade being the number one benefit of a 17 inch rim in a 4x4 Tacoma. If it is all highway I would be happy with 17s. I was not planning to upgrade brakes so I specifically bought 16 inch factory rims. I am sticking with 245/75/16 which has good value and selection.
I would want to upgrade the brakes if I was towing heavy or running >33” tires. Looks would be an important factor for lots of people.
I am going to buy cooper discover at3 4s
245/75/16 37 pounds 30.6”
265/70/16 40 pounds 30.6”
265/65/17 39 pounds 30.6”
265/75/16. 41 pounds 31.6”
265/70/17 42 pounds 31.4”
285/70/17 45 pounds 32.8
Go to an E rated tire and weight goes up B
Rotational mass is important.
Leverage is important.
Unsprung weight is important.
Choose what makes you happy.

 

F'the internet! wims and rheels!

 

What do y’all think of this ‘wheel’ combo?

 

Oh and def getting these stainless braided lines... had no idea that would make a big improvement

 

Perfection.