Tire Size for 85% Highway and 15% Off-Road

I live in Denver, I commute on I-25 and I get into the mountains nearly every weekend, but I don't do any hardcore off-roading but rough enough to rule out a Subaru.

With a 16" I would either do a 265/75R16 which is roughly 10.4" wide and 31.6" in diameter, this would allow me to carry a spare under the bed like stock.

OR

I could do a 285/75R16 which is roughly 11.2" wide and 32.8" in diameter, I don't this this would fit under the bed as a full size spare and there may be rubbing in the wheel wells?

OR

I could do a 255/85R16 which is roughly 10.0" wide and 33.1" in diameter, I also don't this this would fit under the bed as a full size spare and there may be rubbing in the wheel wells?

What are your thoughts TacomaWorld?

 

Which ever you prefer and think looks best Do you want to keep your spare the same size as the others? It is up to you...

Tyler

 

Stock works great.

 

255ftmfw

 

With full skids...

Unrelated, what is your favorite Eastwood movie? I know it's hard to choose one, what are a few?

I would put fistful of dollars/few dollars more, Josey Wales, Unforgiven, Two mules for sister sarah, good, bad, ugly, toward the top.

I've actually never seen Kelly's Heroes, Heartbrake Ridge, or Dirty Harry LOL. Need to watch them ASAP

 

I feel like the 255 will be really good in snow too

 

Factory stock. Just get a real all terrain like a General, Toyo, KO2, Falken, ect etc.

 

Any size'll do, just study up on All-terrain tires, select your ply, and whatever works aesthetically for your application.

 

Are you sure a Subaru won't cut it?

 

Pale Rider, High Plains Drifter, Two Mules, Dirty Harry...many of those you listed

 

265/70R17 or 265/75R16 in C-load. Avoid heavy E-load.

 

Stock.

I've gotten to the top of most off road passes and off road trails in Tacoma's and FJ's with stock tire sizes, no problem. My current 3" lift and 33"s is overkill for 75% of the CO trails I've been on. I end up off road for my selected activities almost every weekend.

Side note, I regularly see foresters and outbacks at the top of the same passes the stock Tacos and FJ's manage, but those drivers talk about it as an earth shattering adventure and a fantastic challenge to have accomplished. We considered many of those trails "unimproved gravel", and do them with relative comfort.

 

subaru's awd platform is the best out there and i think much better then our 4wd system.

it's almost like having front and rear locking diffs but better cuz u can turn and steer unlike a truck with locked diffs.
best our truck can do to compete with that is 4wd low with the rear diff locked but u can't go over 3mph with rear locked.

a subaru with a/t tires would be sick!!!
u give it gas an all 4 wheels put power down

 

^ No idea where this is coming from. Subaru's system is not designed to do the same things as the Toyota 4x4, and off road the performance (at least in CO) isn't even remotely close to the capability and more importantly, reliability, of the Toyota system in this kind of terrain. Being able to arrive at the destination is possible for many Subarus, but you do so on many trails with great peril.

Subaru's have rear LSD's and open Fronts predominantly, with a center diff with no low range, very light half shafts in front, on-road power distribution ratios (meaning rear is vast majority of power delivery), very low clearance lower control arms, exposed lower radiator mounts, plastic center deflector for motor (not a skid), no center skid, and very low approach, break over, and departure angles due to their aerodynamic design. Further, its unibody results in a lot of body flex, the c-channel can be dented or bent resulting in incredible repair costs (many times total claims), and there is nowhere to attach armor. I'm not the most credible of sources for this information, but I have owned 5 Subarus and three Toyotas over 13 years, and am still part of both enthusiast communities.

Summary: Their system is designed for incredible on-road performance in all types of terrain, but it is not remotely the reliable off-road performance package a Tacoma TRD Off Road is.

 

lol sorry yeah i'd trust this guy 100% more then me that's a 6pack of a 9% IPA deep.

i didn't mean to say a subaru is better then the tacoma.

i was mostly referring to my old STI that had DCCD that's much different then most other subaru's( lsd diff up front and another electronically controlled one, then the rear lsd.

just think it would be really cool to have a lifted sti with a/t tires

 

Absolutely no hard feelings, I was just saying my $.02 which is more worth $.01.

On other fronts, I think it'd be really cool to be a 6pack deep on a thursday night, and I admit I'm a little jealous. I also think lifting a Subaru is an interesting endeavor.

I was on a trail ride once with Grant Wilson, the owner of a brand new (at the time) lifted outback wagon. It did fairly well and was lifted, custom skids, etc. etc., but even on green trails it managed to finish them, but not unscathed. He had all sorts of weird clunks and stuff coming from underneath there on the way home...poor vehicle. I toured his vehicle and shared a campsite with him for the night as well. Very good guy who's pretty creative with his solutions to adventure travel in a Subaru. I definitely could dig it.

http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums...t-your-average-outback-build-chronical-9.html

Sorry to the OP for ending up a bit off track. Again, I'd recommend just staying stock size tires and maybe going up to a dedicated all terrain with good on road performance. I love my Falken Wildpeak AT3s, I also loved my Michelin LTX ATs, and have had good performance from BFG AT KO's and BFG MT's, albiet I got weird "chunking" off road with those.

 

265/75r16 gets my vote (and got my money)

 

The Outlaw Josey Wales or go home.

 

This whole post is wrong.

I've gone 40+mph with the rear locked just fine. I've even done in 4H.

Where's your god now,

 

^ This. narrow tires dominate in snow, slush, and standing water. I've used 235-85r16 (only available in E load), 255-70r17 (current, and available in P rated or C load), 265-70r17 and 285-75r16.

The narrower they are, there better they track, the easier they roll (less rolling resistance) and the better they are in anything you want to cut through to find traction. As a bonus, they're also lighter which saves mpg's. If you drive in a lot of bottomless mud, get floaters but otherwise, pizza-cutters are king.