Wheel Specs to Fix Rub on 265/75 r16

Hi. My apologies if I missed a post that answers this question for first gen Tacomas. I searched the forum and could not find anything in various first gen discussions touching on this topic.

I recently bought a 2004 Tacoma 4x4 with a stock suspension. It came with some vintage aftermarket wheels and Bridgestone KO2s in 265/75 r16. My suspension is stock.

On the drivers side, the tires rub the frame (before full lock) and when crossing a driveway transition while turning they seem to be rubbing the control arm.

I have no idea what the current wheel specs are.

I'd rather not install spacers, so I am wondering if anyone has experienced the same and cured it with wheels that provide the right spacing. I'd prefer not too much poke, just enough to end the rubbing.

Thanks!

 

265/75/16s don't rub with the OEM wheels, which probably means your "vintage aftermarket" wheels don't have the right backspacing.

You'll need to figure out what wheels you have, and what their specs are to remedy your issue.

If you posted a picture, someone here could probably identify the wheels and steer you in the right direction.

 

Thanks for the advice! I added a photo of the wheel.

 

I am not a big wheelhead, so it sounds like stock wheels would be an affordable ticket to getting this right.

 

The most affordable thing would be spacers. A small spacer isn't going to kill you. People run them all the time. Don't beat yourself up or spend a bunch of money if you need a 1/2" spacer or something small like that.

The OEM wheels have 4.5" of back spacing. Pop one of your wheels off and measure the BS to see where you're at.

 

I decided to go for it and get a cheap set of used stock wheels (the five spoke “twist” style wheels) and remount my tires. It wasn’t much more than BORA spacers.

Unfortunately, the stock wheels also rub with 265/75r16.

And I measured my aftermarket wheels. The backspacing turned out to be 4.5 inches. Damn my laziness!

So, I think I’m going to get factory spec all terrain tires and mount the mud tires with spacers when I want to look cool.

 

Before you get "factory spec" 265/70/16 (30.6" x 10.4" generally considered 31") vs 265/75/16 (31.6" x 10.4" generally considered 32") you should go get a GOOD alignment. Try posting in a regional forum close to you for recommendations on an alignment shop. You need someone who understands more than just making sure the alignment boxes are green.

 

Thanks for the added information. I would not have thought of that option.

I’ll check with a race alignment shop that’s around the corner from me in Atlanta. Maybe they would be willing to dive deeper into the alignment process.

I’ve used them for track cars in the past and they were great.

Also, looks like I have may have slight positive camber on the front wheels. Not sure if that’s normal. And I figured out what was on there:

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/rlw-89168060#overview

 

It’s definitely alignment, unfortunately it’s usually caused by frozen cam adjusters which is quite a rabbit hole to dive into to fix correctly.