KM2 or duratracs ?

Yea unless you are ready to destroy your nice new wheels, don't get 255's with 8" wide wheels.

I wish I followed my own advice though! I just spent a grand on new 8" wide wheels to get wrapped in 255's

bigdogdewey2 wrote:

springs front and rear will not cost a fortune..and down the line it wont matter anyway...the BMC is a good start but with the 295s that may not be enough anyway...if im not mistaken the 295/70s are pretty close to the 285/75s...as far as height and i had to have the lift...and BMC...the bigger the tire and heavier as well doesnt necessarily mean that you need to regear but the throttle response will be alot less quick feeling...i think that is what FJDarrel noticed when he put his monster tires on...he said that the throttle response was noticeably different..i would almost bet that with 295s you will rub...somewhere...

My $.02 worth...

I don't mind a rub that I can fix relatively cheaply and easily...I think the height of the tire will give enough benefit off road to warrant the extra weight...as long as it's not to much.

I have not been able to find the weight, but the height is 33.6 and the 285 is 33.

Crazy Hube wrote:

Yea unless you are ready to destroy your nice new wheels, don't get 255's with 8" wide wheels.

I wish I followed my own advice though! I just spent a grand on new 8" wide wheels to get wrapped in 255's

My logical side says the 255s are the way to go for offroading, and have the benefits of burning less gas on road.
I am a little scared of my on road driving tendencies with the 255s though.

If anyone hasn't read this article posted by NC FJ< I highly recommend it.
http://www.expeditionswest.com/research/white_papers/tire_selection_rev1.html

Well I will have mine mounted hopefully by the end of next week, and they will get abused big time. So we will see

255 KM2's are 56 lbs IIRC

anyone been able to find weight on the 295 Hankook?

rockrock513 wrote:

anyone been able to find weight on the 295 Hankook?

65.4 lbs.

Thanks MadToy. I must be having some search dysfunction today. To much internets today...

MadToy wrote:

255 KM2's are 56 lbs IIRC

So I will be at a combined 85lbs on wheel and tire weight. Not too bad

according to Discount Tire ...a 285/70 17 is 32.71"
and a 285/75 17 is 33.83" same width as a 285/70 just taller
and a 295/70 17 is 32.26" but it is wider than the 285/70 and 285/75
thats all its jsut wider not taller
and a 255/80 17 is 33.06 tall but very skinny...

the first number is the section width in mm.....the second number is the sidewall height in percentage of the section width....

now i agree that each manufacturer has a different "ACTUAL" size...not all manufacturers build their tires to the size that is actually on the sidewall...and some manufacturers make several different brands of tire ...even flotation tires which are sized in inches are not always built to the actual size...

also wheels must be taken into account...a wider wheel will spread the section width out...a narrower wheel will compact that section width...

my tires are 33.75" on the wheels i have...my wheel/tire combo weighs in at about 98lbs....tall and heavy...lol....

Hey bigdogdewey,
I have been checking manufactures websites for the actual sizes, but I am prepared for whatever I go with to be a little offfrom what they state. Also I have 16" wheels so there may be some height discrepancies between 17s and 16s?

One concern (little) is that I have stock trd wheels which I believe are 7.5 wide, and the Hankook 295/75/16 want a minimum 8" rim.
Doesn't seem like it will cause any problems...

sounds good..sorry i didnt realize you had 16s....

So had my second chance to off road the Hankooks. They did very well. I purposely slowly crawled through a mud pit and never lost traction. They are more comfortable on the road than the 255 KM2s. No sign of wear in the rocks. I gave them a good testing at Richland road. destroyed my center cap, but not a scratch on the tire.

They are tall. The specs say 33.6 x 11.6. They are without a doubt that. With the exception of a 35" tire, they are the biggest I have seen. The price is phenomenal for the tire.

Down side. They are heavy at 64.5 lbs (especially compared to the 56lbs of the 255s). I have filled up a few times and I am estimating 1 mpg less than the 255 km2 and and probably 1.5 mpg over stock 265 BFG ATs. I don't have a lead foot. If you do the difference might be more.

Without a doubt you would need to do the BMC. No way around that. I feel like I am at the limit where I would need to regear. Anymore than this tire and I would feel compelled too. Hankook approves them for a 7.5" rim and I don't see any reason they wouldn't be fine on them.

As of now I am giving these tires 2 thumbs up, but I am ok losing the gas mileage.

I probably would not try to fit these on a stock FJ front suspension unless it was for a shorter period of time or you weren't planning on taking it off road. (sale plug I will probably have a pair of 2.5" toytec spacers for sale.)

In all honesty I think the 255 KM2 is a better choice for your purpose. If you dont mind a little trail rash on your wheels. I like the Hankooks because they do give me a little more clearance. A 1/4" is significant enough to warrant the loss in MPG. I am also on a trail at least once a month. If it wasn't for the that and an impending winch/bumper I would still be running the KM2s. To me they are the best tire for the occasional offroader or anyone limited to a 33" tire. Plus no bmc needed. I am really liking the Hankooks, but I would hate to recommend a tire to you that might be more than what you need.

Thanks Brian, I think the Hankooks are the way to go for me. I am all about pizza cutters (from my reading up on them) for off road, but I need more security on road.

I could do with the 285s, but might as well go 295! hahaha I get offroad as much as I can, and doing a few mods will have me stoked to get out more often. Plus I will be able to get on some harder trails!

I will do the bmc, and with the 5100s at 99$ each from allpro I can swing that if I have to.

How is the rest of the clearance? Will stock uca's be okay, or are spider trax needed?

I have been thinking of them anyway...

The spacers are not a good idea. They will cause any rubbing on the frame or fenders to be worse. I THINK they would be ok with stock UCAs. However I have the LightRacing UCAs, so I can't say with any certainty.

I don't perceive any improved road handling with the hankooks, but sometimes mental peace of mind has value. They are more comfy on the road.

Well IMHO the pizza cutters look goofy on FJ's.

Crazy Hube wrote:

MadToy wrote:

255 KM2's are 56 lbs IIRC

So I will be at a combined 85lbs on wheel and tire weight. Not too bad

What wheels did you go with? The ones you were planning on would put you at 75lbs per tire/wheel!

Brian wrote:

Crazy Hube wrote:

MadToy wrote:

255 KM2's are 56 lbs IIRC

So I will be at a combined 85lbs on wheel and tire weight. Not too bad

What wheels did you go with? The ones you were planning on would put you at 75lbs per tire/wheel!

I went with he SCS F-5's.....

SO that is what I meant! LOL

Yea it will be crazy light, which should mean less chance of breakage

So, I have made some progress on my rig.

I got my sliders on, did my bmc, and I got my 295 hankooks on last night.

I haven't had any time to look closely at the fit, but I think there is rub at the front of wheel well. The bmc looks like it is way clear.

So a lift is on the agenda.

Oh yeah.... They look beastly!

PICS!!! or it didnt happen!!

Long day today, but I have some from the bmc.

Yep, pics!!!!

rockrock513 wrote:

Oh yeah.... They look beastly!

Yeah, it really is a good size for the FJ, especially if you are running a stock wheel (Its probbaly the biggest tire I would put on a stock wheel). Its a shame there aren't more tires in this size. Its very similar to the 285/75/17 which I have always thought was a great size. More than the typical 33s, but less than 35s that come with there own issues.

If these tires work out for me, I might be ok not going to a 35" when all of the other guys are.

Unless I'm missing something, it seems to be a pita to get pics on here from my iPhone...
I even made a trip out to get some more pics