35 inch tires on stock factory wheels for Rubicon?

Ahh, ok. I have the Mopar lift, so I get no rubbing. I had the 35's on before the lift and didn't experience rubbing, either, but I didn't take it to the flex limit, either. If there was rubbing, it wouldn't have been something a little trimming couldn't have cured. Jeep owners have been trimming fenders and fender wells since cave men first discovered their "special purpose."

 

I posted this earlier on another thread. The 4wd center near me basically said no way. they were willing to loose a sale over safety. He had called BFG and spoke with one of their tire Guru`s who had a hand in the making of the new KM3
He had a lot to say about putting a 35" tire on a stock Rubicon wheel, and he had convinced me. If your in doubt call the tire manufacture and listen to what they have to say, after all they are the ones who spend God knows how much time to develop a tire
Also some forum member say that they would run a 35" but not a 37" .
If you look at BFG`s site you will see every dimension is the same for a 35" and 37" the only difference is the overall height of the tire and weight of the tire. I did not check the specs on a 315/70/17, especially since they make a tire that was designed for the Ford Raptor
I hope this helps in some way, you can do anything you want, but that does not make it right. Just my 2 cents worth

 

That doesn't prove it wrong, either. It is an opinion. I see no specifics in your description of what he told you, only that he convinced you. A 315 is not a massive difference over a 285. It just isn't. I haven't come across one single case of this causing a problem or a safety issue. Not one. Please enlighten me on what he said to expect, and I'll watch for it. I'll give an honest report, too, if I experience whatever issues he says they'll have. (Which again, you have not specified.) I've got 8k on them now, including a couple of long highway trips. There is absolutely no indicator of abnormal wear, on any part of the tread. It is the best driving/riding/handling Jeep I've ever driven with 35's (or anything else, for that matter.) Every single other Jeep with 35's on wider rims has wandered on the road MUCH more than this setup. Some are almost a wrestling match at any speed above 50. Sorry, I'm just not buying the idea that they are hazardous, in any way. I'm no daredevil, either. Everything in my mod vision screams moderation. Nothing extreme here. I'll be happy to report back any time, at any mileage, how they are doing. I'll provide photos of how they are wearing, too, if anyone asks. I look forward to checking in at 25k or more. If unusual wear doesn't occur by then, it won't occur at all.

 

Ok, I knew the messenger was going to be shot on this one.
Bob and Steve both were engineers in BFG`s tire engineering group. When they came out with a 12.50 tire they looked at each other and said, “what’s your favorite number Steve, Steve quickly responded 8.5, Great! That’s the minimum we should put as a rim width, they both agreed and that’s how they came up with that number.
Meanwhile at the engineering group at Jeep, Steve and Bob, not related to the above mentioned Steve and bob. Had the same delima reguarding what the minimum rim width should be on the wheels that Jeep is going to offer in thier accessory catalog. So just like a BFG they figured they would do the same thin, only this time Bob got to chose the the number, and he to picked the exact same number 8.5
Coincidence? Maybe, but since both Steve`s and Bob`s were engineers with thousands of hours working at both places, so you would figure they would know what they are doing, especially since it leaked out to the other tire manufacturers, again with a lot of hours of testing and they had a friend in the Goverment who also was helping with load values and all things related to tires and rims, they all came up with a industry standard that both Uncle Sam, ‘not really their uncle” and the they all agreed on what minimum rim width that should be used.
But wait, since this is a free country people were free to decide on their own what they wanted to use as a minimum rim width, was this wrong to do? After all of the time and testing that all the tire manufacturers did? Once again it’s a free country and they did whatever worked for them. No harm, no foul.
I have to say that I too have been guilty of doing the same thing, but I figured if everyone else was doing it, why can’t I? Luckily I never had any issues at all, after what did both Steve`s and Bob`s know? Not to mention Uncle Sam again.

So after all of this happened I figured I would go to OK4WD in NJ who has been in business for 39 years,and they would not sell me 35’s and mount them on 7” wide rims. But then I thought I would call BFG myself and see why. I’m not in the tire industry or wheel industry. But I was told several reasons why they don’t want you to put a tire made for a 8.5 rim on a 7” rim, again I am not a engineer so a lot of it went over my head. And me being around long enough to know that I could miss quote what I was told, I simply suggested that anyone wanting the facts right from the horses mouth should call the tire manufacturers and even the wheel manufacturers.
All this being said, it’s still a free country, thank God! So you can do whatever you want.
I hope everyone enjoyed my little story, everyone needs a good laugh!

But seriously Dan I hear what your saying and I’m guilty several times over.
I’m not in any way trying to bust your nuts, I respect your opinion completely and agree that you should do what you want,
I’m just trying to make light of the subject and hope a few get a laugh out of it
Your in a red Jeep, I’m in a blue Jeep, that’s what makes this country great, freedom of choice.
Again, no disrespect to you and I hope that you at least get a laugh out of it.

 

No offense taken. I certainly respect your caution with This. Just remember, we're talking a very small difference...285's vs. 315's. I wouldn't have done it without reading/hearing/seeing about many, many who have run 35's on stock JK rims with good results. Btw, While I know guys with 37" KO2's on them, that's just too big a tire for me, on any rim, for a variety of personal reasons, from power loss to drive train wear. That said, the one's I've heard from and seen say they perform well. One thing that is absolutely not an issue for mine is rubbing. It isn't even close, so if that's a worry, it isn't there with the Mopar lift and KO2's.

 

Discount Tire's computer here had no issue with 315/70R17 Ridge Grapplers but they said no to the 35's.

 

Pulled the trigger and had the 315/70/17 KO2’s put on today. Only hiccup was them installing 3 E’s and a C at first when I wanted all C’s. Amateur hour!
Seems to ride fine, no issues so far.

Before and afters:

 

It really looks great! Were you able to fit the 315 on the stock carrier?

 

Yes, zero issues whatsoever.

 

Looks great! I would have liked it if the C's had come with white lettering. I think it looks good on the Rubis, no matter the color.

 

I've also been running the 315/70/17's on a stock Rubi wheel. None of the shops seemed to have an issue (discount tire/Northridge4x4)

 

Couldn’t agree more, wish it had the white lettering like the stockers. The E’s don’t have that option either.

 

It is kind of hit or miss. My stockers had black walls (on both sides.) But like you, I've seen some with them, too. Odd.

 

Can I ask what psi you run yours at? (Again I have C load range). My initial thoughts were 32-33 ish looking at the tables I found on the forum.

 

I am running my 35" BFG KM3`s at 31psi. so far it seems to ride best at amount, but like anything else everyone`s version is best for them