New Tires

31 x 10.5 x 15 is the largest size for a stock TJ with no lift. BFG All Terrain TA's are a great all around tire.

Tom

31s are as big as you'd want to go with a stock TJ. I just put these on a few weeks back & have really liked them. Several guys at work have them on larger trucks and are also impressed. You also can't go wrong with BFGs.

After blowing out one of my Kelly Safaris on a sharp rock in the mountains, I put Goodyear Wrangler MTR on the XJ. Awesome tires! Very tough and highly recommended.

A couple of posts ago I saw something about it is not good to have a gear ratio of 3.07 with larger tires. What can expect if I put these tires on? Also how much/difficult would it be to change my gearing to 3.73/4.10?

Thanks

3.07:1 is a good ratio for highway cruising - my '98 XJ Sport is so equipped. Off road performance is good as well in my Jeep.

If you're going to run larger tires, a lower (higher numerically) gear ratio would be beneficial. Changing your gearing to 3.73 or 4.10 is going to cost some money. You need to do both axles. Might as well install a limited slip or locker differentials at the same time, if your jeep is not already equipped with it.

Why larger tires? I'm using (stock size) Goodyear Wrangler MTR's on my XJ. The performance on local jeep trails is excellent. My '62 Willys has

215/85R16 Bridgestone Dueler AT Revos (same size as the factory specified bias ply tires). It handles beautifully. Are you actually using your jeep offroad or will the larger tires be installed to impress other jeep owners at the local Dairy Queen parking lot?

Think twice before installing larger tires. Ride and handling will be adversely affected. Wear and tear on drivetrain and axle components will increase.

Best regards, Dave Rose Cactus Cowboy Big Wonderful Wyoming '49 Willys Pickup (parts truck) '62 Willys Pickup 4WD 226 '98 XJ Sport O|||||||O

Ride and handling will be

What??? The ride with bigger tires can be every bit as good as it can be with smaller tires, often better due to the increased ability of the larger sidewall to flex and make the ride smoother. Handling??? You're worried about handling with a Jeep? Buy a small sports car if handling is a big issue. Besides, going to a reasonably sized larger tire won't affect handling in a significant way with proper wheel sizing.

Finally, your claim of additional wear on drivetrain and axle components is a stretch as well. With reasonably sized "larger" tires, the axles, gears, etc. on a Jeep won't even notice their larger size.

Jerry

-- Jerry Bransford To email, remove 'me' from my email address N6TAY, PP-ASEL See the Geezer Jeep at

Hello Jerry,

It's a matter of how much larger we're talking about. I certainly wouldn't disagree that a slightly larger tire will have little if any negative impacts. However, the original poster is talking about swapping out ring & pinion gears, suggesting a radical change to significantly larger tires.

Yes, I am "worried about handling with a Jeep", with no apologies. When I bought my '62 Willys pickup, it had 15" aftermarket rims with huge 'super swamper' type tires. It was very difficult to steer, especially at low speed. I now have 215/85R16 radials on the truck. They're almost exactly the same size as original equipment 7.00x16 bias ply. Ride and handling both on and off road is so much better it's remarkable.

I will be using this for offroading, but I am not sure if I want to put the money into it now. I don't do much offorading with it now, but I have been having the "itch" to do so. Thanks for all the information, but I think I might need rethink my tire size until this jeep is not my primary form of transportation and I can do more work with the gearing. Hell it might be easier to buy some Dana 44's and replace the whole axle. But not at this time.