Tire Wheel Opinion

[woodhout]

Soliciting opinions, both functional and aesthetic, for the following tire/wheel combo. I don't want to trim any cladding if I can help it and from looking at other posts I think I may be okay. Am I right?

My goal is to fill out the wheel well and lean towards focusing on the VX's sport handling and not off-road ability. Improved ride quality would be nice but I understand that's mutually exclusive with handling to a degree. I'm thinking about:

20" Chrome Ultra Marauder Wheels (http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/WheelCloseUpServlet?target=runWheelSearch&initialPartNumber=6152983C&wheelMake=Ultra&wheelModel=Marauder&wheelFinish=Chrome+Plated&showRear=no&autoMake=Isuzu&autoModel=Vehicross&autoYear=2001&autoModClar=&filterSize=All&filterFinish=All&filterSpecial=false&filterBrand=All&filterNew=All&sort=Price)

20" General Grabber UHP (http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=General&tireModel=Grabber+UHP&partnum=755VR0GRUHPXL&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes)


The calculator at 1010tire.com says this should result in an OD of 31.9". So...what do you think?

[RamAirZ]

You'd probably have to do a small bit of trimming for 32's unless you lift the truck, stock height I'm pretty sure you will. I do like the wheel/tire combo though. You'd need the stock offset/width wheels to reduce your trimming and even then some guys have had to do a little bit

[Luna X]

I'm runnin' 50 series tires on my 20" wheels, and I had to trim the corner of the front bumper cover. Basically, I just rounded the corner off, and you can't tell it was even touched... ;)

[RamAirZ]

What's your tire size Luna? I only trimmed the inside of the front bumper for the 33's and it looks factory but had to do some trimming/banging on the rear of the fender. Can't tell unless you get inside the fender and look

[Luna X]

My tires are Nitto 255/50-20... they are not as big in overall diameter as yours.
Funny thing is, I had these on a Rodeo first, and I had to do what you did... "get a bigger hammer" for the back of the wheel well. So, at least that shows that the VX has better ground clearance from the get-go. ;)

[RamAirZ]

Ya your tire is about 2" shorter (little less) than the tire he wants (30.04" compared to 31.9"). What year Rodeo was it? I wouldn't say ground clearance but larger wheel wells (but sure the VX has more clearance too, stock listing is bout .5" more than a 99' Rodeo), I know my 1st gen Rodeo had much larger wheel wells than the VX but the 2nd gens (98 and up) have tiny wheel wells. They need so much trimming for larger tires than stock unless you suspension lift AND body lift and don't wheel it much lol

[Luna X]

It was a 2000 Rodeo... so, we got rid of one Isuzu with 4 drs, for one with 2 drs. Gotta love the styling of the VX!

Not sure if anyone has come across this site, but I love how you can compare tire sizes at a glance...
http://autorepair.about.com/gi/o.htm?zi=1/XJ&zTi=1&sdn=autorepair&cdn=autos&tm=14&gps=251_60_1090_450&f=21&su=p284.9.336.ip_p706.16.336.ip_&tt=2&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

[JHarris1385]

In my sig...the 20's are 265/55-20. No trimming, but that was due to offset. Go 265 not 275 and you should be fine.

[RamAirZ]

I use www.f-body.org/gears and the Miata calculator alot too. Good tools

[vt_maverick]

I was seriously skittish about trimming my cladding to fit my +2 offset 265/60/18's, but honestly it's so barely noticeable that I'd do it again in a heart beat.

Go for it.

[VX KAT]

I use www.f-body.org/gears and the Miata calculator alot too. Good tools

Yeah, I've used that Miata site too for a while, and also I prefer the RIMSnTIRES.com calculator, very visual for me.
http://www.rimsntires.com/rt_specs.jsp
And now that MPH calculator you included is great!

[RamAirZ]

Yeah I love the f-body one, you need to know your gear ratios for the trans and axle but that's nothing a few minutes on the intraweb can't bring up for you and it breaks it down for mph per gear per rpm which is awesome. For when I was building drag cars, it's nice to see the rpm drop when you shift gears at a certain rpm/speed.

[Mile High VX]

I was seriously skittish about trimming my cladding to fit my +2 offset 265/60/18's, but honestly it's so barely noticeable that I'd do it again in a heart beat.

Go for it.

x2 for my +6 offset, but I'd do it again as well. Take your time, use the right tool and nobody will ever notice. In fact one of the previous owners has trimmed a bit for oversize tires on the stock rims and I couldn't even tell.

[woodhout]

Thanks for the feedback, tips, and advice everyone!

[Riff Raff]

Soliciting opinions, both functional and aesthetic, for the following tire/wheel combo. I don't want to trim any cladding if I can help it and from looking at other posts I think I may be okay. Am I right?

My goal is to fill out the wheel well and lean towards focusing on the VX's sport handling and not off-road ability. Improved ride quality would be nice but I understand that's mutually exclusive with handling to a degree. I'm thinking about:

20" Chrome Ultra Marauder Wheels (http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/WheelCloseUpServlet?target=runWheelSearch&initialPartNumber=6152983C&wheelMake=Ultra&wheelModel=Marauder&wheelFinish=Chrome+Plated&showRear=no&autoMake=Isuzu&autoModel=Vehicross&autoYear=2001&autoModClar=&filterSize=All&filterFinish=All&filterSpecial=false&filterBrand=All&filterNew=All&sort=Price)

20" General Grabber UHP (http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=General&tireModel=Grabber+UHP&partnum=755VR0GRUHPXL&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes)


The calculator at 1010tire.com says this should result in an OD of 31.9". So...what do you think?

Holy cow, what an awesome price on those wheels at 73% off!!! Excellent choice of tire-- the Grabber UHP is a perfect tire for the "street". However, your chosen tire size of 275/55R20 (31.9" O.D./40 lbs) is be a bit too tall in O.D. when mounted on those aftermarket rims and will rub like crazy.

The OEM tire of the VX is 29.5" O.D., so come down in O.D. to about 30.5" O.D. and you'll be fine with those wider rims.

I recommend the Grabber UHP in either of the two(2) tire sizes below:

A. 265/50R20 (30.4" O.D./37 lbs)
These will mount a lot better, and will likely not rub and may/may not require cladding trim (you won't know until they're actually on the VX). If you are totally skittish about any cladding trim, then this would be my recommendation.

B. 295/45R20 (30.5" O.D./39 lbs)
These are very wide at 295 series width, and will likely rub which will require a tad bit of cladding trim. However, they will look totally bad-@ss once fitted on the VX and give the VX a much wider, meaner stance. If you are willing to trim a little bit of the inner cladding, then this would be my recommendation.

:bgwb:

[vt_maverick]

B. 295/45R20 (30.5" O.D./39 lbs)
These are very wide at 295 series width, and will likely rub which will require a tad bit of cladding trim. However, they will look totally bad-@ss once fitted on the VX and give the VX a much wider, meaner stance. If you are willing to trim a little bit of the inner cladding, then this would be my recommendation.


I would strongly recommend against a 295 width on that particular rim. The offset is "0" which means the inside of your wheel will sit 38mm out farther than stock. Add onto that an additional 50mm of section width over OEM tires, and you're going to have a MUCH larger swing arc, therefore requiring signficant trimming. I'm only running 265 width tires but because my offset is 40mm wider than stock, I've had to do at least as much trimming as those running 285's on stock rims. If you're trying to lean more towards sport than offroad, chopping up your cladding to fit tires that will likely stick out several inches from the body would (IMHO) look more ricey than sporty.

Riff's Option A is almost certainly a better choice.

[JHarris1385]

I recommend the Grabber UHP in either of the two(2) tire sizes below:

A. 265/50R20 (30.4" O.D./37 lbs)
These will mount a lot better, and will likely not rub and may/may not require cladding trim (you won't know until they're actually on the VX). If you are totally skittish about any cladding trim, then this would be my recommendation.

B. 295/45R20 (30.5" O.D./39 lbs)
These are very wide at 295 series width, and will likely rub which will require a tad bit of cladding trim. However, they will look totally bad-@ss once fitted on the VX and give the VX a much wider, meaner stance. If you are willing to trim a little bit of the inner cladding, then this would be my recommendation.

:bgwb:

Slightly skewed a little. The ODs are 30.43 and 30.45 respectively. I understand rounding but it would be much easier said only 2 tenths difference. However with the 295, that is going to be quite a bit of overhang lip over the tire and is not needed to such an extent at 11.61 inches of width and a 9' rim.

[etlsport]

Before you get too excited give tire rack a call. Last time I tried to order ultra marauder wheels from them in a six lug application for a customer, they only has 2 wheels left.

If they are available, the smaller your tire the better with that zero offset the better. These wheels are much wider than factory probably. The 38mm difference in offset is assuming the same width. In reality it's higher than that by half of the width difference of the wheels from factory. So an 8" wide wheel is roughly 36 mm wider to begin with. So half of that, 16mm plus the 38mm offset difference.

[BeeVenom]

I've got 20" wheels so similar to the ones you want to buy. I'm wondering if they're made by the same manufacturer with different names depending on vendor. Anyway, the tires I have are Yokohama Parada's Spec-X 265/50-20 and they just fit with no clearance problems. Only had to tweak the torsion bars a few turns for clearance. NO cladding interferance at all.
I noticed you were looking at 55-series tires. With the 275 width and the tallness of the 55's I believe you WILL run into problems with cladding for sure! Hope that helps in your decision. By the way, I love the Parada's. Scott

[Riff Raff]

Slightly skewed a little. The ODs are 30.43 and 30.45 respectively. I understand rounding but it would be much easier said only 2 tenths difference.

LOL. Hmmm; sorry but no skewing involved here and no rounding-off was done, as my spec quotations were taken directly from the TireRack website and then re-confirmed with the manufacturer website of General Tire. Not sure where you got your sizing data, and BTW your math difference is 2 HUNDRETHS, not 2 tenths (got cha').:yeso:

After a quick re-visit to both TireRack & General Tire websites, I discovered the 265/50R20 (30.4" O.D./37 lbs) is "discontinued" in the Grabber UHP. However, there are numerous comparable tires by other brands at www.Tires-Easy.com in that same specific size available.

I agree the wheels are the culprit in creating the massive rubbing issues, as is too often the case with many aftermarket wheels placed on the VX. Perhaps that's why the wheels are marked 73% off on sale, as nobody else wanted to buy the weird off-set. Go figure.

If the Grabber UHP still has to be the "chosen" tire, then perhaps an alternate size of 275/45R20 (29.7" O.D./33.6 lbs) might work-out. At 29.7" O.D., it is almost dead-on with the OEM tire. Further, the size of 275/45R20 should be thrown into the mix of overall consideration as well.

:bgwb:

[JHarris1385]

http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/infoTireMath.dos

You did get me on the hundreths!

Those figures were rounded numbers but if you didnt see the full digits you would not know better, so I don't blame you. I thought you rounded yourself and wondered why since they are so close.

I would not go anywhere lower than 50 series or you are getting into rubberband thickness tire territory that does not look all that good on a VX.

I am pretty sure the offset and backspacing of these are the same as my ProComps. Nothing to be afraid of. I am glad someone is taking advantage of the link of tirerack's sales that I posted a month back. You can online check if they have a full set avail. It says it under the description.

[vt_maverick]

I am pretty sure the offset and backspacing of these are the same as my ProComps. Nothing to be afraid of.

Ditto. In fact, going to a much lower offset actually gives you the advantage of a wider stance/track without having to add wider and therefore heavier tires. If you're going for sporty performance/handling, that's a good duo.

[tom4bren]

Y'all need to quit playin wit dis boyz head.

Dude, Go-fer-broke. 3" lift, offset from hell & 33x12.50. Then just trim the cladding as needed.

http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/17266/ppuser/2699

Just kidding (kinda). The look isn't for everyone but it does get lots of attention wherever I go.

If you do lift & decide later that the CV angle needs some relief, let me know. I can get the diff brackets modified to put the angles back to 'near stock'.

Tom

[VXR]

The look isn't for everyone but it does get lots of attention wherever I go

that's only cuz they think it's a fancy cab:yesb:

[tom4bren]

You sir, ain't my bestest friend no more:slap:

[VXR]

You sir, ain't my bestest friend no more:slap:

LOL sorry I could not resist:yesb: