So... what's the "best" tire size/lift height etc...

jwfchase · Post by **jwfchase** » Sun Dec 28, 2008 9:28 pm

Just looking for opinions on the "PERFECT" setup in regards to modifying for increased tire size, and or doing a lift.

I'm looking for advice strictly in terms of function, and not fashion. Some questions I have are for anyone who has put on larger tire diameters/widths if it made a noticeable difference in fuel consumption, stability, off road ability etc. I'm trying to figure out if a lift is warranted, and if so, what is the smallest/greatest amount of lift that would be worthwhile (again, I'm not trying to make it look like a monster truck- in fact would prefer to lift as little as possible, if that's the way I go).

I know there are many opinions on this (which I what I'd love to hear!), especially on the tire size issue. I'd like to have a better idea of what type of aftermarket rim to start looking for, if I do end up going for bigger tires.

Anyhow, I appreciate any input on this!

Bessie the Mud Slayer · Sun Dec 28, 2008 9:34 pm

I'm interested in this one too. From what I can gather from other posts on the subject, my wife and I have decided to get a set of 30" tires with 16" rims. Haven't gotten as far as model #'s and quotes yet. But come march, we'll go that rout. A 2" lift would allow you to go 31 I believe on your tire size, but don't quote me on that.

jwfchase · Post by **jwfchase** » Sun Dec 28, 2008 9:42 pm

And BTW, Jessie, if you read this post, your diag of rims/offsets has been very useful... what's your opinion and tires/lifts sizes?...

jessef · Post by **jessef** » Sun Dec 28, 2008 11:58 pm

I think the best setup for 'all-around' 50/30/20 city/highway/offroad for an auto (99% of Delica's) is a 30x9.5x15 tire on a 15" rim.

I'm set on 15" rims because of the added rubber on the sidewalls. If you need to air down, there is more rubber.

On the other hand, a 16" rim will be lighter with the same diameter tire.

1" lift via Torsion bar re-index/crank to level out and a 1" lift in the rear via leaf spring re-arc.

With this, you get a solid ride for both city/offroad.

If you are looking at more off roading, a 31" tire size is great because it will give you a wider stance (more stable) with the right offset rims but you'll have to go higher. 2" in front/rear via suspension upgrade.

I personally like the ride with the 2" lift and 31's.

The Delica feels more stable around corners, much more stable on the highway over 100 km/hr and takes bumps,etc.. a lot softer.

Compromise is the cost of the larger tires, fuel consumption if you drive with the foot to the floor and cost/time to do the modifications.

Anything larger would require a lot of modifications and some compromises. Unless you're doing all the fabricating/experimenting, I'd leave it at 2" max lift.

So on an auto, a 30" diameter tire with a 1" lift is ideal.

On a 5spd, a 31" diameter tire with a 2" lift is ideal to offset the poor choice of gearing.

As for fuel consumption on an auto. Going to 31" tires, my mpg didn't change at all providing I drove 'conservatively'.

If I put my foot to the floor, then mileage is worse with larger tires.

Normal easy-go-driving with 235's, 30's or 31's are all very similar.

As for tires and rims, you can look on craigslist for a set of used rims for a Toyota or Chevy truck.

If I had a choice on 31x10.5 tires, I would opt for a 15x8 rim with 4" backspacing. That way you can still use the sliding door to it's max.

I have 15x8 rims with 3.75" backspacing and that 1/4 of an inch is all that is keeping me from sliding the side door all the way back.

You can also get away with a 15x7 rim with 31's as well.

For bang for you buck, performance and what you get out of it all, a 1" suspension lift and 30" tires is the best compromise.

jwfchase · Post by **jwfchase** » Mon Dec 29, 2008 12:52 am

As always- very informative, thanks!

bionic · Post by **bionic** » Mon Dec 29, 2008 9:57 am

..I'm currently running SportKing A/T's 30 x 9.5 R15's with a 2" lift all the way around on my 92 Exceed. A 1" lift will still allow rubbing on the front-rear wheel arch on fully compressed articulation. The reasoning for the 30's is they are the largest tire size on a 15" rim "readily" available in a 9.5" width...10.5 is overkill for most applications and causes too much road noise and increase fuel consumption. (yes...I know there are some tires that are better than others) I also have yet to see a 31 x 10.5 footprint out perform my 30's on a given day. The main reason for doing a lift at all was to use these tires which I has on my Trooper II and loved them.
The 2" lift was accomplished with 2" rear blocks..a front torsion re-index with 1" upper ball spacers. I use Rancho RS9115 rear and RS9036 front shocks. I will organize my pics and post a "how-to" soon. Turned out pretty good. I will probably Increase the rear shackle length by 1" with some weld shackles and tighten the front torsions as they are a tad soft....so overall the lift will be 2.5".

jessef · Post by **jessef** » Mon Dec 29, 2008 11:45 am

bionic wrote:A 1" lift will still allow rubbing on the front-rear wheel arch on fully compressed articulation.

I ran 30x9.5x15 BFG AT's with a 1" lift on our first Delica.

Fully compressed articulation, no rub while cranking the wheel side to side.

Had to remove the front bump steps. Aside from that, no trimming was needed.

It will also depend on the wheel offset whether or not you'll rub on the plastic side molding and on the inner/upper wheel arch.

I do a lot of wheelin'

bionic · Post by **bionic** » Mon Dec 29, 2008 12:52 pm

...gottcha. I should have specified that "stock" meant still running the stock mud guards..without those you are correct...probably wouldn't rub....just hate the underside of the van getting caked with road-sploodge.

Definately don't lable myself as a serious off-roader...just a weekender....without the kid= rare.

Artacoma · Post by **Artacoma** » Mon Dec 29, 2008 5:49 pm

I just put on Goodyear Silent Armour ATs 30" x 9.5 . Nice tires . No rubbing . No lift .Stock teardrop rims. All original mudflaps,steps etc. in place.Didn't even think to check for rubbing as they are only 5/8 " radius bigger than the 235's I was running.

jrman · Post by **jrman** » Mon Dec 29, 2008 6:55 pm

Jess is bang on of course as usual.
But I opted for the 31" simply out of aesthetics - I think the stock tires (215's if not mistaken) must be really anemic looking, and the 235's I had on originally were ok. Plus I have really enjoyed just messing around with this machine and cannot leave well enough alone, so I got a very very good deal on a set of tires & rims off craigslist and another from a friend who was "going bigger" on his Yota and "had at er". The front steps had to go of course, and I did end up having to do a considerable amount of trial and error trimming with my grinder before being "rub free" - much more than original expected but it was good therapy once I got started. I maxed out the torsion bars in the front, trimmed the bump stops to allow full suspension articulation, did nothing in the rear, and alignments is a must after this messing about.

I've currently got part of the lower trim off as well on the driver side, and will eventually be taking most / all of it off and going to Rhino on the lower 12" all the way around.

My avatar is with some American Racing wheels with too much offset in my opinion. The sliding door really could NOT open well with these.

I'm now running with a set of Pro Comp wheels and Ukranian Tire 31"x10.5x15" Roughriders - not the most exciting tire combo..but man, the price was unbeatable, and the offset is such that the door can now get to full open with only slight rubbing (one more project for the spring!). If you want to experiment first as I did - keep your eyes on Craigslist before dropping a grand or more on tire / wheel sets.

You can see by the pics that with the T-Bars cranked, I don't have a level ride - but I'm happy with it the way it is.

Oh yeah - and go with new shocks too if you think yrs aren't up to the job...made a huge difference in the quality of my ride.

Good luck.

bionic · Post by **bionic** » Mon Dec 29, 2008 9:41 pm

...just playing Devil's advocate here....
..any particular reason one would chose to max-out the torsions and have a harsh ride instead of a simple re-index and spacers??....one of the features I was impressed with on the Delica was the compliance of the ride- AND its offroad capability.
Do most who chose to run larger tires also chose to run the stock 6" wide rims and not go with more negative offset/wider rims? (3.75 backspacing remaining constant)..seems odd to stick with the narrow rims even if they allow bigger tires with no lift/mod for clearance....if off road performance was the sole purpose. I do know the sliding door rubs on my 7.5" steelies, but other than that.........

Erebus · Post by **Erebus** » Tue Dec 30, 2008 1:37 pm

bionic wrote:Do most who chose to run larger tires also chose to run the stock 6" wide rims and not go with more negative offset/wider rims?

Every tire shop I checked with in Calgary when I was tire shopping said that 235/75 was the biggest tire they would put on a 15x6 rim. Anything bigger should have a wider rim, otherwise the tire risks coming off in hard cornering.

Post by **FalcoColumbarius** » Tue Dec 30, 2008 4:08 pm

I really dig my 235/75R15's Yokohamas. I added a leaf to my rear suspension which lifted the aft end by about an inch and an half. I don't think I would want to lift her any more than that, personally ~ maybe if I get the next one but then I would be building a race machine. As for the Miss Lil' Bitchi ~ she is an all rounder and the lower your profile the more places you get into (or out of). These vehicles are blessed with an excellent displacement: I had a discussion with a guy driving a big shiny "Power Wagon" that requires a ladder to get into and parking is a challenge. It became apparent that the Miss Lil' Bitchi could get more places than "Power Wagon"; as she can fit between more trees; a short wheel base that can drive around a tree; a profile that can fit under more branches and fallen trees; has such a low centre of gravity that she can traverse steep angles without falling over.... and.... you got to agree... we are not talking about the clearance of a Lamborghini ~ the stock Delica has a fair amount of clearance to start with.

Falco.

bionic · Post by **bionic** » Wed Dec 31, 2008 2:05 am

...my point was the advantage of more negative offset for lateral stability WITH lift - not necessarily strength off the bead seat of the tire on the rim. I think if I could get away with running my Deli stock height with my 30's I would but can't bring myself to do away with the guards. (given that my rims are 7.5 wide and this is the leading cause of my clearance issues) In a perfect world I would be running 7" rims with my tires and have a fully functioning sliding door AND gain the added stability (very little mind you) ...but mostly, I must say I just prefer the looks of a tire flush with the outside of the wheel arch.

Erebus · Post by **Erebus** » Wed Dec 31, 2008 10:21 am

bionic wrote:...my point was the advantage of more negative offset for lateral stability

But you are also changing the entire suspension geometry if the centre (left/right) of the tires is moved out with respect to where the designers of the front suspension designed it. That can, depending on the type of front suspension, cause way more issues than that extra couple of inchs in stabilty.

And that's the extent of my suspension knowledge, so I can't say exactly what effect it would have with the Deli's suspension type.

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