4x4Wire's TrailTalk Forums: Tire size

Duncan,
Welcome to the board!
I run 30x9.5 on the factory 6" alloy wheel on my 88 2DR. This size is the best compromise of height/width/weight for the 2DR, in my opinion.
A 2dr Montero so equipped will take you over some difficult terrain to some incredible places. The combination will be MORE than adequate to safely travel 95% of the open 4X routes on public land in California. We have a wide variety of terrrain here in my home state, so I would imagine that what works well here for general use would probably do well most other places, too.
The reason I like the 30x9.5's is that they improve the clearence under the diffs over what you get running the stock size 225/75's, but they don't kill your low gearing.
I am decidedly old school on this subject, as I grew up in a family where our family car was a first generation Bronco. I am 35, but I can remember when the 10-15 Gates Commando was the state of the off road art in tires. There wasn't such a thing as a 35X12.50. And nobody knew what a lift kit was and really didn't care......
And my uncle and I have fly fished all over California, traveling in his WWII Jeep, which is just as it was when it came home from the war, except for 31" tires and a roll bar, and the Navy insignia painted overwith primer.. We did the famous Rubicon in it many,many times.
The Rubicon is about the toughest trail I care to take my daily driver on, and I see no reason why my Montero, carefully driven, won't run the entire length of it...Running 30" tires. Some will say that you need a larger tire for safe handling. I disagree. The 30" on the stock wheel handles well on my ride, with the torsion bars adjusted to level ride, KYB shocks, AND the front sway bar totally removed.
I get rubbing of the inboard sidewall against the framerail with big cargo loads and rough, uneven, axle cross-up type terrain. This is minor, and only on the roughest roads I run with heavy loads.
I will concede that 30"s are no match for the "EXTREME" trails. I really don't think a Montero is the right tool for that job to begin with, and if I were in to 2 percentile off roading, I would get something crude and buildable that I could beat the **** out of and not care... Something lighter, with more torque and stouter running gear, and a lower crawl ratio... A flatfender or CJ 5 with 4.88 R&P's, an NP435 4 speed with 6-1 1 st gear, etc....
For the kind of trails that most of us are willing to do with a daily driver, the 2dr Montero is MORE than adequate with 30" rubber.
It doesn't look real trick, and doesn't impress people reading a spec list, but the combo works...at least for me.
Jerrold.

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