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Wheel and tire question

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Old 02-14-2009 | 05:33 PM
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Question Wheel and tire question

Hi there,

My fiance just bought an '09 Wrangler (2dr) and we are lookin to get rid of the stock rims. lookin to go for an old school look and go with 15" steel rims (going with Cragar quick trick style)

They are 15x8 with 3.75" backspace. First... this WILL work right? I see a few guys runnin 15's here but most are 15x10's and they are runnin spacers.

Also... lookin to step up to soe 33" tires (most likely 33x12.50 General grabbers) Will there be any clearance issues? I'm not a Jeep guy myself, and have searched around here quite a bit, but not found the info I'm lookin for.

this will be on stock suspension/ ride height. A body lift may be in teh future, so minimal rubbing at full lock would be OK untill that time...

Any info would be appriciated
Old 02-14-2009 | 05:51 PM
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From all I have read, 15's are hit and miss, even the same wheel may fit on one Jeep but not the next. Good luck
Old 02-14-2009 | 07:55 PM
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Yeah, I was faced with the same problem with my truck. very hit and miss.

After some more diggin around here it seems like the wheels that have rolled edge holes (like the soft 8's and D windows) are having minor issues. Seeing as the quick tricks don't have that I should be ok. And it appears that 33's will work with minor rubbing. I can live with that for now.

If I gotta do some minor grinding on the calipers I don't mind. And again, the ones doing that seem mostly soft 8's and the like, and/or with D44's.

Hopefully it goes smoothly...
Old 02-15-2009 | 05:14 PM
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so no one runnin 15x8's got anything to add?
Old 02-16-2009 | 06:04 AM
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Originally Posted by WhiskeyMan
Hi there,

My fiance just bought an '09 Wrangler (2dr) and we are lookin to get rid of the stock rims. lookin to go for an old school look and go with 15" steel rims (going with Cragar quick trick style)

They are 15x8 with 3.75" backspace. First... this WILL work right? I see a few guys runnin 15's here but most are 15x10's and they are runnin spacers.

Also... lookin to step up to soe 33" tires (most likely 33x12.50 General grabbers) Will there be any clearance issues? I'm not a Jeep guy myself, and have searched around here quite a bit, but not found the info I'm lookin for.

this will be on stock suspension/ ride height. A body lift may be in teh future, so minimal rubbing at full lock would be OK untill that time...

Any info would be appriciated
You'd better be careful with that set-up. 3.75 bs is pushing it and will put a lot of pressure on ball joints, etc. Plus, have you looked at your brake calipers?? I've read that the guys running the 15"s have to shave the calipers down so they'll fit.
Old 02-18-2009 | 08:01 PM
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Originally Posted by Calypso
You'd better be careful with that set-up. 3.75 bs is pushing it and will put a lot of pressure on ball joints, etc. Plus, have you looked at your brake calipers?? I've read that the guys running the 15"s have to shave the calipers down so they'll fit.

LOL, i dunno what it is 'round here. Soon as you mention anything more that 5" BS people freak out lol. Yeah, 3.75 is gonna put a bit more stress on it, but It aint gonna kill it that quick. sure it seems alot compared to stock, but it's not worrysome to me.

Yeah, i saw the thread on grinding after I posted this. Like I said, most seem to be running into issues with styles that have rolled edge holes. not the case with this design. and if I gotta grind... no biggie. its minimal, and theres lots of material there.
Old 02-18-2009 | 08:03 PM
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usually you can find some 15" wheels that will fit. be careful with that backspacing though that may hurt you and its gonna push the tire way up against the bumper on the tire carrier. i heard 4.5+ backspacing is the way to go
Old 02-20-2009 | 08:58 PM
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Originally Posted by deanthemachine04
be careful with that backspacing though that may hurt you and its gonna push the tire way up against the bumper on the tire carrier. i heard 4.5+ backspacing is the way to go
HUH?!?!?

3.75 will push it FARTHER away from the carrier. lol
Old 02-20-2009 | 09:01 PM
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It seems i have found what I am lookin for anyways. 15x8 s andd 33 s will work with little to no issues. A few threads popped up lately with some good info...

Seems a few guys are goin this way. Nice to see. i am really gettin sick of the big wheel little tire thing. I'm sorry, but it looks retarded...
Old 02-20-2009 | 10:06 PM
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A lot of people are running the Pro Comps in 15s with no issues... 15x8 or 15x10 will work. They are a little more money than Cragars b/c they are alloy, but IMO they look nicer anyway and the less weight might be nice as well. Worth the extra $40 or so a wheel? To me it is... this is what I plan to do...

I will probably do BFG A/Ts but the General Grabber is a good idea with similar tread. Also very cheap in 33x12.5x15... I think tirerack said $114 per tire, but they are "special order". Where do you plan to get your grabbers?



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