Correct rim size for a 265/70r17 tire with a 4” lift

[Motorfish]

Hey, I’m a noob to the forum, and my just acquired ‘01 XJ, with a 4” lift. It has 265/70r17 BFG All Terrains KO2s on Raceline Avenger rims with adapters. They rub pretty bad, and stick out of the fenders a bit too much for my liking. Would anyone know who makes a rim that would work without adapters, that won’t rub. From my research, these tires are not too big, with a 4” lift.
Thanks!

 

[75SV1]

I take it that they rub on the fenders and not turning. I used WJ bearing Hubs on mine. So, no spacer. They are near the same height as the 2000-01 XJ hub bearings. I use mine on a WJ Big Brake swap. Also, WJ Rims. I forget what size tires I have on that XJ.

 

[Motorfish]

Thanks for the reply. They rub when turned, ok in a straight line. I’m leaning towards selling what I have and going with a OEM rim and running 31x10.5/16 tires. There’s a guy selling a set locally, for a fair price. From what I’ve been reading, that tire should fit without any clearance problems, with a 4” lift.

 

[75SV1]

The outer fender or the inner? Using a WJ hub bearing would bring the tire in the width of your adapters. Just want to be clear. I can find out what tires I run on mine. The equate to a 32.5 10.5 width and R17. I might have had to have nuts to help with rubbing when turning. I do have WJ Big Brakes.

 

[Motorfish]

They rub on the back of the front fenders pretty bad. Tire clears the fenders by about 3/4”. There’s evidence that they rub on the front of the front fenders also. Due to being technically challenged, I can’t figure out how to post pictures.
Converting to WJ hubs sounds like a great upgrade, especially with the large brakes, but I really don’t wanna get into a big expensive project right now.

 

[75SV1]

Car-Part.com--Used Auto Parts Market

I've looked at various times for rims that would fit the projects I wanted to do. I remember the Jeep Liberty has an option for 17" rims. So, 5 on 4.5. Also, an option for 18" rims. I think I saw one of the 17" rims. Not to my taste though. Try looking on the link above. I did do a search. Gray and Chrome. About $50 and up each.

 

[Motorfish]

Thanks for that info and link. That would be the easiest option. Looks like there’s a set available at a reasonable distance from me. Do you think my 265/70r17 tires on Liberty rims would fit good?

 

[XJlimitedx99]

To answer your question, the correct rim size is 17" diameter (duh), and 7-9" wide. The width is called out from BFG on their website for that particular tire in that size.

The rim width and wheel offset is very likely cast into the back of your wheels somewhere.

The bigger question I think you're getting at is addressing the rubbing, which will determine what wheel backspacing (or offset) you need. To answer that, we need to know where its rubbing and under what circumstances. What are the tires rubbing on?

You say during turning, and also say you run adapters and the wheels are quite wide. What I'm envisioning is you have a very low backspacing (i.e. very high offset) that is giving you a very large scrub radius and making your wheels move much farther fore/aft when you steer than is ideal.

New wheels are certainly an option. Getting some with the proper lug pattern that do not require spacers or adapters would bring your wheels in under the fenders and reduce your scrub radius. IMO stay away from 16" wheels. They are much less common than 15" and 17" and tire choice is limited. 15's have been around forever and are cheap, but 17's have been gaining in popularity and will probably take over in the coming years. They're still quite a bit more expensive right now.

 

[75SV1]

OK, I'm running a 265/70R17. So, 31.6 and 10.4 width. So, basically a 32 -10.5. So, same as you have. As before, I am using a WJ Big Brake setup. It needed some nuts welded on the steering stops. Yours would have adjustable ones. I did make a pair of WJ Knuckles with adjustable steering stops and pressed in 1/4" spacers. I haven't installed them yet.

 

[Motorfish]

The adjustable steering stops are so corroded that I am afraid to break them off. I found these rims at Summit, 17 x 8 with a 4.5 inch backspacing, at zero offset. https://www.summitracing.com/parts/brw-942781245 These should work, no? If the only problem is the steering stops, I could figure something out. Knuckles are really corroded, maybe change them in the future.

 

[75SV1]

I don't have an answer. Also, I don't know if just putting in the tires with the Liberty rims would work, with out adjusting the steering stops. The WJ stops are different.