So my gf has a stock 98 cherokee right now. she wants to lift it but not sure how much. She was able to grab a set of 255/85r16 bfg radial mud terrain km1 half treads for free (bfg says equal to 33's height wise). and another friend has a 3.5in lift he is selling ($100, 3 years old, good condition) for a bigger one. she still needs rims for the new tires. (her stock are only 15in rims)

1st, do you think that the 3.5in lift will be enough to make room for the kms, and is it worth it? (we can trim fenders if we need as long as its not insane amounts)

2nd, what size rims (width wise) will she need. i had one person say 16X7in, is that right?

3rd, if the 3.5 wont work what is the minimum that would? (preferably cheaper)

thanks for the help guys.

 

How hard is she going to wheel? That will affect how much trimming you need to do. 16x7 are ok but make sure they've got 4.25" BS or less.

 

You'd want 16x8 if you go wider than a 10" tire. You can run on 7s but most shops wont install the rubber.

You can vet away with minor trimming as long as you get.the correct bump stops.

 

not a ton, probably 1 or 2 times month. but when we do it will not be easy. we like to have fun.

 

This should help quite a bit...

https://www.cherokeeforum.com/f2/low...ks-tips-32980/

 

I have a 3.5 RE super flex and I run 33s, I had to BFH parts of the fenders, but doesnt rub

 

according to http://wscope.com/tire_conversion_chart.htm the 255/85 is 10 inches wide. i have 31X10.50s with an 8in wide rim (mine are 15in tall though). on that i was thinking 7in wide rim would work well for a 10in wide tire. or do you think an 16X8 would work better?

that sounds about what we are looking at for hers, can you post some pics?

 

The rim diameter has nothing to do with how wide of a tire you can run. Its the width of the rim that matters.

At only 10" you should be fine.

And seriously check out KTMracer's thread. Its got tons of great info.

 

yeah, a 255 will fit perfectly on a 7". For wheeling, you really wouldnt even want a wider rim than 7" as the wider rim will just make it easier to roll a bead off. Ive got a 33x12.50 mounted on a 7" wide rim as a spare and its more than good to go. I wouldnt really want to have all 4 wheels like that full time though. But thats a 315(ish) not a 255, big difference

 

ok thanks. now does anyone know where i could get a cheap set?

 

well I run a older Rough country 3" lift kit... and 285/75/16 (measures in at 33.2" x 11.25") with soft 8 16x8 rims...

this is what I did

 

thats a good looking rig, are your flares just yard trimming? nice

so for a 10in wide tire should i stick with 16X7 or go to 16X8 rim?

 

255x85/16 translate to 33.7x10.4x16, so you'll need to lift it enough to clear the 33"+ tall tires.

IMO, you should go with at least 8" wide rims.

 

https://www.cherokeeforum.com/member...3/albums/blah/

 

i ran 33x12.5's on 3.5" of lift and 3 5/8" backspacing

just trimmed a little past the fender mounting holes and extended my bumpstops