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00n8 07-21-2021 08:13 PM

18" Bubble Tires
 
Hi guys, new to this forum, not new to the auto world and sharing. I wrote a little guide for LX470/Landcruiser owners seeking to supercharge their rigs: https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/hun...-guide.585427/

I searched hi and low to find this and if it's been answered, apologies.

I'm in an area with lots of potholes and I have 18" stock wheels on a 2012 E70 35d, [eddit: starting with 255/55/18 on 8.5" wide BMW stock wheels]. I'm trying to find a case study of someone with what I call "bubble wheels", the biggest sidewall, biggest tires that will fit stock without modification (not looking to trim or mess with the wheel areas).

Ideally all road/wet use.

No Off Roading will be done with this rig, maybe a little sand at the beach.

Looking to replace a set of tires and want maximum pothole protection.

Thanks for your suggestions!

Henn28 07-21-2021 10:49 PM

Search the forum for “overland” and you’ll find a great thread with a lot of good wheel and tire info for guys wanting to go bigger, and up (lift).

If you are looking for a better ride on crappy roads, you may want to consider 17 or 16” wheels. I’ve got 275/70/16 Yokohama Geolanders mounted on Method Race Wheels model 701s. Love them, but it took some work with the angle grinder to get them to play nicely with the calipers and other suspension bits. I picked them because they were one of the few that came in a 5x120 pattern and a zero offset. Total diameter is around 31.2 and they rubbed at the lock until I went at the wheel wells with a heat gun. It didn’t need too much massaging tho. I don’t think I could run them on anything rough without the 1.5” lift I’ve got on it.

5x120 bolt pattern is a limiting factor for more off road oriented stuff, but you can always go with adapters if you are ok with added complexity.

00n8 07-21-2021 11:30 PM

I don't care about off road and definately no adapters or spacers. Just looking for max sidewall. Do 17s fit around the calipers? Ideally I want to just keep the 18x8.5 I have and just get a little extra sidewall. Like 265/60/18 but I don't know if those need spacers too?

smassey321 07-22-2021 07:26 AM

I don't think 17"s will fit over the brakes. Diesel has bigger brakes than the gas I6. And V8 has even bigger.

andrewwynn 07-22-2021 07:57 AM

Look in the e53 section. Somebody did similar to your wish but they did go bigger diameter for off road.

I think the lug circles match gm 120mm or so the rims don't need to be from BMW possibly (though you may lose the hub centering).

The stock smaller rims on e53 are 17s. Tires are 235/65-17.

https://tiresize.com/calculator/

That site let's you find alternate sizes.

235/70-16 appears to be an exact match for 255/55-18. I don't know what the minimum wheel size will fit over the brake rotors but I've driven many miles on 235/65-17 and those are quite soft compared to the 255/55-18 the 235/70-16 might be all the balloon you need.

00n8 07-22-2021 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andrewwynn (Post 1207165)
Look in the e53 section. Somebody did similar to your wish but they did go bigger diameter for off road.

I think the lug circles match gm 120mm or so the rims don't need to be from BMW possibly (though you may lose the hub centering).

The stock smaller rims on e53 are 17s. Tires are 235/65-17.

https://tiresize.com/calculator/

That site let's you find alternate sizes.

235/70-16 appears to be an exact match for 255/55-18. I don't know what the minimum wheel size will fit over the brake rotors but I've driven many miles on 235/65-17 and those are quite soft compared to the 255/55-18 the 235/70-16 might be all the balloon you need.

Sounds like the 16s won't fit over diesel calibers... Good thoughts though! Thanks.

andrewwynn 07-22-2021 01:15 PM

Unless I missed something you didn't say the size of tire you are starting with but the baseline tire I suspect is 255/55/18

Going to a wider cross section will make for a stiffer not softer ride. Thinner cross section with a taller ratio will get you a softer ride but to get more height you either need to use smaller wheels or end up with taller tires that will throw off your speedometer more than it already is (BMW speedometer reads 3mph high except in Japan).

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...2517bba09d.jpg
245/60 looks promising.

00n8 07-22-2021 01:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andrewwynn (Post 1207181)
Unless I missed something you didn't say the size of tire you are starting with but the baseline tire I suspect is 255/55/18

Going to a wider cross section will make for a stiffer not softer ride. Thinner cross section with a taller ratio will get you a softer ride but to get more height you either need to use smaller wheels or end up with taller tires that will throw off your speedometer more than it already is (BMW speedometer reads 3mph high except in Japan).

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...2517bba09d.jpg
245/60 looks promising.

Very helpful thank you! Yes starting with 255/55/18 on 8.5" wide BMW stock wheels. Simply stated, just looking for a little taller ratio, without spacers, adapters or new wheels, if it throws off the spedo, no big deal.

andrewwynn 07-22-2021 01:27 PM

245/60 what I would use. "235" tires actually have 190mm patch so you lose a lot of grip. Slightly narrower but going from 55/60 will make for softer taller tire to remove some rattle from the pothole.

You can work on lower psi also until you find you are wearing outside tread. Maybe 30 vs. 32 psi. Three risk is hitting a deep enough hole you can have a rim strike and kill the tire the rim and the bearing.

andrewwynn 07-22-2021 01:36 PM

18" Bubble Tires
 
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...31c1f8247a.jpg
245/65 add 1.5" from stock. That's only 3/4 different radius but will be a lot softer ride though potholes.

I really notice the difference when I ride on my 235/65/17. Much softer ride. Really can tell the difference but I get more body roll and can't corner like I'm used to.

Nice for road trips though. Soaks up those expansion joints on the freeways.

A little math shows that with 245/65/18 you will be going 79 when the car thinks it's going 75 but it will be already be reporting 78 so it actually improves the accuracy of the speedometer.

(It will throw off mpg and possibly distance to empty but those can be corrected)

Henn28 07-22-2021 09:13 PM

My 16s needed some massaging with the angle grinder. Not much, maybe a 32nd off the back of the calipers in select places. The edges needed to be knocked off the control arm joint at its lowest point inside the wheel (this was the worst rubbing) and a few small corners taken off the dust shield. Nothing cosmic if you are OK with a little custom work, totally doable and its running great with no rubbing.

I wonder if 16"wheels from a different manufacturer would behave differently? In retrospect I would have ordered one wheel and test fit it before ordering all four. I did pop one on the hub before getting the tires mounted, but I neglected to spin it! I fixated on the Method wheels I bought because they came in a 5x120 pattern...but only in 16".

https://xoutpost.com/members/henn28-...16-x5-july.jpg

***I forgot to add that 17" would have cleared easily since the 16's were only rubbing by between a 32nd to a 16th max. I've had a chance to drive it now for a few weeks with the full wheels/tires, lift and new subframe bushings installed and my biggest observation is that the ride around town on the horrible New Orleans streets is much, much better than what I got from the OEM 255/50/18s. The tradeoff is that while the car handles potholes, etc. much better at the suspension, it is a bit more bump responsive in the steering wheel. I also think that it is just a little bit less planted at highway speeds, which makes sense I suppose since it is 1.5" higher at the suspension and perhaps 2.5" higher overall. Also, the 275 Yokohamas are not optimized for highway driving. I picked them based on cost and that they were rated one of the best AT tires for highway driving and noise and I'm happy so far. I was worried that the X5 would seem more ponderous and/or bouncy like my lifted 93 grand cherokee. Thankfully it does not...if you didn't know it was lifted and had larger tires, you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference on a normal road at normal speeds around town.


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