I cannot believe someone hasn't asked or covered the question of 15" vs 16" wheels on a lifted KJ, because God knows every other possible tire / wheel question has been asked here... Anyway, what are the pros & cons to running either size? Again, only referring to a suspension lifted KJ. And if it's not too much trouble, why did you switch to a 15" wheel? What are you gaining?

Thanks in advance. Oh and if this has been covered, and someone can point me in the direction I obviously missed, this too will be appreciated.

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Illegitima Non carborundom!

Well, I switched to a 15 because I prefer more tire than wheel when off roading. You get better articulation, which is kind of irrelevant in a kj I guess, but every little bit helps. I was also able to sell my 16 Renny wheels for around $400 and my new wheels cost me under $200 so I had money towards other jeep stuff, like tires. Hmm lets see, I think those are all the reasons I switched but I'll chime in if I remember another.

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My Jeep Build ----> Big Black

some other tire choices/sizes when going with 15 inch as well, although 16 inch sizes are catching up some what.
so guess that is Pros side

Cons ...only a few 15 inch wheels to choose from that will fit over the calipers, no real choices

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MUDD'S MOTORSPORT'S We do IFS lift installs ,
03 OVERLAND EDITION /Kilby-Skidrow-Mopar-4XGuard skids/ 2.5 inch TOTAL CONTROL JBA coilovers -JBA Arms/MOABS-31 FALKEN WILDPEAK AT3W / 4.10's etc, 04 Kilimanjaro Edition loaded, plus 05 KJ limited

Oh yes, thank you tom, tire choices galore. I knew here was something else.

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My Jeep Build ----> Big Black

Okay, so you're (generally speaking) lifted 2 1/2" right? Didn't you just loose some of the (suspension) height by going to 15" Or am I an idiot?

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Illegitima Non carborundom!

A 31" tire is a 31" tire whether it is mounted on a 16" or 15" wheel. The "hole" in the tire is just larger/smaller.

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2002 Jeep KJ Sport 3.7L 4x4

245/75-16 Mastercraft Courser HSX, 16x7 Cragar, 2" OME MD Lift, ARB Bumper
AEM Brute Force Cold Air Intake, Flowmaster Super 44 Muffler

Currently working on: Full service on transmission & bed-lining ARB bumper

viewtopic.php?f=43&t=84650

You will not gain or loose any articulation if you run 15" or 16" rims that have the same sized(outside diameter) tires mounted on them.

The main advantage of a 15" rim over a 16" rim is for offroading,you have more sidewall which will help the tire "flex" better giving better traction.

And jeepkj02 is right,you do not loose any clearance by going to a 31" tire mounted on a 15" rim if you already had a 31" tire that was mounted on a 16" rim.

Yeah that makes obvious perfect sense. Thanks to everyone.

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Illegitima Non carborundom!

15" tires are typically less expensive than a 16" of the same make. Also there is more selection of tires in 15" in my experience ie. BFG AT Ko were only recently available in 16" KJ friendly size tires.

Anybody run 15" on a non lifted KJ?

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Hare on my Chest

I went to the 15's for the bigger side walls without having to go over 31's, and that you can easily get 31's in 10.5s, oh, and tyres themselves were heaps cheaper.

Down here in Australia, I was paying 330.00 each for Cooper STT's 245/75/16's , I found that size was not a common size carried by tyre shops and that they had to be specially ordered to get them. I changed to Mickey Thompson MTZ's in 31/10.5/15's, every tyre shop had them on the shelf, and I only paid 250.00 each.

More side wall, better tyre flex when crawling, wider tyre, bigger footprint for soft stuff, a heck of a lot better ride offroad, grip and pull better, Plus, they look brilliant.

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