Recently I got two flats with my stock Goodyear Wrangler ST tires, 225s, and needed to replace them. There was not much tread left on them but the two flats were the last straw. I personally do not plan on offroading but wanted to get the best tires for my uses - which involve being able to drive anytime, anywhere and being able to depend on the Liberty to, well... give me that liberty. This means a good tire for harsh Wisconsin winters. This led to the idea of a narrower, taller tire and was interested in 215/85R16s due to the smaller contact patch and larger diameter as compared to the stock 225s. I could not find much information on the internet regarding if they would fit or not, at least there was no definitive answer. It seems like this is not a very popular tire choice, which is understandable. So I picked up some Kumho Road Venture AT KL78s due to the more aggressive tread pattern. I could have gotten Duratracs but honestly, I think they look to aggressive for such a grocery getter as the Liberty is, and the Silent Armors were $150 or so more for 5 from tirerack. The Kumhos are pretty much the same tread as the Silent Armors but cheaper. I got load range E and have not noticed any difference in the ride quality, many people made a big deal over this in the research I did, however I went ahead and decided to try them as the load range Ds are unavailable nationally for 60-90 days at the time of writing. Regardless, I find the claims of load range E tires ruining/degrading ride quality to be unfounded, there is almost no difference at all that I can detect.
Moving on though... I am posting this to show more definitive proof to people interested in this tire size that they do in fact fit, but barely. And when I say barely, I mean it. There are no issues with the pinch weld but the tire is very close to the front fender well, as you can see in my pictures. I do not plan on offroading and can't say anything about rubbing while turning with the suspension compressed. I doubt this will happen to me given my driving situation but it is a consideration for others to contemplate.
For the record, my Jeep's suspension is completely stock and has not sagged significantly.
^ Shows the overall side profile of the vehicle now. Personally I think the tires really helped balance the look of the vehicle. I think a lot of lifted Libertys look, well, ridiculous. I wanted a more masculine appearance without having the poor Liberty look like it was straining itself or trying to be something it just never will be. That being said, it would be nice to have .5" to 1" extra clearance! Stock the body looks to tall in comparison to the relatively small tires, like the CRV and most other modern compact SUVs do. I am very pleased with the aesthetic results.
It does not get any closer than this! As a note, I turned the wheel to show it when it is as close as possible.
Again, I turned the wheel to show how close the tire is to the pinch weld at its closest. Plenty of room!
Very clear view of the rear tire.
Lookin' good.
Love seeing the narrow profile tire from the back.
It would be great to have this information added to the Jeep Liberty Tire Size page on the Wikitube or whatever it is.
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