Are people not aware of this 34" tire?

[NvrFinished]

I know there are people looking for tall tire tire setups, particular ones that aren't too wide. Why hasn't there been much talk about the BFG 34X10.50R17 KO2? The guy in the link below is running this tire on his factory wheels with a 2.5" lift and no rubbing. However, it doesn't mention if the crash bars were altered or if he is running a spacer. A spacer may not be required though since the section width is almost a full inch narrower than an LT285/70R17.

Though an expensive tire, I would think there would be more talk about this setup since there doesn't seem to be much modification required to fit.

https://gearjunkie.com/ford-ranger-overland-truck-cody-townsend

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[geophb]

That comes out to about a 265/85-17. Defn taller and skinnier than a 285/70-17. Interesting

 

[Langwilliams]

$350 a piece is too steep for me.

 

[Whiskeybilt]

I want a fat tire. I'm on sand a lot and will never see snow or deep mud.

 

[slowmachine]

For a tire that tall, I would want a gearing change. 4.11:1 would be close to correcting the speedometer error.

 

[SPEEDBUILT]

Actual s

For a tire that tall, I would want a gearing change. 4.11:1 would be close to correcting the speedometer error.

Actual size is 33.5 for what its worth. I’ve been looking at that tire since I read this article a few months ago. The guy(Cody Townsend) is a pro skier that lives a couple hours from me and lives out of the truck for much of the year. I’m gonna chat him up on Instagram and see what he thinks about the gearing.

 

[Frenchy]

For a tire that tall, I would want a gearing change. 4.11:1 would be close to correcting the speedometer error.

Speedmeter correction can be done with a computer easy. Either a tuner or spedo correction tool will do the trick without gear changing.

 

[slowmachine]

Speedmeter correction can be done with a computer easy. Either a tuner or spedo correction tool will do the trick without gear changing.

I'm sure that there are other ways to correct the speedometer/odometer readings. However, that is only the most visible effect of increasing the tire size. These tires weigh 56 pounds each, about 20 pounds, or 65%, more than the stock tires. That’s going to place additional load on the entire the entire drivetrain and chassis. There is a lot of “headroom” in a chassis designed to (at least theoretically) tow 7500 pounds, but rotating mass has different effects than a static load. You can’t fix all of the problems by changing the drive axle gearing, but you can restore the mechanical advantage (torque) that Ford designed into the drivetrain. There are numerous examples of small-engined vehicles with tires that are much larger than 34 inches, and nowhere near the power of the the 2.3T engine in our Rangers. All of them use low gearing to make best use of the engine power. It’s not the cheap way, though, and people seem to like cheap shortcuts. It‘s probably best to get working on the larger fuel tank that some are discussing, because reduced driving range will be the second most obvious effect of the larger tires.

I’m not against doing this. I have driven in many places where the added ground clearance would be useful, and been towed out of more than one.

 

[Frenchy]

I'm sure that there are other ways to correct the speedometer/odometer readings. However, that is only the most visible effect of increasing the tire size. These tires weigh 56 pounds each, about 20 pounds, or 65%, more than the stock tires. That’s going to place additional load on the entire the entire drivetrain and chassis. There is a lot of “headroom” in a chassis designed to (at least theoretically) tow 7500 pounds, but rotating mass has different effects than a static load. You can’t fix all of the problems by changing the drive axle gearing, but you can restore the mechanical advantage (torque) that Ford designed into the drivetrain. There are numerous examples of small-engined vehicles with tires that are much larger than 34 inches, and nowhere near the power of the the 2.3T engine in our Rangers. All of them use low gearing to make best use of the engine power. It’s not the cheap way, though, and people seem to like cheap shortcuts. It‘s probably best to get working on the larger fuel tank that some are discussing, because reduced driving range will be the second most obvious effect of the larger tires.

I’m not against doing this. I have driven in many places where the added ground clearance would be useful, and been towed out of more than one.

For correcting the speedometer the best method is going to be with some kind of electronic device as mentioned already.

With that being said you are not wrong with the effects a bigger tire can put on these trucks. When I went to a 265/70-17 from a 255/65-17 my rpm changed for Hwy speeds and 9th became more prominent over 10th for my drive home(the joy of hills and mountain passes). Will the weight cause enough issue that you are talking about? Most likely not. Other members here already run 34's and few run 35's. I myself am at a 32 inch and am still considering going to a 34 of sorts.

 

[NvrFinished]

I think anyone who wants a taller tire like this is going to be well aware of the pros and cons. The purpose of the thread was to draw attention to this tire size as an option. I was not aware that it existed and I believe that more would be interested since it seems as though it requires little modification when on stock wheels other than a 2.5" lift. It's approximately 3/4" taller than a LT285/70R17 with less hassle to make it fit.

In addition, I believe it would do just fine in the sand when aired down. 8.8" of tread width (before aired down), plus the long contact patch due to the taller diameter would work well in that scenario.

 

[Sandman]

255/80r17 is almost the same size but there are more reasonably priced options.

 

[Grandaccess]

I have 285/70/17 its a good over all tire, good sound wise on the interstate and no big tire bounce and a good A/T snow /mud I dont know if or what the offset is on my Roush Rims are but I does not have a spacer and I have my crash bars, and a Rough Country Lift, I am not even sure how high of a lift but it sits pretty tall they measure out to 33" the Ridge Grappler seems to be a good tire but did not wear very good for me but that could be a Mr.Tire fault when I got it aligned too, I run them at 40psi next tire change I am going with the Wildpeaks

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