285 X 75 X 16 or not ??

[ealemany]

Greetings

My 1998 suburban (4X4) has OEM rims with 245x75x16.
I am looking to improve clearance without installing a lift kit.
What is the biggest size of tires i can put on the OEM rims.
I am thinking 285X75X16 (SSR Radial - there are 34 inches overall diameter)
Will that fit ?
or
Any suggestion on how to improve clearance by 4 0r 5 inches without going into a lift kit (which is expensive and may damage some parts of the truck in the long run)

Thank you for your thoughts

Eric

[Warren96]

I used oversize tires on mine for a few years,and my biggest complaint was that it made the loading floor too high to comfortably load heavy loads. Since its made for a person of average height, many times my helpers couldn't lift high enough without hitting the tailgate. On the plus side you will get slightly better fuel mileage, unless you have HEAVY loads. It will also reduce your turning radius some,that could be important in a Suburban. You will also have to recalibrate the speed senor with bigger tires. If none of the above are issues for you,go for it!

[DmaxMaverick]

A 285 tire should have a diameter of 32.8-33" (not 34"). The OEM wheels are too narrow for a 285, but many have used them. It would be OK if you never get near the GAWR or ply rating, as the capacity is greatly reduced with the wrong size wheel. 265/75/16 is a very popular size, and fits the OEM wheels much better.

No way to get 4-5" of lift w/o a lift of some sort. The increase you get from tire diameter increase will be 50% of the tire difference (the radius will increase the height, not the diameter). A 285/75/16 tire will lift it less than 1.5" compared to a 245/75/16, but typically only 1" because the larger tires squat a little more. You could block the rear springs and crank the torsion bars, but I do not recommend this. It will skew the suspension geometry, and if you crank too far, will cause other serious problems with the IFS components and control, and another 1-2" is about all you will get out of it.

[ealemany]

Gentleman

Thank you very much for your great advice. I am not sure about
lift kit. i am afraid that it will damage the drive train and other components in the long run.
Too bad though, 4 inches from the ground could have been nice especially when going to the snow !!!
So, to be clear 285 will fit on the OEM rims, even though there are a bit too narrow (?). I do not think that i will ever reach the GAWR, i do not have anything to haul or to tow (beside my family).

Cheers

Eric

[DA BIG ONE]

To run 285's w/o lift the back lower edge of frt/fender needs to be rolled, or trimmed to about halfway up well so tires don't hit when suspension is compressed. Next would be move stock bumper forward, or trim it at wheel well to clear tire on turns.

Chrome bumpers can be trimmed via grinder by grinding inwards W/O flaking edge then sealing exposed metal w/good primer/etcher followed by plastic chrome to finish ground edge. NOTE: Grinding outwards will flake chrome and look like hell.

Suggest, you rethink running 285's on stock rims not wide enough IMHO.

Good extreme HD combo is ALCOA 3750lb rated wheel w/3750 lb rated 285's..........

[hockeyGTP]

I figure this would be an okay place to ask, what is the largest tire that will fit without clearance issues and rolling fenders.

[TAG]

Ive had 285 bf goodrich tires on my 95 for 75000 miles so far on stock steel wheels. I did not trim anything and they have never rubbed on the fender or bumper. I did turn my torsion bars up a little bit, but not much as i found if you go overboard it makes rhe truck very unpleasant to drive. I checked the alignment after i did it and it took very minor adjustments to bring it back to factory settings. Like i said these tires have been on for 75000 miles & they might be 60% worn out, wear is very even. Hope this helps.

[ace58]

I bought a set of 17" 2007 Z71 new take off wheels with 10 ply Bridgestone OEM rubber from e-bay. The offset is correct and the circumfernce larger too. No interference with body and look good too.

[jimbucks]

I've been running 285's Bridgestone Duellers on my '98 Sub since I got it with 16K on it and now it has 190K on it by just cranking up the torsion bars. When I put a new pair on it will hit on the back corner of the fender on a hard turn with a rise (like a driveway) but that goes away pretty quickly once they wear a bit. But have been unable to adjust out a right hand pull no matter who does the alignment and trust me it's been done more times than I like to remember. Next step is a 2-3" body lift for clearance so I can crank everything back to factory specs.

[DA BIG ONE]

A 255/85/16 fits factory rim and clear wheel well they are 33.4" diameter. Make sure you hack vssb module to correct speedo.