I have a 2004 LX 470 with stock tires from Dunlop (blah)...want new tires, but in this size, there are only about 3 tires to choose from. Does anyone have any experience on chaing tire sizes slightly to improve tire choices???

 

Are you looking for mainly regular street tires or mild off-road (All-Terrain) tires? 285's fit with no problem. I've had them on my LX for sometime now and love 'em. They are all-terrain tires and really look nice on the vehicle as well as get it into some fun places where the pavement ends. What's your main usage of the truck? Do you play offroad some, or never?

Tad

 

Michelin LTXs are another choice -- they're the other stock sized tire offered on the 450s.
As already mentioned, 285/75 R16 will fit fine with the stock suspension. You'll lose a little performance, but it's really negligable. Your speedometer will be off by 3 to 5%, but you can fix that easily with the installation of a new speedometer gearj -- real easy job.

Going up to the 285s will give you more options. Another option is the 305/70 R16 -- which is pretty much equivalent to the 285/75 R16.
Another route is to go with a skinnier tire -- I beleive the 265/75 R16 is equivalent to the 275/70 R16. Mayb some more options there?

I'd prefer larger than smaller. Wider to skinnier.

...
Doug

 

I've had the Michelin LTXs on both of my Land Cruisers and I've been pretty happy.

 

I have 265/75R16's on our 99 Land Cruiser, and it has performed quite well for 2 years now.

 

I think he left out some important info. Like don't 2004 come with 18 inch wheels??? If that is the case he will have limited choices. I suggest he go to www.tirerack.com and see what they carry. If you can get Michelin cross terrains for that size I would go for them.

 

I would ry the michelins they are the best tires for our LX. The rubber is soft and you will not get any road noise.

 

I also am looking for larger/new tires. The tires I'm running now are the stock 275/60/18 and want to move to a 285/65/18 which will be no problem. My question is this, should I go with the BFG All-Terrains or the Michelin LTX's. I do get off the pavement more than the normal driver and need some extra grip. I prefer the All-Terrains for looks but really just want the better tire. Help please. Thanks.

 

You could go with 275/65R18 (32") or 265/65R18 (31.7" x 10.7"). The stock 275/60R18's are 31" x 10.7" wide. I plan to go with the 265/65R18. I was also thinking about the BFG AT's but will likely go w/ the Goodyear Wrangler silent armor's...supposedly a good tire and less $$$. First, I'll get them on my 4runner (overdue for tires) and test them out offroad. I was thinking about Bridgestone dueler revo's, but the tread depth for the Bridgestones is only 11/32m the shallowest. They really rip you off on tread life.

 

Followup: I ended up getting LT-rated BFG AT tires. They make a 265/65R18 size (31.7") that's the only LT-rated 18" near-OEM size w/ 3-plys. They are pretty quiet and cushy (far better compared to the Pro Comp AT's I had). Feels like I have a new suspension. Another thing: the BFG AT's have a 16/32 tread depth, Goodyear wranger silent armors have a 14/32 depth, while the Bridgestone dueler Revo's are 11/32...so you get 50% more tread on the BFG vs. the revo's! The BFG's are also snowflake rated (meaning if the highway patrol requires chains, you can usually pass without chains if you have 4wd [which you do since the LX is permanent 4wd] and snowflake rated tires).

 

Jim I had the BFG AT/KO's on my 95 FZJ80. Only problem I found with them was I could not wear them out, so I was stuck with them until I traded my 80 series I also like the Michelin AT's and will consider them the next time I need tires.