Hilux 4x4 Forum

Hi All,

MY BF Goodrich AT’s 31x10.50 R15LT are tired and i need to replace. I have the original 15 inch alloy rims on , and I'm thinking of increasing to 17’s
The Bakkie has a lift already (i dont know how much its been lifted) and has rough dog suspension kit.

My question is,

1) Can i just go buy any 17inch Toyota rims and buy any BF Goodrich R17 tyres and it will fit ?
2) What size would be best in that i will not have to worry about tyres connecting/touching [attachment] wheel arches etc ?
3) im thinking of getting the sliver rims attached , any concerns or adjustments that i ll need to make ?
Any help or ideas would be much appreciated

regards
Rob

Don't do it. Stay with the original 15" . Bigger rims just don't make sense.

With 17" rims you'd have to fit an extremely low profile tyre to avoid the front wheels from scrubbing the front and back of the wheel arches on turns .... problem. Low profiles are for performance vehicles ... this is a bakkie. Low profiles are also more expensive. Low profiles and even 17" are less common and often more difficult to source .... you'd be sitting in the crap if you went on a trip somewhere away from cities and damaged more than one tyre. And low profiles damage very easily .... a decent pothole will take out the tyre as well as the rim. You won't find low profiles with an aggressive tread, so they're useless off the tar. It will become an expensive, no win exercise.

The benefits of 15" are that none of the above problems are relevant. In addition, you can deflate the tyres for a bigger footprint and therefore better traction in almost all off-road driving conditions, especially in sand. The bigger profile gives a better cushion and therefore also better ride comfort. You find 15" tyres available in the remotest of places if you need. You can opt for a slightly bigger profile that won't scrub the wheel arches and will improve off road capability .... and to my mind have much more aesthetic appeal on a truck than big rims and low profile tyres.

Rob use https://tiresize.com/calculator/ for your calculations

A 265/75R15 is about the same outside diameter as your 31" Tyre
A 275/65 R17 also has the same diameter.

So if you fit 17" rims you will need something like a 275/65 R17 to get the same OD and if you have the same OD it will be the same as the current tyres.

Depends on what you use your bakkie for, but if you often use it for gravel road or off-roading then sticking to the 15" will be better. You have a higher sideall which means you can deflate more and also when you slightly delfate on a gravel road the higher sidewall will give better cushioning than the 17", thus you get a softer ride.

Doesn't matter what you use it for a tyre with higher sidewall, ie. the 15" tend to have less road noise.
The lower the profile the more the road noise.

Once you decided the size then go to https://www.errolstyres.co.za/tyres and llook for prices.
You will see some profiles are far more expensive than others.
Sometimes for example (only an example I haven't checked prices) sometimes a 265/65 might be cheaper than a 275/60 but they are more or less the same size. It is because some profiles are more popular than others. Often you standard 15" profile will be cheaper than a lower profile 17".

Thanks Mud Dog / Piet.
Ill definitely be sticking with my current rims then ! Much appreciated !

I agree 100 percent with Muddog. Rather keep the 15 inch rims. You have a lot more sidewall space and less chance of Tyre damage on rough surfaces

The higher the profile the softer is your ride on tar and gravel as well.

The availability of 15" tyres are goig to become a problem with time as most 4x4 vehicles nowadays run 17" rims therefore availability is more. I realised this when I started looking for 31x15 "s for the Mercedes.

The Vigo Hilux, like yours, came out standard with 17" rims, and 265/65/17 tyres.

His Hilux looks the same as mine, came out standard with 15" tyres

And his Hilux looks the same as mine, which came out with 16" rims, and with the next facelift they came out with 17"s.. That's Toyota for you..

Touche