I am happy to say that, after lurking around this forum for many weeks now, and taking in the absolutely incredible amount of great information that is to be found here regarding the FJ, I opted to go ahead and swap out the stock Dunlops (which was the only thing I didn't like) for 285 BFG A/T's, and they fit, perform, and look perfect. No rubbing as of yet, but mine sees mostly on road use. I have discovered, however, that I'll have to pretty-much forget about the OME lift that I recently bought, due to garage clearance issues, as I now have barely 1/2" left before I am hitting! The BFG's made a HUGE difference in the looks and readiness of this vehicle, really setting it off appearance-wise in my opinion, so I'm not TOO upset about the lift...for now! It also now "feels" more like one would expect a truly off-road capable vehicle to feel behind the wheel.
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I have had the BFG AT's 285/70/17's and the three inch Toytec Lift. No rubbing and the FJ rides muuuuuuuuuuuuuuuch smoother now than stock. I would highly reccomend the Toytec lift.
__________________ 07 FJ, SUN FUSION- 4x4 AT-Loaded, TOYTEC 3" Lift, BFG AT 285/70/17's, Romik Brush Guard, PIAA 540 DRL, xm.
I am happy to say that, after lurking around this forum for many weeks now, and taking in the absolutely incredible amount of great information that is to be found here regarding the FJ, I opted to go ahead and swap out the stock Dunlops (which was the only thing I didn't like) for 285 BFG A/T's, and they fit, perform, and look perfect. No rubbing as of yet, but mine sees mostly on road use. I have discovered, however, that I'll have to pretty-much forget about the OME lift that I recently bought, due to garage clearance issues, as I now have barely 1/2" left before I am hitting! The BFG's made a HUGE difference in the looks and readiness of this vehicle, really setting it off appearance-wise in my opinion, so I'm not TOO upset about the lift...for now! It also now "feels" more like one would expect a truly off-road capable vehicle to feel behind the wheel.
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Your FJ looks great...glad to see you're not having any rubbing issues. But please help me out with this question (as you're not the first person to post this type of info). Why the desire for better off-road tires & a lift if you're going to mainly stick to on road use? Kind of seems like a waste of money & MPG's in my eyes. I would assume anyone that only uses their FJ a couple of times off-road per year is probably not tackling the toughest of courses and therefore I'm wondering why people feel the need to go crazy with mods that probably are not going to really be used/needed. I still am amazed how capable the FJ is off-road...I would never believe something could be that good in stock form after feeling its on-road prowess...you've got to go pretty extreme to stop the stock FJ.
The Trail Team videos prove the fact that under some pretty demanding off-road conditions an improved suspension/lift is really not needed unless you're really going to tackle the crazy stuff. Better tires are a big plus, but I was still pretty impresses with what my stock tires did off-road well before I swapped them out for some better tread. For your typical weekend/bi-yearly warrior, the stock FJ is more than enough IMO. Comments?
__________________
'63 Corvette Split-Window (5 spd MT)
'67 GTO (4 spd MT)
'72 K5 Blazer (Malibu (aka 'Chevy Voodoo') Blue/White Top, 4 spd MT w/ Granny Low)
'04 Mazda3 Hatchback (wife's, 5 spd MT)
'07 FJC (Voodoo Blue/6 spd MT)
Recently Sold (Gone But Not Forgotten):
'97 Viper GTS (Blue/white stripes, 6 spd MT)
'71 Bronco (4 spd MT w/ Granny Low)
'65 Mustang Fastback (4 spd MT)
YES...My left foot gets sad if it doesn't have a clutch pedal near by...
Your FJ looks great...glad to see you're not having any rubbing issues. But please help me out with this question (as you're not the first person to post this type of info). Why the desire for better off-road tires & a lift if you're going to mainly stick to on road use? Kind of seems like a waste of money & MPG's in my eyes. I would assume anyone that only uses their FJ a couple of times off-road per year is probably not tackling the toughest of courses and therefore I'm wondering why people feel the need to go crazy with mods that probably are not going to really be used/needed. I still am amazed how capable the FJ is off-road...I would never believe something could be that good in stock form after feeling its on-road prowess...you've got to go pretty extreme to stop the stock FJ.
The Trail Team videos prove the fact that under some pretty demanding off-road conditions an improved suspension/lift is really not needed unless you're really going to tackle the crazy stuff. Better tires are a big plus, but I was still pretty impresses with what my stock tires did off-road well before I swapped them out for some better tread. For your typical weekend/bi-yearly warrior, the stock FJ is more than enough IMO. Comments?
To answer your question, the upgraded tires are, in fact, a BIG plus in many ways. I would describe more of the reason for upgrading to the BFG's as a response to a need than to a desire...the Dunlops that came stock, in my opinion, were not what I really felt were the MOST capable tires for my driving purposes (as capable as they may have been), or what I felt that I needed to best tackle my particular everyday driving conditions. After much debate, I decided upon the BFG A/T's, which, as you know, are highly regarded as a very capable all terrain tire that excels when it comes to handling various every-day conditions along with the occasional off-road excursion. (Regarding the MPG, from what I've seen, loss of gas mileage seems to be nominal, especially for the trade-off, so I feel like my money has been well invested.) As for the lift, which I am putting off for now; I had felt that this would, once again, improve the overall capablities of my FJ for when I do go off-road. Additionally, I think that both the tires and the lift not only add valuable enhanced capability to an already very functional vehicle, but the FJ with both the tires and the lift looks pretty darn sweet as well! ...more like it should, in my opinion. Besides, I , for one, don't believe that improved rubber or the addition of what amounts to a leveling lift hardly constitutes "going crazy with mods", whether they are goin to be "used" or not. For as good as it may have been in it's stock form, it is even better now.
To answer your question, the upgraded tires are, in fact, a BIG plus in many ways. I would describe more of the reason for upgrading to the BFG's as a response to a need than to a desire...the Dunlops that came stock, in my opinion, were not what I really felt were the MOST capable tires for my driving purposes (as capable as they may have been), or what I felt that I needed to best tackle my particular everyday driving conditions. After much debate, I decided upon the BFG A/T's, which, as you know, are highly regarded as a very capable all terrain tire that excels when it comes to handling various every-day conditions along with the occasional off-road excursion. (Regarding the MPG, from what I've seen, loss of gas mileage seems to be nominal, especially for the trade-off, so I feel like my money has been well invested.) As for the lift, which I am putting off for now; I had felt that this would, once again, improve the overall capablities of my FJ for when I do go off-road. Additionally, I think that both the tires and the lift not only add valuable enhanced capability to an already very functional vehicle, but the FJ with both the tires and the lift looks pretty darn sweet as well! ...more like it should, in my opinion. Besides, I , for one, don't believe that improved rubber or the addition of what amounts to a leveling lift hardly constitutes "going crazy with mods", whether they are goin to be "used" or not. For as good as it may have been in it's stock form, it is even better now.
Understood...I get what you're saying and agree with everything...my point was simply, "Is it really needed?" I contemplated lifting at one point in time too, but after many weeks of taking my FJ off-road and tackling as extreme terrain as I would ever want to tackle with a $30K+ rig (one episode that almost landed me & my beloved FJ upside down), I determined that even a stock FJ was more than capable for what I wanted to throw at it.
My point is simple...I know guys love to lift their rigs and throw bigger tires on it, but I bet the vast majority of people that do this will never really need the added clearance or traction. I can't tell you how many times I consistently see guys with huge lifted rigs & massive tires on the same trails...week in & week out. Without fail, all those trails are perfectly accessible with a stock rig in the hands of a capable driver yet for some reason many feel the need to lift & mod to talk themselves into the fact that they are now off-roaders. I'm not saying this is you, I'm just saying. Ultimately I'm a big believer in honestly & realistically looking at what is truly needed (key word of course is NEEDED) when it comes to suspension mods. You've got to go pretty extreme to stop a stock FJ IMO. And that fact alone is why these machines are so great.
__________________
'63 Corvette Split-Window (5 spd MT)
'67 GTO (4 spd MT)
'72 K5 Blazer (Malibu (aka 'Chevy Voodoo') Blue/White Top, 4 spd MT w/ Granny Low)
'04 Mazda3 Hatchback (wife's, 5 spd MT)
'07 FJC (Voodoo Blue/6 spd MT)
Recently Sold (Gone But Not Forgotten):
'97 Viper GTS (Blue/white stripes, 6 spd MT)
'71 Bronco (4 spd MT w/ Granny Low)
'65 Mustang Fastback (4 spd MT)
YES...My left foot gets sad if it doesn't have a clutch pedal near by...
You've got to go pretty extreme to stop a stock FJ IMO
After seeing Amanda (MissFJ) on the Moab Rim Trail in her bone stock FJ I'd have to wholeheartedly agree with that statement. It's a brutal trail that most people in modified rigs won't attempt, much less in a stock vehicle. She did absorb a bit of cosmetic body damage (those stupid bumper protrusions front and back, and the exhaust tip), but it was minor and the stock FJ was pretty amazing on that terrain.
My point is simple...I know guys love to lift their rigs and throw bigger tires on it, but I bet the vast majority of people that do this will never really need the added clearance or traction. I can't tell you how many times I consistently see guys with huge lifted rigs & massive tires on the same trails...week in & week out. Without fail, all those trails are perfectly accessible with a stock rig in the hands of a capable driver yet for some reason many feel the need to lift & mod to talk themselves into the fact that they are now off-roaders. I'm not saying this is you, I'm just saying. Ultimately I'm a big believer in honestly & realistically looking at what is truly needed (key word of course is NEEDED) when it comes to suspension mods. You've got to go pretty extreme to stop a stock FJ IMO. And that fact alone is why these machines are so great.
Wouldn't it be bad for the off-road aftermarket if everone were so satisfied with their stock rig. I'm not planning on going to extremes tire or lift-wise, or otherwise, but I imagine that those who do, do it because it is fun, they can and enjoy it, they think it is a great way to change/improve the appearance/capability of their vehicle, and they probably don't really care if anyone else thinks it may be overkill. No doubt, though, most would agree that there is no substitute for skill and experience, regardless of any modification.
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Re: will 285/70-17 tires fit?
I'm not planning on going to extremes tire or lift-wise, or otherwise, but I imagine that those who do, do it because it is fun, they can and enjoy it, they think it is a great way to change/improve the appearance/capability of their vehicle, and they probably don't really care if anyone else thinks it may be overkill. No doubt, though, most would agree that there is no substitute for skill and experience, regardless of any modification.
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