New Girl to the Tahoe World!

[BessicaLoren]

Hunh? Stock 275/55-20's are 31.9" tall, 305/55-20's are 33.2" tall.......

I’m a little confused myself. If that’s the case, Just to fit a 32” tire I would need to add a 2” leveling kit to the front of my stock suspension.

 

[vcode]

I’m a little confused myself. If that’s the case, Just to fit a 32” tire I would need to add a 2” leveling kit to the front of my stock suspension.

Your stock 20" tire (275/55-20) is already 32" tall (OK, 31.9"). On my 2010, there is room to go with a taller tire in the vertical dimension, it is the horizontal that causes the issue, especially at full lock of the steering. You will rub the plastic fender liners. I can barely get a finger between my tire and the fender liner at full lock. I know there are guys out there that have trimmed the liner for clearance. Just curious as to why you want the leveling kit? For appearance? Just remember that if you do that and load the truck up or pull a trailer, it's gonna have the Carolina squat where the rear will sag much more than the front (unless you have the air suspension in the rear). BTW, remember that a tire that is 2" bigger in diameter only results in a 1" increase in ride height.

 

[Fubar0715]

I am running 275/55/20 on OE Silverado wheels. My tires are Cooper ATs, are winter rated, and I live in New Hampshire. I had zero issues with snow last year after switching to these tires. Like @vcode indicated, that is a 32" tire setup, and I am stock 4x4

 

[BoatsAndHoes]

A couple quick things; in order to make the wheels/tires extend beyond the fender you will need more negative offset. Too much negative offset can cause addition rubbing.

Also, you mentioned this was a work truck? Will you be towing? If so, I would suggest limiting your tire height as well as weight. The taller and heavier your tires get, the worse your towing performance will be. I have a 3.5” lift and ran a 305/65/17 (32.8” tall tire) Cooper STT Pro for a while with a wheel that has 4.5” of backspacing (AKA -12 offset). The truck could still tow my camper on a hot day, but the tranny and engine temps would climb very quickly if I wasn’t careful. Fuel mileage suffered too, even more so while towing.

I recently switched to a 285/70/17 BF Goodrich KO2 as a winter tire. These tires are the same height, 12 pounds lighter per tire, have considerably less road noise, good traction in weather and I noticed an improvement in fuel economy and torque.

Here are a few different pics of the stance and clearance on my rig with the two different types of tires. The bronze wheels have Ko2 and the black have the mud tires

 

[RED TAHOE LS]

I appreciate all the info! I’m iffy on spacers myself. Seen/heard some horror stories. But deff considering the fact of spacers causing rubbing on the edges of the body as well. I’ve been doing some research on it and think I might go with a Rough Country 2” leveling kit…to start. Before I decide I truly want to drop the dimes on a full lift. That kit would allow me up to 32” of leg room for rubber. On the other hand - truck is a business expense. So while I’m careful about what I want to spend … I wouldn’t mind perfecting the truck aesthetically lol. You have some good points, and curious if you might know instead of spacers… I should be aiming for a specific offset to achieve the wide stance?

Welcome from Georgia Dawg country, myself, I like it original.

 

[bigdog9191999]

welcome from michigan, personally i would consider snow tires for your stock wheels ( or a set of 17/18 stock wheels for reduced cost of tires,) and run your larger wheels that stick out early spring to late fall. this would give you better traction in the bad weather without thowing crap all up the side of the truck and windows, and give you a good look in better weather.

 

[acesttz]

Sorry. I mistyped it. I run 305/50/20s.

 

[acesttz]

Hunh? Stock 275/55-20's are 31.9" tall, 305/55-20's are 33.2" tall.......

Sorry. I mistyped it. 305/50/20's

 

[The Raven]

Another example - 2/1 level (2" front 1" rear) with 275/70/18 Duratracs and Vision Turbine 353 18x9 +18 offset wheels. The tires stick out about 3/4" past the flares. This required a lot of trimming work but I have no rub whatsoever.

 

[ItstheHOFF]

Another example - 2/1 level (2" front 1" rear) with 275/70/18 Duratracs and Vision Turbine 353 18x9 +18 offset wheels. The tires stick out about 3/4" past the flares. This required a lot of trimming work but I have no rub whatsoever.

View attachment 353218

Looks really good, I really wanted these for my sub but didn't work out. Now I'm wishing again it did!