40" tires on a CJ-5 for the street

ncjeepers

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 13, 2005
Location
Locust, NC
I know... I know... but what's the fun if it wasn't a challenge?

If you were going to put 40" tires on a primarily street driven Jeep CJ-5, what wheel and tire combo would you go with?

It came to me rolling on vintage 40x15.50-15 Mickey Thompson steam rollers and stock axles with 3.08 gears!!!
We're gonna fix that. I'm hanging CUCVs under it as we speak.

It is almost time to pull the trigger on some tires and wheels. It does not seem worth the effort to stick with the 15" tires considering I would have to change the wheels AND grind the calipers.

Considerations...
- maximum backspacing to tuck the tires in as much as possible
- minimum weight considering such a light vehicle
- minimum tread width to help the road manners
So far, my best bet seems to be 17x9 M/T Classic Lock wheels and either MTRs or IROKs of the 40x13.50R17 variety.

Any other thoughts, suggestions, ideas, or words of encouragement?
 
ncjeepers said:
It does not seem worth the effort to stick with the 15" tires considering I would have to change the wheels AND grind the calipers.
Click to expand...

You don't have to grind the calipers with the right 15" wheels.
 
I'd run Procomp 8128's and Maxxis Creepy Crawlers because they look awesome.
 
Kinda ruled out KM2s due to cost.

I didn't even think about Maxxis. I'm old school. Who carries them? It would have to be the Trepador radials, though.

Those ProComp wheels would definitely look sweet on this black/chrome/silver CJ.

15" wheels/tires are not even in the running. Custom back spacing (like 2.5 or 3", right?) would mean waiting for crappy looking, but rather expensive special order steel wheels, a wider track width, AND paying to dismount, re-mount, and balance. Even if all that made sense, those fat tires an wide rims with very little backspacing would wander all over the road. Or am I missing something here?

Thanks for all the ideas. I'll certainly consider them. Let's hear some more.
 
there is a set of 40'' mtrs on here for sale (17'' wheel I believe). Thats what I would run for the street. I had a set of old 35'' mtrs on my old yj and couldn't wear them out.
 
BigFish said:
there is a set of 40'' mtrs on here for sale (17'' wheel I believe). Thats what I would run for the street. I had a set of old 35'' mtrs on my old yj and couldn't wear them out.
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Yeah... I tried to get those, but he told me that he does not want to sell now. I'm not very fond of the new tread style of the MTR, but it would probably be better suited for street use than any of the other 40" tires.

BTW What is wrong with IROKs on the street?
 
ncjeepers said:
15" wheels/tires are not even in the running. Custom back spacing (like 2.5 or 3", right?) would mean waiting for crappy looking, but rather expensive special order steel wheels, a wider track width, AND paying to dismount, re-mount, and balance. Even if all that made sense, those fat tires an wide rims with very little backspacing would wander all over the road. Or am I missing something here?
Thanks for all the ideas. I'll certainly consider them. Let's hear some more.
Click to expand...

Yeh, you need the ones with 2.75" BS to clear the calipers with no grinding. They are readily available in the standard steel rock crawler style wheels from 4wheelparts, and are cheap too. They would make your rig wide though. I've got 42's mounted on 15x8's with 2.75" BS on my cab truck, and it doesn't really wander on the road, but the hydro assist may help that.
 
I've been wanting to put a set of 40x13.50-17 Nitto Mud Grapplers on something. They have great street manners and work very well as a good all around off road tire.
 
Mt/r kevlars on an H2 wheel would look sweet and overall not be too outrageously expensive. Although a km2 would be sweet.

x2 on iroks being too soft for the street. The only real street time mine see is from my house to the trail and back.
 
tires

i got a set of 38.5 /13/17 truxus m/t radials on procomp black rock rims and never had them balance and they run true and no wobbles .also couldnt you run hummer rims the seem to be a good cheap choice .good luck its really tuff picking out wheels and tires.
 
It's made 10X tougher because of this cursed tire shortage. The only readily available 40x13.50 radials I can find are IROKs! I found one set of MTRs and they would cost about $2500 by the time I got them here!!! I did find a set of Nittos, though. That may be the way to go.
 
Could always roll up to galloways and see what they got. New you will pay alot for but if you can find a used set should get a decent deal. Also money talks up there.
 
yea the iroks look good but i agree with the other guys they are way to soft for the road you would be replacing tires every 5k to 10k it really depends on how much you ride i guess now the nittos are awsome tires and a whole lot better for the street
 
i really like the toyo m/t's. they're really similar to the mtr and i've seen guys get over 50k miles of wear out of them if they're street driven. might want to check on those. i know they used to be pricey but i'm not to sure about now.

what kind of wheelbase you running with 40" tires on a cj5? gota pic?
 
i've got a set of 35" nitto mud grapplers on my cummins and they've lasted awhile and dont really tend to wander until they get really worn.. they work well on the road and off but they are a little noisy
 
This is a customer's CJ-5, stock wheelbase. Yeah, it's been a challenge. Almost as wide as it is long.
Talked him out of the IROKs and went with the Nittos because that was about the only other 40x13.50 radial that is currently available.
Can't find the M/T Classic Lock 17x9 wheels he wants either. Apparently they are temporarily out of production. Crud.
ai101.photobucket.com_albums_m68_bullgearinc_Gregs_20CJ_2011_05_18_15_04_43_6642_1.jpg
 
ncjeepers said:
I know... I know... but what's the fun if it wasn't a challenge?

If you were going to put 40" tires on a primarily street driven Jeep CJ-5, what wheel and tire combo would you go with?

It came to me rolling on vintage 40x15.50-15 Mickey Thompson steam rollers and stock axles with 3.08 gears!!!
We're gonna fix that. I'm hanging CUCVs under it as we speak.

It is almost time to pull the trigger on some tires and wheels. It does not seem worth the effort to stick with the 15" tires considering I would have to change the wheels AND grind the calipers.

Considerations...
- maximum backspacing to tuck the tires in as much as possible
- minimum weight considering such a light vehicle
- minimum tread width to help the road manners
So far, my best bet seems to be 17x9 M/T Classic Lock wheels and either MTRs or IROKs of the 40x13.50R17 variety.

Any other thoughts, suggestions, ideas, or words of encouragement?
Click to expand...
New item by Sara Hullet
is how mine turned out
 
I'm looking for a set of 44'' to replace the old can't go any lower than 40'' in all the work n effort I still have a trouble tell ppl a what its worth due to so much has gone into it. Time n effort me n my dad took to build the jeep and now that his passed I hate looking at it just a reminder of what's lost. Or a who's lost. And I also have a few more jacked up vehicles. But nothing compares to Oh Baby Blue
 
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