Looking for new wheels/rims for my JLU - any recommendations?

[Craig Finlayson]

Hi all - I'm looking for new wheels for my JLU. Does anyone have any recommendations on where to go? 

Also, are beadlock rims worth the extra cost?

best regards,

Craig

[Rinelle Sanaani]

Go to.formula trading.. u can pick a lot f options there.. the al barsha branch

[Febin Frederic]

Do consider weight, width and offset when you purchase wheels. bead locks are expensive unless you decide to run larger tires. 

A 9 inch wide rim can run upto 35s, where you should be fine without beadlocks. just my 2c. 

[Edgar]

I just finish my set up with black method wheels and 315/70/17, if I could do something different I would go for method on bronze color those looks beautiful so I recommend you to check it out 

Another set up that I like it’s the new rubicon wheels with big tires  

[Jefy]

Car owners tend to change their wheels for the looks but in off-roading (and any other motorsport), changing the wheels and tires might be the best bang for the buck performance wise (if chosen wisely).

Wheels and tires are unsprung weight and has direct effect on your available power. 

You must ask yourself what you want to achieve. Why would you like to have beadlock wheels? You can go to a lower PSI, but why do you want to go to a lower PSI? 
Beadlocks are more heavy so it will have direct impact on your car's available power. 

As Febin said above, do consider the weight, also for non beadlocks. There are many possibilities, bigger/ smaller rim, different offsets, different profile tires, different ratios.

It is good that you first ask, I made the mistake of not asking and just trying, if I had done some research on some LC200 fora, I would've saved myself money.

If chosen wisely, the sweet spot of; correct offset, not a too big rim with a relative tall sidewall tire, your car's performance will change drastically in the sand. But every medal has two sides, where you will gain something here you'll probably have to deliver something in return, might it be, road noise or fuel consumption.

One thing I would consider as well, is the availability of your tires you are going to choose. You might want to go for a overland trip in the future, or cruising to Oman. Keep in mind that an exotic tire size, might not be available in a tire shop somewhere on the road.

[topgear]

@Xafwhat would you have done differently to your LC200?

[Jefy]

14 minutes ago, topgear said:

@Xafwhat would you have done differently to your LC200?

Long story short:

I went from stock 285/60 18 ET60 to Rays TE37 (Imitation) 285/60 18 ET55 + 20mm spacer (spacers were necessary to avoid rubbing with shocks reservoirs. Same tires. Highway super comfort, lighter wheels, better performance, but off-road, fairly quick a pop out + no grip on sidies.

I wanted to change the profile of the tires, went to 285/70 17 ET0, I had already a feeling that this might not work, because the 6 cm difference is a lot. But hey, we are in Dubai, where do you see more LC200's on the road, so the garages should know what they are selling. Asked them, does the 0 offset works? No problem! very good look! I tried them, too much rubbing + it changes the geometry, so probably not good for your barrels.

Then I went to my current setup, same tires, 285/70 17 ET40. This is the sweet spot for me.

I am curious how the performance will be if I go to a narrower tire, but as the saying says; "never change a winning team" I'll stick to this setup for now.

What I would have done different? Read the f*&@ng LC200 forum

Edited August 5, 2020 by Xaf
typo

[topgear]

@Xaf thanks for sharing. It is good for me to learn from others' experience. I did toyed with the idea of upsizing the rims and tyres before.

[Jefy]

2 minutes ago, topgear said:

@Xaf thanks for sharing. It is good for me to learn from others' experience. I did toyed with the idea of upsizing the rims and tyres before.

I see you are driving a FJ Cruiser. I know it is tempting to change the looks of your car, but in my opinion your car is stock already very capable and good looking.

Try to resist the mods etc, drive it for at least a summer and winter season. Then you'll know more which direction you want to go.

[Gaurav]

4 minutes ago, Xaf said:

I see you are driving a FJ Cruiser. I know it is tempting to change the looks of your car, but in my opinion your car is stock already very capable and good looking.

Try to resist the mods etc, drive it for at least a summer and winter season. Then you'll know more which direction you want to go.

+100