Prado Mods > Tyres, wheels and spacers

[Rob S]

Hi all,

another post to share what ended up being surprisingly difficult to understand best tyre and wheel sizes for Prado when off-roading.

I will not focus on “what tyre is best?” But more what size! Plenty of posts on what tyres are best if you use the search within this forum! 

It’s also important to note that for sand driving, the aim of reducing tyre pressures is to increase the contact patch once the tyre deflates. There is an article here on Carnity (will try to find link later) that roughly concludes that while the area of this contact patch is important for floatation, the shape is also important and a slightly longer and slimmer contact patch may perform better than a shorter and wider contact patch (this was relevant in my final choice!)

Wheel size

https://www.tyresizecalculator.com/charts/rim-width-range-and-measuring-rim-width-for-tire-size

Almost all advice was to move to 17inch wheels regardless of whether car was fitted with 17’s, 18’s or 19s as standard. I did not research if they very latest models can’t fit 17s so this would be worth checking but I don’t believe it is an issue. 16s will not fit over the brake callipers on majority of models.

The rest of the article will be based on the assumption you move to 17inch wheels or keep the current stock 17s if you have!

The link above also shows suggested Rim width and tyre size. If you select 265 width tyres, its good point to note that the recommended wheel size 7” to 9” so avoid any extra wide wheels unless you go to wider tyres! 

Tyre size

https://www.wheel-size.com/calc/

Link above is your friend if you want to go into detail. 

Standard 17 tyre size is 265/65/R17. 

285 wide tyres will fit, and there are guides from various Australia sites but do involve lift kits and other adjustments and not convinced these are required for desert driving here in Dubai. (Maybe help to increase ground clearance if you are driving in Wadis often)

Two main options suggested for Prado were 265/70R17 and 275/65R17 (and can be fitted without a suspension lift).

275/65 tyres offer a wider footprint (275mm vs 265mm) and increased sidewall height of 7mm (179mm vs 172mm). Due to the additional width, some Prado owners have faced rubbing issues on the body mounts unless the offset of the wheel is changed. 

265/70 tyres offer same width footprint (265mm) but a larger increase in sidewall height of 14mm  (186mm vs 172mm). With the tyre width not being changed, and only the sidewall height increasing (with the Prado having a large wheel arch gap) i am told and believe there should be no issues. This tyre size is my recommendation based on the fact that larger sidewall gives greater ground clearance but will also deform to create a longer and slimmer contact patch after deflation.

Wheel offset

Standard Offset for my 2015 Prado is +ve 25.  This means the centre of the wheel sits inwards 25mm from the centre of the Hub. Most Off-road wheels offered to me in Dubai were Zero offset. This means that the wheel moves outwards by 25mm. This helps to create a wider stance and in my option makes the car look better! You will find various articles about offset changes, impacts on suspension, wear and tear of components and scrub radius so will leave you to come to your own conclusions here. 

So what did I do . . . . ?

I settled on keeping my standard 17” wheels with 7.5” width and went with 265/70R17 tyres, I also opted to add a 30mm spacer (leading to theoretical offset of -ve 5. Overall, I am happy with the changes, I believe the spacers added to better handling with the car feeling more stable on the road. Tyre wise, so far no issue with any rubbing and the car looks a bit more like a proper 4x4 and less like a family wagon. 

[Frederic]

15 minutes ago, Rob S said:

Hi all,

another post to share what ended up being surprisingly difficult to understand best tyre and wheel sizes for Prado when off-roading.

I will not focus on “what tyre is best?” But more what size! Plenty of posts on what tyres are best if you use the search within this forum! 

It’s also important to note that for sand driving, the aim of reducing tyre pressures is to increase the contact patch once the tyre deflates. There is an article here on Carnity (will try to find link later) that roughly concludes that while the area of this contact patch is important for floatation, the shape is also important and a slightly longer and slimmer contact patch may perform better than a shorter and wider contact patch (this was relevant in my final choice!)

Wheel size

https://www.tyresizecalculator.com/charts/rim-width-range-and-measuring-rim-width-for-tire-size

Almost all advice was to move to 17inch wheels regardless of whether car was fitted with 17’s, 18’s or 19s as standard. I did not research if they very latest models can’t fit 17s so this would be worth checking but I don’t believe it is an issue. 16s will not fit over the brake callipers on majority of models.

The rest of the article will be based on the assumption you move to 17inch wheels or keep the current stock 17s if you have!

The link above also shows suggested Rim width and tyre size. If you select 265 width tyres, its good point to note that the recommended wheel size 7” to 9” so avoid any extra wide wheels unless you go to wider tyres! 

Tyre size

https://www.wheel-size.com/calc/

Link above is your friend if you want to go into detail. 

Standard 17 tyre size is 265/65/R17. 

285 wide tyres will fit, and there are guides from various Australia sites but do involve lift kits and other adjustments and not convinced these are required for desert driving here in Dubai. (Maybe help to increase ground clearance if you are driving in Wadis often)

Two main options suggested for Prado were 265/70R17 and 275/65R17 (and can be fitted without a suspension lift).

275/65 tyres offer a wider footprint (275mm vs 265mm) and increased sidewall height of 7mm (179mm vs 172mm). Due to the additional width, some Prado owners have faced rubbing issues on the body mounts unless the offset of the wheel is changed. 

265/70 tyres offer same width footprint (265mm) but a larger increase in sidewall height of 14mm  (186mm vs 172mm). With the tyre width not being changed, and only the sidewall height increasing (with the Prado having a large wheel arch gap) i am told and believe there should be no issues. This tyre size is my recommendation based on the fact that larger sidewall gives greater ground clearance but will also deform to create a longer and slimmer contact patch after deflation.

Wheel offset

Standard Offset for my 2015 Prado is +ve 25.  This means the centre of the wheel sits inwards 25mm from the centre of the Hub. Most Off-road wheels offered to me in Dubai were Zero offset. This means that the wheel moves outwards by 25mm. This helps to create a wider stance and in my option makes the car look better! You will find various articles about offset changes, impacts on suspension, wear and tear of components and scrub radius so will leave you to come to your own conclusions here. 

So what did I do . . . . ?

I settled on keeping my standard 17” wheels with 7.5” width and went with 265/70R17 tyres, I also opted to add a 30mm spacer (leading to theoretical offset of -ve 5. Overall, I am happy with the changes, I believe the spacers added to better handling with the car feeling more stable on the road. Tyre wise, so far no issue with any rubbing and the car looks a bit more like a proper 4x4 and less like a family wagon. 

Congrats @Rob S for this well documented article and going through the effort and time to think everything through before walking into a tyre shop and being brainwashed by these guys who only try to upsell you. (bigger, heavier).

265/70/17 are indeed perfect for a Prado that is not lifted, and the 30mm wheel spacer with black rims (lol i've seen that) will give you that nice look (looks matter a tiny bit of course 😁)

Your Yokohama's will be great on 12psi, and even lowering to 10psi should be still fine (depending on your drive style and season).

Have fun !

 

[ASAD.]

you are a life saver for Prado owners @Rob S 😄. Just for reference if you could add some before/ after pictures would be great. I think i have seen the black painted rims somewhere already 😂

[Rob S]

A fair few months on i wanted to update this post. Im still of the opinion that 265/70 is better for the desert than a 265/65. However, when i got to fewbie plus level and criss crossing i sometimes found rubbing issue on the left hand wheel, when steering left, it would rub slightly on the back of the wheel arch. Ive since found that my shock bushes and lower arm bushes were worn and could have resulted in extra movements. If you want to play it safe and ensure zero rubbing, id suggest 265/65.
 

would welcome other comments. Now with new bushes, lift kit etc etc i rarely get any rubbing. 

Edited October 25, 2022 by Rob S