LWB Pajero - Recommendations for Light to Extreme mods?

[JamesBY]

3 minutes ago, Frederic said:

I havent seen the X-AT's on a lot of cars here yet. For us dune-drivers we anyways prefer the lighter Geolander G015 model.

Gotcha, thanks for the advice Frederic! I'll try and throw some pictures up when it's all done. 

[JamesBY]

Right. So the current issue we're having is the Offroad rims as general research shows that very few aftermarket rims actually fit the Pajero correctly.

We're looking at 265/70/R17 AT Geolandars and the goal is to get them on 8.5" Rims. However, is this:

A: Advisable to do so for mainly mountain driving?

B: Viable to fit around the brake calipers of the Pajero?

We're both a bit clueless when it comes to rims and although we're using a variety of sites & youtube to try and figure out what will work, it also seems quite tricky to find some here that aren't extortionate in price. 

Any guidance would be much appreciated!

[Frederic]

If you are on a budget, it’s best to stick to the original rims. The reason is because we have seen cheap aftermarket rims failing as the casting quality is poor. The Mitsubishi rims can take a serious beating. 
 

There is no performance improvement in the sand or mountains in original vs after market rims. It’s a bold statement but also a fact. 
 

The size you’re suggesting is fine. Less than 17’ simply doesn’t fit on the 3.8 models due to the bigger caliper in the front. 

The original rims are 7Inch width from what I remember, which is better in the mountains as this will mean the rim itself will be better tucked in. Going for a 8.5 inch width rim will mean your tyres are stretched over them rim and will leave the rim very exposed to rocks and damage.

 

 

[JamesBY]

13 hours ago, Frederic said:

If you are on a budget, it’s best to stick to the original rims. The reason is because we have seen cheap aftermarket rims failing as the casting quality is poor. The Mitsubishi rims can take a serious beating. 
 

There is no performance improvement in the sand or mountains in original vs after market rims. It’s a bold statement but also a fact. 
 

The size you’re suggesting is fine. Less than 17’ simply doesn’t fit on the 3.8 models due to the bigger caliper in the front. 

The original rims are 7Inch width from what I remember, which is better in the mountains as this will mean the rim itself will be better tucked in. Going for a 8.5 inch width rim will mean your tyres are stretched over them rim and will leave the rim very exposed to rocks and damage.

 

 

Thanks Frederic, I did mention to him that stretching the tyre over the rim for a wider profile might be handy if we go into the desert but I wasn't sure if that would be the best for the rocks. 

Good point on the cheap aftermarket rims, though I don't think the ones he's looking at are overly cheap, I'll recommend that he takes a look at snagging some 17" Pajero rims instead. I think he's trying to aim for a "look" too. As you mentioned, a key thing is if it fits over the calipers and that's where we've been struggling to decipher the technical language that people are using as it seems to vary from country to country. 

We've found a place that's charging around 650 or 700 per rim, though currently trying to convince them to package rims/tyres/lift/shocks together and instead of giving a package discount they're trying to push him to get the 265/65 instead of the 265/70 because it's cheaper. 

So far he's already removed the front grille, sanded and resprayed it black. So there's definitely a look element 😛