Big tire upgrades are becoming more and more common these days. With manufactures producing more powerful engines and aftermarket suspension companies producing bigger lifts and supporting suspension components, fitting 35’s has become easier than ever… or has it?
Fitting 35-inch tires on a 2” lift is possible on a solid front axle suspension setup like a Jeep Wrangler or Nissan Patrol. You should lengthen your stops but by the same amount as your lift.
Now when we talk 2” lift, there are various ways to achieve this, from a cheap spacer lift, body lift, or a 2” coil spring upgrade. Each configuration might offer a 2” increase, however, they have their pros and cons and we’ll get more into that a bit later.
Read how to fit 35″ tires on a Wrangler here.
Read How to fit 35″ Tires on a 3rd Gen Tacoma
Read How to fit 35″ on a Ford F150
Read How to Fit 35″ on a Dodge Ram
What Owners Say about 2” and 35-inch Tires
User Experience #1
What kind of 2″ lift are we talking about ? 2″ spacers with stock bumpstops, or 2″ coil springs with 2″ bumpstops, there is a difference, i run 35’s with an OME 2″ lift and 2″ bumpstops, and i couldn’t care less to go higher, love the way my Jeep sits, and not only that but i also run 4″ shocks on my springs without any issues.
https://www.wranglerforum.com/threads/will-a-35-tire-really-fit-on-a-2-lift.1921074/
User Experience #2
35s need roughly 2″ bump stop front and rear with stock fenders. It varies on the exact tire and wheel width & offset. I ran 35-12.5-17 KM2s on 17″x9″x4.5 wheels with 1-7/8″ bump stop extensions front and rear without problems. I mean technically speaking you can fit 35’s on a 2″ lifted JK or JKU, BUT there’s a lot that you have to consider.
https://www.wranglerforum.com/threads/will-a-35-tire-really-fit-on-a-2-lift.1921074/
User Experience #3
Personally, I wouldn’t put 35’s on a JK or JKU with only 2″ of lift. I like to have a good amount of space in the wheel wells rather than stuff a huge tire in there just to say I have 35’s.
https://www.wranglerforum.com/threads/will-a-35-tire-really-fit-on-a-2-lift.1921074/
Can You Fit 35 Inch Tires on a 2 Inch Lift
So, the obvious answer is…. It depends!
It depends on what exactly?
- The make and model of vehicle ( Jeep / Patrol / Tacoma / Land Cruiser)
- The suspension configuration (IFS vs SFA)
- The wheel offset (+ vs – )
- The Brand of Tire (MT vs AT)
- The vehicle application (Aesthetics vs Off-road)
- Bump-stops
All these factors need to be considered and play a vital role as to how complex the exercise will be.
To begin, let’s take a quick look at the physical differences in size between a 33” and a 35” tire. It might not even seem like much, but believe me, it’s quite a jump. Read more about that here and here.
Have a look below.
Learn more about the physical differences between 33 and 35-inch tires here
| Measurement | 33-Inch | 35-inch | Difference |
| Diameter | 285/75/17 | 305/75/17 | +7% |
| Width | 11.2” | 12” | +7.1” |
| Sidewall | 7.9” | 9” | 13.9” |
| Circumference | 102.7” | 109.9” | +7% |
| Revs/Mile | 617 | 576 | -41 |
Next, let’s look at the practical application on a few popular 4WD trucks and what is required to make the 35’s fit.
Let’s start with the Wranglers
Can You Fit 35 Inch Tires on a 2 Inch Lift – Jeep Wrangler
When you scan internet forums, you’ll quickly find many owners claiming they made 35’s fit very easily, however, they fail to omit some vital details and the small issues they encountered along the way.
For example, Jeep Wrangler owners confirming 35’s are definitely possible, but many don’t mention the importance of bump stops.
Ok, so what are bus stops and why is this important?
The purpose of a bump stop is to limit suspension travel by making contact before any other suspension component makes contact with something that may cause damage. So, bump stops will obviously affect the way the vehicle flexes with the stock fenders. The lift height isn’t as important as the bump stop which limits travel.
You should lengthen your stops but by the same amount as your lift really. It’s this that stops your tires from smashing your arches.
With that bit of info, let’s look into what is required to make 35’s fit on a Wrangler with a 2” lift.
- Fit Flat fenders to improve wheel clearance
- Remove or Modify the stock rear bumper for wheel clearance and tire rub
- Fit wheel spacers or an aftermarket rim to clear the Control Arms & Sway Bar
- Fit min 2” bumpstops
Keep in mind that, sure, it will fit, however, the stance won’t look right and I wouldn’t recommend going off-road. So you don’t really score on looks or off-road capability with this configuration. And for what? Just to say you are running 35’s?
I would recommend spending a bit more and doing the upgrade properly.
Example:
- Vehicle: Jeep Wrangler JK
- 35” Tires (315/70/17)
- 17″x9″x4.5 Aftermarket Wheels
- 4” Complete Suspension upgrade
- 2” Bumpstops Front and Rear
Can You Fit 35 Inch Tires on a 2 Inch Lift – Land Cruiser
Looking at the Land Cruiser 80 Series as an example, which has a solid front axle suspension configuration, there is sufficient body clearance for even a 2” lift and 35’s. This is assuming the standard bump stops are in place, and the springs or dampers don’t bind before the axle can reach the bump stops, then the height of the lift is irrelevant.
The beauty about the 80 Series is this beast of a machine has massive wheel wells, which can easily accommodate a big tire upgrade. More so than most other 4WD’s. Simply because of its superior clearance, SFA suspension, simplistic design, and of course, massive wheel arch clearance. No Body trim will be necessary for 35’s.
Fortunately, a simple 2” lift on an 80 series Cruiser negates the need for castor correction, nor extended brake lines, or Panhard adjustment. Yay! Only once you 4” or higher, will these factors come into play. If you want to really use 35″s in the way they should be used, ie. serious off-road use, then 3″ of lift really is the minimum this offers great articulation and no scraping with adjusted bump stops. 3″ would be my recommendation
Can You Fit 35 Inch Tires on a 2 Inch Lift – Nissan Patrol
Aaaah, the legendary Nissan Patrol, King of off-road in many people’s opinion. These machines are built for off-road with 35’s and a simple modification can see them function perfectly for on-road and off-road applications.
So what is required to make 35’s fit?
Simply remove the front mud flaps and fit some radius arm spacers in. This applies in most cases to the GQ or GU Patrols. There might be some scrubbing on the GQ Patrol, which will require some minor modifications on the wheel wells but nothing too serious. In the rear, you’ll need to extend your bump stops about 20mm roughly.
With a 2” lift, the GQs might need guards to be trimmed. On the GU, it may scrub lightly under full articulation, so Just fit them and flex it up and see what needs to be modified.
Resources
Warn Fender Flare Set For 15-17 F150, Satin Black, Set Of 4 | 2015-2017 Ford F150, W102020
Rough Country 4″ Suspension Lift Kit With Premium N3 Series Rear Shocks, 11-14 Ford F150,
Superlift 6″ Suspension Lift Kit With Rear Bilstein Shocks, Suspension Parts | 2008 Ford F150,
Rough Country 6″ Suspension Lift Kit, Suspension Parts | 2009-2010 Ford F150, RC-598.24
Mickey Thompson Baja Mtzp3 Radial 37″ Tire, 37X13.50R20Lt | 37×13.50R20LT, MT-90000024280
https://www.wranglerforum.com/threads/will-a-35-tire-really-fit-on-a-2-lift.1921074/page-2
https://www.patrol4x4.com/threads/35s-with-2-inch-lift.98748/
https://www.landcruiserclub.net/community/threads/35s-how-much-lift.136092/
I find this tool very useful when determining tire size differences and what effect it has on your truck: https://tiresize.com/comparison/
Conclusion
When fitting 35’s it really depends on what your intention is with your truck. Are you going to off-road and overland it or is it just a runabout? If you plan on doing extensive off-road and Overlanding then it’s recommended to rather opt for a 4” lift. Alternatively, if it’s for looks and to cruise around for looks then a 2 “is possible. Don’t forget about the bump stops and clearance on the control arms. Lastly, make sure the wheel offset is sufficient. It would be nice if shock manufacturers would list their shocks by minimum bump stop rather than lift.