what is the better option 33's or 35's

Seems to me it depends where the majority of your use will be.

35s are heavier. That's extra unsprung weight that makes trail work slower. And the 35s need more pressure adjustment to get a decent ride on trails. There's no need for 35s as a touring tyre.

But you will essentially unstoppable in sand.

33s are a better all-round tyre. But for sand a tall & skinny 255/85 33" will go better than the 285/75 shape you're heading towards. On the other hand 255/85s are an uncommon size. 285/75s you can get more easily in the bush, with a better choice of patterns.

And I think radial claws have been left behind too.

Regards
Max P

255/85 is the way to go IMO.

33 inch, but skinny enough to keep your turning circle and be better in mud, sand, less aqua planing, less stress on steering components etc.. then again, lets not get into a fat vs skinny argument :wasntme::angel:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/

I run 255/85 BFG Km/2 (like many on the site) and I'm very very happy with them.

No lift, Disco rims w/ 20mm offset mod. No rubbing at full lock, or full articulation.

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Originally Posted by Tusker

35s are heavier. That's extra unsprung weight that makes trail work slower. And the 35s need more pressure adjustment to get a decent ride on trails.

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I'm not totally sure on that. My 35's have a stupidly good ride at low pressure.... I can go miles faster on rough trails on them than I can on my 255/85's..... stuff just disappears into them!

However they as you say are massively heavy, and the car works very hard to turn them at any sort of speed.

The car actually runs a few degrees hotter engine temp according to my digital gauge thing when on the big tyres.

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Originally Posted by zeus11

Thanks for the replies.

The defender is an 02 with sals and is chipped with exhaust and intercooler upgrades.

33's appear the logical choice............ though you dont sell a current shape hilux to buy a defender for logical reasons :D

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Thats funny. One of our contractors(concreter) has just done very same thing.
He now drives a blue 03 extreme and loves it.

He just put on some road tyres though as his muddies did not pull up at the lights with trailer on back. They had no grip in the wet on the road so be careful.

They are probably only suited for off road and in traffic they are just O.K.
Car looks wicked, may try and take a pick and post it if he comes back for a patch up here.
He is not a forum kind of guy, I tried to get him to join.:cool:

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Originally Posted by Psimpson7

My 35's have a stupidly good ride at low pressure.... I can go miles faster on rough trails on them than I can on my 255/85's..... stuff just disappears into them!

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end snip

Yep that's what I meant. You have to drop the pressures to get a decent ride.

Regards
Max P

Hmmmm see now I'm undecided again.

So who makes a good 34 x 12.5 tyre?

I'm picking up some 255/85 bighorns on 0 offset rims later today for my county. I can't wait to see how they look and how they go in the mud on the weekend. I don't think the isuzu will be concerned about the extra diametre...

As far as legalities, insurance will only wipe you if the illegal mod / unroadworthy item has contributed to the accident. Spinning out in the wet with a blown tail light doesn't mean they won't pay up. However, the larger tyre size will affect braking distance and possibly handling, so if you run up the rear of someone, the larger tyres may be considered a contributing factor.

I'll be keeping my 235/85's as the daily tyre and swap for the mud. Highway terrain tyres should get quite good mileage :)

Everything is a compromise. I reckon go the 33', you have seen my defender.

Yeah your defender looks great Sav.

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Originally Posted by big guy

[snip]

He just put on some road tyres though as his muddies did not pull up at the lights with trailer on back. They had no grip in the wet on the road so be careful.

[snip]:cool:

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Depends very much on compounding, case construction and the age of the tyre.

I've found BFG MT KO's and now Maxxis 762's to be fine in the wet, which is more than can be said for the Bridgestone MT's I ran for several years. They were drift city on any corner or curve.

Oh, and contrary to popular opinion increased tyre pressure rather than reduced is better in the wet, crossply or radial construction.