32" Tires on stock suspension. Pics included.

[93dakman]

I posted this exact same message on another board. I just want to share the pictures with anybody else who is looking at this kind of combination. I do know this is an off road forum and I am displaying pictures of a big wheel skinny tire street ride but 32's are 32's no matter the wheel diameter. With that said I have a Dakota on 33's and a 87 1/2 ton chevy on 38.5's with 3/4 ton drivetrain. I do wheel and I do spent alot of time off road. I will inevitably end up taking this down the main trails before its all said and done im sure! How ever for now its for pulling the boat and the firewood trailer to and from the woods.

Here are the pictures with the words to follow:

IMG_20140627_195514_002 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr
IMG_20140627_200358_501 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr
IMG_20140627_200429_928 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr
IMG_20140627_200440_145 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr

I dont have much to add to the pictures, I just joined the forum tonight.

I know how much more pictures can say sometimes than even a dozen pages of posts.

So what I have here is a completely stock 03 Trailblazer EXT. I purchased the 22" wheels only because a guy was selling them for $275 and I needed new tires on the stock wheels anyway. So the tires in the picture are 285/45 22. Thats 32.1" Diameter x 11.22" Wide. These are mounted on Helo 22x9.5 wheels. I didnt measure the backspacing when I had the wheel off.

Well I had done quite a bit of reading about the upper ball joint and what not involved with that so I ordered the (4) Nexen tires and (4) 1.5" wheel spacers. Well, to leave the tire shop they wouldn't touch the spacers so I drove the truck home with the rear 22's on with no spacers and the factory fronts. So with the front 22's installed with the spacers and the rears without spacers......we have the pictures above. I am aware that it looks dumb! But that's just when I took the Pictures.

NOW......I did take a tape measure and gauged the distance from the sidewall to the upper ball joint mount and i measure 1 1/8" gap.

Im thinking I have two options here:
1. Get rid of the (4) 1.5" spacers and buy either (2 for each side) 1/4" spacers or (1) 3/8" spacer and do slight grinding of the upper control arm around the ball joint. Not much though.

2. Put the spacers on the rear also and install the MarkMC 2.5 lift level.

Im very concerned about premature wheel bearing wear and the extra load on the steering rack with the spacers on and premature cv joint wear with the strut lift.

As far as rubbing goes right now. Still sitting on the factory springs with no lift and 1.5" wheel spacers; I get rubbing only at full lock left and full lock right in the very center of the fender well inner liner in front and behind the tire. The tires do not rub on the outsides at all. I believe some either trimming or some custom brackets to pull the fender well liners away will solve all problems. I havent taken this off road yet but I will very soon and will report back. I will also try to snap some good pics of the rubbing areas of concern and the ball joint and uca clearance tomorrow.

[Cable810]

I think this belongs over in GMTNation not here....

[DustinC1989]

I agree, 22" rims definitely gonna get much help from offroad guys...
As for running small spacers that will require cutting studs almost in half or the cheap slide on spacer... I HIGHLY recommend staying away from no matter what the application is

[The Roadie]

Yah, but. He said he was going to take it offroad. I'll believe him.

Shim spacers are more risky IMHO than the regular kind.

You may be worrying too much about the hubs and CV shafts. You gotta pay to play.

And the running boards are a liability.

Otherwise welcome. Look forward to a trail ride report.

[NC_IslandRunner]

When you take it off road you will learn 32's on 22's are not 32's on 16's, 5" of sidwall instead of 8" is a big difference when you air down.
Premature wear only refers to cars/trucks that never leave the blacktop, for us it's called routine maintenance, it's Just part of wheeling, I replace my CV's almost yearly, get the lifetime warranty shafts from Advanced and a spare as well, I know some guys buy the ebay hubs and change them yearly too. Look forward to trail reports, and welcome to the site!

[93dakman]

IMG_20140629_154556_095 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr

IMG_20140629_154928_237 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr

IMG_20140629_154641_304 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr

IMG_20140629_155036_124 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr

IMG_20140629_160027_843 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr

IMG_20140629_155456_569 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr

IMG_20140629_155441_482 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr

IMG_20140629_155237_752 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr

IMG_20140629_155354_861 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr

IMG_20140629_155345_512 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr

IMG_20140629_155320_517 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr

IMG_20140629_155253_566 by gpz900r.93dakman, on Flickr

[ErikSS]

Looks like a good time! Any damage to the fenders from the rubbing?

[93dakman]

Yah, but. He said he was going to take it offroad. I'll believe him.

Shim spacers are more risky IMHO than the regular kind.

You may be worrying too much about the hubs and CV shafts. You gotta pay to play.

And the running boards are a liability.

Otherwise welcome. Look forward to a trail ride report.

Ive never ran spacers. I have always bought the wheels with proper backspacing or sized my tires to work. I am not a fan of the bolt on spacer but too me it sounds safer than loosing effective stud length using the shim type spacer.

I had nothing but problems with the running boards today. I already have a stress mark from a berm on the right one now. And the treads from the spacers kept popping off.

Im no stranger to the pay to play. That chevy with the 38.5's broke front u joints on a weekly baises. 14 bolt front end must not be built stronger for the 3/4 ton, just more lugs on the hub!

When you take it off road you will learn 32's on 22's are not 32's on 16's, 5" of sidwall instead of 8" is a big difference when you air down.
Premature wear only refers to cars/trucks that never leave the blacktop, for us it's called routine maintenance, it's Just part of wheeling, I replace my CV's almost yearly, get the lifetime warranty shafts from Advanced and a spare as well, I know some guys buy the ebay hubs and change them yearly too. Look forward to trail reports, and welcome to the site!

I found this all out today. I wouldnt even think of letting the tires down on the 22's, so i had very little traction on most of these trails. I ripped the shock/strut off my Dakota last weekend at this same place, so glad that I bought the parts with 1 year warranty now.

I agree, 22" rims definitely gonna get much help from offroad guys...
As for running small spacers that will require cutting studs almost in half or the cheap slide on spacer... I HIGHLY recommend staying away from no matter what the application is

I guess Im not exactly looking so much for help with the tires/wheels and 22's, I just wanted to share how it fit, and how they rode. It just very convenient to have a ride that I can take down most of the main trails, pull the boat and travel with my family and all of our luggage comfortably to where ever our vacation spot may be.

[93dakman]

Looks like a good time! Any damage to the fenders from the rubbing?

No! Surprisingly enough even on those last 4 pictures where it was at full flex, the tires never contacted the fenders edge, only on the inner fender well liner.

The only other SUV I have owned to give a good comparison to this rig is a 1998 Durango 4x4 5.2.

It did not have running boards. It also had 32's. And it was MUCH shorter wheelbase!!

The picture of all of the inclines (Pictures 2, 4, 5 & 6) were places that my Durango had nearly no problem climbing. In the TB today, I would peak over and start to get high centered. I would stop when I heard the little plastic snaps on the running board treads start to pop off.

I am very impressed with the flex on the rear end with the 4 link set up. My Durango wouldnt cram the tire up in the fender well near that far.