[Casey1227]

Hey everyone! I recently purchased a 2007 XTERRA s model. I wanted to add 33s on the stock wheels. This is probably a stupid question but what dimensions would I want for a 33 that would fit the wheel. I know the stock tire is a 265/70R16. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[JM303]

285/75-r16

 

[Casey1227]

Thankyou! I thought that could work but wanted to make sure it would in the stock wheel. I will do the melt mod when I get em.

 

[campisi]

255/85r16 fit a little better, IMHO, but selection is very limited and most folks would rather run the 285's.

 

[Casey1227]

255/85r16 fit a little better, IMHO, but selection is very limited and most folks would rather run the 285's.

If you don’t mind me asking, how different are they?

 

[Tlrtucker]

285/75-r16 fit just fine with no lift. I'm running stock suspension and 285/75-r16's and have zero rub - AFTER doing the melt mod. To be fair I don't do any hardcore wheeling but have "flexed" my suspension to the point I've lifted a rear tire a few times before I eliminated the rear sway bar (not that hard to do, just saying) and have zero rubbing. To each his own.

 

[GreyDuck]

If you don’t mind me asking, how different are they?

With the 255/85, you get the height of a 285/75, but it's a skinnier tire so the width won't cause rub issues. From the side, they look almost identical and from the front or rear, you can see the difference.

Plug the numbers in here for a visual:

Tire Size Comparison

Tire size comparison the easy way. Use our tire size comparison calculator to compare diameter, width, sidewall, circumference and revolutions per mile.

tiresize.com

 

[campisi]

What Han said above. Usually you won't even have to do the melt mod, with 285s you will most definitely be melting your fenders (no big deal though). The 255 tire selection is limited compared to 285s. Just another option to look at.

 

[outback97]

The 255 tire selection is limited compared to 285s.

That's an understatement. When I was shopping for tires years ago, I decided I wanted that size in an AT tire. I gave up that idea after looking at what was readily available out there and went with 285's.

Just for an example from one big retailer, Discount Tire lists only 5 options in the 255/85R16 size. One is a trailer tire, three are MT's, one is an aggressive AT, and only one of these five shows stock locally.

They list 47 tires in the 285/75R16 size and most are available now.

@Casey1227 welcome and kudos for actually searching to know about the melt mod.

There's a big tire options thread here if you haven't seen it:

Tire Options

The goal of this thread is to create a sticky for tires based on user input. Please quote this post and remove this heading to complete the questionare below and submit your own post of which tire you use for your Xterra. Since this will become a sticky, Moderators will remove any posts that do...

www.thenewx.org

 

[Casey1227]

That’s awesome I’ll check it out thanks so much!

 

[Casey1227]

Btw I was looking at the BF Goodrich KO2s all terrains.

 

[mtnbound]

I have 265 75 16's and will probably go to 285's next time. if your looking for suggestions the falken wildpeak at3w's are good for snowy conditions. but not too agressive like a m/s tire. I really like the looks of the nitto ridge grapplers, but would have to do more research about their on vs off road performance. probably cant go wrong with Ko2's as the have been the standard bearer for at tires for probably decades now.

 

[Tlrtucker]

Btw I was looking at the BF Goodrich KO2s all terrains.

I'm running KO2's in a 285 on my xterra and love them.

 

[Casey1227]

Great! I’m looking to do mostly on road driving with some minor off-roading because I fish a lot. So a good all terrain is all I need

 

[outback97]

Btw I was looking at the BF Goodrich KO2s all terrains.

I've been really happy with mine; they were installed by the previous owner of our '09. Mine are the stock size (32").

One big objection to the KO2's I see from people out there is... there's a lot of them and they've been around a long time. Some people just want something different and new, even if the old familiar thing is really good.

 

[Casey1227]

I’m ok with having a common tire, but I may get another due to the pricing since I’m still in Highschool.

 

[posrrr]

Have 285/75s on my '06 OR. 6-speed manual. Two other things to consider: Gear ratios are screwed up and the truck is taller. I need to shift down now on hills and gas mileage went in the dumper. Luck to get 15 mpg highway now. Maybe not important to you, but things will be different. LS swap would fix all of that

 

[darkallday]

I recently slapped a set of 285/75R16 General Grabber A/Tx's on my 2008 X. Slight rubbing in reverse with tires near full lock WITHOUT MELT MOD. When I install my lift next weekend, I'm sure the rub will go away.

As for the performance of the Grabbers:

The tire has a fairly aggressive tread pattern and shoulders for an A/T. There is a lot of siping for wet performance. I recently took my truck up a moderate trail into the Sierra Nevada mountains and encountered many different types of terrain such as degraded asphalt, rutted dirt, coarse sand, mud, snow, ice, slush, and rock gardens. I found the the tires' performance to be extremely satisfying. There was only one point on ice going uphill where I lost any traction at all, and it was only for a fraction of second.

Performance by terrain:

Broken Asphalt: Great, obviously.
Rutted Dirt: Very Good.
Coarse Sand: Very good. Sunk in a little, but I was running 22PSI, lower tire pressure may have mitigated the issue.
Mud: Very Good. Could feel the tires biting and puling all the way through. Of course, an M/T would be better, but the grabbers were genuinely good here.
Snow: Fantastic. Bit right in and didn't slip much at all. Snow was between 6" and 18" deep.
Ice: Very good. Didn't encounter too much ice, but on the stuff I did encounter, the Grabbers inspired confidence.
Slush: Surprisingly good.
Rock Gardens: Great! Went over every granite rock no problem.

As far as highway performance, these tires are some of the best in the A/T category. They are a tad lighter than other comparable tires at 60.5 lbs. These could theoretically immprove mpg, but running 33s on an X kills mileage regardless. These tires are SUPER quiet for an A/T. I honestly don't know how they made them this quiet. The grip is adequate on pavement as you'd expect.

Overall, great tire. Highly recommend them. Cheaper and lighter than the KO2s. KO2s are great as well, but just wanted to inform you of another option.

 

[Casey1227]

I recently slapped a set of 285/75R16 General Grabber A/Tx's on my 2008 X. Slight rubbing in reverse with tires near full lock WITHOUT MELT MOD. When I install my lift next weekend, I'm sure the rub will go away.

As for the performance of the Grabbers:

The tire has a fairly aggressive tread pattern and shoulders for an A/T. There is a lot of siping for wet performance. I recently took my truck up a moderate trail into the Sierra Nevada mountains and encountered many different types of terrain such as degraded asphalt, rutted dirt, coarse sand, mud, snow, ice, slush, and rock gardens. I found the the tires' performance to be extremely satisfying. There was only one point on ice going uphill where I lost any traction at all, and it was only for a fraction of second.

Performance by terrain:

Broken Asphalt: Great, obviously.
Rutted Dirt: Very Good.
Coarse Sand: Very good. Sunk in a little, but I was running 22PSI, lower tire pressure may have mitigated the issue.
Mud: Very Good. Could feel the tires biting and puling all the way through. Of course, an M/T would be better, but the grabbers were genuinely good here.
Snow: Fantastic. Bit right in and didn't slip much at all. Snow was between 6" and 18" deep.
Ice: Very good. Didn't encounter too much ice, but on the stuff I did encounter, the Grabbers inspired confidence.
Slush: Surprisingly good.
Rock Gardens: Great! Went over every granite rock no problem.

As far as highway performance, these tires are some of the best in the A/T category. They are a tad lighter than other comparable tires at 60.5 lbs. These could theoretically immprove mpg, but running 33s on an X kills mileage regardless. These tires are SUPER quiet for an A/T. I honestly don't know how they made them this quiet. The grip is adequate on pavement as you'd expect.

Overall, great tire. Highly recommend them. Cheaper and lighter than the KO2s. KO2s are great as well, but just wanted to inform you of another option.

I’ll look into them Thankyou

 

[Tlrtucker]

One big objection to the KO2's I see from people out there is... there's a lot of them and they've been around a long time. Some people just want something different and new, even if the old familiar thing is really good.

This is silly. The KO2's came out in 2015, if that's "old" then I don't know what to do. They are very similar to the original KO's which came out in the '90s I believe. Nitto's, Duratracs, Super Swampers are all decades old, yet everyone loves them.