Fitting 35s on 3.5 rough country lift kit

Hey guys I’m new to the forum and have some questions. So I just recent order 3.5 rough lift kit and nitto ridge grapplers 35x12.5r18. Everything I’ve read before ordering said you can run a 35 inch tire on a 3inch lift. Now that I have the tired I’m worried they won’t fit with that lift. My lift is on back order so I won’t know for a couple weeks. Has anyone run that lift kit with those tires on a gen 2 tundra? If so what mods did you have to do to get it to fit? thanks for the help!

 

Ready.....set.....

 

Its really hard to give a 100% answer to this as every truck is a little different. As long as you have the correct offset, it SHOULD fit, but it will also heavily depend on your alignment. You will for sure have to at least modify the mudflaps but the the big question is the BMC, which will depend almost exclusively on how good you can dial in the alignment.

 

Folks run 35s with 2.5-3 lift all the time. Wheel offset it key, stock +60s will hit UCA w 35s. Probably removed front flaps, remove mud flaps, may need BMC depending on wheel offset.

There are TONS of thread with pics and details about fitting 35s on this site.

 

Thanks for the help! I’m honestly not sure what my offset of my rims are. They poke out a little. I don’t mind have to trim or cut stuff to make them fit. Even the body mount chop I don’t mind doing. Is the BMC expensive to have done?

 

Those rims look like they are probably around +20. BMC not expensive if you know how to weld, but likely around 500 bucks if you have someone do it all.

 

as others have said, it depends on your wheel offset. It looks like you have aftermarket wheels? If so, those are probably in the +18 to +25 mm range which is the sweet spot. You will have to remove the front spats, trim the front mud flaps, and modify (trim or push in) the front wheel liner. All super easy stuff. here is what I did to fit 34's:
https://www.tundras.com/threads/trimming-front-bumper-liner-and-mudflaps.63755/

A 3" lift is in the range of needing new UCA's. Those will help you with getting the wheel away from the cab mount. Otherwise, you may have to do the cab mount chop.

before you take the truck in to have the lift installed, remove the front wheel liner and the front mud flaps. That will at least get you home without too much rubbing. From there, you can work in your driveway to trim those pieces.

 

Lift height on IFS trucks has nothing to do with what size tire you can fit. If your new tire won't fit at stock height, it won't fit with a lift. Because the moment you go out on those logging roads and washed out ruts, your tire is going to stuff up into the wheel well and be back to stock ride height anyway.

The only thing you can do to fit larger tires is either careful planning with wheel offset and suspension components, or start cutting, or both.

With the right wheels and such, it is possible to run 35s without having to cut anything. If you are lucky with the alignment. Otherwise you'll probably have to at least do a body mount chop or modify in the inner wheel well on the back of the front bumper, which is easy.

 

uhh... say what? here is an IFS tundra on 40's:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fu2f1i46Szc

do you think 40's are going to fit on a tundra without a lift?
lift height has everything to do with what size tire you can fit.

 

Ok, yes, if you are going to lift your truck 12in and cut out and replace cross members, thereby changing the attachment points of the suspension arms, then sure. A lift in THAT case will clear larger tires.

However, if you aren't doing all of that, and only lifting 1-4in without moving the cross members, then no, a lift will NOT allow you to clear larger tires.

 

That's wrong many forum members have fit 37s with 2.5 to 3" of lift and very little cutting. 37s would never fit at stock ride height.

 

Just because people did fit 37s with a lift doesn't mean the lift was required to fit the 37s. That's an example of "correlation does not equal causation". You could just as easily say "I saw a blue Tundra with 37s so you have to have a blue tundra to fit 37s".

Here. Watch this video, which explains and shows why lift height does not matter when fitting larger tires.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33VewJFda1Q

 

Yes this is true. But the vast majority of people running a 3.5 Rough Country will never wheel hard enough to worry about it. They won’t be hitting their bump stops at full wheel lock.

 

A lift on an IFS sacrifices down travel to be at a higher ride height. This gives more room for a larger tire for most driving conditions, but yes, you could still rub at full compression. but seriously, who the hell is going to dive their truck so hard to fully compress their suspension? That would take launching it into the air. few people are going to drive their trucks that hard.

 

Doesn’t matter, they can hit the bump stops. 3.5 RC comes with bump stop spacers.

 

Then you would be better off with a long travel setup

 

I have long travel.

 

I'm going to disagree with that. Sure, most people with a lift don't really go wheeling at all. But that isn't really the point here. For a couple of reasons.

1. Even light wheeling can result in hitting bump stops and stuffing tires, at full lock or not. All it takes is tipping into a rut while going downhill on a fire road.

2. Even if you NEVER go wheeling, there will be likely still be at least a few instances where you stuff your tires even on the street. A hard panic stop will dip your front end several inches, and if you have to turn while making that panic stop, now your tires are getting into your fenders. And for people who aren't used to hearing/feeling something like that, it can cause them, in a panic, to let off the brake, resulting in a crash. And in the worst case, if the tire rubs on something like the body mount hard enough, it can stop the tire from turning, resulting in an uncontrolled skid.

3. It is never a good idea to purposefully build your truck incorrectly just because you don't think you'll ever use the full capability. That is like cutting of your left arm because you don't use it that much.

 

It isn't as difficult as you think. It can be done with very light wheeling.

Imagine this scenario. You are in a Tundra on a 25 to 30 degree downslope fire/logging road. You have a 150 pound steel bumper with an 80 pound winch on the front of your truck. You also have a 120 pound rear bumper and a full sized spare tire in the bed, along with another 600 pounds of tools and gear.

Your left front tire drops into a deep rut and is no longer in contact with the ground. Your right rear tire lifts as a result, and now your truck is teetering on the left rear wheel and right front wheel. With the down slope, at least 70% of the weight of your truck is all on the right front wheel.

Congratulations. You are riding on your bump stops without even having to "do a jump".

 

I think you are seriously overstating how easy it is to stuff a tire to where the suspension hits the bump stop or the tire rubs. I have had 2 lifted vehicles over the last 10 years and I have never experienced anything that you just mentioned (especially on the street - if your tires hit your fenders liners while breaking, you have some serious issues with your suspension). My last vehicle was a Tacoma with a 3" lift on 33's and I took that all over the Front Range mountains in Colorado and not once did the tires rub (on the frame or on any plastic trim) or did the suspension bottom out. And I was on some challenging trails that had some hard hits, tall drops, steep break-overs, and off-camber situations. A stock Tacoma on 33's would never have been able to navigate these trails. The lift was absolutely necessary to accommodate the larger tires and prevent rubbing and bottoming out.

 

I’m not disagreeing with what you’re saying. Yes, if you wheel hard, you should have proper clearancing. All I’m saying is that for 99% of people lifting their trucks, it’s overkill.

If your bump stops are set properly and you have a good offset, you’re not rubbing anything major by fully stuffing while going straight or turning slightly. Maybe a slight rub on the inner fender.

Now if you fully stuff at full wheel lock, yes you might rub a bit more depending on your wheel offset. But that only happens while crawling slowly, and it’ll just be a little knocking sound from your tire knobs rubbing against plastic.

Now if you fully stuff at full wheel lock while going 60mph, then it might be possible to do some of the damage you’re talking about. But you’ll likely have bigger problems than just some rubbing. You’re probably on your way to rolling your truck. Lol.

All OP needs is proper offset and a CMC.

 

And I have not only been wheeling for my entire life, but I have gone wheeling with literally thousands of other rigs of all makes, models, and build levels.

Maybe YOU didn't rub. But that doesn't mean that nobody else will either. And judging by the things you are saying, I don't think you have actually done any "challenging" wheeling either. If you were in a Taco on 33s and didn't rub with a 3in lift, there are only 3 explanations. 1. 33s fit on a stock Tacoma without rubbing already. 2. When your lift was installed, your bump stops were also extended and you just didn't notice hitting them. 3. You weren't actually wheeling as hard as you thought you were.

It is easy to just say "If your tires hit your fender liners while braking, you have serious issues with your suspension" but if you have never actually done a hard panic stop from 65+ mph while loaded with gear, with 300+ pounds of steel bumper and winch on the front of the truck, with 35in or larger tires, then you really don't actually know.

I also NEVER claimed that people don't need a lift or that lifts aren't beneficial for off-roading. What my claim is, and has been, is that suspension lifts that simply replace coil-overs and maybe UCAs, do not create any clearance for larger tires.

Just watch the video I linked. It explains everything I am saying clear as day and even gives the numbers to prove it.

 

Running 35x12.50 on 2.5” lift/level, whatever you wanna call it. No cmc/no rub, but I have Zone UCAs with about 3.5 degrees of caster and 17x8.5+25 icon wheels. Offset and caster are key.