33 inch MT's in moab

[ejpaul1]

So, I bought a 25 Badlands without SAS which meant I was going to get 33's. Its what I wanted but I had a concern in the back of my head that the types of trails I was wanting to go on would make me regret not getting 35's.

Fast forward to today, I was doing fins and things trail here in moab and didnt scrape anything but my mudflaps. WHats more strange is a guy behind me on 35 AT,s was struggling, NOT with clearance but with grip.

Fins and things is all the more extreme I plan on doing with it so I am now sure I am not missing out on anything by not getting the 35's.

MT's are most assuredly loud but dang do they work well. I as well only aired down to 30 and didnt do any substantive slipping.

Happy to share a video if anyone is interested but really just normal stuff to the masses I am sure.

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[Brian_B]

Nothing wrong with that at all imo.

The off roaders that live around me like to
give the following advice:

1) There are no substitutes for larger tires

2) Larger tires = larger headaches

Find your happy median between those two things.

 

[HalfmuleFarmer]

Congrats on getting out to Moab. Good driving > good tires. Strange that the guy behind you was slipping, maybe he didn’t air down at all. I’ve done Moab at around 18 PSI. The slick rock can definitely be slick, and those stair steps are brutal at too high a pressure. Enjoy your Badlands!

 

[ejpaul1]

Nothing wrong with that at all imo.

The off roaders that live around me like to
give the following advice:

1) There are no substitutes for larger tires

2) Larger tires = larger headaches

Find your happy median between those two things.

make no mistake, 35's are better offroad than 33s, i just didnt wanna live with them every day as this is my daily driver. I dont know why the guy was slipping, i think his tires might have just been more worn

 

[KreeHBronco]

35" provide one inch of extra ground clearance over 33", but not more traction. Individual tire traction is a function of the tire (tread pattern, rubber compound/composition, and contact patch). Another factor to consider is total traction, ie. how many tires are under power ... a vehicle with more locking diffs vs less (say F/R vs R or zero) will usually have more traction.

 

[TrailCrawler25]

I’d be interested in seeing your videos.

My jeeps had 33’s, 35’s and 37’s. 100% agree with what Brian_B posted. Ultimately what probably got me out of the wheeling sport.

I have 33’s on my 2 door base, figured I was going to stay away from that inchitis rabbit hole.

I’ve onky made one mild desert run, but is sure seems low slung for anything more interesting than an old mining road.

 

[TrailCrawler25]

.

 

[CalvinT]

I would have been happy with 32 i

I dont know why the guy was slipping, i think his tires might have just been more worn

You don't know how old his tires were. Tires tend to harden with age.

 

[ejpaul1]

I’d be interested in seeing your videos.

My jeeps had 33’s, 35’s and 37’s. 100% agree with what Brian_B posted. Ultimately what probably got me out of the wheeling sport.

I have 33’s on my 2 door base, figured I was going to stay away from that inchitis rabbit hole.

I’ve onky made one mild desert run, but is sure seems low slung for anything more interesting than an old mining road.

This is one of like 5 and its not insane terrain but I was shocked at how good it did. Im new to this kind of offroading and im sure its evident in the video

 

[Jakob1972]

Tires that are new can be slick too. They work better if they have been warn in a little.

 

[HalfmuleFarmer]

This is one of like 5 and its not insane terrain but I was shocked at how good it did. Im new to this kind of offroading and im sure its evident in the video

If you haven’t done an Off-Roadeo, you gotta get out there. The one in Moab is fabulous. Highly recommended.

 

[TrailCrawler25]

If you are happy at that level, stay there. If you can enjoy the adventure and scenery you will stay happy. If you venture to seek the challenge of more difficult trails, you are in for a long run that is very rewarding, very expensive and very frustrating all at the same time.

I feel like 35’s are probably the limit/cross over point for reasonable dual purpose rigs these days. Bigger will get you farther - but it’ll start costing and breaking more.

 

[HalfmuleFarmer]

I feel like 35’s are probably the limit/cross over point for reasonable dual purpose rigs these days. Bigger will get you farther - but it’ll start costing and breaking more.

Feels like the wheelbase matters a bit as well. 35s feel (and look) plenty big on the 2DR, and as you note, they’re very reasonable on the road as well. A 4DR on 33s is probably giving away more than just a couple inches of clearance in comparison. But as the OP demonstrated, a good line makes all the difference sometimes. I found getting a spider-sense of my clearance was invaluable to trail safety (and it’s higher than I first thought!)

 

[Way2Fast]

I have 35 Toyo Open Country (E-series) with HOSS 3.0 shocks on my 2021 Wildtrak. It is much quieter then the Goodyears and Bilstiens it came with on the hwy

 

[contented]

If you’re like me, as you make more trips to Moab, your confidence and driving skills will improve and you’ll do more difficult trails. You’ll get better at picking lines, understand which line is two door or four door friendly, and choosing lines that are 33” tire friendly. Clearly, 35” tires make some lines easier. But a skilled driver can take 33” tires many places a less skilled one can’t take 35”s. It wasn’t until our third trip wheeling with a two door JK that I finally became able to “see” and understand the above.

We’re making our fourth and probably final trip this summer. After one early May trip, we now go in the summer. Late July or early August. Trails aren’t busy at all, lodging is a cheap as it gets and town isn’t busy. But most of all, its hot. Slick rock is hot, and tires get hot which equals insane grip

Your rig could do Poison Spider, Steel Bender Loop, Wipeout Hill, Seven Mile Rim, Flat Iron Mesa, and more. Many times there are bypasses to the most difficult obstacles. We even did Metal Masher, but bypassed the obstacles you see the buggies doing on YouTube

It’s hard to draw any conclusions as to why someone else struggled and you didn’t. It could be tires themselves, air pressure, driving technique, line choice, etc.

Don’t let this be you last trip to Moab. I’m 2,100 miles away and old. A 4,000 mile round trip is getting to be too much.

Video is Gold Bar Rim waterfall. Talked w/ a group of Jeeps w/ 38“ and 40” tires that all had to winch up it the night before. As you can see I walked right up it w/ my 35” BFG KO2’s. Made me smile.

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