35x11.5R17 Tires (Nitto Ridge Grapplers) on Stock Badlands -- On and Off-Road Test

[Tconley]

I followed a similar path, but used some take off Good Years from a friends SQ and no level kit (yet). What did you use for wheel spacers? I ended up using some 1.5” spacers and so far (8k miles) no issues. I was hesitant about the poke with the factory flares, but the 315/70/17 just go a bit outside the flares and don’t cause any visibility problems in the rain. I think tire choice is very terrain specific. I am in MI and 90% of the terrain here is sand. Both my stock KO2s and the Good Years work well. I will probably switch back to BFG (KO3s idle the feedback is good and they are available) because of the tougher sidewalls. Snow performance has been good with the GY, similar to the KO2s. Mileage wise I went from average of 18.1 to 17.3, and I did adjust the Speedo through Forscan. It’s not a controlled test, but after 8k miles it’s pretty consistent. Thanks for sharing!

Great looking Bronco btw!

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[FlavyPA]

Did you have to remove the crash bars?

 

[Mayflower2010]

Great post, thanks for the review. I actually just put these same tires on my stock Badlands on Tuesday with the 1 1/4 inch level lift from Readylift. No trimming and did not need to remove crash bars…the Tires look great and so far they feel good but I’ve only driven in torrential rain!

 

[Tconley]

Did you have to remove the crash bars?

Yes I removed both front and rear crash bars.

 

[FlavyPA]

Yes I removed both front and rear crash bars.

I'm looking at either 285/75 r17 tires or the 35s you installed. I've already replaced my crash bars with the following "big tire" crash bars. https://www.extremeterrain.com/readylift-bronco-high-clearance-anti-intrustion-beams-67-21200.html

I'm pretty sure the 34" tires will work with these crash bars. Trying to determine if the 35s will also clear them.

 

[FlavyPA]

Also, did you need to make any modifications to the spare tire carrier or brake light with the bigger 35s?

 

[Mattwings]

@Mattwings Im not running any spacers. I instead went with a 35x11.5 as the stock 285 is approx 11.5” wide, whereas a 315 is closer to 12.5” wide.

@DaddyMuffin I bought my bronco used last February from Durango Motor Company and the previous owner had put a level kit on it already, though unfortunately I don’t know what brand. I did consider 35x12.5 tires and going to a +30 or +0 offset wheel, but this was the most cost effective way to fit 35’s and I like the looks of the narrower tire as well. I’ll probably upgrade eventually to wheels that are +35 or +30 for a little more poke, and a little more stability off-road, but I like how it handles right now.

I missed that detail. We consistently wheel with a group (Michigan Bronco Club) and one of my regular trail partners did the same. I have to say, I really like the narrower profile in many situations. I think people underestimate how different section width performs differently and many times better in certain conditions. Those pictures are from Drummond Island, last month. It's one of the rare areas in MI you come across rocks and in the pictures, ice flows and snow

 

[Tconley]

Also, did you need to make any modifications to the spare tire carrier or brake light with the bigger 35s?

I’ve been lazy and haven’t mounted the spare so the pictures still show the stock KO2’s

However when I was working in this upgrade I did some research to that point and here’s a snippet from this pdf: https://fordauthority.com/wp-conten...dable-2021-Ford-Bronco-installation-guide.pdf

Since the stock badlands wheels are 27 lbs, you should be good to go for 35’s given you have 106lbs to play with. Unless the 133lb is total weight including the weight of the door itself, but from what I’ve read the actual door is pretty light <30 lbs so as long as you don’t have additional accessories I don’t see a need for tailgate reinforcement when jumping to 35’s.

Unsure on the 3rd brake light, but there’s some pretty cheap extension kits out there (or diy one with some simple Home Depot metal bars and a drill).

 

[BROGAN]

Hey @Tconley, I have an unrelated question. Can you tell me about your roof rack please. What brand and model is it? How do you like it? Are you wanting to change it out? Would you get the same one over again? Before you bought that one, did you have it narrowed down to a short list? I think its pretty rad to have a roof rack and be able to take the top down. So one of my upcoming modifications will be converting to a soft top, and then sorting out the roof rack situation. The wife says we need another RTT as she doesn't really want to remove everything from the back of the bronco, and both kids car seats every night to sleep.

 

[FlavyPA]

Great post, thanks for the review. I actually just put these same tires on my stock Badlands on Tuesday with the 1 1/4 inch level lift from Readylift. No trimming and did not need to remove crash bars…the Tires look great and so far they feel good but I’ve only driven in torrential rain!

Any issues mounting the spare in the larger size to the carrier?

 

[lakesinai]

I was only getting about 17.3 mpg average before, pushing 19 on road trips. Now around town I’m at 14-15 mpg. This last trip where I got 13 mpg we had 20mph+ headwind for a lot of the drive.

Gas mileage after tire upsizing seems somewhat underreported, so I'm glad you measured it and reported it. Each tire size does seem to have a cost. When I went from the stock OBX 32" tires to 33" Nitto Nomad Grapplers, it cost me 2 mpg average over 28,000 miles. Your move from 33's to 35's seems to have roughly the same "cost."

 

[Jason519]

I’ve seen people talk about this topic a few times but never found an off-road report, so here’s mine!

I just upgraded to 35x11.5 r17 Nitto Ridge Grapplers on my non-was manual Badlands with a 1” level and stock rims.

ON ROAD:
These feel great on road; even though they’re a load range E tire vs the stock load range C KO2’s they actually feel more supple just due the extra side wall. When accelerating you definitely have to sit in each gear longer and put your foot in it a bit more if you really want to accelerate at a decent rate, but under normal driving around town there’s not a big difference. Steering is noticeably heavier, which makes sense for 66 lb tires vs. the stock ones were 54 lbs believe. Last week my wife and I road tripped to Hurricane Utah from Colorado Springs (10 hr drive) and averaged only 13 mpg, although I suspect a lot of that was due to wind and not just bigger heavier tires.

OFF ROAD:
Now for the important part. While in Hurricane we drove two trails: Toquerville Falls (rated 4 on TrailsOffroad) and West Rim Trail in Sand Hollow (rated 4-7 on TrailsOffroad). Aired down to 18psi on second trail and through sand whoops and full articulation during rock crawling the tires never rubbed. A few times I had the bronco on 3 wheels with no rubbing. Starting on steep angles takes a little more effort with the manual and I found myself leaning on the crawl gear more then I did with the 33’s, however felt way more confident tackling big obstacles with how well the 35’s grip and roll over taller ledges. I even bottomed out the suspension a few times in the whoops and still no issues. I’ll most likely put a 2” inch lift on it someday , but for now the level and 35’s is perfect!

I’m did 34x11s no lift and it looks way better no rubbing

 

[Joemama]

I’m did 34x11s no lift and it looks way better no rubbing

What size tire? 285 75r17?

 

[Jason519]

I’m did 34x11s no lift and it looks way better no rubbing

Yes toyo’s

 

[Glade Runner]

So, these are basically the same size as the OEM Sasquatch tire, but about an inch narrower and heavier.

Would I expect about the same mpg on a Sasquatch equipped Bronco, or would I expect less due to the weight even though narrower?

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