35's vs 37's offroad

Anyone actually trail riding their trucks? I've been wanting to do it for a while and am currently gathering parts for my 99 to convert it to 4x4. At this point a 4" lift with 35's is fighting against a 6" with 37's. Looks are not as important as functionality. It wont be anything very hard core, however I reaaaaaally dont want to get stuck every 10 min.

Any input?


BTW, if I go with 37's I will be running the surplus hummer tires on 16.5 steelies.

will you be running leaf springs or coils? 37s can be run on a 4" lift and it looks great!

I run 37s

I ran 35s and 37s. With the 37s you get a whole inch more ground clearance, however you do have that much more tire to turn.

I had m/t 35s with maybe 50% tread and then went to brand new 37x13.50 pro comp x terrains, so obviously the 37s performed better just on a much better tire with more tread.

I had a levelling kit with 35s and the 37s and then went to a 6" lift.

It all depends on what type of trails you are going to be on. For what I do, 35s allow me to keep the center of gravity lower for grades

with a 6" llft my 37's are pretty bitey...especially on the front fenders...

For serious wheeling Id say an 8" with 37's. Or hack your wheelwells up. Or run some skinny 37's.

For articulation on a truck with an off the shelf 6" lift, 35x 13.5's would be the shiznit.

Ive done EXACTLY what you're asking about for 260k miles. Jus sayin...

I wont be doing anything very aggressive with it, enough to make 33's useless. I wondered about using 37's with a 6" as I thought it wouldn't flex enough, but I also worried about an 8" being too tall. The tires are 37x12.5R16.5.

I think those military 37s run a little small. My friend has them on his truck with a 6" lift and they look like they would clear fine on a 4" lift with the right wheel. I will see if I can find any pics

Edit: I found a pic real quick and I can take some more with my phone later if you want

So they clear with a 4" fully through the travel? The steel wheels are 4.5" bs unless I go to a 12" wide.

If it matters I am going with an 05+ coil front. And I'm not against cutting on this truck.

No 37's would not clear through full travel on a 4" lift. Unless you do some cutting.

37" Military tires suck balls... if the choice is b/w that and a decent quality 35, go with the 35's. The "Hummer" tires have weak side walls and a really hard tread. Traction sucks if you actually do any wheeling. You'll end up with a punctured side wall in about 30 seconds.

If you really want to go wheeling, stop trying to use a full size truck...

Thats what I was afraid of. 35's with a 4" seems a bit more practical from a center of gravity stand point.


Every time I thing about buying another truck.....I just realize this one is already beat up.LOL

roachie said:

Thats what I was afraid of. 35's with a 4" seems a bit more practical from a center of gravity stand point.


Every time I thing about buying another truck.....I just realize this one is already beat up.LOL

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You arent leaving much room for suspension travel. Im telling you, Im running 37's on a six inch lift and it is fine for street driving. To really wheel a six you'd have to run 35's or hack the wheel wells up.

4" with 35's is a good setup for street driving. I personally would run some WIDE 33's on a 4" if I were going to wheel it alot.

Or you could just do 6" lift and 35's.

I know there are people that are running 37's on a 4" lift, etc., etc.. but those are exceptions. I wouldnt just accept the validity of claims that "It works just fine" without seeing it for myself.

I have 4 inch and 37s and it works ok.

It will rub pretty good on a full lock turn with the suspension compressed, and I do have about 4 inches of my inner fender cut out and, the tires have bent some of the fender, although you cant see it with my flairs on unless you look in to the wheel well.

My truck also stays pretty stable on off camber situations as well due to lack of lift.

I ran a 4" kit with IROK 36" radial tires. I went wherever I wanted to go and pulled out ALOT of vehicles. My truck at the time was a reg cab srw v10.

Ford7.3SD said:

I have 4 inch and 37s and it works ok.

It will rub pretty good on a full lock turn with the suspension compressed,

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Id say!! If mine does that with a six inch yours has to be doing it a whole lot more.

Its gotta rub like a mother***ker on the back side of the front springs. If Im going down hill and turning, mostly right, it rubs on the springs pretty good.

I guessing what you said above doesnt take place at speed?

Im just not convinced that I really need 6" lift for a set of 35's. I do understand what you are saying but it wont be in anything THAT bad. An F150 with 37s can get through everywhere we go.


And as stated before...sawzall is my friend.

TyCorr said:

Id say!! If mine does that with a six inch yours has to be doing it a whole lot more.

Its gotta rub like a mother***ker on the back side of the front springs. If Im going down hill and turning, mostly right, it rubs on the springs pretty good.

I guessing what you said above doesnt take place at speed?

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The wheel can make a world of difference. Backspace/offset would do a lot for rubbing on spring or fender, you just have to find the right combo

TyCorr said:

Id say!! If mine does that with a six inch yours has to be doing it a whole lot more.

Its gotta rub like a mother***ker on the back side of the front springs. If Im going down hill and turning, mostly right, it rubs on the springs pretty good.

I guessing what you said above doesnt take place at speed?

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At speed on a turn like that is about 3mph or less...

The only thing it rubs more than a 6" lift is the fender liner really, my tires rub full lock but nothing to horrid. but i have thought about putting a 2 inch shackle on top of my 4 inch springs though to get it out of the fender liner.

RedSmokey said:

The wheel can make a world of difference. Backspace/offset would do a lot for rubbing on spring or fender, you just have to find the right combo

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I hear ya... Ive been through about 8 sets on my 2000. My first set was a 16x12 American Eagle. Then in 07 I had 18x10's w -24mm offset and they rubbed pretty bad on the fender with 38x15.50's.

Anything wider than a 13.5 on these trucks is pretty ridiculous on a 10 or 12 wide wheel. My 37's on 12" wide wheel arent rub free. If I change the bs it just rubs in a different spot with 37x13.5.

Im 100% convinced a 35x13.5 on a 12" wheel width will NOT rub with a 6" lift.

The title of the thread asked about tires offroad. 37's work on a six inch lift but only if you are crawling along or going faster in a straightline. Try crossing a steeper ditch with a 6" lift and 37's...It'll bite something! Guaranteed!

Im going to a 35x13.5 Mickey ATZ for this reason.