34-35" tires on 17" wheels : Too much sidewall?

[rctoyguy]

Almost time to replace the tires on my 13 Ram 2500, and I want a bigger tire. Thinking about a 34 to 35 inch tire.
Would I be OK with that on my stock 17" wheels, or does that mean too tall of a sidewall? I think from the appearance standpoint I'd be fine (I like the meaty tire look), but does the taller sidewall make the tire weaker? Or at least enough weaker to matter? I don't want to lose any towing/hauling ability.

[rctoyguy]

I've about talked myself back down to 33.5's. The stock tires are about 31.5 and look too small to me.

[IdaD]

I had to axle flip my fifth wheel, which gave me just under 6" of lift, to get it to sit level with my Ram and have adequate bedrail clearance. That's on the stock 33"+ tires. 35's would probably be doable but on my setup it would decrease the bedrail clearance and make it ride a bit nose high. I could always lift the trailer more but it's already pretty high as-is.

The other thing with the bigger tires is it will effectively lower your rear axle ratio. From a power standpoint it probably wouldn't matter with the Cummins but you'll probably see more frequent downshifting. I'd also expect your fuel economy to drop a bit with larger and heavier tires.

[rctoyguy]

Still thinking this all over - the other question is will going to 35's be bad for towing/hauling? I pull a TT now and plan to go to a 5th wheel by spring.

[rctoyguy]

I've looked at OE takeoffs for sure -- not quite a dime a dozen LOL, but certainly reasonable for what I've found.

[Grit_dog]

SoCalDesertRider wrote:
18" seems to have the greatest choice of high load rated tires.

True story. 20s also have a decent selection of high load cap tires and they look just right at 34-35" tall on Rams.
Another consideration, new Ram takeoffs are dime a dozen on Craigslist. You could pick up a brand new set of tires and wheels for the same or less than a set of new tires alone. If you're good with running some OE highway tires.
The OE New ram 20s I put on my 07 are not quite 34" tires but they fill out the wheel wells alright and there are 295-60 and 295-65 size options that will,get you up to 35" after you burn off the factory tires.

[SoCalDesertRid1]

18" seems to have the greatest choice of high load rated tires.

[FishOnOne]

Grit dog wrote:
no it doesn't and yes it does, depends on the tire.
Buy one that will hold what you need.
Besides there's a camp here that loves the miles of sidewall look and thinks 60 series 20s are not made for towing and hauling! Lol.
Bottom line is either are fine.

Well said... Go by the tire mfg's specs and make an educated decision.

[Grit_dog]

no it doesn't and yes it does, depends on the tire.
Buy one that will hold what you need.
Besides there's a camp here that loves the miles of sidewall look and thinks 60 series 20s are not made for towing and hauling! Lol.
Bottom line is either are fine.

[rctoyguy]

I've seen 2500s with 34's on 20" wheels (stock) - if I've got to buy tires I'm hoping I don't have to buy wheels too.

[IdaD]

I'd check the weight ratings on the tires your considering and go by that. 17" tires tend to be lower rated so you could get some additional load capacity by jumping up to 18" wheels if you need it, and it may look better.

My stock tires are just over 33" tall on 18" wheels and they're rated at 3640 each.