They fit... the dang things fit!

Well, I came home from a week long business trip to find my Nitto Terra Grapplers (285/60-18") waiting for me. I'm not sure, but I think there was some doubt as to whether or not they would fit under a stock VX on stock 7" wide rims. Well, I have found out first hand that they indeed DO fit... and dang they look good. I'll dig my digital camera out today/tonight to take a couple pictures. BTW, does this board offer any hosting of pictures? I have an old Geocities account, but they don't allow direct image linking... kinda a PITA. If anyone has any suggestions, let me know... otherwise, I guess I'll just have to build a new page at my geocities web space. TTYL!

Coach... aka Randy!

How has the handling been effected? My main concern is that with tires that big you would get alot of tracking in road ruts. I'll also be interested to learn how they wear over time.

Post those pics...

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Originally posted by coachreed
BTW, does this board offer any hosting of pictures

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Congrats on the tires.. You've made me look at them as an option but, I'm gonna wear the hell out of the OEM's in Moab first!


You'll find info on the intial membership here

Click on the gallery button and I believe you'll get your answer...
:winky:

i have had terra grapplers since november 2002 and put about 8000 miles on them. they look like they have minimal wear.it really looks like no wear but that is impossible.i get compliments on them all the time.i saw an ad on the back of a magazine,nitto is going to be making a mud tire that looks awesome.i checked there website and they have not listed it yet.that will be my next tire for sure. shawn

How are those tires working out? No rubbing? I was thinking of getting them also, and wondered about fitting them on the 18" rim because it's only 7" wide. I'm glad to hear they fit. Pictures... ?

Sorry its taken me soo long to get some pictures... couldn't find my digital camera... then I've been busy with other things... like my son. Anyway, I just edited down the pics to a decent size for those of you stuck with dial-up... of course, I'll have to worry about web developement later... take a peak...

http://www.geocities.com/ironmanvx2000

As for problems... rubbing? NOT A ONCE! The VX rides great and handles great IMO. I absolutely love the tires... not to mention the fact that my Jeep friends like them too... even the one guy who'd hack on my VX for being a "not-a-jeep"... oh well... check it out and lemme know what ya think...

TTYL!

Coach... aka Randy!

Very, very nice!
Glad you got to keep the stock 18"'s. What's next? Lift..... :smack:

Yeah, the next mod (mechanical) will be lift... but I think my audio/video system will be the actual next job. Gotta get lots of kewl stuff in there to keep the little man entertained during our long roadtrips... oh, and to keep me entertained while sitting out front of the house. ;pb; ;Db;

TTYL!

Coach... aka Randy!

Gotta get me some of those tires!! Love that sticker too! Where did you find that at??

Ok, questions....

1. How are the noise levels compared to the Bridgestones
2. How is the handling compared to the same

I really like the look of them but inquisitive mivds gotta know

Hiss-
The sticker was cut down in our graphics production department at work. I have a couple more coming, including a full windshield banner.

Moncha-
The noise is audible but in my mind, not that bad... heck, I actually don't notice it except that someone asked about that... but in comparison to the tires that were on it, a little more noisy. With the exception of HIGHLY cupped roads, at 75ish mph (where there is a little highway-wander), the handling is pretty much the same. It actually rides a lot smoother with the extra sidewall size. All in all... I love the tires.

Just FYI, I got the tires at Discount Tires Direct for $708 for the set of four delivered to my front door. For an additional $21 each, you can get a road-hazard replacement insurance.

TTYL!

Coach... aka Randy!

Oh man, congrats on your tires... but boy does that steam me.

I called one of the local KC shops here (I see you bought yours at Jack Miller, so you're in KC as well?) - and they told me those tires would absolutely not fit... so I bought brand new Duelers about a month and a half ago.

Grrr... I really like the look of those tires. Anyone wanna buy a hardly used set of Duelers, less than 3000 miles on them?

Inaba-
Yes your right... boght my VX at Jack Miller Isuzu/Subaru... I had talked to a few people before I bought the tires and I was told the same thing. I pretty much took my chances and bought them... worked out fine. Heck, I didn't have to do anymore modification that anyone else... just the little triangular cut on the cladding just in front of the front tires. I turned the wheel to see if it would clear and it would have JUST touched the tip of the tread. I guess I took the chances so everyone else can move this way if they want... YOUR WELCOME! ;Db; BTW Inaba, do you ever get out and play in the dirt? I think some friends and I are going to head to Tuttle Creek out around Manhattan KS here in the next 2-3 weeks... time to go play. If your interested, your welcome to tag along. Same goes for anyone else who should be in the general area... maybe thats a subject for a new thread.

TTYL!

Coach... aka Randy!

I'm gonna see if I can sell my tires and get a set of those. I can get 'em locally here for $170/ea, not including mount/balance (of course).

I'm definitely interested in playing in the dirt. Just let me know when/where and I'm there, as long as it's not too early in the morning on a weekend ... I sleep pretty late ;)

There's another proton around this area (I live in Gardner), but I don't know who owns it, and I've only seen them once. A couple friends across town say they see it every morning going to work. And I'm fairly sure a proton lives somewhere around Metcals/435 as I've had reports of sightings of it from people who think it's me... almost got into trouble with the GF one night because of it, doh!

Mebbe let's start a KC area mini-meet thread?

... must ... get ... grapplers ... arrrrrrg

Who'd you have mount and balance them and how much did it cost?

Hey! If your not doing anything tomorrow... lemme know. A couple friends of mine and I are gonna go play a little. If you wanna come out to the MO side, we'd love to have the company. I can be reached on my cell phone 816-935-4986... gimme a call.

Gardner eh? My girlfriend will be moving to Gardner at the end of the month. Might be seeing you sometime. We'll chat with you later.

Coach... aka Randy!

Cool! I'd be up for that tomorrow. Don't think I have much of anything planned. Girlfriend may come or may not - what time were you thinking?

I'll ring ya up and we can get a place to meet and stuff.

Those are the same size as my Yokohama sports truck tires. Totally different look though. I've always wondered if knobby tires the same size would fit or if the knobs would rub. Click my signature below for pictures of my tires!

http://homepage.mac.com/mrtew/sVCRdune3.jpg

mrtew-
I had seen your pictures before and thought your tires looked pretty big, but I couldn't figure out how big they really were. I also didn't think to send you an email to ask. And to answer your question about whether the knobbies would hit or not... with the small triangular cut off the front of the cladding, they clear... withouth the cut, they BARELY touched. I love them and they are definitely do well off road.

TTYL!

Coach... aka Randy!

I have the 285/75R16 Nitto Grappler AT's installed on my original VX rims with a 3" lift. The only other modification I had to do was some minor trimming of the front fenders. These tires look and ride great, and the price wasn't bad either.

How has your gearing been effected? Do you notice a huge difference in acceleration and when climbing hills? I want to put a set of 285/60-18's on but the VX is my primary transportation and I am afraid that a big change in performace will disappoint me.:confused:

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Originally posted by Teckhardt
How has your gearing been effected? Do you notice a huge difference in acceleration and when climbing hills? I want to put a set of 285/60-18's on but the VX is my primary transportation and I am afraid that a big change in performace will disappoint me.:confused:

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I only had my VX for a week before I got new tires so I can't say for sure, but it's still really really fast! Seems like the performance difference would only be noticable from 0-5 MPH wouldn't it, until the engine got up to speed.

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Originally posted by Teckhardt
How has your gearing been effected? Do you notice a huge difference in acceleration and when climbing hills? I want to put a set of 285/60-18's on but the VX is my primary transportation and I am afraid that a big change in performace will disappoint me.:confused:

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I haven't noticed any difference in performance either, except for the handling around corners, and even that hasn't been a big problem. The speedometer reading is about 10 mph slow now and I think my gas mileage has gone down a bit though.

How about an update now that you have had them for a while?

Welp, I have had the new tires on for around 2500 miles (I'm guessing) and have been very happy. I KNOW for a fact that my speedo is off by around 8%... as I have had Johnny Law (one of Kentucky's finest) give me a piece of paper stating so. I had my cruise set at 73-74 and he clocked me at 81... then he did me the favor of pacing me to show me what 65 looked like... my speedo was reading 59-60mph.

All in all though, I LOVE these tires. I have no problems with tires rubbing anytime... not even offroad... tight turning radius... or anything. No complaints whatsoever. I recommend them in a long shot.

TTYL!

Coach... aka Randy!

PS- At 80-85mph, I was getting around 17mpg. Not bad in my book. I'll probably slow it down for my return trip to KC (From Sarasota, FL) and see what I get then. I'm guessing that low to mid 20 isn't out of the question at around 75 (actual) mph. We'll see. I'll try to report back.

Later!

Coach... aka Randy!

I sure wish I could find some of those Nittos! I don't think there are ANY left in the entire country! I wanna buy them but I can't find them. Tell me if you see some?

Discount Tire ordered me some out of Texas. They said there was a warehouse there with 36 of them (32 now!) Unless they were lying to me, I should have them this week.

I hope to get them installed before Xmas as I am going on a trip to the snow and would love to give them a proper test.

BTW Randy, what PSI are you running and any issues with abnormal wear because of the small wheel size?

-Trenton

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Originally posted by Teckhardt
Discount Tire ordered me some out of Texas. They said there was a warehouse there with 36 of them (32 now!) Unless they were lying to me, I should have them this week.
-Trenton

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They were either lying to you or me (or they don't know where their own tires are) They said there were two in Texas and ordered them for me and only one came in and it was a 20" instead of an 18". Please post back if you get yours or hear anything else! Yours is the most exciting post I've read all week!

have you tried wheelsforless.com?

Inaba:

If you didn't live so far away I'd trade my Mikey Thompson's for the Duelers. the Thompson's make the Nitto's look like a neutered pitbull. (No offence) But they are a little too loud for me. I know they cost a lot more than the Dueler's but it'd be worth an even trade. I think they have about 2,000 miles on them.

Oh, well. I'm thinking of getting a second set of wheels and tires for the summer. And just using these in the winter.

Do you have a pic of them?

Go to google.com search "Mickey Thompson Baja Claw"

i need to photograph the beast. but yea, if you do a google search as mentioned above you will see the manicure my VX has. If you feel like taking a long drive let me know.

I did get my Nittos but sorry they tell me there are no more. Apparently, the store manager had to promise a 12 pack just to get these.

Got to say that they look awesome. Can't wait to really try them out.

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Originally posted by Teckhardt
I did get my Nittos but sorry they tell me there are no more. Apparently, the store manager had to promise a 12 pack just to get these.

Got to say that they look awesome. Can't wait to really try them out.

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Daaaaaammnnnn! I really thought I finally had some good news! You'd think with all the demand for these tires they'd go ahead and make some more! At least take a picture of them and send it to me!

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Originally posted by Pete
have you tried wheelsforless.com?

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Yeah, I just called them this morning and they said they are unavailable for at least a month or two. The guy that answered the phone said he had them on his truck and was just praying that he didn't ruin one of them because he wouldn't be able to find a replacement. I think I'm either getting desperate or giving up! Thanks for the lead though.

Just a quick update on the performance of the Nittos. I drove 200 miles across the state to visit the girlfriend's family for Xmas. The ride is actually much improved with the bigger tires and there really are no adverse effects. There is a slight performance loss and there is some howl on the freeway, but all very livable. I am very glad I got these tires.

One note - I did have to trim the front and rear of the front wheel well. They probably would have been fine without trimming the back, but it was a little too close for comfort.

I'll try to post some pics once I am back at home.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Teckhardt
Just a quick update on the performance of the Nittos.....
I'll try to post some pics once I am back at home.

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Well, where's the pictures? You got the tires when I couldn't find any in the entire country! The least you could do it post some huge clear sharp pictures of your truck from every angle with beautiful scenic backdrops so I can pretend I have them! :-]


Seriously, let's see them!

i just unstalled 285/55/18 on the 7" wheels and they fit with out rubing the wheel is a little to small but stell looks grate and drives the same