jimster716
New member
I've pretty much done everything I can to alleviate the rubbing that many people running 285's have also suffered. With 9" wide wheels, my setup isn't ideal to avoid or minimize rubbing. As of today, I no longer have the rubbing in reverse at wheel turn lockup.
Setup
Lift: Toytec Bilstein 5100 3" lift
UCA: Total Chaos
Wheels: ATX AX195 Cornice 17x9 -12 offset w/ 4.53 b/s
Tires: Cooper STT Pro 285/70/17
My first rubbing mod was the front fender liner mod back in May of this year. I unscrewed the front fender liner and pushed it forward as much as I could and screwed them back on.
But I realized the real rubbing came from the body mount. After some initial reluctance to have this done, I got over it and had the body mount chop completed with a new plate welded in. This relieved much of the rubbing under many circumstances but I still had rubbing in reverse with the wheels turned. Next to the body mount, there is a couple of body metal flanges mated together. This "flange" stuck out as much as the original body mount so it was inevitable that this would also be a point of rubbing under certain conditions.
What I'm talking about is circled in red.
So four months later (today) I decided to hammer the crap out of that flange to get it out of the way of the tire when turned. It is NOT recommended that you shave this metal as it connects two body pieces.
The result in red.
After hammering the shit out of this piece on both sides, I saw that my handiwork had the unfortunate side effect of pushing out my fenders. I now had a widebody 4Runner. LOL.
After my oh shit moment, I used a 1/2" x 5" carriage bolt for some precision hammering on that metal flange to get the fender back in alignment with the front door. All is well again.
I also took some shears to the bumper cover at the bottom of the front fender liner as this was also a rubbing point. You can see the less than clean cut but you can't see it anyways.
So having done all this over the course of four months, I no longer have rubbing in reverse with wheel turned in either direction. This is a huge improvement. The only time it rubs is turning under compression like entering a sloped driveway at speed. There's not much I can do about it but it's not nearly loud or wince inducing as the previous rubbing. It appears this rub is on the overfender trim. You can see where the paint has been rubbed off.
So was it worth it? It was worth it to me to get these meaty 285 (33") Cooper STT Pro's underneath for my off-road excursions and also for looks. Everyone has had different experiences with 285's depending on tire, wheel specs, and suspension in regard to rubbing or no rubbing. Thought I'd share my experience so that some considering upsizing their tires are educated or prepared to know what may be in store for them.
Setup
Lift: Toytec Bilstein 5100 3" lift
UCA: Total Chaos
Wheels: ATX AX195 Cornice 17x9 -12 offset w/ 4.53 b/s
Tires: Cooper STT Pro 285/70/17
My first rubbing mod was the front fender liner mod back in May of this year. I unscrewed the front fender liner and pushed it forward as much as I could and screwed them back on.
But I realized the real rubbing came from the body mount. After some initial reluctance to have this done, I got over it and had the body mount chop completed with a new plate welded in. This relieved much of the rubbing under many circumstances but I still had rubbing in reverse with the wheels turned. Next to the body mount, there is a couple of body metal flanges mated together. This "flange" stuck out as much as the original body mount so it was inevitable that this would also be a point of rubbing under certain conditions.
What I'm talking about is circled in red.
So four months later (today) I decided to hammer the crap out of that flange to get it out of the way of the tire when turned. It is NOT recommended that you shave this metal as it connects two body pieces.
The result in red.
After hammering the shit out of this piece on both sides, I saw that my handiwork had the unfortunate side effect of pushing out my fenders. I now had a widebody 4Runner. LOL.
After my oh shit moment, I used a 1/2" x 5" carriage bolt for some precision hammering on that metal flange to get the fender back in alignment with the front door. All is well again.
I also took some shears to the bumper cover at the bottom of the front fender liner as this was also a rubbing point. You can see the less than clean cut but you can't see it anyways.
So having done all this over the course of four months, I no longer have rubbing in reverse with wheel turned in either direction. This is a huge improvement. The only time it rubs is turning under compression like entering a sloped driveway at speed. There's not much I can do about it but it's not nearly loud or wince inducing as the previous rubbing. It appears this rub is on the overfender trim. You can see where the paint has been rubbed off.
So was it worth it? It was worth it to me to get these meaty 285 (33") Cooper STT Pro's underneath for my off-road excursions and also for looks. Everyone has had different experiences with 285's depending on tire, wheel specs, and suspension in regard to rubbing or no rubbing. Thought I'd share my experience so that some considering upsizing their tires are educated or prepared to know what may be in store for them.
