Biggest Tire Size on Stock 4Runner, Leveling Kit, and Lift Kits? (2023)

What are the Biggest Tires you can run on 4Runner (Stock, Lift Kit, and Leveling Kit) – Largest Tire Size on 4Runner Explained

We have had a few questions on the biggest tires you can fit on your 4Runner. Asking this question on a forum might get you a few snarky comments, but it is welcomed over here. We got this question again and figured we should probably write something about it.

If you are asking yourself what the largest tire you can fit on your stock 4Runner is, you will find it here. If you want to know what the largest tire size you can fit with a lift or leveling kit is, we are also going to be covering this.

This should serve as your complete guide to the 4Runners tire size (for most people anyway). If you have any questions about tire size on your stock, leveled, or lifted 4Runner, you are in a safe place. There are no forum trolls on this page waiting to bark at you for asking one of the most common questions in off-road history.

4Runner Tire Size Guide

Table of Contents

Common Questions

I had these questions at one point as well:

How big can I go?
Do I want to go as large as possible?
What are the benefits of going bigger?
What are the downsides of going bigger?
At what point do I need a BMC (Body Mount Chop)
Should I keep my stock wheels?
What is the best wheel size for Off-Road use?
What are the best All-Terrain tires?

The most common questions about Tire Size:

Largest Size Tires on Stock 4Runner?
Largest Size Tires with Leveling Kit?
Largest Size Tires with Lift Kit?

17″ Wheel/Tire Options (Examples for Rubbing Vs. Non-Rubbing)

265/70/17 (31.61″ – Stock 4Runner Size) (7-9″ Space Needed) – Won’t Rub
255/75/17 (32.06″ – 6.5-8.5″ Space Needed) – Won’t Rub
275/70/17 (32.16″ – 7-8.5″ Space Needed) – Won’t Rub
285/70/17 (32.71″ – 7.5-9″ Space Needed) – Questionable (BMC Might be Needed)
305/65/17 (32.61″ – 8.5-11″ Space Needed) – Will Rub – Adjustments/Mods Needed
255/80/17 (33.06″ – 6.5-8.5″ Space Needed) – Will Rub – Adjustments/Mods Needed
305/70/17 (33.81″ – 8-9.5″ Space Needed) – Will Rub – Adjustments/Mods Needed
285/75/17 (33.83″ – 7.5-9.5″ Space Needed) –Will Rub – Adjustments/Mods Needed
35X12.5R17 (34.76″) – Yes, you guessed it – Adjustments/Mods Needed

18″ Wheel/Tire Options (Examples for Rubbing Vs. Non-Rubbing)

265/65/18 (31.56″ – Close to Stock) (7.5-9.5″ Space Needed) – Won’t Rub
275/65/18 (32.07″ –7.5-9.5″ Space Needed) – Won’t Rub
285/65/18 (32.59″ – 8-10″Space Needed) – Questionable (BMC Might be Needed)
295/65/18 (33.10″ – 8-10″Space Needed) – Will Rub – Adjustments/Mods Needed

20″ Wheel/Tire Options (Examples for Rubbing Vs. Non-Rubbing)

245/60/20 (31.57″ – Stock) (7-8.5″ Space Needed) – Won’t Rub
275/55/20 (31.91″ –7.5-9.5″ Space Needed) – Won’t Rub
285/50/20(32.22″ – 8-10″ Space Needed) – Questionable (BMC Might be Needed)
285/55/20 (32.34″ –8-10″ Space Needed) – Questionable (BMC Might be Needed)
275/65/20 (32.99″ –7.5-9.5″ Space Needed) – Will Rub – Adjustments/Mods Needed

Resources and Guides:

33″ tires: Fender liner push back
34″ tires: Fitting larger tires guide
35″ tires: Fitting 35×12.5R17s
Trimming body and fender liners
Body Mount Chop (BMC)
Fiberglass fenders installation

The best resource out there for checking tire sizes and exact diameter measurements is the TireSize.com calculator. You can use this website to check your tire size diameter, height, and width to make sure the tire will clear your mud flaps, body mounts, fender liners, body plastics, firewalls, and pinch welds/seems.

You should always consult with these websites before you go larger on tires. One of the most important aspects of buying new wheels is the correct width and offset as well as backspacing.

If you don’t do your research on Width, Offset, and Backspacing, you will learn how to do a body mount chop or a body mount relocation and trim multiple areas of your wheel well. But this is also not a bad thing, either.

Body mount chops are nothing to be afraid of. Once the edge of the body mount is cut off, you paint over a new piece of metal and it looks factory again. When and if you go to sell your 4Runner, it’s likely no one will notice.

How to Check Tire Size and Wheel Size Fitment

Recommended Wheel & Tire Size for the 4Runner

Option 1: ToyoTires.com

If you are looking to figure out if a wheel fits a tire size, head over to ToyoTires.com.

When Choosing Wheels (Look at these specs):

Our wheel specs:

Bolt Pattern: 5th Gen = 6×139.7mm or 6×5.5
Wheel Bore: 5th Gen = 106mm
Offset (-offset pushes the wheel out giving you a wider stance. +offset pulls wheel into the wheel well)
Backspace (Similar to offset – the space between center tire and inside wheel)
Rating (Weight rating wheels were designed for)
Weight (lb)
Lug Type (tapered “conical” and radiused)
LipSize (in)

Here is a good guide on offset and backspace to help you understand the differences.

Note: When shopping for a wheel, I look for a wheel with at least a -6mm offset or higher. Maybe a -10mm or even higher offset. This is going to push your wheel out of your wheel well which may eliminate the need for wheel spacers, but not always, all while providing a wider stance.

An extreme example of offset is the -38mm SCS (Stealth Custom Series) F5. That is going to push your wheel out of the well 1.5″ which is a lot. Most wheels are going to come in a 0mm, -6mm (.2″) or -10mm (.4″) offset. If you buy a wheel at this offset and are looking for a very wide stance, you want to add a set of wheel spacers to widen your stance even more.

Stock wheel size on our 5th Gen

The SR5 comes stock with17 x 7, 4.5″backspace.
The TEP (Trail), the TRD Pro, and the TRD Off-Road come with 17 x 7.5″ and a 4.875″ backspace.
The Limited Edition comes with 20 x 7 with a 4.5″-inch backspace.

Largest Tire Size on 5th Gen 4Runner?

Stock 4Runner?

The short answer is 32″. Our stock 4Runner has a 31″ tire (265/70R17 – 31.61″). Making the jump to a small 32″ tire should be fine on stock suspension. You want to make sure this is a smaller 32″ tire and not a larger 32″ tire. Some 32″ tires measure closer to 33″ tires.

For example, a 32.06 is basically a 32″ tire, while a 32.79 is closer to a 33″ tire. If you get a 32″ tire that is closer to 33″, you may end up doing a BMC and other modifications like a fender liner push back to ensure your tires will not rub without a leveling kit. If you want a larger tire, you should really look into a leveling kit or lift kit, though.

Most owners make the jump to a 33″ tire (285/70R17 – 32.71″). Moving up to a 33″ tire requires a leveling kit or a lift kit. If you have 3″ of lift in the front, then moving to a 33″ tire should be fine, but there are 33″ tires that will rub even with 3″ of lift. It may seem confusing but every tire is different due to the tread pattern, and general design.

With 33″ tires and 3″ of lift, you may have some rubbing on the fender liners – which is a really easy fix that no one will notice. If you are trying to avoid trimming fender liners, BMC and other areas of the well, stay away from 34″ tires or large 33″ tires as this will absolutely cause serious rubbing all the way around. 34″ tires (285/75R17 – 33.8″) will rub on the front fender liners, and body as well as the body mounts and possibly even the firewall.

Largest Tire Size with Leveling Kit?

The largest tire size you can run with a leveling kit is entirely up to you. With a 2″ leveling kit, you may still be stuck at a small 32″ without any modifications like a BMC.

If you move up to a small 33″ (32.7″) tire with a 2″ leveling kit, you will likely need to do a fender liner push back.

Small 33″ tires are probably as big as you want to go with a 2″ leveling kit unless you want to get into more adjustments than just your fender liners. Which, at the end of the day these adjustments are not hard, they just require some testing and consistent adjusting until you no longer have rubbing.

Largest Tire Size with Lift Kit?

Most owners that have a lift kit are still at the same level of a leveling kit, but possibly up 1″. The basic suspension lift kit for a 4Runner is 3″ – 3.5″. 33″ tires are usually fine without any major modifications here, but it also depends on the exact measurements of your 33″ tires and the terrain. If you Mud Terrains with large tread blocks and lugs, you may be closer to rubbing as opposed to mild All-Terrain tires.

BMC (Body Mount Chop)

True North BMC Kit: Check Price

This all depends on what lift kit or leveling kit you have. In most common cases, you will want to go with 33″ tires. With 33″ tires, you need a 3″ lift in order to avoid a BMC, but not always. Once you go to 33″ tires, you will likely need to chop the body mounts.

If you only have a 2″ leveling kit with 33″ tires, you will need to do a BMC for sure.

With 34″ tires and 3″ of lift, you will need to do a BMC, trim your fender liners, push back your fender liners and cut into your 4Runner’s body.

Aftermarket UCAs (Upper Control Arms) are also recommended to get an increased caster spec (to push your wheel/tire away from the body mounts) but not always needed. For this, you want to contact a good off-road alignment shop in your area. We live in Sacramento, CA so we go to Stellar Built. They do the off-road alignment (yes it’s different), installs, and much more.

Should I keep my stock Wheels?

Always a good option. There is nothing wrong with keeping your stock wheels and making the jump to bigger tires. The stock 17″ wheels are great for on-road and off-road use. Moving to an aftermarket wheel is only more expensive and oftentimes, more confusing.

If you are a first-time owner and not sure about aftermarket wheels, just grab a new set of larger tires and go experience what your 4Runner has to offer.

What is the best Wheel Size for Off-Road Use?

Typically, the smaller the wheel size, the better your off-road performance will be, but not always. When it comes to our world, 17″ wheels are probably your go-to size. You want to stay away from 20″ wheels on your 4Runner if you plan on frequent off-road trips.

When it comes to smaller wheel size, you can air down the tire pressure further than you can with a 20″ wheel. Having less air pressure in your tires means your tire will have more flotation and grip the terrain much easier than at full PSI where the ride is stiffer.

With less air pressure, the ride will be smoother and less bumpy, all while gripping the terrain much more efficiently.

Good All-Terrain Tires?

The section of copy came from another post we wrote on Mods (Part 1). All these tires are based on a 285/70R17 (about 32.71″ depending on tread). Always check prices online Vs. your local tire shop. If online is cheaper, just have them shipped to your tire shop.

For the best AT tire or MT tire, Cooper offers some pretty great options for just about every driver. Of course, the BFG KO2 is a popular brand but Cooper has quickly become one of the go-to brands in the Toyota SUV/Truck market.

Check out our complete guide to buying tires – An article created from 20+ different drivers.