Common lift/tire combos for OBS/NBS trucks
Sticky post from the offroad wheels thread laying out what actually clears, not just guesses.
OBS combos that work
- Stock height and mild 3" lifts swallow 285/75R16 or 32/11.5R15 on stock or 16x8/15x8 wheels, and 305/70R16 or 33/12.5R15 rides on those same rims when you crank the torsion bars and trim a little, but 16x10/15x10 still wants heavy trimming or flares.
- A straight 4" suspension lift gets the 305/70 and 315/75/35/12.5 packages rolling on stock or 16x8/15x8 wheels with significant trimming, and the big tires need cutout flares if you try to stretch them onto 16x10/15x10.
- Once you hit 6" total and higher the 315/75/35/12.5 combo runs on stock/16x8/15x8 or 16x10/15x10 with a little crank/trim, while the 36/12.5s clear on stock/16x8/15x8 with torsion bar crank and heavy trimming plus cutouts for the 16x10s, and by 9" even 38/15.5 on 16x10s shows up with torsion bar crank and light trimming.
NBS combos that work - Stock height still handles 285/75R16 on stock or 16x8 (torsion bar crank possible) and the 305/70/33/12.5 combo works on the same wheels with torsion bar crank, light trimming or more drastic cuts if you go to 16x10.
- The 3" lift range sticks with 305/70 and under on stock/16x8, while 315/75 needs torsion bar crank, heavy trimming or cutout flares on 16x10.
- From 4" suspension up through the 9" total setups the 315/75 packages go on stock, 16x8 or 16x10 with varying crank/trim, 36/12.5 rides clear on stock/16x8 and needs crank plus trimming on 16x10, and the 9" combos even include the 38/15.5 on 16x10 after heavy trimming.
Rubbing and clearance notes - Find the exact spot of the rub on the flat ground and flex, crank the torsion bars a little and trim a little at a time instead of hacking the flare off all at once, and a PM to someone running the same tire gives clues on what interference you’ll hit.
- If the CV angles are still good, crank the bars with Ford keys first and only trim plastics once you know you still rub, then make the next pass.
17" wheel hits - The same thread says a 2001 Tahoe Z71 on stock 17" wheels can stick with 285s, while the 3" body lift builds out to 305s on either stock or aftermarket rims.
Community wants and thanks - Folks already called this a great starter list, asked for the 2WD writeup, and kept asking for the same data instead of rolling their own every time, so the stickied combo list stayed pinned.