I finally have my re-gearing project completed and have new wheels and tires mounted on my Toyota FJ Cruiser. For the wheels I selected Micky Thompson Sidebiters. These wheels have 5″ back space and are 9″ wide. Mounted on these wheels are 295/70-17 E rated Hankook Dynapro ATM tires.

The tires are mounted with Counter Balance balancing beads so the rims look very clean with no weights exposed.

The tires look good on the rims and mounted up well on the FJ.  I love the look of the Micky Thompson wheels and I expect them to hold up well to off road abuse due to the recessed spokes. The tire have a very pronounced bead protection rib that looks like it will function well.

There are no clearance issues with these mounted on the FJ. I had the body mounted chopped at the rear of the front wheel well to prevent any clearance issues. With the ToyTec 1″ body lift installed the rear tires have plenty of clearance when bottomed out on the bump stops.

Last weekend I drove 2000 miles on the new tires and wheels and they felt good on the highway. The ride was smoothed by the balance beads, however, being a 10 ply high pressure tire the ride is a little harsh.

I’ll get back on how the tires perform off road.

2015 Update – I finally had to get new tires. I wish I had stayed with the Hanhooks. My total miles driven on the Hankooks was about 110+ thousand, however this is with rotating the trailer tires through. Still VERY respectable for tire life.

I quit using the Balance beads after a few years. THey were just not working very well.