Changing wheel size 20"-17"

[liftnh603]

Hey all, new to the Ram world. Any advice would be appreciated!

I'm in the market for new wheels and tires for my 2016 1500 Big Horn. Truck currently has the stock 20" wheels, I was toying with the idea of sizing down to a 17" or 18". Was wondering if these would clear the calipers or would i need spacers?

Also I've heard mixed reviews on clearing a 35" tire with a 2" level kit, any input on that would be great!

Thanks!

 

[nekkidhillbilly]

17s will bolt on they came with them standard as well in the lesser models. you should clear fine with a 2in level. the stock 20s are 33 inch wheels.

 

[Daniel Ortiz]

Hey all, new to the Ram world. Any advice would be appreciated!

I'm in the market for new wheels and tires for my 2016 1500 Big Horn. Truck currently has the stock 20" wheels, I was toying with the idea of sizing down to a 17" or 18". Was wondering if these would clear the calipers or would i need spacers?

Also I've heard mixed reviews on clearing a 35" tire with a 2" level kit, any input on that would be great!

Thanks!

@liftnh603 I also converted to 17" wheels, and because I was uncertain what would fit, I ended up going with the stock (replica) Rebel wheels which have the following size specification:

17 x 8 5-139.70 (this means 17" outer diameter, 8" width)
Offset: 18.05 mm
Bolt Pattern: 5-139.7 (this means 5 lug holes centered on a circle with 139.7" diameter)
Hub Size: 77.8 mm
Back Spacing: 5.21 (be sure you know difference between back spacing and offset, they are related but not the same)

It helps that I think they look really good. Here is a link to the company I bought them from:

Dodge Wheels - RAM Rebel Rims DG55 17x8 Polished Satin - Dodge Truck Rims

Polished Rebel style rim with painted Inlay that fits Dodge RAM Rims. Factory direct replica wheel from OE Wheels. UPC 9508379.

www.oewheelsllc.com

So, 17" wheels should clear your calipers so long as they have the same inner diameter. I can only assume that most wheels use similar inner diameters across the board, but I'm not an expert. Still, it's probably a fairly safe bet.

As for fitting 35" tires, I'm planning on upgrading to 35s next, but I plan to buy the (fairly rare) 11.5" wide ones, not the more common 12.5" wide ones, to assure they have plenty of room to rotate up in there. I also have a 2.1" lift on Bilstein 5100s.

Here is my current setup with LT285/70-R17 Cooper Discoverer ATPs:




Let me know if you have any more questions! Good luck, and happy shopping.

 

[ram1500rsm]

17" wheels do fit without any issues. I ditched the factory 20's literally within first week or ownership. I run Raceline Clutch wheels in 17x9 -12offset. 35's with a level is easy as we have huge fender wells to accomodate them. You may need to trim a little plastic from the back of the seams in the front but that depends on your available caster after lift. One of the advantages of aftermarket front UCA's with offset is that you can increase caster moving the wheels a bit forward after lift which basically allows you to clear that seam. I've ran 37x12.5x17 KO2's with just 2.5" lift with these approach. You can check my build thread for details.

These are Falken 315/70/17 on the 17" wheels and Rancho QL struts doing some offroading and putting the corners at their extreme to check for clearance.

20180902_105727 by RAM RSM, on Flickr

20180902_105642 by RAM RSM, on Flickr

Untitled by RAM RSM, on Flickr

37x12.5x17 KO2's. Running a bumpstop extension in te back
Untitled by RAM RSM, on Flickr

Untitled by RAM RSM, on Flickr

Untitled by RAM RSM, on Flickr

You see the flat lip in the front fenders here, normally not an issue if you're doing street driving or slow offroad, i like to have fun with the truck in dirt roads so when the wheels have to tuck hard the KO2's were rubbing on that lip so i took a hammer while on te trail and rolled the lip towards the inside, problem solved You may have that issue with standard travel struts (Bistein 5100's, 6112's) and 35's but you'll have to be giving some hell to the truck for that to happen. You won't have that issue with extended travel CO's (King 2.5,Fox 2.5, Icon 2.5) or extended travel struts like Rancho or Eibach struts and 35's, as they are 1" longer than their standard travel counnterparts and the bumpstop will prevent the wheel from contacting the bumper under the same conditions.

Untitled by RAM RSM, on Flickr