Crazy I know but any 19" wheel suggestions?

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Turismo Kid

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I know everybody in here wants to go to 18" wheels, please humor my madness.

I have been planning to grab some 18" White Defender Takeoffs and throwing some KO2s on there and being totally off road ready.
I'm now trying to think a little more practically and am sort of coming around to 19s with those new Toyo ATIIIs.

This is primarily a family hauler which will see a few mild to moderate off road trips a year, certainly no rock crawling, most likely a fair amount of sand. I don't know if the initial cost + reduced fuel economy is really worth it at this point in time. With those steelies and this KO2s We are probably looking at something like an additional 30lbs per corner + the spare, I can't imagine that doesn't drain the tank a bit faster.

Anyway, my rig came with 20s so I have to do something. I'll admit to not having a great eye for wheels, so some aesthetic help would be very welcome. I'm running a 2016 in Aruba Gold. OEM Rover only, is pretty much my only hard stop. I would lean towards a more rugged look in lieu of fancy. Chrome or black, I'm not sure I have a preference. Despite my previously noted concerns with MPG, I'll likely get a Baja, Gobi or similar rack at some point so we have a place to put luggage when we are running at 2.5 rows and a dog. So something that ties to that level of build. I wonder about the 19" Defender Alloys but I'm not even sure what will fit if it didn't come off an LR3/4.

Any suggestions?
 

jlglr4

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Doesn’t seem to make sense to me to shell out for new OEM 19” rims. If you already had 19s, that would make sense, but I imagine the price on new 19’s is pretty high (though I haven’t priced them myself). Maybe you can find used? 19” defender alloys are probably the most expensive option of all. If you’re buying new wheels, you can go to 18s and still have options for less rugged/lighter weight tires - still a much better setup than 19s.

As for 18” rims, if you want steelies I like the look of the tuffants better than the white defender wheels - particularly on Aruba gold (but that’s just me). Probably a whole lot cheaper as well. Or you can do alloys for lighter weight: 18” compomotives (which I have) or evo corse dakars. Not cheap options, but still less expensive than new LR Defender wheels as I recall.
 

jlglr4

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As for mpg - I went from 20” OEM rims to 18” compos with KO2s (E-rated, heavy). I think I lost about 2 mpg.
 

ktm525

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If you really want 19's just cruise the web for a good set of used OEs. Good build quality.
 

Turismo Kid

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Doesn’t seem to make sense to me to shell out for new OEM 19” rims. If you already had 19s, that would make sense, but I imagine the price on new 19’s is pretty high (though I haven’t priced them myself). Maybe you can find used? 19” defender alloys are probably the most expensive option of all. If you’re buying new wheels, you can go to 18s and still have options for less rugged/lighter weight tires - still a much better setup than 19s.

As for 18” rims, if you want steelies I like the look of the tuffants better than the white defender wheels - particularly on Aruba gold (but that’s just me). Probably a whole lot cheaper as well. Or you can do alloys for lighter weight: 18” compomotives (which I have) or evo corse dakars. Not cheap options, but still less expensive than new LR Defender wheels as I recall.
Yeah, I would look for used. Even the defender rims come up for a decent price one in a while. I have thought about the Tuffants, but was initially put off because they weren't available. They are a little lighter then the defender steelies. I should look at them again and check my patience. I just seems that everything that is out of stock takes way long to get back into circulation then expected these days.

Thanks for the advice.
 

ryanjl

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I have had the Defender steelies with 265/65/18 BFG All Terrains since early September and didn't really notice a negative impact due to weight then, and don't ever notice it now. I'm sure it's there; it's just not enough for me to ever really notice it.

What I did notice, however, is that it rode so much better. The tires and wheels they replaced, though, were the stock 19's and 4-year old Cooper Zeons in 255/55/19 with around 45k miles on them, so that may have played a part.

I originally thought about getting some good all weather tires put on my old 19-inch rims for day-to-day driving, but the current setup on the Defender steelies has proven itself acceptable enough that I probably won't do that now.
 

mm3846

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There are much more tire choices for 20s, just run those.
 

Gillo

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I’d suggest looking for used 19’s. plenty of people offloading them after going for 18’s. I did that and very happy. I’m running Pirelli Scorpion ATplus. Very happy with them.
 

TrinidadLR4

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A better bet is to keep the 20s and put fatter tire on them. The 20in selection is infinitely better. The size that works rather well(from experience) is 275 55 20.
 

Robs12LR4

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I'm running a Toyo AT III (255/60) on EOM 19" wheels. That's a 31" tire with an additional 1/2 of sidewall, which is a modest improvement over stock. But when compared to the 255/50R20 tires I assume you're running, you get a full a full inch of additional sidewall (6" vs 5") which I think is a worthwhile improvement. Allows for airing down just a little, with the caution that airing down too much makes the tire prone to bruising and or puncture--especially since they're not LT tires. Of course, not being an LT means a little less stiffness in the ride and theoretically a little less weight. I'd say they're a moderate all terrain pattern so I was pleasantly surprised with performance on muddy WV trails. Reasonably quiet on-road performance. It was the right compromise between me and my wife. The 255/65R19 Wrangler Duratrac would have landed me in the dog house on appearance and noise. (helpful tool - https://www.discounttire.com/learn/tire-size-calculator)
 

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