Which option is best?

[Cadillacjah]

I have an 85 C20 Suburban that I'm slowly building up. I just bought some Hummer 20s with tires, and once I mounted them, I realized that the tires are too tall for the fenders in the front to give me a full turn. They hit front and back, so I was thinking of a few options.
1) I could trim the fender and maybe add fender flares, but I'm not sure how they would bolt up to a hacked wheel well. I only need about 2" from front and back of the well to get a good turn, but would the flares give a little and bolt up to that cut fender?

2) 2-3" body lift, but I'm not sure if that would solve the problem 100 percent

3) 2-3" Suspension lift, but I don't think I want to sacrifice my ride quality. I know it can be dialed-in, but I find it hard to believe that the ride would be close to stock. I have an 85 Fleetwood with a 3" lift to accomodate 24" rims, and the ride sucks now. It could be the thin tires, but I know that its far from a stock ride.

Any insight is greatly appreciated

[Cadillacjah]

Anybody?

[Cadillacjah]

Pics of what I mean. I turn the wheel, and the tires rub the inner fender and the edge pretty bad.

http://i246.photobucket.com/albums/gg115/cadillacjah/IMAG0404.jpg

http://i246.photobucket.com/albums/gg115/cadillacjah/IMAG0403.jpg

http://i246.photobucket.com/albums/gg115/cadillacjah/IMAG0402.jpg

[jaredself]

Are you planning on doing any offroading?

[Cadillacjah]

Are you planning on doing any offroading?

No off-roading for me. The best I'd do is drive down a steep front yard

[85k5]

another option is getting a tire with less sidewall....the last k5 i had i put a 4 inch lift on and it rode pretty damn good...it was a RCX

[jaredself]

x2. Less sidwall would definately help, but I'm pretty sure you don't want to buy more rubber. If that's the case a lift would be next in my book just because I wouldn't want to hack up my fenders until I absolutely had too. Lots of aftermarket lifts are available, but not so many for the 2wd's. I'd probably go with a 3 inch body lift, and I think the reason your caddy rode rough was just as you said...the side walls were making it ride that way. Good luck and post pics when you decide what you're going to do.

[Your41Plague12]

Definitely get smaller tires for the 20's. If that's not feasible, then I'd do a 3" body lift. Just make sure to bring your bumpers up with it too. That will require some fabrication, but it's worth it to get rid of the gap.

[jaredself]

:word:

[Cadillacjah]

AAhhh, so the bumpers do have to be moved? I suspected that, but didn't want to face the fact of it. Thats something I can't do by myself:(.
Thanks for the insight guys, I guess I'm on the hunt for a body lift kit. Can anybody recommend one to me?

[jaredself]

There are a few different ones, and if IIRC, some come with bumper relocator brackets.

[Cadillacjah]

You wouldn't happen to have a link to one with the relocator, would you?

[jaredself]

Whew... I wan't lying.

http://www.stylintrucks.com/parts/3-qt-_body_lift_kit_by_performance_accessories/1104000073_4421.aspx

[Cadillacjah]

another option is getting a tire with less sidewall....the last k5 i had i put a 4 inch lift on and it rode pretty damn good...it was a RCX


x2. Less sidwall would definately help, but I'm pretty sure you don't want to buy more rubber. If that's the case a lift would be next in my book just because I wouldn't want to hack up my fenders until I absolutely had too. Lots of aftermarket lifts are available, but not so many for the 2wd's. I'd probably go with a 3 inch body lift, and I think the reason your caddy rode rough was just as you said...the side walls were making it ride that way. Good luck and post pics when you decide what you're going to do.


Definitely get smaller tires for the 20's. If that's not feasible, then I'd do a 3" body lift. Just make sure to bring your bumpers up with it too. That will require some fabrication, but it's worth it to get rid of the gap.

I think I'm going to roll with you guys first suggestion, and get some new tires. I just realized today that my tires also hit the inner wheelwell, so a body lift still wouldn't stop that, since it hits eveything inside pretty bad. What should I go with, 305/50s or 285/40s? I like for my tires to still take up some space inside my wells, and not look empty or swallowed up.
I can always sell the old tires on craigslist, since they have about 85% tread still on them.

[jaredself]

That one I can't answer. Somebody with those size rims will be able to give you better insight.

[Cadillacjah]

What size (in inches will fit in the well and give a full turn, without rubbing? I can just measure the total width and rough guess at the tire heigth from there on the 20s

[Cadillacjah]

Just sold the old rubber today, and now I'm trying to figure out what size would work, without being too small. Any suggestions?

[Your41Plague12]

In case you didn't happen to convert the tire sizes yet, the 285/40/R20 will be somewhere in the neighborhood of 29" tall and 11" wide. The 305/50/R20 will be about 32" tall and 12" wide. The 305's are close to the stock height (just a hair taller), but they're 3" wider. I'd take some careful measurements and go from there.

[splat55]

Easy......change tire sizes