Opinions - 20's or 22's on my brand new 2500?

[Electronut]

So I been researching to no end and problem in this arena is you always get so many different opinions on what's right. Have a brand new 2500 Laramie Night Edition in Bright White. Local shop that does these upgrades all day long now confused me and my decision. I am going with a 2 inch Thuren leveling kit with their soft ride front coils, trackbar, and Fox IFP shocks all around. Truck has auto air leveling so also using their 1 inch links to level out the back end.

I never keep anything stock LOL and wanted this bad ass truck to have a better stands and killer look. I had my heart set on 22" x 11" American Force wheels with 0 offset and 35" Nitto Recon Grappler A/T's. This is a family vehicle and bought to keep wifey and kids cozy when pulling our travel trailer. In addition, l also was looking to keep an OEM ride or better. Keep very comfy. Don't want any extra noise resonating into the cab (some slight ok but not much). I get depending on tires you can get some but these tires are getting killer reviews for most part. Maybe even considering the Mickey Thompsons Baja A/T's which shop recommended but I still lean on the Recons.

Shop told me 22s would give it a more harsh and noticeable ride even with the suspension upgrade. Advised if went to 20" would be better. However I had my heart set on the look of the 22's. Just looks killer. I have 22's now on our Chrysler Aspen but they are low profile tires and totally different than the raised look. I figured the Nitto A/T's would help certainly cushion up the ride but what do I know. Shop said the 12 ply rubber makes them stiffer even though there is alot of meat from top of thread to wheel. This area for leveling kits and big tires is all new to me.

What you all think? Will it really be that much of a noticeable difference going to the 22's? Big investment to get wrong so once I pull the trigger I have to live with it.

 

[jadmt]

22's are ok if you are running 44's but your shop is right the lower the side wall the harsher the ride and 12 ply even more so. looks are a personal thing but I think 22" wheels look goofy but you probably think my 17" wheels look goofy.

 

[woody284]

I’m in a different boat but similar problem. I’ve have gone back and forth on switching from 18s to 20s. Much like your 20s to 22s it’s 2 inches. Everything I’ve read says the lower rim size will give to a better ride. The difference come into play on sports cars and turning. The lower side wall helps with less body roll and plants the car better. Not really what I’m looking for in this big.

It’s like walking around in good pair of Hoka running shoes or Old Navy flip flops.

 

[MtnRider]

22's on 35's are going to ride like crap. 18's are what you want and skip the mall crawler wide wheels and offset. If you want looks (if you are into that look) then by all means put them off but if you want a good riding truck with nice manners go with the 18's

.

 

[AH64ID]

I’m in a different boat but similar problem. I’ve have gone back and forth on switching from 18s to 20s. Much like your 20s to 22s it’s 2 inches. Everything I’ve read says the lower rim size will give to a better ride. The difference come into play on sports cars and turning. The lower side wall helps with less body roll and plants the car better. Not really what I’m looking for in this big.

It’s like walking around in good pair of Hoka running shoes or Old Navy flip flops.

I was afraid of the ride difference going from 18’s to 20’s but it hasn’t been a bad change. My ‘18 had 18’s and I ordered the night package on my ‘22, which comes with 20’s. I wasn’t sure if I’d like it empty, but knew I should have better loaded handing. No complaints all around, but this is only with the OEM trashforce tires.

Full backstory. I wanted to keep the 18’s of my ‘18 to run some aggressive MT’s for hunting season. So last spring I started looking for some marketplace wheels to trade the ‘18 in with when the ‘22 finally arrived. Used OEM 20’s are pretty cheap once people realize how much the rubber costs, biggest complaint with the 20’s so far. So I got a set of 4th Gen 20’s that still had the OE trashforce tires on them with about 30% tread left. I put 5K miles on them before trading it in and now have just over 7500 miles on my ‘22, most of which are with the 20’s installed.

I like the on road ride and handling of the 20’s, better than the 18’s all around. They are not harsh at all, but as I mentioned they are the OE tires which likely have a softer sidewall than the replacement tires will be.

When the time comes to replace the OE tires I’ll likely go with a Cooper AT3 in 285/65R20. The slightly bigger sidewall should give a little more flex for the likely stiffer tire, but still have the benefits of a lower profile truck tire when loaded heavy.

For hunting and back roads I am glad I kept the 18’s and run a larger sidewall. I’m much more comfortable airing down a tire on a 18” wheel than a 20” wheel. If I could have found a 17” tire that had the load rating I wanted and still had room for chains I may have gone that route, but the 18’s have worked great for hunting at 45/25 psi.

After all that, I’d say you shouldn’t have to shy away from 20’s for the ride. They still have plenty of sidewall.

 

[Electronut]

I’m in a different boat but similar problem. I’ve have gone back and forth on switching from 18s to 20s. Much like your 20s to 22s it’s 2 inches. Everything I’ve read says the lower rim size will give to a better ride. The difference come into play on sports cars and turning. The lower side wall helps with less body roll and plants the car better. Not really what I’m looking for in this big.

It’s like walking around in good pair of Hoka running shoes or Old Navy flip flops.

Woody - Aint that the truth! Your exactly right. I'm a near 54 year old male and grew up with modded cars and trucks my entire life. This is the first time I stepped into the 3/4 ton truck arena. I have a lowered 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland now with the Night Package. Looks awesone. Was as simple as just getting the links all around to "trick" the air system and put Bora spacers on the OEM wheels/stock tires which I liked to broaden the stands. Easy peasy, inexpensive, and hit my targeted look. On these trucks it's not as simple and if you cut corners I think you will get caught in a bad way so have to do it right.

22's on 35's are going to ride like crap. 18's are what you want and skip the mall crawler wide wheels and offset. If you want looks (if you are into that look) then by all means put them off but if you want a good riding truck with nice manners go with the 18's

.

Mtn RIder - I want to at least stick with 20's. I'm not seeking that crawler look nor want too much offset. Want a more aggressive but yet not too aggressive look. The attached photos is pretty much the exact look I was going for. I love it quite honestly but I am perhaps starting to reconsider to stay with 20's.


The above truck has American Force Bishop SS 22" x 11"wheels. 0 offset with 35" Nitto Ridge Grapplers. RC leveling kit. To me this looks top!

I was afraid of the ride difference going from 18’s to 20’s but it hasn’t been a bad change. My ‘18 had 18’s and I ordered the night package on my ‘22, which comes with 20’s. I wasn’t sure if I’d like it empty, but knew I should have better loaded handing. No complaints all around, but this is only with the OEM trashforce tires.

Full backstory. I wanted to keep the 18’s of my ‘18 to run some aggressive MT’s for hunting season. So last spring I started looking for some marketplace wheels to trade the ‘18 in with when the ‘22 finally arrived. Used OEM 20’s are pretty cheap once people realize how much the rubber costs, biggest complaint with the 20’s so far. So I got a set of 4th Gen 20’s that still had the OE trashforce tires on them with about 30% tread left. I put 5K miles on them before trading it in and now have just over 7500 miles on my ‘22, most of which are with the 20’s installed.

I like the on road ride and handling of the 20’s, better than the 18’s all around. They are not harsh at all, but as I mentioned they are the OE tires which likely have a softer sidewall than the replacement tires will be.

When the time comes to replace the OE tires I’ll likely go with a Cooper AT3 in 285/65R20. The slightly bigger sidewall should give a little more flex for the likely stiffer tire, but still have the benefits of a lower profile truck tire when loaded heavy.

For hunting and back roads I am glad I kept the 18’s and run a larger sidewall. I’m much more comfortable airing down a tire on a 18” wheel than a 20” wheel. If I could have found a 17” tire that had the load rating I wanted and still had room for chains I may have gone that route, but the 18’s have worked great for hunting at 45/25 psi.

After all that, I’d say you shouldn’t have to shy away from 20’s for the ride. They still have plenty of sidewall.

My main intent is to stay on the road with this truck. I'm not an offroader. This truck will probably never see dirt and if does will nominally do so. This is why Im thinking "maybe" I can make the 22's work. Main purpose to get the truck was to tow our Airstream travel trailer and because Rams top rated interior which out of all 3/4 trucks has the premium interior features you don't commonly see with the other manufacturers. It truly is a beautiful truck inside and out. We pay for it though. Not an inexpensive truck by any means. Conversely, I don't want to take away the comfort and performance of the truck. I grew up with harder rides most of my life since primarily owned sport cars. Honestly too squishy of a ride isn't good for me either because I don't like that floating feel ride in a car either. After a while makes me car sick. Like being in the old style Cadillac's LOL. I'm a marathaon driver too when we do travel. Not unusual for me to get in the truck and hitching up to our trailer and drive 12-14 hrs at a time. Do this alot. So I just want to make sure I make the right decision.

I appreciate everyones feedback. Keep them coming. Still deciding..... If there is anyone with the 22s running 35" rubber in here I would love to hear from you.

 

[LateToTheParty]

Mathematically, the 35s wrapped around 22" wheels SHOULD ride very similar to 33s wrapped around 20" wheels as they'll have just about the same sidewall. If it is what you truly want, your desire for the look will outweigh all of our opinions anyway.

Personally, I feel that 20" wheels require 37s to provide enough sidewall for my comfort, but I'm even happier with 18" wheels wrapped in 37s. My use case is very different, as I do my best to stay off paved roads as much as my schedule will allow me to, however when I have loaded up the family and headed out for a 10-12hr trip, it has always been a pleasure.

 

[Dave01]

My 2 cents is stay with 20's, but that's just my preference on looks, I'm not a fan of huge wheels. I just had to decide on buying new 18's or staying with the stock wheels, I ended up deciding to save money for the time being, kept the stock night edition 20's and bought stock size Falken's. I intended to buy the slightly larger size but decided to run like this for now.

These trucks ride so well that IMO the sidewall comfort discussion has gone out the window. I haven't driven one with 22's so can't comment there but 16's, 17's, 18's, 20's, have experience with all of them and for me the ride had to do with the truck way more than the wheel/sidewall size. My '97 and '98's rode harsh with 16's, even when aired down, my '07 had a worlds better ride but still would rattle you at times, and I ran different wheels and tires and same result. Dropping pressure on that truck had a really noticeable improvement in ride. On my '21 Ram the ride is just so good that I really don't think wheel size/sidewall size is going to be a significant issue on paved roads no matter what you choose.

The fact that you won't ever see dirt removes any real reasons to drop to 18's anyway. I say go with what you really want, you'll walk out to the truck every morning and smile.

 

[Electronut]

My 2 cents is stay with 20's, but that's just my preference on looks, I'm not a fan of huge wheels. I just had to decide on buying new 18's or staying with the stock wheels, I ended up deciding to save money for the time being, kept the stock night edition 20's and bought stock size Falken's. I intended to buy the slightly larger size but decided to run like this for now.

These trucks ride so well that IMO the sidewall comfort discussion has gone out the window. I haven't driven one with 22's so can't comment there but 16's, 17's, 18's, 20's, have experience with all of them and for me the ride had to do with the truck way more than the wheel/sidewall size. My '97 and '98's rode harsh with 16's, even when aired down, my '07 had a worlds better ride but still would rattle you at times, and I ran different wheels and tires and same result. Dropping pressure on that truck had a really noticeable improvement in ride. On my '21 Ram the ride is just so good that I really don't think wheel size/sidewall size is going to be a significant issue on paved roads no matter what you choose.

The fact that you won't ever see dirt removes any real reasons to drop to 18's anyway. I say go with what you really want, you'll walk out to the truck every morning and smile.

I appreciate your opinion Dave. You pretty much nailed it for me.

So what I ended up doing was exactly what you suggested. Since I was so on the shelf with the 22" wheels, I told myself no urgency in doing that purchase right away on a brand new truck that I already paid a premium for with the Night Package and the 20" wheels. Money is tight now and that extra $4-5k in wheels is alot but I will get wheels at a later point. So I decided to stay with the stock 20" and mount the 35" Nitto Recon Grappler A/T tires which I received yesterday. I was researching and found several folks that mounted these tires on the stock wheels and looked pretty good. I already ordered new black lugs too. The issue was the slightest potential rub at full lock on the radius arms and maybe a sway bar link due to the +57 offset the oem wheel has...more to come on that in second. This could happen with a leveling kit installed too but weird that some folks get away with it and others can't clear.

The other thing is that I still did desire a slightly further offset...1. wider stance (not much more) and 2. for tire clearance. So what I also purchased was the 3/8" Bora Wheel spacer plate style that go on stock hub and utilize stock studs and did so more in the case of tire rub issue more importantly. I could have lived with the offset but wanted the peace of mind if after I installed the Thuren leveling kit I still didn't clear. Benefit if I don't rub without the spacers is I still get another near 1/2" inch offset as well. I don't want the truck getting beat to hell with tires kicking debris all down the sides of it.

Just waiting receipt of the Thuren Suspension items and Fox 2.0 IFP shocks now.....then the wrenching will begin

 

[Dave01]

You're right, we made similar decisions. I didn't particularly like the wheels, but the Falkens look WAY better on them than the Transforces did. I maybe should have gone to the larger tires but being honest, my wife loves the truck and the motorized steps but it's about as tall as she might want, plus I have shoulder issues and am lifting kayaks and paddle boards into the bed multiple days a week in the summer. So even though it's only a half inch, I decided to stay with stock size, also given they were about $60/tire less. This truck is already taller than my Silverado was.

 

[DepotBo]

I appreciate your opinion Dave. You pretty much nailed it for me.

So what I ended up doing was exactly what you suggested. Since I was so on the shelf with the 22" wheels, I told myself no urgency in doing that purchase right away on a brand new truck that I already paid a premium for with the Night Package and the 20" wheels. Money is tight now and that extra $4-5k in wheels is alot but I will get wheels at a later point. So I decided to stay with the stock 20" and mount the 35" Nitto Recon Grappler A/T tires which I received yesterday. I was researching and found several folks that mounted these tires on the stock wheels and looked pretty good. I already ordered new black lugs too. The issue was the slightest potential rub at full lock on the radius arms and maybe a sway bar link due to the +57 offset the oem wheel has...more to come on that in second. This could happen with a leveling kit installed too but weird that some folks get away with it and others can't clear.

The other thing is that I still did desire a slightly further offset...1. wider stance (not much more) and 2. for tire clearance. So what I also purchased was the 3/8" Bora Wheel spacer plate style that go on stock hub and utilize stock studs and did so more in the case of tire rub issue more importantly. I could have lived with the offset but wanted the peace of mind if after I installed the Thuren leveling kit I still didn't clear. Benefit if I don't rub without the spacers is I still get another near 1/2" inch offset as well. I don't want the truck getting beat to hell with tires kicking debris all down the sides of it.

Just waiting receipt of the Thuren Suspension items and Fox 2.0 IFP shocks now.....then the wrenching will begin
View attachment 50492

How do those tires run? Do they make much of road noise? I want some good tires but don’t what the noise!

 

[Electronut]

How do those tires run? Do they make much of road noise? I want some good tires but don’t what the noise!

I'm with you there and exactly why I chose these tires. I didn't want the noise either to keep as close to OEM quietness as possible. I'm really liking them. Only did like 50 miles on them so far combination HWY and CITY and for their aggressiveness in appearance and awesome looks I would say a very worthy tire. Extra noise as a result is very minor just like I read in the published reviews that I found on the web for this tire. To be expected with this tire thread type. After about 45-50 MPH you start to hear ever so slightly the thread of the tire but I am talking minor decibels. At 70 wasn't anymore pronounced or so nominal hard to notice. Overall only reason I noticed was because I had to raise the volume on the radio when it was already low to begin with in order to be able to hear it better at the faster speed. As you slowed down on the truck I noticed the radio got louder again so lowered. Radio was only on for ambiance so not like I had it cranked. Wife was in the truck with me at the time and she had no idea the difference from the Firestones and she actually said truck rode so smooth and quiet. I definitely noticed the difference with all the Thuren suspension components installed.

I just received the Thuren Sway Bar today with the billet aluminum sway links and just finished installing it this evening. So looking forward to drive and test the difference with this additional component. Fox 2.0 ATS Steering Damper was ordered yesterday as the finishing touch to the suspension and that's all she wrote.

 

[DepotBo]

I'm with you there and exactly why I chose these tires. I didn't want the noise either to keep as close to OEM quietness as possible. I'm really liking them. Only did like 50 miles on them so far combination HWY and CITY and for their aggressiveness in appearance and awesome looks I would say a very worthy tire. Extra noise as a result is very minor just like I read in the published reviews that I found on the web for this tire. To be expected with this tire thread type. After about 45-50 MPH you start to hear ever so slightly the thread of the tire but I am talking minor decibels. At 70 wasn't anymore pronounced or so nominal hard to notice. Overall only reason I noticed was because I had to raise the volume on the radio when it was already low to begin with in order to be able to hear it better at the faster speed. As you slowed down on the truck I noticed the radio got louder again so lowered. Radio was only on for ambiance so not like I had it cranked. Wife was in the truck with me at the time and she had no idea the difference from the Firestones and she actually said truck rode so smooth and quiet. I definitely noticed the difference with all the Thuren suspension components installed.

I just received the Thuren Sway Bar today with the billet aluminum sway links and just finished installing it this evening. So looking forward to drive and test the difference with this additional component. Fox 2.0 ATS Steering Damper was ordered yesterday as the finishing touch to the suspension and that's all she wrote.

Thank you for that info! Had Toyo Open Country on my 2017 Ram 2500 and really liked them for similar reasons. Did initially notice more roll and sway but either I got used to that as I put on miles or it got better as they got used, I traded in the ‘17 2500 for a ‘22 3500. It’s going to need tires before end of year. Would love to be able to afford new wheels and tires together, so doing a little research now and keeping my eyes peeled for deals! Thanks again, great review!

 

[wilsonck]

I'm with you there and exactly why I chose these tires. I didn't want the noise either to keep as close to OEM quietness as possible. I'm really liking them. Only did like 50 miles on them so far combination HWY and CITY and for their aggressiveness in appearance and awesome looks I would say a very worthy tire. Extra noise as a result is very minor just like I read in the published reviews that I found on the web for this tire. To be expected with this tire thread type. After about 45-50 MPH you start to hear ever so slightly the thread of the tire but I am talking minor decibels. At 70 wasn't anymore pronounced or so nominal hard to notice. Overall only reason I noticed was because I had to raise the volume on the radio when it was already low to begin with in order to be able to hear it better at the faster speed. As you slowed down on the truck I noticed the radio got louder again so lowered. Radio was only on for ambiance so not like I had it cranked. Wife was in the truck with me at the time and she had no idea the difference from the Firestones and she actually said truck rode so smooth and quiet. I definitely noticed the difference with all the Thuren suspension components installed.

I just received the Thuren Sway Bar today with the billet aluminum sway links and just finished installing it this evening. So looking forward to drive and test the difference with this additional component. Fox 2.0 ATS Steering Damper was ordered yesterday as the finishing touch to the suspension and that's all she wrote.

So Electronut, have you posted up any picks of your truck with the Thuren gear and the new tires installed?

 

[Electronut]

So Electronut, have you posted up any picks of your truck with the Thuren gear and the new tires installed?

Very soon. Couple more things I want to finish up and then will post with detailed pics in the Members Build section of the forum.

 

[Electronut]

So Electronut, have you posted up any picks of your truck with the Thuren gear and the new tires installed?

Now in the build section with all details/pics.