She's finally legal

[Aaron Mathis]

After dealing with the stupid bureaucrats in Washington State I finally got the plates put on her instead of the Temporary US Forces Korea plate. Never had this many issues in Korea with the ST. But bring it to the US and all kinds of issues. :angry: Anyway finally got plates on it and over the weekend we did a trip to Oregon and up to Spokane. Next on the list is I would like to get a 1in lift kit and 4 new rims with off roading tires which would be only used for that purpose and use the factory tires for day to day driving. Also on the agenda is get a Kennwood stereo w/GPS and Bluetooth with the iDatalink for the MS Synch. Once that's done I would like to start planning for some play time with it. Any one know where some good off road trails in WA, OR or ID are? Also what would you recommend for tires for off roading? its been a while (about 18 years) since I been able to do it so have not kept up on but trying to get back into researching and learning from trial and error. I would like to upgrade the intake and exhaust systems but with the idiotic California emissions standards kind of limits what I can put underneath the hood.

 

[RedRanger 7]

My friend always tells me Nitto are the smoothest tires and my BFG KM2 arent round and that is why all the BFGs have a noisy loud ride. Your best bet to lift is 3" body,it gives you the best factory ride. Otherwise you need Warrior Shackles in the rear and torsion bar twist in the front. Great off road state park in Belfair Wa west of Tacoma.:supercool:

 

[H D]

My KM2s were easily balanced with little weight and were pretty quiet; nothing like the roar often associated with mud tires. I've read they suck in snow, though and I can confirm they weren't the greatest on wet roads; off road, they were great. My current TreadWrights are much louder even though they have a tighter tread pattern. I would have gotten the KM2s again but I wanted to give TW Guard Dogs a try. I'm loving them so far and the grip is amazing in mud but I haven't really tested them on trails yet.



Goodyear Duratracs get the most rave reviews I've seen of any tire. They're an aggressive all terrain and are excellent in snow, which might interest you in Washington. Those are what I'd recommend for someone who wants an aggressive tread pattern and still uses them on road. Since you mentioned running a separate set for off road only, these would still be a good option if you will off road in the snow. If you will be a warm weather wheeler and only using the tires off road, the tires I've seen get best reviews are (alphabetically) BFG KM2, Cooper SST, Nitto Mud or Trail Grapplers (the muds ROAR), and Toyo Open Country MT.



I know the shackles are the easiest and most popular way to get a little lift in the rear and that's what I initially did. I traded those for an add-a-leaf and much prefer the strength and added rear stiffness. Coupled with the Rancho shocks, it's a nice firm ride and does well off road. Extended shackles speed up the wear on your springs and hang low.



I would recommend lifting the rear first and match up front with a torsion twist; no more than 2" if 4x4. Don't bother with aftermarket torsion keys. The factory keys are adjustable.



Those two lifts would allow 32" tires easily and 33" with some trimming. A body lift on top of those would allow 33" easily and 35" with some trimming. Simply a body lift and no change to your suspension would allow 33s with possibly minimal trimming if any at all and, like mentioned, you keep the factory ride.