Thanks to everyone for your contributions. I have. All most interesting. It seems then, that I have a choice of going taller and/or wider in order to reduce total ground pressure. Going taller on a Land Rover (at least under desert conditions)is probably not a good idea (ok on Land Cruisers though, according to Chris Scott in Sahara Overland). So the other option is to go wider. The greater the width, the greater the difficulty in stowing spare tyres, and anyway, once a certain limit(width) is reached the benefits begin to tail off. A lot of people I have spoken to have told me that 235-85x16 is all you need - no more, at least on a 110. Maybe a bit more width is desirable for a heavier Land Cruiser. Having shed 140kg off the roof and stowed both spare tyre/rims behind the front seats instead of one hanging on the back door, and also cut down on other excessive gear, the car may perform better on the skinny 32 inch tall XZYs now it's lighter and with better weight distribution. If it's still not good enough, then I think a set of 235-85s would tip the balance enough to be acceptable. Of course Land Cruiser owners don't have to be quite so scientific in their approach, with their big engines and stronger transmissions!
Thanks again everyone.
Best wishes
Andrew .
|