Will 33s fit without mods?

[Texasroadlawyer]

Howdy from DFW....will be needing to replace the tires on my 2003 Eddie Bauer 5.4 4 wheel drive soon, and am looking to add a little off road capability, but I don't want to be adjusting or modifying my suspension. Will a set of moderately aggressive off road 33 inch tires fit the stock wheels and not rub? I'd like to go with a 33 x 12.5...Does anyone have this setup on their Expy currently? and could you post a photo or two if you do?

 

[AWAR]

I am running this exact tire on my 03 Navigator. They rub slightly on the inner fender in front of the tire near the frame. A slight trim would eliminate the rub. You can compare tire information on Tirerack.com if they sell what you are buying. My tire rub is at turn lock both right and left. Not noticeable in my Navigator. Just shines up the plastic.
My tires are only 8.5” tread so your 12.5 will rub at stock height.

 

[R0cketMan]

I have 285/70-17s which is a 33” tall tire in stock wheels with no rubbing. Goodyear Wrangler Duratracs.

 

[Broncoholic]

285/70R17 (32.7" x 11.2") fits factory wheel and is a little bigger than the stock 265/70R17 (31.6" x 10.4"). At stock height and full turn lock, they would barely rub my lower a-arm when I ran that size. If I remember correctly, true 33x12.5 usually require a minimum 8" wide wheel, but the factory wheel is 7.5".

With all that said, you can probably make 33x12.5 work, but you'll get some rubbing when turning and you'll probably get some instability and/or premature tire wear due to crowning the tread to fit the tire on too narrow of a wheel. Getting a used set of Raptor wheels is a nice option to help with these issues. The Raptor wheels are 17" x 8.5" with 34mm offset, which places the tire 10mm wider than the stock 44mm offset wheels. The offset will help clear rubbing on the a-arm without pushing the tires so wide that they might bash the fender going over bumps (speaking from experience).

 

[Vincent Vega]

I put 33s on my 04 a few years ago with no lift, and the factory wheels. No rubbing. Since then I lifted the front 2 inches (Bilstein 5100) and the rear 1.5 inches (steel spacer lift and Bilstein 4600 shocks). Wtih those suspension upgrades and after replacing all the tie rods, its way better on and offroad than it was before.