yep... I think I am going to go with the 16" rims instead of the 17's that come with the FDII package. :mad:

Why?!?! good question. I am having a hard time locating R17 tires that are one or two sizes larger than stock. Let's face it. Jeeps look better with larger than stock tires. That and I would like to add a little better off-road traction plus any extra ground clearance that boasts the angles it a big plus. It may be a while before there are any lift kits available... get more inches any way you can. Going with bigger tires is one of the least expensive ways to pump up the height. :)

The stock tires for the FDII are 215/65R17. They (typically) run out like this:
Section Width: 8.46 in
Overall Diameter: 28.00 in
Actual Speed: 60 mph

Here's the options:

225/70R16
Section Width: 8.85 in
Overall Diameter: 28.40 in
Diameter Difference: 1.41%
Speedometer: 59.1 mph

235/70R16
Section Width: 9.25 in
Overall Diameter: 28.95 in
Diameter Difference: 3.29%
Speedometer: 58.0 mph

225/75R16
Section Width: 8.85 in
Overall Diameter: 29.28 in
Diameter Difference: 4.38%
Speedometer: 57.3 mph

215/85R16
Section Width: 8.46 in
Overall Diameter: 30.38 in
Diameter Difference: 7.84%
Speedometer: 55.2 mph

I think I might be able to get the 235/70R16 or the 225/75R16 to work. I am purely guessing based on passed vehicles I've owned. It will depend on wher it rubs - on compression first, front or back, or the inside when turning. Only one way to see... put it on the rack and try them out.

Many places advise against going more than 3% from the stock due to extra stress on the brakes and other components. With the CVT I wonder how it will handle oversized tires... any guesses.

Nooooo!!!! BFGoodrich doesn't make All-Terrain K/O a 215/65-17

BFGoodrich All-Terrain K/O 225/70-16 is available.

By the way, 235/65-16 is an identical size match to 215/65-17 but I haven't looked what kinda good tires are available in 235/65-16

As for the CVT, I don't have any doubts about what it can handle, I think we might all be underestimating it. Nissan has a CVT coupled to a 255hp 252ft-lb V6 in the 2007 Maxima, and also in the 2007 Xterra with 265hp and 285ft-lbs, which tells me CVT technology can be made to hold up to power. And I'm pretty sure Chrysler hasn't designed some Mickey Mouse crap here. Also looking at Nissans CVT, it uses an almost identical steel chain/belt to the one in the Caliber/Compass/Patriot.

05-06 Jeep Liberty Renegade 16x7" rim looks very simlar to the 17" rims available on the Patriot.
http://i14.ebayimg.com/05/i/07/f0/e1/10_1.JPG

Depending on the size of the wheel wells, adding larger tires may very well inhibit the Patriot's offroad ability.

I just spent about an hour doing tire research, even on 16's, there aren't really many good SUV/light truck tires out there, dang!!

An intresting find, the Patriot Concept vehicle (non running model), has Pirelli Scorpion AT 235/65-17's which are kinda big 3.7% larger then the 215/65-17's in the production model.

1996x3000 high res closeup of tire http://www.topspeed.com/cars/jeep/jeep-patriot-ar2775/wallpapers/high-res/Jeep_Patriot_Concept_6.jw.jpg

http://www.topspeed.com/cars/jeep/jeep-patriot-ar2775/wallpapers/800x800/Jeep_Patriot_Concept_3.jw.jpg

I am thinking about going with the Yokohama Geolandar A/T+II.

The BFG A/T ko's are too heavy. I would love to go with the Yokohama Geolandar M/T+... but they don't make them smal enough for the Patriot (without a little cutting and trimming).

Depending on the size of the wheel wells, adding larger tires may very well inhibit the Patriot's offroad ability.

There is a fine line which needs to be walked, that's for sure. The 17's just don't ave a lot of options/variety.

What's the good in having more room for wheel travel if the wheels just sit and spin. I need to be able to get a decent tread, too.

There is a fine line which needs to be walked, that's for sure. The 17's just don't ave a lot of options/variety.

What's the good in having more room for wheel travel if the wheels just sit and spin. I need to be able to get a decent tread, too.

Just about everyone in the off-road community use 15's or 16's anyway, which is why you will mostly only find good off-road tires for up to 16" rims, low profile tires may be all well and good on the street, but without much sidewall give when off-roading, all you do is damage rims and pinch tires.

I am betting that all it will take is another inch or so and it should be able to 90% of the trails.

I am not looking for a hardcore rock crawler nor one to run the mud pits. There are a lot of great trails I love heading down for a weekend of camping away from all the crowds, for that you ned a little bit of clearance, torque, and good traction. This is why I am leaning more towards the taler tires over just wider. Wider will make it more able to float over the sand. It will also be a bigger hit on gas mileage and acceleration/deceleration.