4th Gens on bigger than stock tyres

I'm considering getting tougher AT or MT tyres on my auto JB74 (last time going off road I had a puncture on the sidewall of one of the OEM tyres that had to be replaced), but from all I've read here I'm a bit worried about its effect on the car performance on road (which is where mine runs about 70% of the time).
If I were to fit 215 75 15 AT tyres such as BFG or Maxxis (easier to find in Brazil) the weight increase per tyre would be around 5 kg/11 lbs (OEM wheels: 7.6 kg/16.8 lbs | OEM tyres: 9.8 kg/21.6 lbs | AT 215-75-15 tyres: 15 kg/33 lbs).
Also, I found these Rays A-LAP-J 16" forged wheels that weight just 4.8 kg/10.6 lbs each. If I had them with BFG AT 215-70-16 tyres (15 kg/33 lbs) or 225-70-16 tyres (15.7 kg/34.6 lbs) total weight increase would be less, respectively 2.4 kg/5.3 lbs or 3.1 kg/ 6.8 lbs.

I know it is a bit of a very specific question, but has anyone installed these A-LAP-J wheels or heard from someone who had them installed and could point out if they have helped to keep the OEM performance on road with chunkier tyres? Or could anyone advice on how much that wheel+tyre weight difference would affect performance, so that I could have a better idea if purchasing lighter wheels just for the sake of performance would be worth it?

I've just (about two weeks now) fitted 215/75R15 General Grabber A/TX tires to my JB74, one reason for going with this size is a 215 is the widest tire recommended for the 5.5" rim width of the OEM alloys, and a second is this is the size tire that Suzuki themselves are using on the limited edition Jimny Safari model (it comes with Maxxis AT980)

I would describe the impact on "on road" performance as negligible, if you're into "first away from the traffic light" sprints, you'll notice a degradation in "zippiness", if that's not your driving style, what you'll notice is a much more stable vehicle.

Personally I would not switch to a 215/70R16 with the lighter rim - yes, the diameter is almost identical, and the total weight increase is reduced, but, you've moved more of the weight, further away from the center of rotation, and that makes it both harder to start turning and harder to stop turning - I feel the impact on performance is going to be greater.

I did something very similar with a Suzuki Swift many years ago - I went from the OEM steel wheels with OEM 155/70R13 tires to an alloy rim with 185/60R13 rubber - increase in diameter was 0.2", I don't remember the individual weight of the tire & rim, but the increase in total weight wasn't worth worrying about - we had more than enough power to get the car rolling, but stopping it from any speed was an absolute nightmare.

I have driven a selection of different peoples gen3 Jimny with different levels of modifications and tyre size some adjusted to cope with the different tyre size others just left. Each time I have always noticed that they feel heavier especially setting off, but within reason that sensation of additional weight disappears once moving. The only time I felt it was worth more than a passing comment to the owner was in an auto running 30s on standard gears, that was really horrible to drive.

Have you considered or can you get in your area the Yokohama Geolanders, they do them in stock size. I have them, and have heard lots of good feedback from other people.

Thank you folks!

Fordem, I have also heard about the weight distribution issue from a friend. I am guessing it would be hard to estimate the overall gain in performance in a slightly lighter wheel+tyre setup if at the same time you get most of its weight shifted outwards, right? Probably not worth spending a small fortune on those A-LAP-J wheels to find out... I know you have not spent much time yet with the General Grabber tyres, but how do you like them thus far? It's one of the few options for 215-75-15 I have here.

Thanks for sharing your experience Lambert, I guess my main worry with performance could be resumed to overtaking long trucks on simple one-lane-in-each-direction roads, which is the way most of the Brazilian roads in the countryside are. Sometimes you need to overtake, where allowed, trucks going at 40-50 kph or you may find yourself stuck behind them for really large stretch.

Soeley, I wish I could get the Geolanders here! Curreently the only 215-75-15 AT tyres I can find here are General Grabbers, Maxxis or Pirelli Scorpions. I have heard good things about the first two. I would have to go up in size to the tyres used by pickup trucks such as Hiluxes and Rangers to get more variety, but then I am pretty sure the effect on performance would be more noticeable.

wrote:

Have you considered or can you get in your area the Yokohama Geolanders, they do them in stock size. I have them, and have heard lots of good feedback from other people.

I feel that a discussion on Geolandars (or any other tire) is pointless unless you're going to specify which of the Geolandars you're discussing - I've run several different Geolandars over the years, admittedly never on a Jimny - I've run Geolandar HTs, ATs and I'm currently running the AT G015 on a 1998 Grand Vitara, I'd say they're nothing to get excited about, they're black, round and get the job done.