Alright...heres my situation. I love the look of 20inch wheels kinda the street look. But i do a lot of off road driving...like way out in the country gravel road driving to my cabin in the summer. I know i cant go mudding in them but how would a 20inch rim hold up through some rough roads? will it get banged up at all? Im thinking of getting American Eagle series 026 in 20's with maybe a mud tire. what do think? Thinking of putting them on 33's possibly 35s.I will be changing them for winter anyways.

 

The less rubber to absorb the impact the more energy the wheel will have to absorb to compensate. A bump is like a chain reaction The tire absorbs what it can, then the wheel, then the extra energy that cannot be transferred ends up in your shock. I think the 20's are very appealing. They are more expensive in some cases as well. If you do offroad, i would think that you would want more rubber on the ground for traction and absorption. Even if you don't go in the mud. Also because you have less rubber if you take a good hit your wheel may warp and you will definitely feel that on the highway going home or if you get a flat your wheel will be more likely to get severely damaged. Some on this thread may have 20's and offroad heavily and have no problems. I got 33's on a 18x9.5 wheel and love the setup and feel comfortable with its abilities. So it will probably end up with what YOU feel comfortable doing with your truck. When you see BIGFOOT crushing cars he doesn't use the BLING. Of course that is only my opinion and others may not agree. Good luck.

 

Heres a pic of the wheels on the same exact truck i have...hard to see at the angle but you get the idea. Pic courtesy of Laredo Texas..hope he doesnt mind me posting Would you guys be worried about takin these wheels through some gravel roads? or would they get scratched and banged up?

 

I think you will be fine if you go with 33 inch tires.

 

I have 20's and BFG All terrains, I use my truck for work in the oilfield. I spend alot of time on gravel backroads, lease roads, logging roads, mud holes etc. I've seen lots of mud this past summer with no problems so far (except for ABS sensors). I think you will be fine. Obviously, a 20 will get banged up a little easier than a 17, but I drive mine offroad just like I would if they weren't 20's and they still look good. I make sure to wipe them down every wash. With a more open wheel design like mine, it makes it alot easier to clean the mud out of the inside of the wheel, something you may want to keep in mind when choosing a wheel.
By the way, FYI my BFG's have made it 50000km's and still have about 40% tread left.

 

If you go with a 33+ tire you'll be fine. Just keep a good coat of wax on them at all times and they'll hold up.

PS: I really like those wheels!