need some tire size help

[mellonhead]

I'm looking to give my 95 nissan 2wd pickup (stock - xtra cab - 5 speed manual - 4 cyl) a little bit cooler/manly look. I guess you could almost call it a 4wd look. I have a friend that will put a lift kit on it, but i'd rather not if possible. What are the biggest tires I can put on it without causing rubbing, etc. Also, how much will it affect power and gas mileage going from small tires on 14" rims to say 30x9.5's on 15" rims? I appreciate any help you can give me. I know there are lots of pics floating around this site, but i'd love to see what the difference would be between just adding bigger tires versus adding the big tires plus a lift. So if you've got a 90's truck with 30's or whatever the biggest tire that will fit is, let me see it. Same for a 90's with a 2 or 3 inch lift and 30's or 31's. Thanks again!

[Desert Rat]

30s are not going to fit without a lift. The biggest you can reasonably go at stock height is a 235/75/15 and even that can rub in the front fender when the suspension compresses.

Going to a 30 or 31" tire with stock gearing will have a very noticeable effect on power. You'll use a lot more clutch to get rolling if it's a manual.

If you have the H190 rear, it helps a little to find a 98+ H190 out of a frontier and swap over the 3rd members. The newer ones have a bit deeper gear (3.7:1 instead of 3.5:1). That helps some. You can swap in a 4x4 rear end for deeper gears (see the axle thread sticky at the top of this forum for more info). Keep in mind though a 4x4 rear is a bit wider than your 2wd axle.