I’m new to XterraNation and bought my first ‘02 Xterra a couple months ago. I plan to install some BFG KO2s soon, but would like to go up in size from my 265/65/R17s. In the forums, I see some members refer to a PML and a BL in the same sentence. Could someone please explain the technical difference between these in regard to this community? I know “PML” refers to a Poor Man’s Lift and a “BL” refers to a Body Lift. However, some guys I’ve talked to outside this community use these terms interchangeably. Does PML specifically refer to coil and leaf modifications while BL refers to lifting the body off the frame via spacers?
Pml Vs Bl
- Thread starter SC_AJ
- Start date
PML= poor man lift is a cheap suspension lift which allows you to gain roughly 1" of lift.
BL= body lift it does what the name implies lifts the body.
They are not interchangeable because they are two different things. PML gives you a little more ground clearance via the suspension. BL does not give you anymore ground clearance but gives you more room between the frame and body which allows you to run larger tires. You can do both lifts if you want or only choose one of the lifts.
I am only running a pml on my xterra. I run 32x11.5R15 and rub when turning but that is because of the back spacing of my wheels. Now if I would install a body lift it would most likely eliminate my rubbing issue.
Thank you. This is very helpful. I also found this post some time later which has been helpful too: https://www.xterranation.org/index.php?threads/how-to-pml-fully-explained.2812/
So how does a 32x11.5 compare (visually and risk of rubbing) on a R15 vs a R17? I would assume that on a stock Xterra, with frame, suspension, etc. all being the same, a 15” wheel allows you to run a bigger tire than the 17” because the wheel takes up less real estate in the wheel well.
Also, when you say “back spacing of my wheels” is this the horizontal position of the wheels along the axle? Again, I’m new to this type of mod so I appreciate your patience and help in understanding some of these basics.
So how does a 32x11.5 compare (visually and risk of rubbing) on a R15 vs a R17? I would assume that on a stock Xterra, with frame, suspension, etc. all being the same, a 15” wheel allows you to run a bigger tire than the 17” because the wheel takes up less real estate in the wheel well.
Also, when you say “back spacing of my wheels” is this the horizontal position of the wheels along the axle? Again, I’m new to this type of mod so I appreciate your patience and help in understanding some of these basics.
In "English" measurements (32x11.5), a 32" tire is a 32" tire, with the sidewall changing to account for the different wheel size. It's in metric sizing (285/70r15) where the wheel size makes a difference. 285 is the tread width, 70 is the percentage of sidewall to width, r15 is the wheel size. So if you have a 285/70r15, you'll have a smaller tire than a 285/70r17 because you need more tire diameter to allow for the sidewall to be 70% of the width.
Backspacing refers to where the mounting surface of the wheel is in relation to the inner edge of the wheel. 0 BS is dead center, where as negative is closer to the inside and positive is closer to the outside. I may have that reversed, so feel free to correct me.
Backspacing refers to where the mounting surface of the wheel is in relation to the inner edge of the wheel. 0 BS is dead center, where as negative is closer to the inside and positive is closer to the outside. I may have that reversed, so feel free to correct me.