1997 23.L XL tire size recommendations

[WarHawk-AVG]

1997 2.3L XL tire size recommendations

Used to have a 1992 Mazda B2300 w/ 5 speed standard, had P195/65 R14's on it, looked like donuts, upgraded to 215's and it looked better but fuel mileage went down and it struggled..but what small 4 banger doesn't

I now have a 1997 Ford Ranger 2.3L XL auto trans, currently has P235/75R15 on em...feels like it just ain't pushing like it should, anemic, really feels like it is struggling to maintain speed (has K&N air filter, runs ok, idle sucks but when I am driving don't feel misses and the engine hums along happily, fresh Mercon V transmission flush and fill a few weeks ago)...if I put P215/75R15 on it would it help pick up it's pep or would it throw off the speedometer or whatever?

http://www.sizemytires.com/vehicle/1997/ford/ranger/xl#15-inch-rims

Biggest question is if I changed to the smaller "stock" tire size would it help the truck or would it not really matter?

 

[XLTsplash]

My 97 Ranger also has a 2.3L The stock tire size on my Ranger is 225/70R14.
To get close to the stock diameter tires with 15'' wheels you can go with 235/60R15 or 205/70R15. The 205/70R15 is a lot cheaper because not only is it smaller, it's also a more common size. If I was going to run 15s That what I would use the 205/70R15.
The 215/75R15 would be better than the 235/75R15 just not as good at matching the stock diameter as the 205/70R15 or 235/60R15.
Even going up one size from the stock diameter tire can hurt power and MPG. Plus have the wrong tire diameter will make you speedometer and odometer incorrect. The other choice you have is a gear swap, so you can run the larger tires you like without with problems your having.

 

[WarHawk-AVG]

Size wise from a profile view...which look better? As in not having a teeny donut looking tire on the truck?

I guess I can go with the 205/70R15's then...thanks! Some sites are suggesting 235/60/R15 (98S)

Got my first mileage check today..ran the tank completely to E from a single click after shutoff topoff'd tank (aka fill the tank..the handle clunks, wait a few seconds, re-squeeze handle and it will pump another 1/8-1/4 gallon or so)

14.414 gallons in from the pump (stock tank is 17 on a standard cab...so even with the needle on E, I still have approx 2.5 gallons in the tank.)

258.6 miles on those 14.414 = 17.9mpg most of the driving on this tank was at 60~mph on the speedo (keeping up with traffic in H-Town so the speedometer to actual road speed is definitely wrong)

These 235/75R15's look nice on the truck...but make the 4 banger feel like it's trying to run on the beach (any Marines that ran on the beach at Camp Pendleton/Lejeune can tell you what that feels like)

 

[XLTsplash]

The 205/70R15 and the 235/60R15 will be close to the same over all diameter. So looking at the tires from the side they will look about the same. The 205 and 235 or how wide the tire is. The 60 and 70 are how tall the side wall is. So on the 205/70R15 the 205 is the width, the side wall height is 70% of the width. The wide tire you go with, the taller the tire will be if you stay with the same series. Series = side wall % . If you don't want to change the gears in your rear end. Getting a tire that's as close to the factory tire diameter will be best for your 2.3L. The 205/70R15 will be cheaper, narrower and better for MPG. The 235/60R15 will be wider and be better handling because it gives you more rubber on the road. So it's a give and take.

 

[scotts90ranger]

Unless the tires are fried, your speedometer is off anyway as no 2.3L ranger came stock with 235's especially a 2 wheel drive version... to run that size tire it needs 4.10 gears in the rear axle which will probably make your speedometer accurate again. If you find an axle in a junk yard for $200 (midrange on average price on one, I just picked up a 3.73 LS disc brake explorer axle for around $100 turkey day weekend) you're still well ahead of buying new tires, and you can at least sell your stock axle for $100 on craigslist... Swapping the rear axle is easy and can be done in an afternoon with very basic tools. Your truck probably has 3.45 gears in it now as most 2.3L rangers did, and speaking as someone that drove a 2.3L Ranger around for a while with 235 70 15's with 3.08 gears it kinda sucked, then went to 3.73's for a while which was much better, but 4.10's would have been better...

Figure out what gear ratio your truck has and we can give a better idea of what tires to go with if you want to go that way, the tiny tires look goofy in the bigger openings of the 3rd gen Rangers so I think you would be better off swapping the axle...

 

[WarHawk-AVG]

It's stock

My truck is pretty much a commute/GP light truck...no frills, no off-roading, no hotrodding, I want decent gas mileage as my 1 way drive is approx 35miles, but I want to be able to haul small stuff and possibly pull a small trailer (maybe a riding lawnmower or whatever)

I want decent size tires, my old '94 Mazda B2300 has 195/70/R14's on em...and it looked like it had donut tires on it...bleh

I really miss my '94 Dodge Dakota w/ the 360 in it...that thing could haul!

 

[XLTsplash]

The 195/70R14s do look too small on a Ranger. My 2.3L came stock with 225/70R14s and I'm happy with the way they look. The 14" tires are getting harder to find and because you already have the 15" wheels the 235/60R15 tire will be about the same diameter as to stock 225/70R14 because the side wall is only 60% of the width instead of 70%. My Dad had a 1989 Ranger 2.3L Ranger that he bought new and drove many miles to work everyday. He keep a log of MPG with every fill up. When he wore out the factory tires he bought new tires one size bigger and lost about four MPG.

 

[scotts90ranger]

"stock" gearing means 3.08, 3.45, 3.73 or if 4x4 4.10. The only model that you know for sure had a certain gear ratio is the 4x4 2.3L trucks which all had 4.10's. Changing gear ratio isn't going to make it do anything any different other than move the engines rpm range to a point where it can turn the tires, changing from whatever you have to 4.10's would put it where it was stock fuel mileage wise and everything.

235 75 15 is the most common tire size, unless that's changed in the last few years

 

[97LowRanger]

did not notice fuel economy change but i had 225/70R14 and went to 225/60R16 which according to calculators are just about the same size, also my rims are steel weighing about 35 lbs and still runs really good.

 

[scotts90ranger]

Do you know if the previous owner had the speedometer corrected? Do you have a GPS? How close is your speedometer? If they didn't have it corrected you are getting better mileage than you think you are, look on the door sticker and see the stock tire size, stick that in a tire height calculator along with your current tire size, divide your current tire size by the original tire size and multiply that by your fuel mileage to see what you are actually getting. You can also use that multiplier to figure out your actual speed, or actual mileage on your odometer.

 

[WarHawk-AVG]

Do you know if the previous owner had the speedometer corrected? Do you have a GPS? How close is your speedometer? If they didn't have it corrected you are getting better mileage than you think you are, look on the door sticker and see the stock tire size, stick that in a tire height calculator along with your current tire size, divide your current tire size by the original tire size and multiply that by your fuel mileage to see what you are actually getting. You can also use that multiplier to figure out your actual speed, or actual mileage on your odometer.

Just looked at the door panel 225/70 R14's...not even the stock rims, got 15" rims

The PO didn't change anything...guy didn't take care of it at all. I take care of my vehicles so other than slapping bigger rims and tires on his truck...he didn't change anything until it started "breaking"

Found an online calculator 97LowRanger was referring to

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/tirecalc/images/225x70xR14-235x60xR15_sbs.png

The 235/75 R15's were WAY too big for a 4 banger w/ the original rear end ratio

Even 205/70 R15's are pretty close too

The 205/70R15 and the 235/60R15 will be close to the same over all diameter. So looking at the tires from the side they will look about the same. The 205 and 235 or how wide the tire is. The 60 and 70 are how tall the side wall is. So on the 205/70R15 the 205 is the width, the side wall height is 70% of the width. The wide tire you go with, the taller the tire will be if you stay with the same series. Series = side wall % . If you don't want to change the gears in your rear end. Getting a tire that's as close to the factory tire diameter will be best for your 2.3L. The 205/70R15 will be cheaper, narrower and better for MPG. The 235/60R15 will be wider and be better handling because it gives you more rubber on the road. So it's a give and take.

Yup...the 205/70R15's look to be the cheapest option to go with

http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/searchTiresBySize.do?fl=&sortBy=prca&r=TSEINT|pc|77521&ar=70&fqs=true&rd=15&y=18&x=35&cs=205

A little thinner, a teeny bit smaller diameter .4% ain't nothing but if it will get me back up to the stated 21/24~ fuel economy (probably not as there are other problems with the vehicle but it will be closer than the 17~ MPG I'm getting now)

Thanks a TON for all your help...definitely saved me from really screwing up, the truck might not look as cool as with bigger tires...but I wasn't going for the "cool" factor when I got it...just need a good truck that can do light GP work and commute at decent enough gas mileage (I really wish it was the 4.0L though and a 5 speed...but beggers can't be choosers) Heck..if I could find me another extended cab Dodge Dakota or better yet the crew cab one...I would be loving it, actually I wouldn't mind getting the new Nissan Frontier diesel that is supposedly hitting the streets soon!