Seeking Knowledge

[LongKnife]

I recently bought a 2008 Ranger. It has 15" rims. I'm thinking about upgrading to 16" rims at my next new tire purchase. Can anyone give me some pros an cons.

 

[RonD]

There are different reasons to use larger or smaller rims.
Assuming a fixed tire diameter..........
Larger rim size means less side wall flexing so better cornering and stiffer ride
Which is great for road cars/trucks
It also looks very nice

For off-roading you would want some side flexing and the ability to lower the tire pressure for sand or ?? driving.

I would say you would want wheel to be 1/2 the tire diameter or less for off-roading, so 30" tire = 14"-15" wheel, 34" = 15"-17"max

If only for street use then do what looks best, that's the point for street vehicles

 

[Earl43P]

I downsized from OEM 245/75-16 down to 235/65-16 to gain better handling from the shorter sidewall and lower the effective gear ratio (old hotrod trick). It made my speedo 8.75% off, which I printed out a conversion table for and keep on the visor. Mostly, I look at the GPS for accurate speed.

http://www.dakota-truck.net/CGI-BIN/TireCalc.cgi

That tire size change made my ABS more effective, although I'm not a fan of ABS. It may have been that lessening the unsprung weight had some effect as well.

Shorter tire, better stopping, peppier acceleration (I pull out in 2nd most of the time) were my benefits. If you are going for a taller tire than stock, expect the opposite result from what I described. (Very few cars keep up with me when I am first when the light turns green).

I have a 2000 3.0 4wd MO5D 4.10 ratio. That tire size change gave me an effective ratio of 4.46. And it's still great on the highway, you just have to factor in that the miles on the odometer for MPG calculation is almost 8% off (more miles indicated than actual).

The Ford dealer MIGHT be able to correct your speedometer, ask ADSM08. Depends on whether you put on a "stock" size that the PCM can use. There are also electronic correction devices, but they are about as pricy as what the dealer charges to reprogram it.

http://www.yellr.com/ordering.htm
http://www.dakotadigital.com/index....t_id=126/category_id=287/mode=prod/prd126.htm


Welcome to The Ranger Station!

I rarely take mine off road any more, but it does great in deep snow.

Tell us what your tire goal is and surely someone will have advice or experience. Just know that going taller than stock decreases performance. You would have to re-gear the front and rear axles to get the performance back. That's $1000+ for a shop to do.
If it's got a 3.0, no way should you go much bigger than stock, PARTICULARLY with an auto transmission. The 4.0 can take it because of its power and torque.

 

[LongKnife]

Thanks guys. I do a mostly city and highway driving but don't want t limit some light off work driving. Also ant to gain a little height without getting too crazy.

 

[Kayakcrazy]

Some where I read buy increasing the wheel diameter and having less rubber on the tire for the same total diameter you get less unsprung weight which is better for performance off and on road.

I've never took the time to weight the parts or anything and there are lots of variables, Which rims you have which tires you buy. But it kinda makes sense to me with off road tires. An aluminum rim weights less than a good size aggressive tire

 

[LongKnife]

Just like the look of the taller truck. Not that this would raise that much. My previous Ranger had 16's and it's performance as I recall wasn't any worse than this truck.

 

[RonD]

Yes, tires and wheels are unsprung weight, and lighter tires and wheels means the less mass there is to get rotating and less mass to slow down, so better acceleration and better braking.
But...............unless you are racing off road, I would want more side wall with it's added weight, just my opinion.

 

[JoshT]

"six of one, half-dozen of the other"

No real pros or cons to either.

My 99 Ranger 4x4 which sees both on road and off road use had worn both. It came stock with a 16" wheel and what equated to a 30" tire. It then had 15" wheel with a 31" tire, and now same wheel with a 32" tire. Tread pattern of the tire made much more difference in ride, handling, and capability of it, than did the difference in diameters of either the tire or wheel. For me the biggest difference between the 16" and 15" was cosmetic. I referred the looks of the larger tire and smaller wheel.

If you prefer the 16" get it and be happy. You won't be lacking where off-road is concerned just because you went to 16". FWIW 15" is becoming the new 14" wheel. Seems to be a lot more tire selection available for the 16" wheel now and the 15" is starting to become extinct.

 

[enjr44]

Remember to price in the cost of new TPM sensors when changing wheels. Up to 100/150 bucks a wheel depending on how you get it done.