When I bought my Mounty it had these strange multi-layered steel and chrome 15X7" wheels on it which I never liked:
Now that the tires need to be replaced, it's time to look at a wheel swap. I found a good set of these (also 15X7") for $100:
Both of these 15X7" OEM wheels have a 4.5" back space.
I'm following up on a couple of leads to buy a set of these 16X7" wheels:
I haven't actually touched these wheels, according to the two people selling them they have 5.5" or 5.75" back space.
The tires I want come in 40 different sizes (15" to 22") so I'm not locked into a wheel size. If I go with the 15X7" wheels I'll get 31X10.5R15 tires which I know will fit because this fine forum says so! If I go with the 16X7" wheels I'll get 245/75R16 tires, slightly shorter and narrower that the 31's. I don't need the "light truck" tires, the P-Metric version is still stronger than the stock tire size and $130 less (for four) than the 31's. With a 5.0 and 3.73 gearing I'm not concerned about the "loss of power" from going to larger tires.
Finally the Question . . .
If the 16X7" wheels really have 5.5" or 5.75" back space that means the tires will be stuffed an extra 1" to 1.25" further into the wheel well increasing the chance of rubbing. Has anyone put 245/75R16 tires on to the OEM 16X7" wheels in the picture above on a stock height 4 door Explorer or Mountaineer? I've found a tire shop that will install and service these tires on my Mounty if they will fit without rubbing, they will not do it if I need a spacer to keep from rubbing.
Thanks in Advance,
Dan
Now that the tires need to be replaced, it's time to look at a wheel swap. I found a good set of these (also 15X7") for $100:
Both of these 15X7" OEM wheels have a 4.5" back space.
I'm following up on a couple of leads to buy a set of these 16X7" wheels:
I haven't actually touched these wheels, according to the two people selling them they have 5.5" or 5.75" back space.
The tires I want come in 40 different sizes (15" to 22") so I'm not locked into a wheel size. If I go with the 15X7" wheels I'll get 31X10.5R15 tires which I know will fit because this fine forum says so! If I go with the 16X7" wheels I'll get 245/75R16 tires, slightly shorter and narrower that the 31's. I don't need the "light truck" tires, the P-Metric version is still stronger than the stock tire size and $130 less (for four) than the 31's. With a 5.0 and 3.73 gearing I'm not concerned about the "loss of power" from going to larger tires.
Finally the Question . . .
If the 16X7" wheels really have 5.5" or 5.75" back space that means the tires will be stuffed an extra 1" to 1.25" further into the wheel well increasing the chance of rubbing. Has anyone put 245/75R16 tires on to the OEM 16X7" wheels in the picture above on a stock height 4 door Explorer or Mountaineer? I've found a tire shop that will install and service these tires on my Mounty if they will fit without rubbing, they will not do it if I need a spacer to keep from rubbing.
Thanks in Advance,
Dan