New to me 07 sport trac

[speedytriple]

Just brought her home this morning. New to me 07 sport trac 4x4. Looked for a month liked the deal on this one, even though it was silver not gun metal. It is loaded besides leather and navi. I am looking to do some bolt ons soon. For now it will pull daily driver duties. Not looking to build a off road rig but would not mind a few more mpg and some power. And would love to put some proper sized off road tires on it.

 

[Tech By Trade]

Lol, proper sized off road tires, more power, and more MPG should not be used in the same statement. Its kind of an oxymoron. Sharp looking rig.

 

[floater180]

I did a K&N air filter and some E3 spark plugs, helped with MPG's then added a cat back exhaust for more power. on highway I can get about 22mpg's but pulling a 4000lbs boat it's around 12 -13 mpg's but pulls like a mule!

 

[07LTDDSM]

285/65/18 tires
K&N pfk intake
Magnaflow cat bat exhaust
If its not load enough you can have the exhaust resonator removed

 

[GSU4x4]

Good looking truck...looks kinda familiar, haha. If you want to see what a lift kit and bigger tires looks like on your truck, jump over to my build thread.
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=400559

 

[speedytriple]

GSU I saw your thread on your build. I am hoping to be able to fit some 31x10.50 tires at most. Does the hypertech work for mpg. I drove it to work for the first time last night set the cruise at 65 and the dash computer said I was getting 26.7mpg. I have yet to fill it up and do a real gallons per mile figure. I love it so far but I need it to be light trail ready so I have plans just no money after buying it. LOL!

 

[FLOffroad]

Looks very nice.

If you want descent MPG and offroad tires, try to stay in the 235 and 245 section width region. 255s and larger end up yielding a lot more resistance. But there are plenty of tires sized 245-70R17 to pick from, ranging from mostly street to actual MTs.

 

[GSU4x4]

GSU I saw your thread on your build. I am hoping to be able to fit some 31x10.50 tires at most. Does the hypertech work for mpg. I drove it to work for the first time last night set the cruise at 65 and the dash computer said I was getting 26.7mpg. I have yet to fill it up and do a real gallons per mile figure. I love it so far but I need it to be light trail ready so I have plans just no money after buying it. LOL!

That mpg calculator mustve been reset recently because I seriously doubt it will stay that high for long. My mpg did go up some after I installed the programmer, I take it pretty easy on the gas and brake, but during my commutes I used to get around 13-14 mpg, now I get around 15-16. The highway also got better, before was around 16.5, now its around 18.5. It def keeps the rpms lower on the interstate, and there does seem to be a little more power accessible when I need it.

The main reason I got it was basically to offset the mpg loss due to my larger/heavier tires and it also let me recalibrate my speedo.

 

[speedytriple]

So my trac has 245's on it now can I go a size up without a lift? I would not mind a small lift to fit a bigger tire just don't want the expense of replacing lots of other parts that may wear due to a lift.

 

[speedytriple]

So if I went with a kit like this what size tire would fit without rubbing?http://www.rockymountainsusp.com/li...4wd/explorer/2002-13/102010-tx.html?c=301&i=2

Looks like it says a 32" tire? is that right? I am looking to fit some 31x10.5

 

[FLOffroad]

People have fit up to 33s with low to negative offset and the Truxxx/Traxda lift, but, yes, the manufacturer recommends 32s with the lift.

With stock wheels and no spacers, you could probably pull off a 31x10.5 with a bit of rubbing. Some people have even done 265 width 31/32s without lifts.
I would say, if you want to keep stock wheels, get some 0.5in or 1in wheel spacers and you'll be fine to run 31x10.5s without a lift.

It's sort of a matter of preference: you can have your wheel-well slightly more filled out by 31s with no lift, or do the lift with 31s and you'll have lots of space in your wheel wells.

 

[speedytriple]

I would not mind a little space between the tire and wheel well. I dont want it hitting anything if I am out in the woods on trails. I might do the lift I listed with some 31x10.50x17 tires with a spacer so nothing rubs. Been looking at the general at2 tires or some duratracs.

 

[FLOffroad]

My AT2s in 255-60R18 are serving me well enough. The duratracs would most likely edge out the AT2s in mud or deep snow, but they're both descent tires.

Some people talk about the Duratrac sidewalls being weak, but I think that's mostly Jeep and Toyota guys running the Duratrac like it's some sort of HD offroad tire. I think the Duratrac should be thought of as an aggressive AT, rather than a full-on MT or rock tire. It's just a 2-ply sidewall, but the AT2s are as well, so you're comparing apples to apples in my book.

 

[speedytriple]

Can you fit a 265x70x17 tires stock? Or will I need spacers, or a lift?

 

[GSU4x4]

Before my lift I was running 265/70r16 AT2's and it would scrub on full turn, so being 1" larger wheels I would imagine it will rub more.

 

[speedytriple]

Would adding wheel spacers help with rubbing?