31" Thornbirds / No lift.. | Ford Explorer Forums

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31" Thornbirds / No lift..

CQ7String

Well-Known Member
Joined
December 14, 2003
Messages
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City, State
Boston, MA
Year, Model & Trim Level
98 Sport
Per the sticky:


95-2001
No lift- 31x10.50x15 on 15x8 rim


I used to have a set of 29" TBirds on my 90 'Yota 4x4, and they seems absolutely giant, not to mention that if memory serves, I had a bunch more clearance in the Yota than I do in my Explorer.

Can anyone verify before I order these if they'll indeed fit on my unlifted 98 Sport?

Recommendations on where to order them online would be stellar as well.
 



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31's are usually the biggest tire that fits on a stock Explorer with no lift but that may not be the case with the Thornbirds. Thornbirds have those huge lugs that come out the side that may rub when turned to full lock. You will just have to put them on to see if they fit. If not you can always do a TT.
 






I bought a set of the swamper trxus sts tires in 29x 10.50x 15 for my X I have found that they are 10x better than the thornbirds . one reason is they are raidials and not bais . they ride a crap load better and offroad they are a ton better. they are a little quieter on the highway too. I have had both on my X and there is no comparison . my thornbirds were shot at 25k and right now my trxus sts have 30k on them and they are only a little over half worn. plus I believe that they are quite a bit cheaper than the thorbirds!
p.s. I bought mine through tyres international had them 2 days after i ordered them!
 






You have 30k on the sts? I've heard they get horrible mileage and I have personally seen them go bald in 20k. I will agree they probably beat the thornbird all day long. How are those sts workin on your X on different types of terrain?
 






My sts's are awsome in most conditions the only time I have had a problem offroad with them is just recently I was doing some winter wheeling and I had gotten into some real slimy mud . there was like an inch or 2 of slimy mud on top of frozen ground and they slid around a little but I never got stuck. In snow I can drive around in 2wd without spinning a tire. in 4wd I have gone everywhere that I want to go with out fear! and my X in basically stock (for now) except for the truxus sts tires.The trick to get long life with them is to rotate the tires every 3k and only go front to back!
 












I'm sorry for this noob question...

What's the stock rim width? (98 sport)

I searched, I'm just at work and trying to order them between projects. :)
 






I had 31x11.0's on my amigo and kept getting them hung in the wheel well because of the thorns. Ended up cutting the inside thorns off with a sawzall. The are considerably larger than a standard 31x10.5 tire. I would bet you would rub.
 






N2FORD:

wow dude I bet that was an interesting ride. one side has a bunch of huge lugs coming off and the other side doesn't? That must have been a magical vibration in the steering wheel. How did they work in the mud?

CQ7String:

If you have the 15" tall wheel then it is 7" wide. (I am pretty sure you have this one)
 






Originally posted by birdman
N2FORD:

wow dude I bet that was an interesting ride. one side has a bunch of huge lugs coming off and the other side doesn't? That must have been a magical vibration in the steering wheel. How did they work in the mud?

CQ7String:

If you have the 15" tall wheel then it is 7" wide. (I am pretty sure you have this one)

16's, actually.

(thanks btw. ;) )
 






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