Upsizing from the original tire size ? | Ford Explorer Forums

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Upsizing from the original tire size ?

Explorer_gal

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December 12, 2006
Messages
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City, State
London, Ontario
Year, Model & Trim Level
2002 Explorer XLT
Hi All
Hopefully someone can answer a couple of questions for me. Recently I changed from the original tire size 235/70/16 to 255/70/16 on my 2002 Explorer XLT. Except for the speedometer being off abit I haven't noticed any real driving differences in terms of it shifting and stuff. (I do have the full trailer towing package) Can I just leave everything as it is or is there anything else that needs to be changed when running larger tires on an Explorer ? Are the larger tires harder on my trucks drive train ? Will my gas mileage suffer much with larger tires ? So far the thing I have noticed the most is a much improved ride specially over small jittery types of bumps. Any answers would be much appreciated. Thanks Guys ! :)
 



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"Bump !"
Does anyone know ? *smile*
 






Everything should be fine, its not that big of a jump in tire size. You maybe able to take it to a dealer and have them reprogram the computer for the correct tire size, this will bring the speedo back into the proper range, and may improve shifting a little as the speeds will be correct. The dealer may charge a full hour rate to do so, even though it would probably take about 20 mins.

Dan
 






Everything should be fine, its not that big of a jump in tire size. You maybe able to take it to a dealer and have them reprogram the computer for the correct tire size, this will bring the speedo back into the proper range, and may improve shifting a little as the speeds will be correct. The dealer may charge a full hour rate to do so, even though it would probably take about 20 mins.

Dan

Hi Dan... thankyou very much for repling... i think if anything that changing the tire size abit has improved the shifting some because my truck shifts sooner now which i think is good. i have been very happy with my Explorer, it's my first truck/4 wheel drive and i want to keep it for a long time... i just have to remember to drive a little slower now *smile*
 






235/70R16 was stock on 2002's? 255/70R16 was the "upgrade" size on Explorers for awhile. In any case, if the old tires were 235/70R16's, the new ones are a full inch bigger, making the speedometer off by just a bit more than 2 mph. It probably will suck more gas, since the new tires are heavier and will take more gas to get rolling, plus the extra width means more friction. The only real issue is the speedometer and odometer being off, though. If 255/70R16 was an available size for the 2002, you might be able to just have it recalibrated or the correct transmission speedometer gear put in.
 






235/70R16 was stock on 2002's? 255/70R16 was the "upgrade" size on Explorers for awhile. In any case, if the old tires were 235/70R16's, the new ones are a full inch bigger, making the speedometer off by just a bit more than 2 mph. It probably will suck more gas, since the new tires are heavier and will take more gas to get rolling, plus the extra width means more friction. The only real issue is the speedometer and odometer being off, though. If 255/70R16 was an available size for the 2002, you might be able to just have it recalibrated or the correct transmission speedometer gear put in.

Hi Anime4x4
Thanks for your reply... Yes 235/70/16 is the original tire size for my 2002 Explorer according to the owners manual. I can live with the speedometer and odometer being off abit. Actually tho I am hoping the odometer will read less miles then I actually put on the truck... there is enough on it already *smile* The only problem I have had so far is with the wheel weights flying off of the rims... I had to take the truck back today to get it corrected.
 






If you had tyres put on and the wheel weights are flying off, I'd take it somewhere else the next time for tyres, for sure ExplorerGal......those things could hurt some1 if they were to hit a pedestrian.....Ouch!! :)
 






If you had tyres put on and the wheel weights are flying off, I'd take it somewhere else the next time for tyres, for sure ExplorerGal......those things could hurt some1 if they were to hit a pedestrian.....Ouch!! :)

*Laughing*... you should have heard them hit the truck UKExploder... i didn't think it was stones because we were on a nice highway and going at least 100 kmh. We have Canadian Tire stores here which is where I purchased the tires...buy three get one free so it was a good deal. They didn't quibble at all about rebalancing all four tires and apologized about doing it wrong the first time. They explained that the young guy that installed the weights the first time used the wrong kind... in the end it was all good really.
 






Take them back and get the stick on weights that go inside the rims instead of the outside.

-Rich
 






Upsizing from orig. tyre size

*Laughing*... you should have heard them hit the truck UKExploder... i didn't think it was stones because we were on a nice highway and going at least 100 kmh. We have Canadian Tire stores here which is where I purchased the tires...buy three get one free so it was a good deal. They didn't quibble at all about rebalancing all four tires and apologized about doing it wrong the first time. They explained that the young guy that installed the weights the first time used the wrong kind... in the end it was all good really.

Oh, a "blame it on the new guy" problem, I see:D ...hahahaha...glad it was sorted so easily for you.:)
 






See what dealers are charging to reprogram the speedo, I had to pay $85 at my dealer and I about wanted to strangle them, especially since they lied to me about another issue. Don't even know if it was worth it, I'm just trying to sell mine now and figured the next owner would want it.
 






What are good tires for a '94 4WD 4.0L Explorer XLT

I am about to replace the tires that came with my car when I bought it. They are All Season P235/75R15 tires. I'm not sure what size stock tires are. I do mostly city driving, but I would also like my car to be able to handle the occasional (rare) snow that I go through on snowboarding trips.

My car is 4X4, although I don't get a chance to use it much. I would like to get pretty decent gas mileage. I am on a pretty tight budget so I won't need anything super fancy. How do you know what dimensions to get for the conditions I've described? How are the tires measured (what do the 3 measurements mean)?
 






I am about to replace the tires that came with my car when I bought it. They are All Season P235/75R15 tires. I'm not sure what size stock tires are. I do mostly city driving, but I would also like my car to be able to handle the occasional (rare) snow that I go through on snowboarding trips.

My car is 4X4, although I don't get a chance to use it much. I would like to get pretty decent gas mileage. I am on a pretty tight budget so I won't need anything super fancy. How do you know what dimensions to get for the conditions I've described? How are the tires measured (what do the 3 measurements mean)?
Hi cws4c
Sorry i don't have the answers to all of your questions but I do have a few. The bigger the tire or more aggressive the tread generally means poorer gas mileage.
As for your tire measurements "P235/75R15"
P- Passenger tire(LT would be Light Truck)
235- Represents the width of the tire in millimeters
75- Is the Aspect Ratio or the ratio of height to width
R- Stands for Radial(B for Bias or D for diagonal bias construction)
15- Would be the rim diameter
I hope this helps alittle ;o)
 






See what dealers are charging to reprogram the speedo, I had to pay $85 at my dealer and I about wanted to strangle them, especially since they lied to me about another issue. Don't even know if it was worth it, I'm just trying to sell mine now and figured the next owner would want it.
Hiya Aero
I think the dealers here would likely charge me more somehow.. all the dealership shop rates here are so high. Really from what everyone has been saying here and from what I have read in other sites it's not likely worth it. If i knew it would say ruin my transmission or something then definately I would have things reprogramed. One thing i have noticed tho is that gas mileage has dropped from 27 to 23 mpg :eek: I wasn't expecting that but I supposed there maybe other reasons for the drop.
 






your milage you read is reflected by the tire size change so you are not getting that bad of gas milage...there is a formula somewhere on here but if you add i think it is about 6% or what ever your tire diameter grew by, that will show your true mpg....it is worth getting recalibrated as to know your true rpm's, true gas milage, and true total milage...:D
 






your milage you read is reflected by the tire size change so you are not getting that bad of gas milage...there is a formula somewhere on here but if you add i think it is about 6% or what ever your tire diameter grew by, that will show your true mpg....it is worth getting recalibrated as to know your true rpm's, true gas milage, and true total milage...:D
Hi tbars4
Gee I honestly never thought of that but your right *smile* I checked the 1001.com tire site and upsizing from the original 235/70/16 tires to 255/70/16 made the speedometer/odometer read 3.8% lower. So it's definately making my gas mileage appear lower. Maybe it's best that I do get things recalibrated in the long run but it will have to wait till I find a new job... I was just perm laid off of my job *groan*
 






I did the same tire change a few weeks ago, 235 70 16's to the 255 70 16's. Your mileage may change slightly in town, and possibly could improve on the highway ( kinda doubt it though) because you will be turning lower rpm's at 70mph than before(your speedo might read 70 but your going 73) It's basically like changing the gear ratio slightly. Either way it's worth it, the 255's fill the wheel well a little better and look a little more aggressive. Some people say the size change is not noticeable but I can tell and I like it.
 






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