Which size tires to buy

[1997XLTRollover]

Ok guys I'm really debating on which tires are best for me. This is going to be for my 96 5.0 AWD. It has a 1.5" TT up front and a 3" Shackle/AAL out back. It does have Torque Monster headers and it has 3.73 gears so I'm debating between a few things.

As a note I will be running the factory Ford 16" wheels.

First off the truck is mostly going to be a daily driver once my 99 sells, but I will probably take it off road every so often for fun once maybe twice a year. So ground clearance would be nice, but I also don't want to destroy the power and kill MPG's in the process.

First question is, should I even bother with a 6 ply tire or should I save the rotational weight and just run a SL tire?

Question 2 is what size should I run? I don't think I'll have trouble fitting either but part of me does want to run a 32x11.50 because I do like wider tires and when you go taller it makes them appear skinnier. It's also not available in the Toyo OC AT2 which is the tire I more or less decided on.

I'm debating between the sizes below.

265/70/16 basically a 31x10.50
265/75/16 basically a 32x10.50
32x11.50 maybe?

Thoughts?

 

[1997XLTRollover]

No opinions? I thought everybody and their brother would have an opinion about what tires to run. haha

 

[swshawaii]

Maybe it's your user name. Bet no one recommends Firestone ATX or Wilderness AT tires.

 

[1997XLTRollover]

Maybe it's your user name. Bet no one recommends Firestone ATX or Wilderness AT tires.

I've run Toyo's for years and run a ton of other brands/models and somehow always end up back at Toyo. But either way I'm not so worried about what brand tire as I am with what size I should run. I'm really torn so wanted to get some opinions. Pic's would be nice too actually if anyone happens to have the sizes I'm looking at.

 

[96EXXLTinCO]

The difference in terms of axle clearance is literally 1/2". I'd go with the cheaper one.

 

[97exploder19]

I have 265/75/16 on my 99 and love the way it looks. AAL and shackles out back with a TT up front to somewhat level it out.

 

[1997XLTRollover]

I have 265/75/16 on my 99 and love the way it looks. AAL and shackles out back with a TT up front to somewhat level it out.

Awesome! That's exactly what I'm looking for. Do you have anymore pics of it? The more the better. How are your clearances as far as turning at full lock, control arms etc?

 

[97exploder19]

Awesome! That's exactly what I'm looking for. Do you have anymore pics of it? The more the better. How are your clearances as far as turning at full lock, control arms etc?

If you search my created threads theres one from April with more pictures.

As far as clearances. I have zero problems. The rear tires are close to the running boards but I still have at least 1.5" of space between the two. They dont rub anything while at full lock either.

 

[1997XLTRollover]

If you search my created threads theres one from April with more pictures.

As far as clearances. I have zero problems. The rear tires are close to the running boards but I still have at least 1.5" of space between the two. They dont rub anything while at full lock either.

How about power? Did you notice a good amount of power loss jumping up from the stockers? Same with braking, stock brakes stop it ok or are you finding yourself really getting on them harder? Then the big question how much did it effect your fuel mileage?

 

[97exploder19]

How about power? Did you notice a good amount of power loss jumping up from the stockers? Same with braking, stock brakes stop it ok or are you finding yourself really getting on them harder? Then the big question how much did it effect your fuel mileage?

Lets see...

Really no noticeable difference in power loss. The thing was slow to begin with lol. If you want to stop quickly at anything around 40mph, you're going to have a bad time. The brakes really arent bad but they could be better. Im only using Autozone $20 pads so that could have something to do with it. My Mustang has 13" brakes so the difference between the two is huge. Maybe Im just used to that more than the Explorer.

According to the little computer in the car I seem to be averaging low 16s on the highway doing around 70mph. I also did plugs and wires shortly after having the tires installed so that may have helped me out too.

 

[1997XLTRollover]

Sounds about right. even on the 29" tires now I feel like my brakes suck. I've got 13" brakes on my stang too so anything else feels like mush compared to that haha.

I might go with the above advice and pick whichever of the 2 are cheaper and run with that. I'd love to see some 31x10.50's with the same setup you and I have suspension wise just for fun.