31x10.50 on a 98 C1500?

caddelma · November 12, 2001

Anyone know if 31x10.50R15 tires will fit without rubbing on a 1998 C1500 ext cab? It came with the puny P235-75R15 and I want something meatier and someone suggested this size. But will they will they fit without a lift kit and how will they look. Any pics? I am thinking about the BFG Radial Long Trail T/A looks like a decent road tire and could handle a few trips across the fields.

DallasZ71 · November 12, 2001

They will rub slightly when you hit some of the larger bumps. Otherwise they work fine. I had a set of Michelins in that size on my 93 C1500, and got over 40k on them before someone decided they deserved the truck more than me.

caddelma · November 12, 2001

Where did they rub at? Something a very mild body or suspension lift could cure? How did they look? I at least want something wider than the stock 235's. Maybe P255-70-R15 (aren't to many options in this size), a 30x9.50-R15 (slightly wider, taller), a 31x10.50 (much wider and taller, looks good, but rubs), or P265-70-R15 (few options will they rub?). I also don't want to screw up the abs or tranny shift points. I have the 350 and a 3.73 (w/posi) so bigger tires shouldn't dog it too much.

Frank S · November 12, 2001

Dallas is dead on with his opinion on the rubbing issue.

I put a set of 31x10.50 BFG ko's on my '93 C1500 and the did rub slightly one time when I was on a rough dirt road and hit a bump with the steering wheel cut.

A small lift would definitely cure that problem if you choose to go that route.

DallasZ71 · November 13, 2001

Quote from caddelma, posted on Nov. 12 2001,4:32

Where did they rub at? Something a very mild body or suspension lift could cure? How did they look? I at least want something wider than the stock 235's. Maybe P255-70-R15 (aren't to many options in this size), a 30x9.50-R15 (slightly wider, taller), a 31x10.50 (much wider and taller, looks good, but rubs), or P265-70-R15 (few options will they rub?). I also don't want to screw up the abs or tranny shift points. I have the 350 and a 3.73 (w/posi) so bigger tires shouldn't dog it too much.

Mine rubbed the front wheel wells, wasn't too hard on the tires, atleast it wasn't a suspension part. I know some people who have put 275/60's on the stock wheels with no problems, just looked a bit too short for my tastes. You might try the 265/70's they should fit fine and not rub.

caddelma · November 14, 2001

Quote from DallasZ71, posted on Nov. 13 2001,3:32

Quote from caddelma, posted on Nov. 12 2001,4:32
Where did they rub at? Something a very mild body or suspension lift could cure? How did they look? I at least want something wider than the stock 235's. Maybe P255-70-R15 (aren't to many options in this size), a 30x9.50-R15 (slightly wider, taller), a 31x10.50 (much wider and taller, looks good, but rubs), or P265-70-R15 (few options will they rub?). I also don't want to screw up the abs or tranny shift points. I have the 350 and a 3.73 (w/posi) so bigger tires shouldn't dog it too much.

Mine rubbed the front wheel wells, wasn't too hard on the tires, atleast it wasn't a suspension part. I know some people who have put 275/60's on the stock wheels with no problems, just looked a bit too short for my tastes. You might try the 265/70's they should fit fine and not rub.

Thanks for the reply. The only downside I have found is when going to a P265-70R15 or P255-70R15, is there are not many (at least in brands I prefer) truck styled tires. Most in this size are a performance car tire. I don't plan on off-roading to the extreme, just an occasional run across the fields. I don't want to end up puncturing a car tire with a rock. I have also thought about a 30x9.50, but they are not much wider than a 235, math works out to be about 242 to 245 depending on brand. I have seen a BFG Radial Long Trail in 265-70 (but w/a black sidewall ). Sears has a Dunlop knockoff (Dunlup Rover Touring LT) that looks decent for my needs, but I have never had Dunlops before and don't know much about them.

I agree on the 275-60 being too short for my taste.

DallasZ71 · November 14, 2001

I work with a guy who has those same Dunlops on his Furd, he's gotten 50k on them so far and they look newer than my Firestones with only 11,000. I had some Dunlop sport rover GTX's on my 96 and they were great tires.

caddelma · November 14, 2001

Quote from DallasZ71, posted on Nov. 14 2001,00:23

I work with a guy who has those same Dunlops on his Furd, he's gotten 50k on them so far and they look newer than my Firestones with only 11,000. I had some Dunlop sport rover GTX's on my 96 and they were great tires.

Sorry about the Firestones. I used to have a Ranger and it had two diff. sets of stones. The original Firestones started dryrotting at 4x,000. Put on a set of Firehawks and had two diff. tires break a belt. Still had plenty of tread left, but pulled hard...certainly a safety issue when you have to keep the wheel turned at about 10 o'clock to go straight and you DON'T need an alignment.

How does your friends handle snow and rain? I think Dunlop (and Kelly-Springfield) are under Goodyears umbrella. I have mixed feelings on Goodyear. To me they shoot for an average tire and most people seem to say the tread wears fast from the soft rubber they seemed to have switched to. So far in the 265-70R15 size I have found BFG Radial Long Trail (blackwall), Michelin Cross-Terrain (blackwall), and the Dunlop Rover Touring LT that look like posibiliies. The BFG's are the cheapest of the bunch and may do better in the rough stuff. The Dunlops look like a good highway tire and are a little more expensive than the BFG's. The Michelins look nice for both off-road and highway, but the price is much higher!

Before anyone bashes Furd too much, the Ranger had 155,000 when my brother bought it. 2WD Long bed w/2.9v6. Leaked enough oil to leave a greasy spot, added 1/2 qt every once in a while. But the downside of Ford is there were 6 diff. alternators listed for this engine/year when I replaced it Now it has about 165,000 on the original engine and tranny both with a low-life history

DallasZ71 · November 14, 2001

Quote from caddelma, posted on Nov. 14 2001,08:44

Quote from DallasZ71, posted on Nov. 14 2001,00:23
I work with a guy who has those same Dunlops on his Furd, he's gotten 50k on them so far and they look newer than my Firestones with only 11,000. I had some Dunlop sport rover GTX's on my 96 and they were great tires.

Sorry about the Firestones. I used to have a Ranger and it had two diff. sets of stones. The original Firestones started dryrotting at 4x,000. Put on a set of Firehawks and had two diff. tires break a belt. Still had plenty of tread left, but pulled hard...certainly a safety issue when you have to keep the wheel turned at about 10 o'clock to go straight and you DON'T need an alignment.

How does your friends handle snow and rain? I think Dunlop (and Kelly-Springfield) are under Goodyears umbrella. I have mixed feelings on Goodyear. To me they shoot for an average tire and most people seem to say the tread wears fast from the soft rubber they seemed to have switched to. So far in the 265-70R15 size I have found BFG Radial Long Trail (blackwall), Michelin Cross-Terrain (blackwall), and the Dunlop Rover Touring LT that look like posibiliies. The BFG's are the cheapest of the bunch and may do better in the rough stuff. The Dunlops look like a good highway tire and are a little more expensive than the BFG's. The Michelins look nice for both off-road and highway, but the price is much higher!

Before anyone bashes Furd too much, the Ranger had 155,000 when my brother bought it. 2WD Long bed w/2.9v6. Leaked enough oil to leave a greasy spot, added 1/2 qt every once in a while. But the downside of Ford is there were 6 diff. alternators listed for this engine/year when I replaced it Now it has about 165,000 on the original engine and tranny both with a low-life history

We don't get much snow here in this part of Texas, so I'm not real sure how well they handle it. So far he says they've never hydroplaned on him in water.

I think any of those tires you mentioned would be respectable, I know those Michelins are dang expensive, but good. I had some LTX's on my 99' that lasted well and rode terrific. I've never been a Goodyear fan either, had plenty of their OEM tires and none lasted worth a dang.

caddelma · November 14, 2001

The last set of tires I had on the Ranger were XC LT4 (LTX M/S) from Sears. Nice tires would buy them again if I could afford them. NTB had them advertised for I think $29.99 or $39.99 each for a 225-70-r14. Normally $90+. It was obviously a typo, but I went to a couple of different Sears and one said yes, we have to honor the price! Great in any condition and rode smooth. Especially compared to the Goodyear Workhorse Radial I had before them, they were ok, and cheap, but didn't get as many miles as I would have liked.

If this 60 degree plus weather keeps up I won't have to worry about snow in Cincy

I made a post about some Daystar body mounts they supposedly give an 1 inch lift over stock body mounts. Do you think with these a 31 x 10.50 would clear. Does the tire rub the outer fender or the plastic wheel well cover?

DallasZ71 · November 15, 2001

Quote from caddelma, posted on Nov. 14 2001,12:46

I made a post about some Daystar body mounts they supposedly give an 1 inch lift over stock body mounts. Do you think with these a 31 x 10.50 would clear. Does the tire rub the outer fender or the plastic wheel well cover?

Mine rubbed the inner wheel well, I don't think an inch would do much of anything to help the tire clearance.

caddelma · November 15, 2001

Quote from DallasZ71, posted on Nov. 14 2001,11:19

Quote from caddelma, posted on Nov. 14 2001,12:46

I made a post about some Daystar body mounts they supposedly give an 1 inch lift over stock body mounts. Do you think with these a 31 x 10.50 would clear. Does the tire rub the outer fender or the plastic wheel well cover?

Mine rubbed the inner wheel well, I don't think an inch would do much of anything to help the tire clearance.

Thanks for all the info. I was also considering the Daystar coil spring spacers which are supposed to provide 1 1/4 inch of lift. Not much more than the body mounts. With either method it looks like it could be a pain. The 1 inch body is enough I assume to have to adjust things like radiator, steering, automatic shift linkage, and gas fill pipe length/locations. With the coil spacers I would have to be concerned about the brake lines and camber. I don't want the mis-alignment screwing up the wear on my new tires ??? I was wanting make the truck look a little more rugged, but cheaply. Cheap sometimes can be more expensive in the long run.

MikeyB · November 30, 2001

My neighbor has run 31x10.5 Michelin LTXs on his 97 x-cab with the stock aluminum wheels with no rubbing. I have seen Chevy's with wider aftermarket wheels rub the bright wheel well molding (usually bends the snot of them).

The 265/70/15s is a good choice between the 30x9.5 and the 10x15s. Don't forget Pirelli makes the Scorpion ST in this size, a highly rated tire on tirerack.com website.

Right now I'm running the Dunlop GTX in 255/70/15 on my 98 C1500, excellent on road tire but performs poorly in wet off road excursions. ;-)

caddelma · November 30, 2001

My neighbor has run 31x10.5 Michelin LTXs on his 97 x-cab with the stock aluminum wheels with no rubbing. I have seen Chevy's with wider aftermarket wheels rub the bright wheel well molding (usually bends the snot of them).
The 265/70/15s is a good choice between the 30x9.5 and the 10x15s. Don't forget Pirelli makes the Scorpion ST in this size, a highly rated tire on tirerack.com website.

Right now I'm running the Dunlop GTX in 255/70/15 on my 98 C1500, excellent on road tire but performs poorly in wet off road excursions. ;-)

I am trying to convience my older brother to help put the coil spacers on (he has the air compressor!). They are supposed to give about 1 to 1 1/4 inches of lift to the front. There seems to be more tire options for 30x9.50 and 31x10.50 sizes than either 265-70-R15 or 255-70-R15. I would love the LTX's, but they come at a price. If I don't get them I am looking at the BFG Radial Long Trails or the Dunlop Radial Rover A/T. Of course the bigger the tire the more it throws the computer off as well as mpg! May have to wait for tax return because of Christmas before I get new tires. I would like to get the 31x10.50 LTX's and a set of Bilteins (comfort setting) by spring.