Truck Tire Time

**PNWbrit** · 11-29-2018, 01:16 PM

Originally Posted by Dantheman

cheap steel rims to mount these on

Was going to mention this when FA mentioned getting some.

I found that using these years ago on our then Outbacks and driving through deeper snow often led to the inside of the rims getting completely packed with snow to the point that they were nearly undriveable - no steering lock, wild steering wheel shaking until they'd been cleared out with a stick or screw driver. Kind of a pain in the ass.

Haven't had the same thing happen on alloy wheels with bigger openings in the face of the rim.

Just a thought.

**Dantheman** · 11-29-2018, 01:35 PM

Hmmm, they're actually mounted on a set of steelies right now and the old man never mentioned that being a problem. I actually thought I was going to be able to use them as-is, but it turns out the bolt pattern is different by a few millimeters.

**El Chupacabra** · 11-29-2018, 01:39 PM

A lot of winter tire suggestions come with recommendations for cheap steel wheels from Tire Rack or similar. Steel rusts, and steel wheels bend easier than decent aluminum wheels (which can crack or get chunks torn out, but that takes some serious abuse).

If you wait and watch craigslist, or KSL in SLC, or Facebook marketplace, or whatever similar used junk site is near you, you can pick up used OEM aluminum wheels for cheap. I've done this several times for different vehicles, and never paid more than $150 for a set of 4.

**PNWbrit** · 11-29-2018, 01:39 PM

Originally Posted by Dantheman

Hmmm, they're actually mounted on a set of steelies right now and the old man never mentioned that being a problem. I actually thought I was going to be able to use them as-is, but it turns out the bolt pattern is different by a few millimeters.

Maybe there was a particularly tight clearance issue on that fitment/application.. sure was a pain in the ass though.

**Dantheman** · 11-29-2018, 02:10 PM

Originally Posted by El Chupacabra

If you wait and watch craigslist, or KSL in SLC, or Facebook marketplace, or whatever similar used junk site is near you, you can pick up used OEM aluminum wheels for cheap. I've done this several times for different vehicles, and never paid more than $150 for a set of 4.

Yeah, I checked KSL/CL before I posted, nothing compatible at the moment. Something will surely show up at some point, but I'm not sure how long I want to wait around.

**Norseman** · 11-29-2018, 02:11 PM

Summit Racing...?

**oldblue** · 11-29-2018, 03:47 PM

Originally Posted by Dantheman

Yeah, I checked KSL/CL before I posted, nothing compatible at the moment. Something will surely show up at some point, but I'm not sure how long I want to wait around.

I have bought 3 sets of OEM take-off alloys for 3 different vehicles on Ebay. Never had to wait more than a day or two to find what I needed. Do have to be careful though and know what you are buying as there are a lot of shady wheel dealers on there. Always ran me less than the cost of buying new steelies. YMMV.

**John_B** · 11-29-2018, 09:36 PM

Originally Posted by PNWbrit

Maybe there was a particularly tight clearance issue on that fitment/application.. sure was a pain in the ass though.

I have the same issue with a set of American Racing wheels I've got. It usually happens a couple times a winter when we've got warmer days but freezing nights. It scared the shit out of me the first time it happened and now that I know wtf is going on it's just an annoyance.

**Cruiser** · 11-29-2018, 10:32 PM

Originally Posted by Dantheman

Hmmm, they're actually mounted on a set of steelies right now and the old man never mentioned that being a problem. I actually thought I was going to be able to use them as-is, but it turns out the bolt pattern is different by a few millimeters.

Can you find a set of wheel spacers that allow you to change the bolt pattern without pushing the wheels out too far?

**Dantheman** · 11-30-2018, 11:59 AM

Originally Posted by Cruiser

Can you find a set of wheel spacers that allow you to change the bolt pattern without pushing the wheels out too far?

So, something like this?
https://www.amazon.com/ECCPP-Spacers..._encoding=UTF8

or this?
https://www.ebay.com/itm/2pc-1-Wheel...!-1:rk:10:pf:0

Thanks for clueing me into these, this might be the ticket. My current tires are 265 and the Wintercats are 235, so I have some width to work with but the 1" version is probably preferable. Or, stick with 1.5" to (hopefully) ensure that the factory studs don't extend past the outboard face of the spacer?

What about the stud size? My truck has 14x2 studs, while the vehicle the wheels came off of has 12x1.5. Will the current rims work on 14x2 studs? Would it be unsafe to use an adapter with 12x1.5 studs?

**Norseman** · 11-30-2018, 12:34 PM

Be aware of the mechanical situation with spacers and adapters. Only get the highest quality parts, and only if you cannot find an appropriate rim that would negate their use. Their geometry must be very precise for use with hub-centric rigs... a little less important for lug-centric.

Legit sets like Spidertrax run like $100 per pair.

Rims conceal the lug nuts for the spacers, so you can't check their torque without removing the rim. Even with a good loctite, they could loosen. Torque settings matter at this joint.

That said, lots of folks run them without issue and in heavy use. Never had a problem with mine. They are annoying when wrenching.

**El Chupacabra** · 11-30-2018, 12:38 PM

^^^ And expect all tire shops to refuse to work on your vehicle with spacers installed.

Personally I would not use wheel spacers, ever. Even the best quality ones (Spidertrax, as mentioned) say they are for offroad use only. Just CYA lawyering, or?

http://www.spidertrax.com/s.nl/ctype...282/KB.4303/.f

**Bobcat Sig** · 11-30-2018, 01:02 PM

Originally Posted by east or bust

my original set of BFG A/Ts lasted around 50K miles on the blazer, put them on when I bought it at 108K and changed out to new KO2s a couple thousand miles before 160K. the new KO2s have of 30K miles currently, it appears they may be wearing slightly faster but that is to be expected with the new compound. the KO2s are a noticeable improvement over the original A/T in terms of off road crawling performance in wet conditions. I don't buy the principle that their performance is adversely affected by cold weather, I have many data points and none of them suggest that.

I'm glad someone mentioned it; the KO2s are vastly improved and nearly superior in all ways over the original KOs. So much so that the original KOs were garbage in the snow - hated them. However, enough people have run the KO2s and in the snow, that I was finally convinced to try them. They a revelation in comparison, even here in the crappy, slippery junk of the PNWet.

I'm a fan.

Originally Posted by 2FUNKY

^ They’re not. Tested them yet again yesterday in some nasty packed wet snow and icy roads and they performed flawlessly like the last 2 winters prior. Rallied up a two track in 12” of wet snow like it was nothing in 2 wheel drive. Dropped it into 4wheel just to pull off onto the side where it was muddy underneath to park to start my hunt. Didn’t have a single issue.
Same tire will go on next fall when these will be worn out.

Agreed. I shod my diesel burning pepper wagon with them last year as my winter and snow tire. They were glorious in nearly all conditions.

Originally Posted by bodywhomper

1999 land cruiser. 16" is OEM. last year, using the automated tool in tire rack, they'd give me 16" OEM wheel option and then 17 and 18" alternatives. now they give 18" OEM (i don't think that was ever OEM) and 17, 20, and 22" alternatives. i agree with norseman.

toyota also switched to 17" OEM for some vehicles w/o other changes that would functionally necessitate the larger wheel.

Later in the model cycle, Toyota began fitting 18" wheels to the Land Cruiser. I don't think the brakes changed so you should be able to run 16" wheels on the later 4.7 Land Cruisers.

**Dantheman** · 11-30-2018, 01:06 PM

Originally Posted by Norseman

Be aware of the mechanical situation with spacers and adapters. Only get the highest quality parts, and only if you cannot find an appropriate rim that would negate their use. Their geometry must be very precise for use with hub-centric rigs... a little less important for lug-centric.

Legit sets like Spidertrax run like $100 per pair.

Rims conceal the lug nuts for the spacers, so you can't check their torque without removing the rim. Even with a good loctite, they could loosen. Torque settings matter at this joint.

That said, lots of folks run them without issue and in heavy use. Never had a problem with mine. They are annoying when wrenching.

Originally Posted by El Chupacabra

^^^ And expect all tire shops to refuse to work on your vehicle with spacers installed.

Personally I would not use wheel spacers, ever. Even the best quality ones (Spidertrax, as mentioned) say they are for offroad use only. Just CYA lawyering, or?

http://www.spidertrax.com/s.nl/ctype...282/KB.4303/.f

Thanks guys. Further research indicates the factory studs definitely will need to be replaced or shortened, which I think kills this idea for me unless someone has a compelling argument for why it shouldn't.

**SeatownSlackey** · 12-01-2018, 01:26 AM

They aren’t the cheapest but i can vouch for the DM -V2. Had them in the 275/60/20 on 20” Dick Cepek alloys I got from tire rack on close out for $110ea and use as my dedicated winter rim. I’m running 1.25” spacers and had just a slight rub with essentially a 33”x 10.8” tire.

Only issue is I didn’t track rotation between seasons and now have 1.25 seasons left on 2 and the others are trash. This is after 3 seasons of ~12k miles and I think I put same two on rear drive wheels back to back seasons.

Impeccable grip coming back down the pass on those admittedly rare super icy days.

**SeatownSlackey** · 12-01-2018, 01:28 AM

Meant to add the rub was before a mild bilstein lift.

**anotherVTskibum** · 12-01-2018, 05:25 AM

Originally Posted by flowing alpy

upon further review it appears the Hakkapeliitta r3 doesn’t come in a 20” to fit a f150 supercrew while the Blizzaks do fit that size.
Discount Tech recommendation was to buy 18” wheels if i wanted Hakkapeliitta and Blizzaks if i was to keep OEM wheels.

anybody run an 18” wheel on a supercrew? got em on my f150 beater but it’s such a different vehicle.

I've got a 2017 SuperCrew with two sets of OEM 18s, one for winter and one for the other three seasons. 20s seem silly to me for anything other than pavement because of the reduced sidewall height (unless you're talking about big lifts and 35"+ tires). I got both sets of rims from eBay for reasonable prices, and most importantly, neither are chrome.

**Dantheman** · 12-06-2018, 02:20 PM

Despite having those Wintercats up for sale, my mind won't let it go. I'm considering trying my luck at the local Pick-N-Pull for a set of 16" 5x135 rims. Seems like there's good odds of finding some since they were OEM on a lot of popular Ford/Lincoln vehicles. If anyone thinks I'd be wasting my time let me know.

ETA: It looks like Ford generally used 12x1.75 studs from 1997-2000 and switched to 14x2 from 2001-2003 (http://www.wheelsupport.com/bolt-pat...ttern-5-x-135/). Mine's a 2002, I assume wheels from the 97-00 vehicles won't work? Or will they? Two god damn millimeters, and people complain about ever-changing and proprietary standards in the bike industry. To make things even worse, it appears that the switch to 14 mm occurred mid-year 2000, so it's a crapshoot what any vehicle from that MY has. JFC....

**TAFKALVS** · 12-06-2018, 03:12 PM

Any 3rd gen Tacoma owners in here? What size tire are you running with no lift? Was looking at a 265/65 r16, 255/75 r17 or 275/70 r17. Don't want to get in to the 33" territory since this will be a DD/Commuter and I have other rigs to wheel. But you know, gotta have a little bigger than stock tire because, Tacoma Bro.

**Falcon3** · 12-06-2018, 08:18 PM

Not a TACO owner, a 4runner owner, but definitely look at the 255/75. We share the same wheel/tire sizes on our rigs, and this is what I"ll be doing next. You get some extra tire size with this, but it's narrower than stock, which helps road manners a ton, I'm told. Less wandering on grooved highways, better mileage due to lower weight/resistance, less hydroplaning, better snow manners (same weight, smaller surface area), and should do as good or better than larger tires off road with the exception possibly being in sand.

**Jethro** · 12-06-2018, 11:40 PM

3rd gen 4Runner owner here. I’m running 16” Tacoma rims for my winter setup. I use 265/75/r16 tires. About 32”, up about an inch from the 265/70/r16 which came stock

If I was to get snow tires again, I’d get 235/85/r16 tires. Pretty much the same diameter, but skinnier