Wheel and tire size decision

[Wingnut33]

Hey all,

Well, it's time to get wheels and tires. I thought I had this all figured out until I went to get the tire I wanted in the size I wanted. My goal was to put 32 X 11.50 X 15 Mickey Thompson Baja Radial MTZ tires on 15 X 8 Mickey Thompson Classic Lock Wheels

But of course it's never that easy!

The tires don't come in that size and the closest size appears to be on a 16 inch rim. Based on my forum searches and photo views, it appears that most folks are running 15's. How will the 16's affect the vehicle? Will they fit? Will they rub? Is anyone running them?

It appears that the closest I can come with that brand is to go with either:

32 X 10.50 X 16 on 16 X 8 rims - or -
31 X 10.50 X 15 on 15 X 8 rims

How do those compare to the 32 X 11.50 X 15 on 15 X 8 rims?

Should I just consider another tire and be done with it?

Thanks in advance!

[Carl Wiese]

From your sig I am assuming your Scout is stock and has no lift. You can run a 32" tire, but depending on how much the springs sag it could rub. The 15" rim vs. the 16" doesn't really have an effect, as with the same size tire the only difference will be the amount of side wall the tires has. If I were you I would run the 15" rims with a 31" tire.

[Wingnut33]

Thanks for the quick reply. I should have been more specific as I left out an important peice...

These will be going on the Scout the same day that a 4 inch suspension lift is put on.

[Carl Wiese]

Originally Posted by Wingnut33

Thanks for the quick reply. I should have been more specific as I left out an important peice...

These will be going on the Scout the same day that a 4 inch suspension lift is put on.

Well then, the 32's will probably work just fine for you! As for the tires size the 32x11.50 isn't that common of a size. MT makes nice tires, so I would say the 32x10.50 would be just fine to run. Unless you are really sold on that size, I say go with the 32's and get the tire you want. If'n it were me, I'd put Pro Comp MT's on, but thats me!!!

[Wingnut33]

So the difference between a 15 and 16 inch rim is negligable then?

As for Pro Comp MT's - I had a set and hated them. They look great, but they didn't wear very well, didn't last long and were loud as all get out. I had them on a crew cab F150. It looked awesome and I got a ton of compliments, but as the tires wore they were bone jarring at low speeds. They cupped pretty bad. Having said that, this happened about 3 years ago, so maybe the tires have changed since then.

[Sammy]

With a 4" lift you should be able to fit 33's. As far as wheel diameters 15" or 16" won't make much difference in ride or price. 16's are becoming more and more popular with more and more sizes including metric. I've got both sizes sitting in the shed, guess which ones I'm gonna use?

[Tim Potter]

http://www.bfgoodrichtires.com/asset...rain_ta_kd.pdf

I'm running BFG 32 11.50R 15 AT's with a 4" lift and they still scrub. If I go in a drive way too fast at an angle the rear tires scrub the wheel wells. Got brand new tires and because of the scrubbing about a quarter in is cut off the tread on the outside edges. That's why I'm puttin' a 2" body lift under it.

[wayne70]

Just my 2 cents, but the Mickey's are awfully pricey right now (since they are a new product). Maxxis makes two awesome mud tires (Buckshot and Bighorn), they come in the 32x11.50x15 size you are looking for, and are at about half of the cost of the Mickey T's (about $140 per tire around here). I have run the Buckshots on a Heep and a Dodge Ram 1500 and absolutely loved them. I was going to put a set of the Bighorns on my Scout (same as the Buckshot but with more siping) but that is another story.

[Carl Wiese]

Originally Posted by Wingnut33

So the difference between a 15 and 16 inch rim is negligable then?

As for Pro Comp MT's - I had a set and hated them. They look great, but they didn't wear very well, didn't last long and were loud as all get out. I had them on a crew cab F150. It looked awesome and I got a ton of compliments, but as the tires wore they were bone jarring at low speeds. They cupped pretty bad. Having said that, this happened about 3 years ago, so maybe the tires have changed since then.

Mine on my Traveler are wearing like iron. Maybe they changed compounds, however to each their own, it's your green you're laying down.

As long as we are dealing with US sized tires, meaning they have the height of the tire and the width of tread. Metric designation take into account the rim size, like 235/75 R15 are different then 235/75 R 16, because the second number is the precent of tread that makes up the side wall. Since you are using the same percentage of tread to make up the side way the tire mounted on the 16 inch rim will be 1" taller. Make sense?

With the US sized tires the sidewall is going to get smaller with a 16" rim, but not enough to make a difference. If we were talking a 40" tire on a 20 or 22 versus a 15, then we'd have to get into sidewall stregth, rollover of the tire at low pressures and handling. Seeing as it's only a 1" difference you'll probably never notice.

[Adam Ogle]

Cooper makes the Discoverer STT in 32 x 11.50 They are about 150 each and I've got 36,000+ miles on a set and thats on a 3/4 ton truck. They have an aggressive tread pattern that extends around on the sidewall to help when they're aired down.