Tires Narrow or Wide?What's your experience?

[ben2go]

I tried a search but came up with nothing specificly dealing with pros and cons of narrow or wide tires.

First,let me give you some details about my experience.I live in the south east and I used to wheel in the Great Smoky Mountains.Lots of mud,slick rocks,and fairly deep swift water crossings.All of my 4x4's had really tall really wide tires.The narrowest tire I have ran on my 4x4s is 33x12.50.Our belief is that wider big lug tires float and paddle through the mud or water.I have actually floated a 1979 F100 about 100ft down stream on 18.5/44-15 TSL 3 stage swampers.Yep.I had balloons for tires.That was a fun truck but the former owner bought it back after he seen what I could do with it.

I currently have a 2001 4x2 Ford Ranger that I wanna do a pre runner type set up on.Nothing real fancy probably little to no lift.What I want to do is keep mpg up as much as possible,road noisy to a manageable level,and be able to get in and out of narrow mountain roads.I am out of the hard core 4x4 rock crawling,deep water crossings,and mud bogs.I have a few expeditions,I mean adventures :sombrero: planned for next year.Most of the drives will be on pavement with a mix of dirt/gravel roads with bad ruts and some steep inclines.There will be water crossings.Most will be standing water,gravel bottom,and nothing over 24 inches deep.One trip to Canada I am planning is almost 2500 miles round trip.It will be the longest trip I have taken.

My concerns are the weight of the truck,or lack of.I am used to wheeling big heavy 5000lbs+ rigs (unloaded) running really tall wide tires.I believe wide tires would give me issues on such a light truck,maybe 3800lbs loaded.I also believe it could cause floating issues on water crossings.Nothing more unsettling than loosing traction and the rear end floating away.I won't have 4x4 to use to back out.Another reason for me to keep the shorter tires.Less flotation.However I may be able to use that flotation on sandy or muddy back roads.

The tires I am looking into are the 30/9.50 and 34/9.50 with a mild lift.

Wide tire pos:stability,traction(especially aired down),better wheel protection,flotation on mud/sand roads,better impact absorption
Wide tire cons:flotation during water crossings,increased steering effort,mpg killer,power robber,high weight

Narrow tire pros:light weight,less steering effort,better mpgs,less power robbing,less flotation in water crossings
Narrow tire cons:less wheel protection,less flotation on sandy/mud roads,easier to dig in and get stuck


It's late so I am sure I've missed some pros and cons.

What is your thoughts,opinions,and experiences with wide vs. narrow tires.I am looking to overland with light to mild off roading to reach the places I wanna visit.

 

[78Bronco]

33 x 10.5's are good but you will find the larger diameter effecting MPG more than the width of the tire if you are not going to re-gear the diff(s) to compensate.

 

[matt s]

At one time this debate was the singular passion of this forum. There was quite a bit of debate but many are now drinking the tall skinny cool aid. I run 33x9.5's myself and love them.

For sand and mud without a bottom floatation is needed, but in most other cases skinny has advantages.

 

[frumpy]

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5026&highlight=wide+narrow

 

[ben2go]

33 x 10.5's are good but you will find the larger diameter effecting MPG more than the width of the tire if you are not going to re-gear the diff(s) to compensate.

I didn't wanna get into the technical stuff about the truck.I currently have 4.10 gearing with a 2.5L 4 cylinder slugging through an automatic.Looking into the 4.0 4x4 Ranger 8.8 and still up in the air about installing a Mercedes OM617 turbo diesel.

 

[ben2go]

At one time this debate was the singular passion of this forum. There was quite a bit of debate but many are now drinking the tall skinny cool aid. I run 33x9.5's myself and love them.

For sand and mud without a bottom floatation is needed, but in most other cases skinny has advantages.

I was thinking about that.I'm not sure how the roads will be in CA next spring.Is there a bottom to their mud and sand roads?

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5026&highlight=wide+narrow

Thanks.I didn't find that in my search.I guess my search terms were to vague.

 

[ben2go]

Looks like I will be sticking to the 9.50.Thanks to all for the help.

 

[Metcalf]

Other than being hard to find and hard to fit.....I love my big huge tires.

325/85r16 Michelins. They are about 38.5" tall and 13" wide. I think they are very practical for a 7000lb full size truck with one-ton running gear. They have a 5000lb load rating ( EACH! ) and allow me to run more realistic pressures in the 30-35psi range on a 7000lb truck. The only thing I would do different on the next set is install them on a 9" wide rim, that is what the Michelin tech sheet specs out, and I think I would get more even tread wear.

They also air down great, and I have run single digit pressures in the snow, with no beadlock, with no problems.

 

[RusM]

I drank the tall skinny kool-aid, and hated them! I also went from 255/85 to 35" tires and am getting the same gas mileage. SO far I am much preferring the new tire size, but I would rather have the KM/2 than the KM/1 that I am currently running.

 

[MoGas]

Medium width....

 

[esh]

One thing I don't like about 9.5s is their instability when aired down. 10.5s are day and night more stable aired down to 10-15 psi and driving around corners. Have had a variety of combinations on a Toyota FJ40, FJ62 and Hilux.

 

[ben2go]

One thing I don't like about 9.5s is their instability when aired down. 10.5s are day and night more stable aired down to 10-15 psi and driving around corners. Have had a variety of combinations on a Toyota FJ40, FJ62 and Hilux.

I understand that,but I won't be travelling anywhere I will need to air down. :smiley_drive:

While I am inquiring about tires.I do have a curiosity that needs tending.What are those tires that the guys in Iceland run on the snow and glaciers?Those are some seriously fat (not phat) tires. :Wow1: Are they agriculture equipment tires?

 

[fifthcircle]

I understand that,but I won't be travelling anywhere I will need to air down. :smiley_drive:

While I am inquiring about tires.I do have a curiosity that needs tending.What are those tires that the guys in Iceland run on the snow and glaciers?Those are some seriously fat (not phat) tires. :Wow1: Are they agriculture equipment tires?

You mean LIKE THIS!!! :Wow1:

I think most of the Iceland snow trucks run at least 15"wide tires.... So 38x15. You don't need your suspension to move much when riding on giant tires with about 5psi in them! Google "Arctic Trucks", lots of cool....er....cold stuff.

 

[ben2go]

Those look like the 18.5/44-15 super swampers I used to run.The ones I am talking about are maybe 33 to 35s, are real wide, and look like balloons.

 

[Accrete]

Pizza Cutters : )

I ran 33x9.5's on my chevy 327 equiped 1975 FJ40 and never had issues in the Sierra Nevada trails or roads (i did not air down off road).

i ran 245/75 r17s on our TACO before we sold it, and running just about the same on our van (70's). Works for us in the wet road conditions on the oregon coast.