I am curious. I am about to put on p285's on my wife's 2004 fx4 crew cab. I hear a few of ya'll talking about a "vibration" problem. I have'nt had that yet but I was wondering if any of you that went up in tire size expierence it then or did it matter. I dont want to spend the money and then have the problem is what i am asking.Thanks

 

A lot of guys on here have mentioned that their rides got better - not worse - as soon as they ditched those choddy OEM tires.

Keep in mind that the list of possible vibe culprits is very very long; even if you had the vibe it may not even be the tires.

 

Iwas one of them. No vibe before, no vibe after. Went from a 255-70/R17 to a 285-60/R20. The ride got better and even handles a little better.

 

Skimo

I’ve got the steering nibble between 65-75 MPH after upgrading to Eagle Alloys and BFG 285/70R/17s AT KOs. Since the dealer can fix the nibble using the factory wheels/tires with the latest TSB, he says the truck is fine.

I’ve had the BFGs balanced twice and Road Forced. My tire dealer replaced two of my BFGs out of his own pocket since BFG wouldn’t recognize the Hunter Road Force measurement. The steering nibble persists. BTW, all 4 of my tires now are within the TSB R1H 25lbs but, my Master Service Tech says that since he can make the nibble go away using the stock stuff IAW the TSB, it MUST be my after-market wheels/tires.

As part of my deal with Ford I’ve written Emails/letters to all the major tire manufactures to see what Road Force value or even radial run-out measurement they consider being excessive and constituting a “bad” tire. None that have responded recognize the Hunter Road Force reading as being one of their criterions. When I asked my dealer how they were replacing tires under warranty, he told me that Ford was eating the cost.

Sooooo, to make a long story short. I’m sitting on $800 tires that Ford says are defective using a criteria that my tire manufacturer doesn’t recognize.

Chuck

 

HAHAHAHAHA...I guess its kind of a roll of the dice!........Thanks tho......

 

Me too Chuck!

 

hovbuild


Is your dealer helping you out at all? I think I may have found a solution. My wife has authorized me to trade in the POS and take a loss.

I’m going to see what my MST has to say on Monday about the Nibble coming back with Road Forced tires within spec. Then I’m going to see the Owner about cutting me a deal on ordering a 05. I’d like to keep my wheels/tires, floor mats, seat covers, and Gemsport canopy. I normally keep a vehicle 7-10 years, but this F150 is going the way my new 99 Land Rover Discovery went, I unloaded that one in 3 years when the problems started. I will not keep a vehicle I’m not happy with, it’s just not worth the aggravation.

Hopefully, he’ll work with me.

Chuck

 

Anyway, the BFG 285/70R/17s AT KOs fit perfectly on the stock F150. I have them on my truck and they're smooth as silk at all speeds...



Here's a pic:

http://home.columbus.rr.com/coolpix/DSC00081.JPG

 

They tried but with 18-20# on the RF I am screwed......A 2005 won't help ypu either....We tested one with 15# tires and then mounted mine.....Same thing! 325/60/18 with 18-20 is 10# under industry standards................

 

hovbuild, that's part of what I'm trying to find out, what exactly ARE the tire industry standards? I can't seem to get a straight answer. What I’m trying to prove/document is that in some cases Ford built a truck that is non-compatible with the tire industry “standard”. That and the fact that the only Hunter Road Force machine in my area is at my dealers, and none of my local tire dealers adhere to Fords mounting TSB, places me in a crappy position. The way that you and I are stuck, I think this is a logical route. So far, I've heard back from:

BFG
Cooper
Firestone/Bridgestone

None of the above adhere to any "standard" as far as run-out/Road Force is concerned. Cooper was the most helpful really, they said they’d replace any tire that didn’t drive “right”. That is of course with prorated wear and added installation costs. Soooo in theory, I could spend the rest of the time I own this truck buying 6 or so tires to get 4 that work on it.

What do you think?

Chuck

 

Industry standard or where tire manufactures draw the line is 30#. The problem is with our wheels with no run out.... but what ford is doing is wrong period!

 

Hovbuild,


I agree completely that Ford is wrong, but how can replacement parts that meet the industry standards be the problem?

Check out: http://www.enjoythedrive.com/content/?ID=8124

This is the angle I’m attempting to use. I think that IF I can document that my after-market set-up is within specs, then the truck has “issues”. I don’t care if Ford can mask the symptoms by indexing wheel/tire run-out to hub run-out, that’s not a standard procedure for tire dealers.

Chuck

 

Well, I went ahead and put the 285's on and there great! My wife even commented on them. It does ride sweet!.....Thanks for the advice and such....

 

How about some pics?

 

How is this done?