I have an '05 F-150 XLT, 4x4, and want to add a 4" lift kit. Can I used 17" wheels with 255/70 AT tires after the lift kit is added, or will I need a new wheel and/or tire set with a different size?

 

You can but it will look ridiculous. Kinda how the dodge 2500's look. Tiny tire's and tons of wheel well room. You would be best off getting some 33's or 35's on the stock rims.

 

You can keep the wheels if you dont have any aftermarket wider set but 255/70/17s which are barely 31"s and 9" wide is gonna look horrible. x2 for 33s. Bump the tires to a 315/70/17

 

Maybe he is going to run the stocks in the winter or he just don't have the funds right now. Anyway the Rancho 4" lift is the only one that says you can run your stock wheels and not have a problem. Other lifts you can get away with running your stockers, but they don't specifically say so in the manual.

 

Thanks a bunch for the info. Would 255/70/17s work okay with just a 2.5" leveling kit?

 

255/70/17 will look small, 33's would look better.

If you go with a 4" lift get 35's.

 

255/70R17 will work fine with a leveling kit.

 

255/70/r17 will work

but going a little bigger would be better i just add a 2-1/2" leving kit and i drove like that for a week with my 255/70/r17 and i could not wait for my 295/70/r17 to come in.

 

i ran stock 20's and a rancho lift for a while...looked horrible, but it will work

 

well how would a 2.5 leveling kit with 265/70/17 look?

 

What size tires where you running?

I have 325/60/20's with a level kit right now on factory 20's and plan to do a 4 inch Rancho lift next year.

Have any pictures?

 

All these tires you're asking about will fit fine on a completely stock F150. If you're going to level I would at least go 285/70/17 (2wd; will fit on stock 4wd) or 305s if you're 4wd.

With a 4" lift I would want a 35" tire personally.

 

I run 285/70/17's with no levelling kit and there's no issues, but I have a 1 1/2 inch lift waiting for install. If you're going to lift, I would go to a 35 for sure, if you're going to level, get what I have. A 255 is too small for these trucks as it is

 

255/70/17 & 2" level

 

OK, that's a clean truck. But I have to say the tires are just a little too small for the wheel wells. That said though, there is a case to be made for keeping the smaller tire. If you pull a trailer, a larger tire will screw with your overall gear ratio. You will have to spend big bucks to get new gears to fix that issue. Run the numbers through any tire and gear calculaton on the web and you can see what it it doing for you (or against you). Going from a 255 to a 35 inch is a very large jump and you will need to compensate some how. There's a lot of folks on here with big tires, but they are well aware of the factors like braking, acceleration, and towing capacity.