16.5's or 16's
 

Okay I'm making my Xmas list out. I want American Racing Baja Wheels. I thought I wanted 16x8's But while I was looking through a magazine I see that there are more tires available for 16.5's. There is not much difference in $$$$. So What ( if any ) is the disadvantge to getting the 16.5's

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98 F150 2WD,Bright Red, Regular Cab, 4.2, 3.55, Superchip, 3 Inch Bullseye Lift Spindles, Manik Grill Guard,Nerf Bars, Vent Visors, Fog lights, Kc Lights, Alpine CD Player, 2 Kenwood Amps, Tinted Windows. And Coming Soon: 3 Inch Body Lift Kit, 16x8 American Racing Baja Wheels Wrapped With 33's
And Sooner Or Later A Superchips Decal Or Two

if you go off road at all, the answer is SIDEWALL FLEX.If you stay mostly on roads and fairly 'tame' stuff, I would go for the 16.5"

Hey CCLA,
how ya been bud? Here's what I know about the differance 16" and 16.5" wheels. the 16" wheels tend to have a lip or bead lock which prevents the tire from slipping off the rim during air downs (serious offroading is the only time you'd do this) on the other hand the 16.5" wheels tend not to have this for whatever reason therefore if you plan on doing hard core off roading (like rockcrawling) go with the 16" wheels otherwise it just dont make a differance. hope this helps some bud, have fun wheel shopping and see ya in F150 chat.

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'98 F150 XLT SC 4X4 no ORP 5.4L,auto,3.55,white over silver,Mods so far; Better Built toolbox, 265/75/16 all terrain tires http://www.angelfire.com/nv/danfordman/index.html

I hope you like weld wheels if you go with the 16.5". This is about the only brand that makes this size wheel to fit our screwed up bolt pattern. Personally, Im going to change to the 16"s because I hate the designs of the 16.5"s. Good luck, a good match is hard to find. My .02.

Snowball

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1997 F150 SuperCab 4x4 Off Road, 5.4l V8, kicker and sony sound system, straight exaust

I'm kinda partial to the 16" AR Baja's myself. All of the major manufacturers make 16" tires. The only one that makes one bigger than 285/70 is Goodyear though. I have these tires on my truck and IMHO I think they look great.

Happy hunting!

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'97 F150 Lariat, Flareside, SC, ORP, 5.4, Mods: 305/70/16 GY ATS, AR Baja wheels, dual exhaust, Smittybilt nerf bars, Edelbrock IAS Shocks and fog light mod.

Snowball, Are U selling your 16.5's ?

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98 F150 2WD,Bright Red, Regular Cab, 4.2, 3.55, Superchip, 3 Inch Bullseye Lift Spindles, Manik Grill Guard,Nerf Bars, Vent Visors, Fog lights, Kc Lights, Alpine CD Player, 2 Kenwood Amps, Tinted Windows. And Coming Soon: 3 Inch Body Lift Kit, 16x8 American Racing Baja Wheels Wrapped With 33's
And Sooner Or Later A Superchips Decal Or Two

I have never had 16.5s. Im currently running the factory 17"s but Im changing to 16"s within the next week. Sorry.

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1997 F150 SuperCab 4x4 Off Road, 5.4l V8, kicker and sony sound system, straight exaust