Ground Clearance
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From: San Antonio Texas
Ground Clearance
I'm looking for the absolute best ground clearance i can get at the differential with wheels and tires before i have to do any lifting.
the truck is a 2000 F150, 2WD, factory HD shocks, springs, CLIII Towing package, Shortbed reg cab with a 3.55 open axle.
this package came with the 255/75R16's on it now. if i calculated it right, these are just over 30" tall. I'm told the best i can do with anywhere from 16" to 23" wheels is to stick with the 16" wheels and get 285/75R16 tires, which i figure come to almost 33" tall.
is this right? i'm surprised that even with 23" wheels, i can't get tires for it that would be taller than the 16" wheel/tire combo?
what am i missing?
thanks in advance for your time
joe
san antonio
the truck is a 2000 F150, 2WD, factory HD shocks, springs, CLIII Towing package, Shortbed reg cab with a 3.55 open axle.
this package came with the 255/75R16's on it now. if i calculated it right, these are just over 30" tall. I'm told the best i can do with anywhere from 16" to 23" wheels is to stick with the 16" wheels and get 285/75R16 tires, which i figure come to almost 33" tall.
is this right? i'm surprised that even with 23" wheels, i can't get tires for it that would be taller than the 16" wheel/tire combo?
what am i missing?
thanks in advance for your time
joe
san antonio
Last edited by Joethefordguy; Dec 24, 2009 at 02:21 AM.
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From: cairo,ga
You are right. Wheel size does not make a difference. Look at it this way. You can fit a 285/75-16 tire which is essentially a 33x11.50 tire. So, you can fit a 33 inch tall tire that is 11.50 inches wide. It really does not matter if the hole in the center of the tire is 16, 22 or 28 inches.
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From: San Antonio Texas
so why the big wheels? i get it on a race car - low profile rubber helps in turns, etc., but on a truck? i would think you'd want as much rubber as possible on a "truck"... a real truck, not a boulevard cruiser... not knocking it, if that's what people want... hmmm, maybe i just answered my own question...
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From: Jackson, Georgia
im not quite getting what youre asking but most of the people that put any wheels over 22's on a truck are either lowered for a more street truck or are lifted but only drive them on the street.
just depends on what style you like
just depends on what style you like
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From: Kennesaw, Georgia
here's a link to my thread about my truck with the 285/75r16's:
https://www.f150online.com/forums/wh...-33s-pics.html
you basically have the same truck as me except yours is a 2000 and mine is a '98 and you have the heavy duty springs and i do not. if you want any pics or measurements, just PM me.
https://www.f150online.com/forums/wh...-33s-pics.html
you basically have the same truck as me except yours is a 2000 and mine is a '98 and you have the heavy duty springs and i do not. if you want any pics or measurements, just PM me.
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From: San Antonio Texas
Sharpshooter109
thanks for the link, that was exactly what i was looking for! i understand i'd be trading a 1.5" increase in ground clearance for a loss of power and braking... I didn't see any mention of a change in mpg - did you notice any?
also, i'm wondering what your gear set was before the change - i see your are going to go lower, but what was it when you first added these tires?
i'm hoping my HD springs provide enough lift to avoid having to use a spacer like you did, and i'm hoping my 3.55 gears will lessen power and braking losses... here's hoping!
thanks for the link, that was exactly what i was looking for! i understand i'd be trading a 1.5" increase in ground clearance for a loss of power and braking... I didn't see any mention of a change in mpg - did you notice any?
also, i'm wondering what your gear set was before the change - i see your are going to go lower, but what was it when you first added these tires?
i'm hoping my HD springs provide enough lift to avoid having to use a spacer like you did, and i'm hoping my 3.55 gears will lessen power and braking losses... here's hoping!
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From: Kennesaw, Georgia
Sharpshooter109
thanks for the link, that was exactly what i was looking for! i understand i'd be trading a 1.5" increase in ground clearance for a loss of power and braking... I didn't see any mention of a change in mpg - did you notice any?
also, i'm wondering what your gear set was before the change - i see your are going to go lower, but what was it when you first added these tires?
i'm hoping my HD springs provide enough lift to avoid having to use a spacer like you did, and i'm hoping my 3.55 gears will lessen power and braking losses... here's hoping!
thanks for the link, that was exactly what i was looking for! i understand i'd be trading a 1.5" increase in ground clearance for a loss of power and braking... I didn't see any mention of a change in mpg - did you notice any?
also, i'm wondering what your gear set was before the change - i see your are going to go lower, but what was it when you first added these tires?
i'm hoping my HD springs provide enough lift to avoid having to use a spacer like you did, and i'm hoping my 3.55 gears will lessen power and braking losses... here's hoping!
You'll have to talk to wandell about if the HD springs will give you enough clearance. The only complaint there migh be is that with the fuller wheel wells, there's less suspension travel. My truck doesn't see much dirt but the way you asked about ground clearance I thought that might matter to you.
Hope this helped.
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From: San Antonio Texas
sharpshooter109
yes, dirt driving is exactly why i'm interested. i didn't realize you installed the lift before the wheels, and i'm sorry to hear you already have a 3.55... i was hoping you were going to tell me you had a 3.08, so i could assume i get away with this... the only remaining diff i can see is that it appears you have an AT and I have a manual... probably not going to be significant... i can handle the lift, especially one like yours, but it looks like i'd be smart to wait until i can afford a lower gearset and the tires at the same time.
i have to say i'm surprised... that 3" inches makes a big difference, don't it?
yes, dirt driving is exactly why i'm interested. i didn't realize you installed the lift before the wheels, and i'm sorry to hear you already have a 3.55... i was hoping you were going to tell me you had a 3.08, so i could assume i get away with this... the only remaining diff i can see is that it appears you have an AT and I have a manual... probably not going to be significant... i can handle the lift, especially one like yours, but it looks like i'd be smart to wait until i can afford a lower gearset and the tires at the same time.
i have to say i'm surprised... that 3" inches makes a big difference, don't it?
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From: Tampa, FL
Sharpshooter109
thanks for the link, that was exactly what i was looking for! i understand i'd be trading a 1.5" increase in ground clearance for a loss of power and braking... I didn't see any mention of a change in mpg - did you notice any?
also, i'm wondering what your gear set was before the change - i see your are going to go lower, but what was it when you first added these tires?
i'm hoping my HD springs provide enough lift to avoid having to use a spacer like you did, and i'm hoping my 3.55 gears will lessen power and braking losses... here's hoping!
thanks for the link, that was exactly what i was looking for! i understand i'd be trading a 1.5" increase in ground clearance for a loss of power and braking... I didn't see any mention of a change in mpg - did you notice any?
also, i'm wondering what your gear set was before the change - i see your are going to go lower, but what was it when you first added these tires?
i'm hoping my HD springs provide enough lift to avoid having to use a spacer like you did, and i'm hoping my 3.55 gears will lessen power and braking losses... here's hoping!
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From: Mountain City, North Carolina
You CAN NOT clear 33's even with HD springs. I have towing package and all of those goodies on a 3/1 ProComp lift and can clear 33.7. 265/70/16 Is the largest on a stock height truck with no rubbing what-so-ever. Just get some cheap coil spacers and do it your self.
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From: Kennesaw, Georgia
yeah. i have a 1.5" front coil spring spacer (1.5" leveling kit), not a 3" body lift if thats what you were thinking. i in fact do have a auto tranny. what having a manual tranny will allow you to do is to shift later than you normally would. this means that instead of crusing along at 40 mph in 4th gear at 1250 rpms, you can keep it in 3rd and stay at 1600 rpms. those numbers are just made up. i have no idea what it would be like for a 5 speed manual tranny, i have no experience with one. but you get the point. i think that you should be fine as long as you have a v8, which i assume you do because you have all the towing stuff. ill warn you, you may not get good gas mileage with the bigger tires but maybe you will. i would strongly encourage you to get the tires now since you really want them. i think you'll be happy, especially since you have the standard shift. you'll like it. im just trying to prepare you for what might come with the new tires. just sharing my experiences.
best of luck to you and merry christmas!
anything else, just ask.
best of luck to you and merry christmas!
anything else, just ask.
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From: Kennesaw, Georgia
here's something i wrote up about how a tuner helps you cope with a truck thats undergeared and how re-gearing helps improve your power to the wheels. this should help explain about shifting later thing, although you might have already figured that out. funny how some annoying little chore like shifting can teach you something about how cars work. anyways, if you already understand what i was saying, you can just skip this post.
what a programer will do is it will delay the upshifting. what i mean is if before, your truck shifted from 3rd to 4th gear(overdrive) at 40 mph (the standard for my truck, not sure what that would be in km/h), you can set the tuner to shift into 4th at say, 48 mph. when you keep the stock shifting with larger tires, the engine will be at lower rpm's. if you delay the shift, that means that the engine will be kept at higher rpm's. if the shift occurs at 40 mph with stock tires, the engine might be pulling 1600 rpm's. with the new tires it might be pulling 1300 rpm's at 40 mph. these gas engines dont produce much power at low rpm's and the higher the rpm's, the more power produced. thats what you're doing when you change out the gears is allowing the engine to reach higher rpm's at slower speeds. for instance, lets say you have a truck with stock tires and a 3.55 to 1 axle ratio. if you were to switch to a 3.73 to 1 ratio, you would feel like the truck has more power, because the engine can now reach higher rpm's. when you get bigger tires, what happens is the engine rpm's go lower because the tires rotate slower at the same speed compared to stock. re-gearing helps bring the rpm's back up.
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From: San Antonio Texas
no, i have a v6... i do think the flexibility of the manual will help, and i think re-tuning also will. sounds like a minimal lift, like the coil spacers, will take care of any clearance issues.... or maybe a bfh to the wheel wells... from the pix, the clearance problem looks like it's behind the front wheels...
i'm very tempted to do it right now, but i have at least a year of tread depth left on the 255's and i hate to throw money away... maybe i could just sell them....
i'm very tempted to do it right now, but i have at least a year of tread depth left on the 255's and i hate to throw money away... maybe i could just sell them....
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From: Kennesaw, Georgia
Yeah, I understand about not throwing away your money. I waited 2 years to get my tires.
And there is some slight rubbing at full steering lock on the front wheels. But it's only on the rubber rain guard thing inside the wheel well. I'm just too lazy to trim it.
And there is some slight rubbing at full steering lock on the front wheels. But it's only on the rubber rain guard thing inside the wheel well. I'm just too lazy to trim it.