skinny front tires

[jgh64pkup]

does anyone have any experience with 5 inch wide tires on the street
i need some advice thanks

[70stroker]

i have some 5.5 tires on 6 inch rims on my truck. i drive it damn near everyday on the street. The only real pain is i have a small steering wheel and no powersteering and the moment, when i had ps it wasnt no problem at all. If your question is about road handling it does fine.

[jgh64pkup]

im actually wanting to take my power steering off and put a manual box on it
i have a 13.5 in steering wheel
wouldnt the skinnier tires make it easier to steer
i was wanting to go with some 4 in wide rims and 4.8 in m/t sportsman 8 ply tires link
everybody told me that with skinny tires when cornering fast the tire would pop off the rim

[mongoose]

cornering fast and skinny tires shouldn't be in the same sentence..

I wouldn't run those tires... remember you're trying to steer and stop a 4000+ lb truck, by cutting your tread width down... it's not gonna help it at all.

[joeys66pickup]

whoa if your truck ways 4000+lbs then theres your first problem! i weigh in at 35xxlbs(give or take full tank and what seats i have in at the time) i think if your worried about it then Slow Down its a truck anyway not a corvette does Wayy better in a straight line

[Super73]

I run a 195 in the frot on a 6" wheel. Truck weighed 3,840 with me in it before..

[jgh64pkup]

im thinking after the cowl hood (fiberglass havn't bought it yet) is put on and maybe some glass fenders i should be about 3600
ive never weighed it before so i dont know how much it weighs

[joeys66pickup]

geez all my rust and with nothing actually as a bed besides the skins i got alot lighter then i thought! i wonder how legal i am though with literally everythign missing an those little roundy round corner scales though seem kinda funny and im going back to the dump to see for sure with it in "Drag Mode"

[jgh64pkup]

so a 6'' wheel will work better i didnt mean cornering real fast
i just meant overall cornering
i dont see if you have rear brakes it would put that much of a load on the front tires

[383Ram]

Its just not the conering ability, its also stopping too---and driving defensivly because of other idiots. Your tyring to stop 3500-4000lbs on a little 4" treaded tire---dont forget the majority of the braking is done by the front brakes. If you into the drag truck look, better keep a safe two to three car distance between you an the next guy and drive super cautiously. Driving on little rims and tires is not the hot ticket for anything other than a toy driven on secondary roads at lower speeds in my opinion---and yes i have been there and done that. I also wouldnt stick anything skinnier than a 5-6" rim on a truck.

I ran 3.5" welds with 165r15 tires on my 73 dart i had. The car also weighed a little less, about 3200 lbs. Still, i had to watch what i was doing around corners and stopping and be carful of potholes and such--mostley for bending a wheel. My friend wanted to buy them from me for his '71 charger with a big block and a blower (read: HEAVY). I told him i would not put anything less than a 5" rim on it with a little bigger tire to carry the load. He did and has been very happy. I did sell the wheels to my friend that runs a '69 GTX but it is a strip only car, although it is about 3600lbs. I can tell you in a car that big (same chassis design/platform as the charger), that the car is a little scarey on the top end and trying to stop for the first turn off over his previously bigger tire and wheel combo he had--and yes, i drove that car so i know first hand too.

So what i am saying in short is, if you do it, just be aware of the dangers of doing it and your surrondings around you while you drive. Be safe.

[jgh64pkup]

i found some bf goodrich 155/80r15s
they are 6.1 in tread width
is 1069lb load capacity for each tire enough to hold up the front of the truck
link

[Alex1]

Like others have said, just be aware of the tire size and don't tailgate too much!

[jgh64pkup]

what do you mean dont tailgate too much

[joeys66pickup]

hahahah that could be a truck joke but im guessing he means Riding Peoples Ass

[Alex1]

Originally Posted by jgh64pkup

what do you mean dont tailgate too much

You never heard that one before? I guess it must be a Canadian expression!? yeah don't follow too close to another car.

[jgh64pkup]

oh
my dad has always told me to stay far enough back so if a car is fixing to rearend you you can hopefully move far enough forward not to get hit
or if someone does a brake check on you

[383Ram]

Originally Posted by jgh64pkup

i found some bf goodrich 155/80r15s
they are 6.1 in tread width
is 1069lb load capacity for each tire enough to hold up the front of the truck
link

Thats a 6.1" SECTION width---NOT tread width. Section width is the measuement from the sidewall to sidewall (that slight bulge you see on the side of the tire). The tread width will always be smaller. Although i couldnt find the exact spec for the tread width, my experience says its probably around 4.5-5" tread width, as they measured it on a 4.5" wide wheel. As far as the weight loading....will it work--yea, probably with no issues, but you are pushing it i think. Consider something like a 205/75/15 tire or something of the sorts in that range on a 5" wide wheel.

[Super73]

Originally Posted by jgh64pkup

is 1069lb load capacity for each tire enough to hold up the front of the truck
link

Your 1,069*2 is 2,138. Last time at the track my truck weighed 3,840 with me in it. 2,050 on the nose and 1,800 on the rear. This is with and alum block and alum heads. That is standing still. Under heavy braking the weight shown on the front tires will go up quite a bit. So, would I feel comfy using them, heck no.


Actually I think the tire on the front end of my truck is a Cooper Trend Setter 205/75/15.

Load rating is 1,598
26.98 tall
Tread width is 5.1"

http://www.coopertire.com/html/produ...&artw=75&rd=15


You want to get a weight of you front end is possible and I feel you should have roughly 50% more total load bearing to give room form heavy braking and bumps..

IE 2,000lbs should = aprox 3,000lb total load between both front tires.
IE 2,500lbs should = aprox 3,750lb total load between both front tires.
Section width is 8.3" measured on a 5.5" rim

[jgh64pkup]

do you ever drive it on the street

[Super73]

When I had it together I drove it just about every week.. Even made a 300 mile round trip to the track..