Replacement tires for 03

[D.Hirtle]

I was wondering if anyone else out there has had less than desirable results from their Stock BFG tires. I was not pleased with the way mine performed and did a little research and found that they were not rated very high. I had a heck of a time in finding some acceptable replacements but I found some Toyo's that fit the bill. Toyo Open Country Lt 285/70/17 they gave me a 2 in. lift and a 100% improvement in traction.

 

[bighammer]

2 in. lift? What did yours come with?

 

[D.Hirtle]

Mine came stock with BFG's 265/70/17 The new ones I put on are 2 in. taller and a little wider.

 

[bighammer]

The difference between the 2 sizes shouldn't be more than about 1 1/4" diameter. That should only give you about 5/8" lift. Even going to the 315s is 2 3/4" bigger diameter (over the 265s) so your "lift" will be less than 1 1/2".

 

[PGoble]

Mine came stock with BFG's 265/70/17 The new ones I put on are 2 in. taller and a little wider.





Actually, the 285/70R17's are only 1. 1 inches taller, and . 78 inches wider than the stock 265/70R17's.



The largest tire you can fit under a stock truck without lifting it is a 315/70R17. This will give you 2. 76 inches of lift, and will be 1. 97 inches wider than stock. Hope this helps.

Peter

 

[Fred Swanson]

How about 265/70R19. 5's? Going on tonight. Tires are 34. 3 inches tall. I've also lifted the truck 2. 5 inches up front, and 2 inches in rear.

Should make the stock 235/80-17's look small.

 

[robobx]

I have been quite impressed by the stock BFGs...

over 20,000 miles so far and still over half tread They'll hit 60,000+ I think

 

[gsbrockman]

Only after 1800 miles or so of use on my LT265/70R17 BFG Rugged Trail T/A's, I'm not very impressed. They ride OK but the off-road traction (even if driving just through a field) really sucks. About 6 months and 6000 miles before buying my '03, I purchased some LT285/75R16 Bridgestone Dueler AT REVO's for my 2000 RAM 2500 Quad Cab 4x4. Man, I miss those tires. I work at an S&S Tire in Lexington, KY. {we're the biggest purchaser of Bridgestone/Firestone tires in the US}. I found out today through our Bridgestone Rep that Bridgestone will be offering the AT REVO's in LT265/70R17 and LT285/70R17 sizes, I'm guessing in at least a "D" or "E" load range. I told our Rep that I had to have the first set of four that roll off the line as a "test set" and he assured me he would hook me up. Hope this helps any of you guys that are looking for replacement tires or have had them on a pre-'03 truck and are wanting them once again on an '03.

 

[Blakers]

Has anyone tried buying a new truck without tires so you can buy your own? Do dealers ever let you do that? Or let you pay the difference?



If I buy a new truck, I'd like to just start out with 315's.



Thanks.

 

[ImagesThatSing]

I was told by a dealer long ago that the tires are bought in huge quantity by the manufacturer and that they only cost them about $3 a piece, so if I wanted the deduction he would deduct the $12 and keep the tires and I could then put on whatever I want.



Wonder just how true that is?

 

[Blakers]

Hard to believe they would get them for $3 apiece, but I could see that they'd be pretty cheap when they buy them by the train load. Kinda hard to find someone else that would need the original tires off the truck since they're 17s.

 

[91W350]

If any of you guys are wanting to sell the original BFGs, shoot me an e-mail on how much. I like the way they drive and very seldom get off road with my Dodge. I have an old 6. 2 Chev 4X4 with some mud tires and lockers at both ends for that. Not much power, a lot of noise, and more smoke, but it drags me through the muddy stuff. mailto:tyrfryr@cox.net Glen