Wht 17" wheels?

[GFoley]

Why 17" wheels?

What is the benefit of going to 17" wheels on the 2500 and SRW 3500 trucks?

At this time I think replacement 17" would be pretty hard to come by.

Do the new wheels have the same pattern as existing 16" 8 bolt wheels?



GLF

 

[DIESELMAN]

One Really good benefit..... The new brake calipers won't grind through the 16" wheel rim disconnecting the rims and sending your truck careening to a firery uninsured non-warranty end in a ravine three blocks from the dealer



The new brakes just clear the 17" rim inside diameter, the 16"'s wouldn't. Besides, they cost more, are harder to get, and stimulate the economy

 

[amsoilman]

For one thing, the 17 inch wheels allow for 13. 9 inch brake discs!



I for one will take larger brakes anyday!





Just my opinion.



Wayne

amsoilman

 

[roycrown]

I tend to agree more with DEISELMAN, a way to separate you from more of your money. The 17's real benefit is that of a stepping stone to ready you for the eventuall move to 18'', and then 19'' wheels/tires in the future. The auto industry seems to be fascinated with increasingly larger diameter wheel/tires. I believe this is mainly for styling purposes. They will give you this mumbo-jumbo about better handling/bigger brakes etc. , but the real reason is to moves your eyes from the rather bland, cookie cutter styling of the vehicle to the wheels. Admittedly this is more pronounced on cars than trucks, but notice how many compact 4cylinder SUV's (Aisian Attrocities) now have 16" wheels (when with their 1000/2000# tow rating a 14" would do), can 17's be too far off for them?



While the bigger brakes should indeed stop better, I refuse to believe that stopping power has been inadequate up to this time. Ford/GM will have to play catch up with 17" wheels of their own, then Dodge will go to 18' etc. , etc.

 

[Forrest]

If they have the same bolt pattern as the 96 & the same load range ... i'm in trouble. :{

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

It's about time!

IMO I think it's about time they started moving up from 16". I'm tired of tall sidewall, mushy tires that do poorly in cornering and do not provide the load and towing stability that shorter sidewalls can provide.



I think 17" would be a great standard size and 18" optional, I think 16s should be a thing of the past on HD trucks. And now the tire manufacturers need to step up to the plate, although some have already (like Nitto with the HD 18" tires they have available). There will be more 17s and 18s available, I'm certain of it. Once you've tried good 18" tires I doubt anyone would miss the 16s.



Vaughn

 

[nickleinonen]

i'd like to see 20's as an option. they look good on the 1500's. . hmm... a HD on air suspension lowered 3-4 inches with 325/50/20's would be nice looking. [those 325/50's are the same diam of 33" as 325/60/18's]

 

[roycrown]

I must be in the minority for I do not like the looks of large diameter wheels with short sidewall tires. Also they might work great in Florida, California, Texas, Washington or elsewhere, but here is Pennsylvania we have the infamous Pennsylvania Pothole. With these types of wheels/tires, your wheel is physically that much closer to the Pothole and much, much more succeptable to damage. Many get bent. My freind who owns a tire store sees bent wheels weekly, trucks with 17's and 20's (price one of those 20's at your Dodge dealer!), lots of Camaros, Mustangs, Trans Ams, Corvettes, etc. Even regular 15 and 16's get bent, larger diameters just aggrevate the problem. And these larger diameter wheels most of the time are aluminum or custom designed greatly adding to the replacement cost, and it WILL get bent again, at least if you drive for any period of time in this state.

 

[KCJackson]

Re: It's about time!

Originally posted by Vaughn MacKenzie

IMO I think it's about time they started moving up from 16". I'm tired of tall sidewall, mushy tires that do poorly in cornering and do not provide the load and towing stability that shorter sidewalls can provide.

LT265/75R16E - 3415 lbs @ 80 psi

LT265/70R17E - 3195 lbs @ 80 psi



LT235/85R16E - 3042 lbs @ 80 psi

LT235/80R17E - 3085 lbs @ 80 psi.



LT245/75R16E - 3042 lbs @ 80 psi

LT245/70R17E - 3000 lbs @ 80 psi



Might be a slight handling improvement (not like anyone's putting their HD Rams on a skidpad or a track with these tires), but there definitely is no real gain in load capacity, and the 265s will cost you 400 pounds per axle - especially key under the bed. .