Wheels and tires. Aside from a shiny paint job they probably add the greatest visual appeal to a vehicle. Getting just the right stance, together with the look of the wheel/tire package and tying it all together in a practical manner to accomplish a certain function takes a lot of racking the old noodle. I already chose incorrectly once, with my 240Z. It was the first time I'd ever purchased tires and I simply chose a size based on very little research. I've had to live with tires that are too small (and they look it on the car), too narrow, wear out too quickly and that cause the speedometer to read too fast. This time I made sure to do my homework.
I knew that I wanted a 35” tire. Anything bigger and the body would need some extensive modifications for clearance (it already looks like I'll be trimming the rear of the front fenders), not to mention beefing up the axles, brakes, etc.... I also didn't want the tires to be too wide from both a looks and legal standpoint. In the state of Utah, the lift laws state that the tread can't stick out beyond the edge of the fender. The speedometer wasn't an issue in the Suburban because both it and the transmission computer can each be reprogrammed very easily. Another big consideration was tread style. I eventually decided on an all-terrain instead of a mud-terrain. As is, I have open diffs front and rear for now and don't plan on spending the majority of my time off-road. The all terrains would last longer, be quieter, have more grip in wet/icy conditions but sacrifice off-road traction. In the midst of searching through magazine back issues (I have 4WORs going back to 1994), websites and reading reviews I found the Mickey Thompson ATZ all-terrain tires. The treadwear warranty was good, weight rating was excellent and they looked pretty beefy too. Appearances certainly count when making a decision like this.
I had already purchased the 16x10 Wheel Vintiques steelies last year (see post 133). I went with steel for the combination of strength, longevity and low cost. The only other material I would have considered was forged aluminum which is lightweight and strong but pricey. As an added bonus the steel wheels fit a stock hubcap and look more period correct. My only concern was that at 10” wide they'd look too wide and/or snag on rocks off road. I combed through a whole gaggle of photos of trucks and Jeeps riding on 35” tires with 10” wide wheels to reassure myself that they'd probably turn out okay. The only reason I didn't buy the tires sooner was because I needed some money, so when a good sized freelance gig paid off recently the first purchase I made came from tirebuyer.com because they had the lowest price I could find online and offered free shipping to my door.
These are 315/75-16 Baja ATZ tires. They really do measure out at 34.6” tall unladen, they're rated for 3195 lbs ea. max load @ 50 psi and the tread is extra deep for long wear. The reviews were almost overwhelmingly positive for them, but one unknown were the sidewalls. It seems there have been about three different designs over time. There was the original design, the redesign with “Sidebiters” and if you ordered a tire over 13.5” wide or to fit an 18”+ wheel (Specialty Light Truck, or SLT size) then they came with even more aggressive “Sidebiters”. To confuse things even further, each website that sold the tire had a different version of the sidewall pictured and some incorrectly showed the ATZ plus which has a completely different tread pattern. When the tires did show up, thy looked exactly the same as the official picture on the Mickey Thompson website, not the old style or the extra grabtastic SLT version, but the regular sidewall with regular “Sidebiters”. The date codes put my tires at just over 3 months old. The photos don't really do these things justice at all. They look much more aggressive in person.
Fed-Ex dropped them off up yesterday and I weighed one tire with one wheel. 63.3 lbs for the tire and 34.8 lbs for the wheel makes just over 98 lbs per corner. Its a little more than the old 295/75/16 BFG A/Ts on 16” Dodge wheels; those weighed in at 83.3 lbs per corner. This morning I had all four new tires mounted and balanced and then brought everything home to put on myself. Two of them took quite a bit of weight (14 1/4 oz. on one) and the other pair took closer to 3 oz. to balance. I haven't had any vibrations though.
Okay, picture time.
Side-by-side:
Lincoln? Oh Mr. Lincoln where are you?
The rear hubcaps are soooooooo close to fitting. If I can make the concave bowtie area become convex instead then it'll work. The front hubcaps will of course need the centers cut out to clear the Warn Premium hubs.
Later this week I'll be out flexin' and measuring for the new bumpstops again, so these on-pavement photos will have to suffice for now.
I was out driving around without having checked the air pressures yet, so in those photos they were still at the inflation level the tire shop had chosen, 40 psi. I aired them down to 30 but it probably isn't low enough yet. Just one of those things you have to keep an eye on. Also, a note on road noise. I've only had them up to 55 mph so far, but above 40 mph there is an audible hum/whine that wasn't present with the old shoes. It is very quiet and not at all intrusive or annoying but present nonetheless. I don't have a stereo in the Suburban yet, so all I have to listen for are odd new noises. Another note, this one on width. They stick out 1/4” beyond the top edge of the front fender, so I think I'll be okay with Johnny Law. Oh, and a funny encounter. My first stop after mounting the new tires was the gas station. While filling up I saw a guy walk past, do a double take and then come over to chat with me about my “cool old wagon”. That hadn't ever happened with the old tires. Now if I could somehow transfer my Suburban's attractive force from middle aged men who own '71 3/4 tons to cute girls instead then I'd be set.