I have not only done prior research for fitment, but in the past my buddy and I have both put 35x12.50 tires on our leveled SCrews, with stock wheels, both (2004 & 2006) were F150's and had no issues. So yesterday, I went to get 295/70R18 Atturo Trail Blade XT's put on my 2013 SCrew Lariat (with 2" level and OEM 18's), and the guy came out and told me they were too wide. I told him that doesn't seem possible, noting my past experience, but he said the sidewall was touching the UCA w/o even tightening the lug nuts. I wasn't allowed to go look for myself, so I had to take his word. Any thoughts/opinions or facts on this? Anyone else running 295's with 2" level on OEM wheels? I remain absolutely unconvinced that those 295's were too wide.

Some other tidbits:
1. It was Walmart, which I dreaded using, but the tires were only $183 each, on some sort of sale. Couldn't pass it up.
2. A coworker has a 2013 SCrew, and he runs 35x12.50's on OEM 20's with no problems at all
3. I just went out to the garage and was able to fit my index finger between the 275/70/18 Wrangler A/T currently mounted, and didn't even have to force it. My finger is about 3/4" thick at the knuckle where I measured. And by my math, that 3/4" is almost the same as 2 cm, which should mean a 305 mm wide tire should fit with no rub.

Mods- I'll post this in the tire/wheel section, too, in case this is not the proper forum.

 

Hi, DCinMI - I deleted the duplicate thread you posted in Suspension and the post you put in another thread in this section too. Your post in this thread is well written and says what is needed to get you some opinions from other members.

Since you are changing tire brands, it is possible the section width is larger on the Atturo Trail Blades. Most tire manufacturers post charts that list the widths of their various tires. Have you looked for that data for the Atturo tires and the ones you currently have on your truck? I think that would answer your question, but I suspect the Walmart guy was probably telling you the truth. He's in the business of selling tires and would likely gladly mount those unless there were some problem that could lead to future problems that would force him to take them back (after damage) and put on replacements (at his cost).

- Jack

 

Jack,
Thanks for the reply.

I did ask the guy if perhaps all 295’s are not created equally. He simply shrugged and said he wasn’t sure. Both guys I spoke to were dumbfounded at the size of the tires, which tells me they don’t often (ever?) deal with anything bigger than stock sizes. Heck, for all I know, the wrong size got sent.

Atturo has specs on their site, but it only says “295” for section width. Oddly, for their 35x12.50’s it says “35” for section width. So, uh, not much help there. lol

 

I just re-read your first post and notice you currently have 275/70R18 tires mounted. The "275" number is the width of the tire in millimeters, or, 27.5 centimeters. Now, there are EXACTLY 2.54 centimeters in an inch. so your current tires should be 10.827" wide. The ones you want to mount have a width of 29.5 cm, which is 11.614" wide. So, they would be about 0.4" closer to your inside fenderwell and the outside fender wall. Maybe this would be OK on the rear axle, but on the front, if you turn the wheels lock to lock, would the tire perhaps rub the inner wall?

Additionally, since the aspect ratio of both tires is "70", this means the tire "height" is 70% of the width. So, your current tires extend about 7.579" from the rims but the new ones would extend about 8.120". This is significant, I think, especially on the front axle when the wheels are turned. It means the edge of the tire is even closer to the fender walls when the wheels are turned.

- Jack

 

Jack,
Thanks again. I am fluent in tire sizes, and I’ve run similar setups in the past, again with no issues. In fact, I wanted to go even narrower this time (295mm aka 11.6” vs 12.5”).

I get what you mean about tires rubbing as you crank the wheels fully left and right, but this guy said these 295’s wouldn’t even mount properly, and he said he didn’t even tighten the lug nuts. He said the sidewall was touching the “A-Arm”. That’s what puzzles me the most, knowing my own experience and that of others I’ve seen post on various F150 boards.

And a coworker has a 2013 with 35x12.50R20’s on OEM wheels right now, no issues. And those 20” wheels are wider than mine, so if anything I would think his should rub more than “my” 295’s would.

I’m wondering if the wrong size arrived, something really wide. I agree with you that he’s very unlikely to have a reason to lie, so perhaps they sent me a 325 or something. lol

 

I don't have any better advice - seems like you know what you're doing. It reminds me of when I attempted to get P-metric Goodyears on my old 2005 King Ranch at Costco. The guy there told me that since the OEM tires were LT - rated, he couldn't mount the Goodyears. Well, I went to Discount Tire and they had no issues in putting the Goodyears on. They did fine, for 6 years and over 50,000 miles, other than not balancing well, and I've never been back to Coscto for tires.

- Jack

 

The offset of the 18" wheels may be different than the 20" wheels. That has to be taken into consideration along with the wheel and tire width.

 

I suppose that could be true with this generation of truck. I recall on my 2006 SCrew I went from 275/65 R20’s on OEM wheels to 35x12.50 R18’s - again on stock wheels. No problems, in spite of a wider tire on 18’s.

So I’m stumped. I’ll give it another try with 295’s and if I go 0-for-2, then I’ll try a 285 width and see what happens.

 

Is it possible they were talking about the rim width?
The tire manufacturer only allow the tire to be mounted on a wheel with a rim width between 8.5" and 11."
35X12.50R18LT 123Q 34.8 35 8.5 - 11.0 18.

 

No. The tire in question is a 295 width. When I mentioned 35x12.50 I was talking about either the past or a coworkers truck.

 

Yeah, the big chain stores have too many attorneys restricting them on what they can do for liability reasons. If I want a different size tire on my vehicles than what came on it, I have to go somewhere besides Sam's Club and Costco.

 

My Wife had an even more ridiculous experience at Costco. She wanted to replace all 4 OEM tires on her car with Michelins, same size as OEM and they would not do it! She ended up with new tires that were the same brand as the OEM ones.

BTW, the P-metric tires I wanted to put on the King Ranch were the same size as the OEM LTs, AND, they had a higher load rating than the OEMs.

I think Costco MAY have gotten better recently.. Janet just got new Michelins on her car there. They may, at one time have had poor guidance from headquarters.

- Jack

 

Some shops are just uptight about getting sued, so they'd rather lose a customer than be sued.

You can always buy your tires from them, and install them elsewhere or do it yourself if you got the equipment (or have access to).

 

So I tried buying the same tires and having them installed at another Walmart in another town. (BTW, the reason I’m so insistent on these tires is not only their ideal size for my truck but the fact that they’re only $183 each.)

So anyway the lady there at least was honest enough to tell me Walmart won’t install non-stock sizes. Fair enough. Went to a real tire store and had them installed. They fit great and look great!

I’ll see if my phone can attach a pic. They’re Atturo Trail Blade XT’s. Kind of a middle ground tread between an AT and a MT.

 

BTW, your post had me curious enough to look up the offset for the OEM 18 and 20 inch wheels; it’s the same for each, according to the website I found.