Getting wheel's, go 16" or stay at 15"?

[stukapilot]

Like I said, should I stay or should I go? Aluminum or steel? I'm staying stock with the suspension.

[HenryJ]

Aluminum wheels are lighter and offer better performance. It takes less to get them rolling. You will have to see if the wheels that you desire are available with the correct rear spacing.
There are quite a few 16" tires out there now. I think it will be up to you to decide if the size that you want is available.
There are pros and cons to each.
I like the taller sidewalls that the 15" can offer. That gives me the flex I need when aired down. In the 15" there are lots of choices and a spare tire , if needed will be easy to find.

All that said, on my new rig I am stuck with the stock 17" wheel and quite a limited range of tires from which to choose. The short sidewall stiff and wide tires are what I am living with now.

[stukapilot]

Thank you. I'll get a set of aluminum 15's................

[HenryJ]

What tires are you considering?

16" is not a bad choice and neither would wheels even larger. It all depends upon what you want to do with it and the terrain you frequent.
The shorter sidewall offers better handling performance on the road. It may have better tread life and be less prone to sidewall damage.
The larger wheels have more room for cooling the brakes and the option for larger brakes.

[stukapilot]

And I thought this would be easy...................

[HenryJ]

LOL, nothing worthwhile is easy.
The best way to decide is to know where you want the best performance and where you are willing to make concession. There is no one combination that does it all perfectly.

First pick your terrain surface and make-up: Tarmac (paved asphalt , concrete), dirt (clay, silt, sand), gravel (pea, crushed, pit run, shale)
Then select your climate: Tropical (wet, muddy), Desert (hot, dry), Arctic (cold, snow)
Of course there will be all sorts of combinations in these selections. keep in mind that you are looking for the majority of conditions where you want to perform the best and that may sacrifice performance in other areas.

These will help to determine the compound and tread design that will perform best.

Next you will have to decide how much room that you have and what shoulder design will work with the clearance that you have.

With those in hand a little looking on Tirerack.com can help you narrow down some candidates and you should know if the tread design is available in 15" or 16" sizes.

Everything you ever wanted to know about tires is a good thread to read.
Snow Grip also raises some good ideas.
Scott's article , Tire Selection for Expedition Travel: The impact of tire width on traction

The width will add stress to the steering components and reading Scrub Radius will help to understand that.
Some of the changes made can be corrected or improved. Fender cuts, power steering pump modifications, steering stabilizer, swaybar bushings, bump stops, steering stops, quicker ratio box, spacers, balancing media, and the list goes on...

As with any other mod, it may require another and the snow ball keeps growing.

You are indeed right that there is no "easy" answer.

[stukapilot]

Jeez, I think I'll just park it and walk!

[HenryJ]

What size shoes?

[SleeperSS]

Walking, running, or hiking. Leather or Gortex....

[nebby58]

I got 16 size shoes. I might be one of the few people on these forums to say that they have a bigger shoe size than rim size. lol that will be changed eventually.

[SleeperSS]

I got 16 size shoes. I might be one of the few people on these forums to say that they have a bigger shoe size than rim size. lol that will be changed eventually.

Snow shoes, snowboard, or skis...

[nebby58]

I save money by barefoot skiing! lol I get that a lot

[F9K9]

................my new rig I am stuck with the stock 17" wheel and quite a limited range of tires from which to choose.........

Actually 16" wheels and tires are becoming limited, as well. I just went through the agonizing task with my other rig. I needed new tires but, wanted to get beadlocks down the road. There's basically one non custom made 16" available and I don't care for it. The correct choice would have been going to 17" wheels and tires because large 15" tires are difficult to get balanced correctly. Since I couldn't swing tires and wheels at the same time, I was doomed to get 16" tires again. $1,300 for 4 tires. 5 beadlocks would have run $2,000 on top of that.

[saab9k]

just bought 2 new 15" Michelin for my wrecked ZR5 $ 303.00 mounted , balanced with nitro instead of air.

[HenryJ]

You paid extra for air? I fill all my stuff with 78% nitrogen. It is highly unlikely that anyone will see any difference by adding a slightly greater amount of nitrogen for our application.
It won't hurt, but it is a scam to make a few more dollars on a tire change. New valve stems every time they dismount a tire is another one that burns my back side too.
Next time tell them to leave your custom valve stems alone and that you want your tires filled with 78% nitrogen, 19% oxygen and the rest a few miscellaneous gasses. I am pretty sure you will get the same "look" that I get

Those are some of the reasons that I am very glad I have everything I need to mount all my own tires now. Tire monkeys can be brainwashed way too easily and some of those gorillas are hard on very expensive wheels.

[saab9k]

You paid extra for air? I fill all my stuff with 78% nitrogen. It is highly unlikely that anyone will see any difference by adding a slightly greater amount of nitrogen for our application.
It won't hurt, but it is a scam to make a few more dollars on a tire change. New valve stems every time they dismount a tire is another one that burns my back side too.
Next time tell them to leave your custom valve stems alone and that you want your tires filled with 78% nitrogen, 19% oxygen and the rest a few miscellaneous gasses. I am pretty sure you will get the same "look" that I get

Those are some of the reasons that I am very glad I have everything I need to mount all my own tires now. Tire monkeys can be brainwashed way too easily and some of those gorillas are hard on very expensive wheels.

They are filled with nitro, not air.


Looking at the price posted for tires, thought $ 303. was cheap with balance too.

[killian96ss]

I recently installed some custom made Black Rock rims on my 05 ZR2 that only cost me $115 per rim. They are all black 15x8 with 5.5" backspace and include the center caps. You can order any backspace from 3" to 6".

Steve

[HenryJ]

They are filled with nitro, not air.

What is air? 78% nitrogen.
It is true that nitrogen will remain a more constant pressure than oxygen. If you run Nascar where traction and contact patch are critical you might see huge swings in tire temperature. That is where a higher concentration on nitrogen has its advantages. In a street driven vehicle you will never get to the extremes where a couple pounds of air pressure is critical.
Did they purge any oxygen from the tire before inflating with nitrogen? Nope. How much oxygen is in there still? What will you do to maintain the tire pressures? Go back to them to adjust tire pressure? It really is of no consequence.

Pay extra for it if it makes you feel better.

Here is the same topic: Nitrogen in yer Tires???

[HenryJ]

I recently installed some custom made Black Rock rims on my 05 ZR2 that only cost me $115 per rim. They are all black 15x8 with 5.5" backspace and include the center caps. You can order any backspace from 3" to 6".

Steve

What rear spacing did you order? Got pics?

[F9K9]

Nitrogen is a scam, I agree. I always "air" back up with CO2 but, there are a few that carry tanked nitrogen and want to debate the issue. The CO2 is just easy to carry and cheaper to refill my tank.

[roadrunner]

IIRC back in my early days in dealership garage there were a few individuals running "nitro"-gen in their tires mainly in large luxury cars. The best they ever got or even hoped for was 1-2% better wear or fuel mileage. In my book at least definitely not worth the extra expense.

[saab9k]

IIRC back in my early days in dealership garage there were a few individuals running "nitro"-gen in their tires mainly in large luxury cars. The best they ever got or even hoped for was 1-2% better wear or fuel mileage. In my book at least definitely not worth the extra expense.

You did not say that air pressure is constant, not floating with temperature.

That is why it is now used in 18 wheelers, there travel north - south. South - north.

[killian96ss]

I recently installed some custom made Black Rock rims on my 05 ZR2 that only cost me $115 per rim. They are all black 15x8 with 5.5" backspace and include the center caps. You can order any backspace from 3" to 6".

Steve

What rear spacing did you order? Got pics?

5.5 since they are 15x8. This puts the tire centerline in the same place as the stock 15x7 rim. They look similar to the d-window Cragars & have black center caps. I know I have a few pics. I'll try to post them later.

Steve

[roadrunner]

IIRC back in my early days in dealership garage there were a few individuals running "nitro"-gen in their tires mainly in large luxury cars. The best they ever got or even hoped for was 1-2% better wear or fuel mileage. In my book at least definitely not worth the extra expense.

You did not say that air pressure is constant, not floating with temperature.

That is why it is now used in 18 wheelers, there travel north - south. South - north.

Constant pressure is not much of a problem for the average user. All tire pressures are given as cold as well and allowances are made for rise caused by tire temp increase.
I don't know how many 18 wheelers use it either but the extremes of temperature caused by heavy loads would far outweigh the north to south and back consideration.
For most users the gains are minimal at best given that the air we all breathe and get from a common compressor is already 78% nitrogen. Hence my statement of not being worth the extra money or hassle. If it trips your trigger go ahead and use it. I choose not to for the reasons stated.

[green02crew]

I agree with HJ. The gorillas are hard on wheels too! 4 of my stock wheels went to get mounted. Came back with only 3 center caps out of the 4. Excuse me? Where did the caps go. Oh they were broken... no, no they weren't. Thanks.