Anyone running 255/85R16 tires?

I think the word is either Prussian or German and it means; "hummm" or "I wonder" or "what if"...or something like that.?!

I have found over the years that with all the wheel sizes, axle changes it is very dificult to guess what fits. I found out that with a given size of 15" or 16" wheels that there are different back spacings...a 33x12.50x15" will be different than a 33x12.50x16" the 15" didn't rub but the 16" did! I had no idea! I think you have to install the chosen wheel/tire combo to see if it does fit.

On my "53 wagon I will be using 70's wagoneer front springs and F150 (1350lb.) rear springs with air bags and frame mounts/shackles to adjust ride heigth. I did this on the 2A and with extra holes and shackles and am quite pleased.

On my CJ2A I started with 255x85x16 Kelly Springfield tires, they rubbed to much, I used spacers to get the off set I needed. These tires are 33.3" tall. I have since switched to 34x12.50 15" tires...I still went with spacers but went from 1.25" to 1" with no rubbing on the fronts, 1.25" on the rears with no issues. I haven't put that many miles on it but have done a good mix of on/off road driving (wth some rock stuff in the mix). This spring I will go over the set up when I do tire rotation.

Dale
 
Just happened to see this tire -- one I hadn't come across before, size 7.5x16 -- a mud and snow radial, US-made. Overall diameter of 31.8"

Might be a good option for those running original 16" truck rims. This is made for rims 5.5" - 7" wide and the tread width is 6.7", so fairly narrow.


It's similar to the 215/85R-16 but with a higher profile and larger diameter.

bfg_mudterrain_ta_km3_full.jpg

Edit: This is very similar in size to the 235/85R-16 tire, just a tiny bit narrower.
 
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Just happened to see this tire -- one I hadn't come across before, size 7.5x16 -- a mud and snow radial, US-made. Overall diameter of 31.8"

Might be a good option for those running original 16" truck rims. This is made for rims 5.5" - 7" wide and the tread width is 6.7", so fairly narrow.


It's similar to the 215/85R-16 but with a higher profile and larger diameter.

bfg_mudterrain_ta_km3_full.jpg
These are what I am running. I like them very much and the they fit the 16x5 rim nicely too.
 
I'm curious. @cwdtmmrs mentioned the Tornado steering linkage offers more tire clearance. Is it possible to retrofit that linkage onto an earlier Willys?
 
I'm curious. @cwdtmmrs mentioned the Tornado steering linkage offers more tire clearance. Is it possible to retrofit that linkage onto an earlier Willys?

Anything is possible, but there would be lots of hurdles... the first being that the Tornado linkage requires a reverse rotation steering box. It would be lots of work for very marginal gain.
 
My 3 cents:
Consider what engine/drivetrain you are running. My 1960 stock 226 had a hard time getting the 235/85-R16's going, at 32+" tall they sucked the life out of the did ratio.
Ended up taking a loss and switching to 235/70's for a better get up and go.
Tall tires are great if you're running rest o mod.
I personally have had poor experience with BFG KO2' s. Noisy, hard to balance and sketchy tread wear on my van.
And unfortunately I've seen similar reviews on the KM3's. But guessing they're going to be Ok if you don't go over 60 mph or 2000 miles of driving
 
My 3 cents:
Consider what engine/drivetrain you are running. My 1960 stock 226 had a hard time getting the 235/85-R16's going, at 32+" tall they sucked the life out of the did ratio.
Ended up taking a loss and switching to 235/70's for a better get up and go.
Tall tires are great if you're running rest o mod.
I personally have had poor experience with BFG KO2' s. Noisy, hard to balance and sketchy tread wear on my van.
And unfortunately I've seen similar reviews on the KM3's. But guessing they're going to be Ok if you don't go over 60 mph or 2000 miles of driving

I'm sorry to hear this. I hadn't really thought of the impact of the larger diameter on the performance of the engine, but it makes sense. My 7.00x15 Yokos are about 29.5" in diameter, I think, and they have been fine, or maybe I'm just used to them. I ended up taking off the weights and using beads to balance them. I bought a quart bottle of biodegradable pellet gun pellets, broke down the rims and put in an amount equal to the weight of the lead that I removed. I probably could have used less, since this weight is rotating at a greater distance from the axis, but this has worked fine. Bead balancing is the cat's meow, at least for skinny tires.
 
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Yeah, the smaller tires made a remarkable improvement in take-off and might even make the clutch last longer.
Gotta research that bead balance technique
 
We used balancing beads in our Harleys and the worked very well.
 
My 3 cents:
Consider what engine/drivetrain you are running. My 1960 stock 226 had a hard time getting the 235/85-R16's going, at 32+" tall they sucked the life out of the did ratio.
Ended up taking a loss and switching to 235/70's for a better get up and go.
Tall tires are great if you're running rest o mod.
I personally have had poor experience with BFG KO2' s. Noisy, hard to balance and sketchy tread wear on my van.
And unfortunately I've seen similar reviews on the KM3's. But guessing they're going to be Ok if you don't go over 60 mph or 2000 miles of driving
Bob,
What gear ratio in your axles, 4.27 or 4.88?
Thanks,
David
 
Thanks. I’d switched to the 4.27s, hoping to run a teller tire and get a higher top speed. With the 4.88 and a 235/15 tire, 45 was the highest comfortable speed. Was hoping for 50-55, and I really do not want to spend the money on an overdrive. Bought 16” wheels to go with a taller tire. Guess I’m stuck with a 235, but you saved me a ton of money buying the wrong tire size!
David
 
Just happened to see this tire -- one I hadn't come across before, size 7.5x16 -- a mud and snow radial, US-made. Overall diameter of 31.8"

Might be a good option for those running original 16" truck rims. This is made for rims 5.5" - 7" wide and the tread width is 6.7", so fairly narrow.


It's similar to the 215/85R-16 but with a higher profile and larger diameter.

bfg_mudterrain_ta_km3_full.jpg

Edit: This is very similar in size to the 235/85R-16 tire, just a tiny bit narrower.

Hi Carter, I've been running these for 1 1/2 years now. Great tire. There is a whole tread about them.
 
Anything is possible, but there would be lots of hurdles... the first being that the Tornado linkage requires a reverse rotation steering box. It would be lots of work for very marginal gain.
I think the the 230 bell-crank steering was significantly better when all of the components are tight. But, there are easier steering swaps that would be much better.
 
I have 235/85R16 toyo mt’s on my stock ‘60 wagon. Any bigger and they wouldn’t tuck inside the rear fender lip on a stock wagon. Mine rub the inside of the rear wheel wells in a heavy articulated twist, but just clear the outside body.

I think you’d also get quite a bit of rubbing on the factory steering drag link with the bigger tires. Mine will rub the drag link in a full left lock turn, but just barely.

Pete
Pete, I'm looking at running the lt235/85r/16 tires on my wagon and was wondering what size wheel and backspacing you used. Tried to search the forum but couldn't find any of your specific info (know I've seen it). My wagon has re-arched springs and about 2" of lift. The wheels I have are alloy 16 x 8 with 4" backspacing. Made a cardboard template of the wheel size (31.7" dia) and put it on the wagon. Boy does it fill up the wheel opening. Just trying to verify that the tires fit up in the wheel opening on flex. Looks like mine might or might not. Pretty sure this will hit the drag link but with adjusting the stop I may get away with the fronts as there is plenty of space otherwise. Other option is to go down to the 215/85/16 (30.4" dia) but not sure how these would fit on an 8" wheel. Was trying to get some U.S. Wheel chrome 16 x 7 wheels but it looks like chrome wheels are becoming a thing of the past. Had to settle on the polished alloys in 8".

Any clarification (pictures) would help. I've seen your wagon on the forum many times but when I'm looking for reference pictures I seem to get lost.

Thanks, Glen (55 wagon)
 
Pete, I'm looking at running the lt235/85r/16 tires on my wagon and was wondering what size wheel and backspacing you used. Tried to search the forum but couldn't find any of your specific info (know I've seen it). My wagon has re-arched springs and about 2" of lift. The wheels I have are alloy 16 x 8 with 4" backspacing. Made a cardboard template of the wheel size (31.7" dia) and put it on the wagon. Boy does it fill up the wheel opening. Just trying to verify that the tires fit up in the wheel opening on flex. Looks like mine might or might not. Pretty sure this will hit the drag link but with adjusting the stop I may get away with the fronts as there is plenty of space otherwise. Other option is to go down to the 215/85/16 (30.4" dia) but not sure how these would fit on an 8" wheel. Was trying to get some U.S. Wheel chrome 16 x 7 wheels but it looks like chrome wheels are becoming a thing of the past. Had to settle on the polished alloys in 8".

Any clarification (pictures) would help. I've seen your wagon on the forum many times but when I'm looking for reference pictures I seem to get lost.

Thanks, Glen (55 wagon)
My wheels are factory Willys 16" wheels. I don't know what the actual back spacing is. I think they are either 5.5" or 6" width.
Here are a few pics with the 235/85R16 toyo tires-
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The photos above where when I put these tires on the wagon. Had them on for 13 years, and changed then out a couple of months ago for BFG KM3 32-7.50/16s

The 7.50/16s are a little smaller and fit better, but I did like the look of the Toyo 235/85-R16. The 7.50/16s make it a little easier to get up to speed on the highway, with less rolling mass to push along.
IMG_4063.jpeg
 
My wheels are factory Willys 16" wheels. I don't know what the actual back spacing is. I think they are either 5.5" or 6" width.
Here are a few pics with the 235/85R16 toyo tires-
index.php

index.php

index.php


The photos above where when I put these tires on the wagon. Had them on for 13 years, and changed then out a couple of months ago for BFG KM3 32-7.50/16s

The 7.50/16s are a little smaller and fit better, but I did like the look of the Toyo 235/85-R16. The 7.50/16s make it a little easier to get up to speed on the highway, with less rolling mass to push along.
IMG_4063.jpeg
Thanks for the quick reply. The reason I asked is because I have the 8" wheels with 4" backspacing already. I was going to put on the recommended 215/85/16 tires but am being told they are too narrow for the 8" wheels. This led to the 235 questions as they are within the recommended 8"-wheel specs. Will have to investigate further.
 
Thanks for the quick reply. The reason I asked is because I have the 8" wheels with 4" backspacing already. I was going to put on the recommended 215/85/16 tires but am being told they are too narrow for the 8" wheels. This led to the 235 questions as they are within the recommended 8"-wheel specs. Will have to investigate further.
You might need to test fit a tire on your wheel to see if they are going to tuck into the rear fender wells... Mine barely fit without rubbing on the outside, but they would rub the inner wheel tub in the rear in a hard twist. The wider wheels may be an issue, not sure.
 
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