Help with tire selection!

willys1985

Bigger Hammer
Nov 24, 2015
32
long island
First Name
matthew
Willys Model
  1. Wagon
Willys Year:
  1. 1954
Soooo after long debate I've decided to take my 16inch rims off and replace with 15inch rims. Im not a fan of the NDT tires and need something with a little more aggressive tread pattern. Im planning on taking the old wagon on the beach this summer. The 15inch rims have old tires on them and are going to be replaced. What is the largest size tire I can fit on these rims? right now that old ones are 225/75/r15. I do not plan on lifting the wagon at the moment I just want to fill up the wheel wells a little bit more and have something suitable for mild off-road and sand.

On another side note is there any other type of tire that would fit the 16inch rim I have that is non NDT? like a slim off road tire? im guessing no. the NDT tires read 7,00 - 16LW.
 
Hi Mathew,

I think the official answer for stock set ups is 215-16 tires on a 5.5 inch wide wheel with 3 1/2 backspacing. What I did was use Goodyear MTR 235-85-16 tires. It made the tires rub the drag link when turning sharply with the stock wheels. I went to a 16x8 rim with 3 inch backspacing. I no longer have any problems going from stop to stop while turning and disk brakes should have no problem clearing.

Just my .02 cents. Your mileage may vary.

Gary
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thanks gary! could you tell me the brand of rim you are using? I know the bore has to be 107.5
 
Hi Matthew, I have 16" wheels off a Willys pickup truck mounted on my '58 Wagon. The previous owner had tires put on that are not NDT. Here's a few pics. There is no lift on my Wagon and the wheels/tires take up the wheel wells pretty well. I'll be home tomorrow and can
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Sorry about the wonky photos, my phone sometimes flips them and I can't figure out how to fix them...
 
thanks rob, if you could just let me know the specs on the tires when you get home that would be great. if I could keep the 16inch rim on there I would prefer to do so.
 
Isn't it a lot easier to find 16" tires rather than 15"? As mentioned above, it's my undersranding that 215/85 16 are close to stock and fit in the stock 16" wheel with the ability to go up to 235 85 16 on the stock rim with modern radials.
 
Matthew the tallest profile on a 15" rim (which was the standard size for wagons) that I could get in my neck of the woods is 235/75 r15 that's what I went with in an MT style. As Dan has mentioned when you go to the 16" rim you have a lot more options. Pete put on 235/85 R16 Toyo tires and they have a really nice skinny type profile as the sidewalk has very little ballooning. But a 215/85 r16 would accentuate that look even more. Ultimately it's a real personal choice and I would narrow down two or three and let them fit them to check stance before final decision.
 
I, too, have to replace my tires on my 62 pickup. I have 16" rims with innertubes. Can I put modern radials on those rims or do I need new rims?
 
Straightened? Was that a problem with yours or a difference between tubes and no tubes?
 
When they checked them for balancing they found that they were out of shape. Once they were straightened then they could the bead to sit tight, ( as I understand it) for tubeless radials.
 
Thanks, sounds like I'll have to get my tires from a tire shop and not Walmart so they can be done right.
 
You can put radials on the stock 16" wheels; I have GY Duratracs, 235/85-16's on original 16" wheels; just need to have inner beads cleaned off really good, and a good sealer applied to the beads; can also put the sealer on the rivet heads.
 
Soooo after long debate I've decided to take my 16inch rims off and replace with 15inch rims. Im not a fan of the NDT tires and need something with a little more aggressive tread pattern. Im planning on taking the old wagon on the beach this summer. The 15inch rims have old tires on them and are going to be replaced. What is the largest size tire I can fit on these rims? right now that old ones are 225/75/r15. I do not plan on lifting the wagon at the moment I just want to fill up the wheel wells a little bit more and have something suitable for mild off-road and sand.

On another side note is there any other type of tire that would fit the 16inch rim I have that is non NDT? like a slim off road tire? im guessing no. the NDT tires read 7,00 - 16LW.

The original rims on your wagon would have been 15 x 4.5 and tire would have been 7.00 x 15. I currently have 15 inch rims which I believe may have come from a later CJ model. I am running BF Goodrich All Terrain T/A's size 30" x 9.50" R15". Its an excellent all around tire and is just slightly taller than the stock tire. The down side is that they are not cheap. But I can tell you from lots of off-roading experience that these tires will hold up great as long as you are religious about rotating them. I considered going to the next size up and had the guys at Discount Tire mount up a 31" x 10.5" R15 for me. It looked awesome on the wagon but the tire came within a hair of the drag link with the steering turned all the way so I decided to go with the smaller one. So far (after 2 years) I am very happy with them.
 
My wagon with Toyo Open Country MT 235/85R/16. Running them tubeless on 16" M38 wheels.

moab12-249.jpg


They only rub on the drag link when turned full lock and in a twist. When the rears are stuffed in a deep twist, they will touch the inside wheel well, but they do not rub the body openings.

Pete
 
I'm running Mastercraft Courser 255/75-16 on aftermarket rims. Love Them. Had 265/76-16 ten ply aggressive tread 31" tall and they were stiff as a board and rubbed the wells on certain turns and bumps. Looked awesome, but really hard to maneuver. The new Mastercraft feels like riding in a Cadillac. They fill up the wheel wells and look great from behind.

Hey Pete, what are those mirrors off of???
 
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