Mud Pizza Cutters on E350 4x4 7.3

[red66chevelle]

I am considering putting 35x10.50R16LT Interco SSR's on my 1990 E350 7.3 with a lift and Pathfinder 4x4 conversion with a DANA 60 in the front. It is definitely not a daily driver and mostly sees 4 hour trips to the snow and transporting my dirt and street motorcycles around.

Does anyone have experience with these tires and or a similar setup. I would like to go with a narrower tire to reduce clearance issues, increase fuel mileage compared with the 35x12.50's BFG Muds I am running now.

The Load rating seems to be high enough, but i would like to see 10 ply rather than 8...

Any info and comments are greatly appreciated.


http://www.intercotire.com/tires.php?id=9&g=1

Size

Interco Number

Weight

Tread Ply

Side Ply

Skid Depth

Tread Width

O.D.

C.S.

Revs/ Mile

Rim

Max PSI

Max Load

35x10.50R16LT

SSR-41R
76
8
2
21/32
9.0
35.3
11.10
617
16X7-9
65
3415

[Charlie]

The ultimate tire in that class is Michelin 255/100R16 (36.5") or even 11.00R16 XZL (38.7"). Enormous load capacity, all steel construction, very expensive, hard to find but not impossible. If a local Michelin truck tire dealer says unobtainable, call Michelin militrary tire specialist at US HQ in S. Carolina.

Charlie

[red66chevelle]

Fortunately there are some for sale just 30 minutes away...
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/pts/980033703.html

UNFORTUNATELY the guy is asking $3500 !!

Those do look like the best around, but not only do they seem to be out of my price range, also, I would be worried about making the existing clearance issues worse with an even taller tire than I have.

Thanks for the heads up though.

[Charlie]

$3500 is absolutely ridiculous. Tell him he is a thief. $350 each is more reasonable. If you are at all interested call Michelin for stock in US warehouses. They can even be ordered from Europe and you only pay 2.5% duty. There are surplus tire places in the Netherlands where you can get slightly used ones (90-95% tread) for ~$100 each.
I fit the same size (9.00R16 XL) on an 88 F350 4X4 with 2" lift, no rubbing.

Charlie

[SIC-E]

have always wished those xl's where avail, in a 33-34" tire, would love to run a set for the beach trips.

[Ujoint]

Swampers aren't the best quality, they usually wear quick and irregular. There are plenty of options in that size, so I would recommend something from BFG, M/T, Toyo, or even Pro Comp.

[subliminal]

id go with the new bfg mud terrains, they ride excellent and wear well. they are good all around tires. i have run everything from boggers to iroks to swamper tsl's and ill tell ya swampers arent good on the road and ride like poop. those michelins are great tires as well. they are a bit heavier duty than the bfg mut terrains. bfg's are made by michelin also.

[red66chevelle]

Originally Posted by ujointclothing

There are plenty of options in that size

Actually there are only two tire options that I am aware of in that size (35x10.50R16). Both are from from interco - SSR Radial and TLS Bogger, except for more exotic stuff like the Michelins, military and foreign.

The Michelins do look like a kick a$$ tire, but the high price tag and 65 mph rating puts me off a little.

If anyone is aware of another 35 inch tall and narrow tire option from any other companys (BFG, M/T, Toyo, Pro Comp, etc.) I am all ears.

The reason I would like to run the tall and narrow 10.50 tire is:

1. with smaller than 35 inch tires the gearing is too low for my liking
2. increased fuel economy
3. reduced wear on steering and driveline components
4. reduce tire clearance issues (rubbing on fenders and sliding door)

I guess it looks like for 35 inch pizza cutters my only options are interco (questionable quality) or exotic (Michelin, military or imports..).


Here are a couple photos of the van with the beat up 35x12.50 BFG Muds and a couple of the fender clearance.

Not to hijack my own thread, but if anyone has any advice on cutting the fender back it would be much appreciated. This would solve one of my problems, but I would still like to run narrower tires regardless of the clearance issue for the other reasons stated above. Also, when I get new tires, the last thing I want is to have them get torn up by the fender.

Thanks for all the info so far.