I have made up my mind on tire style, Goodyear Wrangler SA, but now have concerns on size. My tire guy suggests I go with 235 85 16s instead of 265 75 16s. The size difference is just under two inches narrower and the same height as the 265s. The 235's are $220 cheaper for the set. My wife is concerned I won't like the way they look, that they will look like "old man" tires. Does anyone here run 235's, how do they work/look. Thanks in advance!

 

Lol, i have 235/85/16s on my F250 and they are certainly "old man" tires. I have the general grabber tr's that the dealer put on before i bought it and i don't have any complaints about them, other than looking so non-truck, on an F250. I have some pictures if you'd like to see them

 

Did you ask your tire guy why he suggested a 235 tire for your Ex? That's incredibly narrow for a truck that size. Might be time to see a new tire guy.

 

Well here they are on my F250

 

Really does look a bit on the narrow side.

I say if the wife is ok with the big tires then take the opportunity before she changes her mind!

 

Isn't the stock size for the 4wd Ex 265/75/16 anyway?

 

what's the load rating?

that's a narrow tire for so much truck...it's the same width I have on my pontiac...

 

On my truck? or the OP's excursion?
Mine are load rating E and the sticker in the gas door of my truck says this is what the truck was supposed to come with.. so im stuck with them for another 40-50k miles

 

And yea... my moms suv has wider tires LOL

 

I think 235's for snow would be just fine. Otherwise, stick with the stock size, especially if the wife agrees. Your tires are the only thing connecting you to the road and stopping your beast to keep your family safe. Do you want to worry for the next 40K+ miles about that? Good luck in your decision.

 

I moved my '96 GMC suburban's 245's (standard) up TO 265's just so it WOULDN'T look like a whimp, and have often noticed the 265's on my 2000 EX almost don't "feel" like they fill the wheel well up enough... 235's on an Excursion?

Please. Don't. :-(

 

235's = "nice pizza cutters"!

 

I think the 235 is so narrow because that's what they use for dually f350's. So yeah it may look a little silly if you have SRW.

A lot of tire guys recommend using a narrower tire in the winter because it will "cut" through the snow and get to the pavement, whereas a wider tire may have an inch more of width that will make it ride up on top of the snow.

Tirerack.com recommends running a 245 75 16 snow tire on an Excursion instead of the factory 265 75 16.

I thought the Bridgestone Duravis was a sweet looking summer tire for my Excursion but they don't make it in a 265 and it is a "highway rib summer" so don't run it in the snow.

 

i ran 2 sets of 235's on my old '04 excursion. i didnt think it looked bad at all.

i'll try and dig up some pics

 

Yep and I think they look like tiny donuts on my 2000 X.... I'll be looking for some 315's or something in that area....