Post facts, preferences, experiences and links here.

We started chatting about picking up wheels from the US. Basically what you pay $1500 for here you can buy in the US for $500 and ship sea freight for $100 rims only or $140 rims & tyres just as long as you are prepared to wait 6 to 8 weeks before you collect your goods at your nearest port.

To start I was looking at wheels here:
Steve's Wheels items - Get great deals on items on eBay Stores!

The Coopers Tyres site has some good info on tyre sizes and rim widths:
Cooper Tires - Tyres

Remember the load index for Ftruck tyres has to be a min of 120.

I want to get some good 4WD rims and tyres. It seems the best tyres for 4WDing over rough and rocks are ones with the highest side wall height. Consequently I'm looking at 285/75 16's and, so as not to expose the rims to rock strikes, mount them on 8" width rims. Reg pointed out that offset zero with a backspacing of 4.5 inches was his choice.

Rim offsets - the lower the number the more radical the rim. The lowest offset I've seen is on my American Racing 20x9" rims - they are -12. On them I'm running Cooper HT 305/50 20s, the only low profile tyre around with a 120 load index! Rego told me the wheels were borderline as they'd increased the vehicle track by 1" and >1" is illegal.
See here for Cooper HT: http://www.coopertires.com.au/index....yres&tyre_id=5

 

Eagle Alloy Wheels:

RWD/SUV Truck - Eagle Alloy Wheels

With regard to the ION wheels, got this reply:

The rims will have a -5mm offset and a load rating of 3400 lbs per wheel. Let me know if I can answer any other questions, and I'll be here to help.
Thanks,
-Steve

 

G'day SSSimon,

I got this 'Tyre P#&%G Match' off another forum.
I'm not saying anyone is right or wrong , but it does make interesting reading .
Sorry about the length of it. I could have serialised as it went on and on , so I just took the interesting points out of it.

Cheers,
Reg.

Reply 19 of 21
AnswerID: 281059 Submitted: Friday, Jan 11, 2008 at 19:45
pmskitz replied:
Let's get one thing clear. Most tyre companies have a 5 year construction warranty (Cooper's 4 years) from DATE OF MANUFACTURE, NOT just 12 months like you say - this clearly shows you haven't talked to anyone who knows anything to do with tyres, let alone with a Michelin or BFGoodrich dealer, and it clearly shows that you are full of bleep . I bet the other 3 that supposeably had the same problem in the same week were your little friends from another planet.

You are an idiot! Do you seriously think that people will believe that the world's number off road tyre will have this problem, but only with 1 dealer all in the same week? Come on... you can't be that dumb....

ONLY BFGoodrich and Michelin have a 6 YEAR CONSTRUCTION WARRANTY from DATE OF PURCHASE - NOT date of manufacture - the best and most comprehensive warranty of any tyre on the market. And as for customer service - it is second to none.

The condition for warranty is that you have to buy it from a genuine authorised BFGoodrich or Michelin dealer. If you don't, then you don't get any warranty at all, so when you take it back to the non-authorised dealer, they will say bad things about them so that you will blame BFGoodrich and not the dealer who has ripped you off. Michelin and BFGoodrich are the best bar none - so there are many copies and private stores importing them, and selling them, of which BFGoodrich and Michelin Australia do not warrant, as they did not sell them in the first place. eg. If you buy a new Toyota from Japan and import it to Australia yourself, Toyota Australia will not warrant it, and it is the same with tyres.

Warranty is also on a pro-rata basis: ie. 50% tread life left, then you will get 50% of the value usually towards another tyre of any brand, if it is a manufacturing fault.

The only way to get wire coming through the sidewall of a BFGoodrich is if you have run the pressures too low, i.e. the sidewalls are flexing too much which "super heats the rubber and causes the cords and steel belts to move. No manufacturer will give warranty to idiots running too low pressure in their tyres and destroying them. As for your comment about the BFGoodrich dealer telling you he wouldn't recommend fitting them to a 4WD, I'd like to meet them, and I bet they aren't a genuine AUTHORISED BFGOODRICH dealer, but would really like to be. Michelin is VERY picky when it comes to authorised dealers. And clearly they were right in not choosing you - this comment is explained down below.**

Also the BFGoodrich All Terrain is generally good for 80,000km plus, (changing them with approx 3 - 4mm of tread left - more than legal still) and what you are saying is that they had 50%, approx 6 - 7mm (13mm new) tread left in under 12 months, Minus the 3 - 4mm after 80,000km this means you had travelled approx 60,000km on them. That's still 20,000km more than just about everything else! (ad still while being severely under inflated. I reckon that's brilliant. So what's your problem? Stop winging! Or just go back to England.

If you genuinely have a problem - then get your AUTHORISED BFGoodrich dealer to organise the Michelin/BFG rep to inspect them, as this is what EVERY authorised BFGoodrich dealer would have done for you, as they ALL know that they come with a 6 year warranty - not the 12 that you say they told you. But as I suspect you didn't buy them from an authorised dealer, but a local 'budget' tyre place, you don't have a leg to stand on. Or maybe, as I also suspect, you didn't buy them at all, but are a just a winger or maybe a dealer of another brand and you are trying to mis-lead people into believing there is only 12 months warranty. Either way, your story has absolutely no creditability whatsoever.

**Previous above comment explained - Now let's be honest, you are a Cooper's dealer right? Who can't handle being outsold on quality, driveability, safety, comfort, long life and genuine toughness without a bull bleep , "please don't read the fine print", advertising campaign. If everyone read the fine print on the km warranty on Cooper's, no one would ever buy them for that reason, let alone because they don't have the strength or durability of BFGoodrich, and are simply crap in the wet, bordering on dangerous. And the fact that they have the shortest (4 years) warranty of any brand name tyre on the market that I know of. Even some cheap Chinese stuff comes with 5 year construction warranty - that doesn't say much for Cooper's ay?

Fact: 76% of BFGoodrich owners request the same brand they are currently driving. (Number 1 by a mile, 18% more than 2nd place Pirelli)*

Your main authorised Michelin and BFGoodrich dealers are Tyre Plus (Michelin partners), Jax Quick Fit, and Bob Jane stores. You can also find your nearest dealer from the BFGoodrich web site.

And 1 more thing. You said you contacted them through their web site. They only have a place to make an enquiry regarding their products, not complaints, so obviously you won't get a reply. Bottom line - there isn't a single thing in your story that has any truth to it.


Reply 20 of 21 <O</O
FollowupID: 545388 Submitted: Friday, Jan 11, 2008 at 20:19 <O></O>
Kev & Darkie posted:<O></O>
So I take it from all that you are either
1. A BFG Fan, or
2. A BFG Authorised Dealer, or
3. A BFG Rep.

Cheers Kev <O></O>
FollowupID: 545389 Submitted: Friday, Jan 11, 2008 at 20:21
pmskitz posted:
After reading a few more comments, it is clear no one has any idea about tyres. Silverstone have a similar pattern, not exactly the same. They do not have a 3 ply side wall like BFGoodrich - almost 50% thicker rubber for better protection against side impacts, and the BFGoodrich lasts twice as long as the Silverstone, or Maxxis, and just about every other tyre out there, and is a whole lot safer in the wet. With BFGoodrich, you are not just paying for a name, you are getting the best value for money 4WD tyre. Michelin/BFGoodrich spend more on R & D than anyone else. Between BFG and Michelin, world's first radial tyre, tubeless tyre, BFG invented synthetic rubber, and no one uses silica like Michelin. Michelin are in a class of their own there. Every Michelin/BFGoodrich is x-rayed and hand inspected before release. Usually if there is a problem, it is owner abuse - not the tyre.

And he says the side wall was different to the "new one". This suggests someone has sold him the old tyre - maybe a private import and told him it was new.

Fact: When a BFGoodrich or Michelin tyre is nearing 2 1/2 to 3 years old in their warehouse, they put a cut in the sidewall and dispose of them. All come with a 6 year construction warranty from date of manufacture, up to 3 years old.

You sir were dudded by the dealer, and now are blaming the tyre that was at least 8 years old.

Anyway - I am sick of reading comments from people who have no idea, and believe a moron who doesn't have a single fact correct in his story - it has more holes in it then Bonnie and Clyde's death car.
FollowupID: 545406 Submitted: Friday, Jan 11, 2008 at 21:10 <O></O>
pmskitz posted:<O></O>
Dispersing water through tread pattern is one thing, through compound and tread depth is another. The under lying construction, steel belts, underlays, angles, thickness etc etc. also play a huge part. Yes, BFGoodrich is better than Cooper's - Fact. Construction, compound, strength and durability.

1.6mm is legal, it is far from safe, and a 4WD tyre should be changed when it reaches approx 4mm, regardless of the brand.

No one warrants against UV rays. The compounds used in Cooper's tyres is quite hard, and the 4 year warranty is because the rubber from a Cooper's tyre tends to age quicker than most. BFGoodrich is relatively soft and flexible, thus when off road they are less likely to chip the tread blocks also.

You like your Cooper's, that's fine. I am as bias towards Michelin and BFGoodrich as you will get. But I know they are the best bar. And Michelin are in a class of their own.

There are many happy people with Cooper's tyres I know. So here are the facts regarding their km warranty for those who don't know.

1. You must purchase the tyres from an authorised Cooper's dealer. (understandably, and fair)

2. They must be purchased from a dealer in a major city, as the roads in the country vary too much. (ie rough dirt roads)

3. If you take your Cooper's tyres off road, you void the km warranty. (yes - this is true)

4. You must have a rotate and balance, and a wheel alignment every 10,000km by an authorised dealer, or you void the km warranty.

5. The warranty is pro-rata. So if you get 70,000km instead of 80,000km, following all above rules, then you will get that percentage of the cost off another set of Cooper's tyres. This is fair enough, but having to run them to the 1.6mm level to get a claim isn't putting your safety first.

As I said, most people void the km warranty somehow and it's not worth the paper it's written on. You buy an off road tyre to go off road thinking you have a km warranty, but you really don't.

Hope this has helped. Cheers, Pat <O></O>
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“Political correctness is a doctrine fostered by and illogical and irrational minority, who hold forth the proposition that it, is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end”

<O>---------------------------
Aussie spec Brazilian built 2005 (US 2003) F-250 Superduty 4x4 7.3Ltr Powerstroke: PHP FU2 6 Pos’n Chip, 6 x ISSPRO Promax Guages, AIS Intake, Zoodad, Hutch'd n’ Harpoon'd, Cowl Hood, AIH Delete, DIY CCV, BTM muffler, MBRP 4” Black Tip, RiffRaff FRx,HPx,OCR, JWVB, ARB Air Lockers Front & Rear, V10 Tranny cooler in series with Stock Tranny cooler, Deep Tranny Pan, ARB Bull Bar, Edge Evo (for PIDs & Codes only), Long Range Fuel Tank, VMS in Dash GPS Street & Off Road Nav, Toyo OPAT AT 305 70R 16”on 10” Rims, Moog Greasable Ball Joints, Tough Dog RTC Steering Stabiliser, OME Suspension & Dual Tower Shocks, GVWR (GVM) Upgrade to 5,000Kg.
</O>

 

Sorry but Im not buying anything thats made in China

 

Brain, that is virtually impossible in today's world. For instance check where your clothes are made.

Agree with the tyres stuff. I'd happily run BFG's or Michelins if I can get hold of a set for a reasonable price. Also happy to go with a set of the Nitto Terra-Grapplers sea freighted from the USA for $1000.

 

G'day Brian,

Ditto that, couldn't agree more & Sorry; yep anyone would be sorry if they did .

Among F-Truck Aussie owners, what have you Fellas found to be the best AT tyre to run out here on rough outback roads & tracks.

I've had a decent run out of the Toyo LT 305/70R 16 "E" (10 ply) tyres.
However, I want to go to a 285/75R 16 'E'.
Toyo only make the MT in 285/75R 16 "E".
Their AT in 285/75R 16 is only "D" (8 ply).

Cheers,
Reg

"Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.<O</O
---------------------------
Aussie spec Brazilian built 2005 (US 2003) F-250 Superduty 4x4 7.3Ltr Powerstroke: PHP FU2 6Pos on the Fly Chip, 6 x ISSPRO Promax Guages, Donaldson (AIS) Intake with Zoodad, Hutch'd n’ Harpoon'd, Cowl Hood, Billet Grill, AIH delete, DIY CCV & catch can, Straight Through 3½” Cummins muffler, MBRP Black Tip, RiffRaff FRx,OCR,HPx, JWVB, OME Suspension, Dual Tower shocks, Tough Dog RTC Steering Damper, ARB Air Lockers Front & Rear, V10 Tranny cooler in series with Stock Tranny cooler, BD Deep Pan, Extra Cooling rear diff cover, ARB HD Front Diff cover, ARB Bull Bar, Kymar Dual Spare Wheel carrier & Rear bumper, Edge Evo Dash Pod (used for PIDs/Codes only), Long Range Fuel Tank, OEM Style paint matched wheel arch flares, VMS in Dash GPS Street & Off Road Navigator, Toyo OPAT AT 305 70R 16” on 10” Rims. GVWR (GVM) Upgrade to 5,000kg(F350+).

 

Howdy Reg hope the seas are calm m8. Cant help ya with the AT's. I have BF muddies on mine and they are just about shot. 70K kms on em so far, should get another 10K.
Simon, Im referring to rims m8 not clothes. I understand almost everything out there comes from some third world country thats why its all cr@p
The site Reg put up has some decent rims. The problem is the more I look the more I dont know which one tickles my fancy. Just looking for a 4 or 5 spoke rim, matt black with no fiddly bits to clean

 

Lol...
Good help is hard too find bruvva..

 

FFS, clothes is just an example. It's like a mine field out there. Buy a Victa mower and find out later that it's made in China. Anyway this is just history repeating. It used to be Jap Crap, then the jap stuff was better than the US stuff, that's why Toyota is popular now, then it was Taiwanese crap as production shifted away from Japan. Now some of the Taiwanese stuff is world class and production has shifted away somewhere cheaper. Chinese stuff is getting better, and some of the cheaper stuff that you may accidentally buy is made in Thailand, the Philippines or India, and some of this makes the current Chinese stuff look good.
I'm not saying I'd buy Chinese wheels. I'm just saying that there'll come a day in the not too distant future where some the best wheels in the world will be made in China, and you'll have 3/4 of the USA driving around on them.

If the best wheel maker shifts factories to China and makes the same product to the same quality standard and puts their brand name on it you're saying you wouldn't even consider buying it.

Anyway, I'm chasing up some other wheel suppliers. I still want to get a good quality set of 16" alloys and I ain't going to pay rocket truck, or another shop of that ilk, $1500 for the privilege of buying a set of wheels off them - and only then find out I got a $500 set of wheels made in China.

From a Customs perspective, I think the tyres and wheels may have to be shipped separately for them to count as separate consignments for GST purposes. I'm sure you'll have to pay 2 sets of wheel shipping feels which will probably end up being slight less than the GST saved. At least that way you can fully check the compliance and fit of the rims before getting the tyres mounted on them.

I'll keep my 20" rims and 305/50 HT Coopers for highway use. I'd like to do an outback trip and reckon the 16x8" rims with 285/75 16's E rated is the way to go. So far the closest to zero offset I've found on 16x8's is -5 though. Thats with the American Eagle rim.

Having a look through the Tire Rack now.

BFG Rugged Terrain T/A rated E looks the best value for money at $199 per tyre: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....omCompare1=yes

BFG T/A KO rated E at $205 each: BFGoodrich*All-Terrain T/A KO

Michelin LTX M/S2 rated E at $252 each: Michelin*LTX M/S2

To see all Tire Rack's 285/75 16 load rated E try here:
Tire Search Results

 

G'day Brian,

I'm up off the coast of Brunei at present. Been here 3 weeks with three to go. The weather has been kind as it normally is this time of year. The monsoon season at the end of the year through Feb/March can be a tad blowy and briney a bit lumpy.

Anyway, I digress.
Rims is what we's talkin' about.

I've been leaning toward 'Blacks' myself. But the down side of 'Black' is keeping them clean I hear?
I was wondering if you or any other fellas have any knowledge how the 'Black' Teflon coated rims stand up?

It may make it easier to clean em up? But how long would the coating last if your scrubbing mud, grit and sand off them?
Some of that outback red mud sticks like ****e to a blanket.

I've been looking at a set of the ATX AX188 Ledge - Black Teflon rims on that site www.4wheelparts.com and I think Tire Rack had them too.

Cheers,
Reg

Ineptocracy
<O(in-ep-toc'-ra-cy) - a system of government where the least capable to lead are elected by the least capable of producing, and where the members of society least likely to sustain themselves or succeed, are rewarded with goods and services paid for by the confiscated wealth of a diminishing number of producers.<O></O>

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<O></O>
Aussie spec Brazilian built 2005 (US 2003) F-250 Superduty 4x4 7.3Ltr Powerstroke: PHP FU2 6Pos on the Fly Chip, 6 x ISSPRO Promax Guages, Donaldson (AIS) Intake with Zoodad, Hutch'd n’ Harpoon'd, Cowl Hood, Billet Grill, AIH delete, DIY CCV & catch can, Straight Through 3½” Cummins muffler, MBRP Black Tip, RiffRaff FRx,ffice:smarttags" /><?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com<img src=" /><st1:stockticker>OCR</st1:stockticker>,HPx, JWVB, OME Suspension, Dual Tower shocks, Tough Dog <st1:stockticker>RTC</st1:stockticker> Steering Damper, ARB Air Lockers Front & Rear, V10 Tranny cooler in series with Stock Tranny cooler, BD Deep Pan, Extra Cooling rear diff cover, ARB HD Front Diff cover, ARB Bull Bar, Kymar Dual Spare Wheel carrier & Rear bumper, Edge Evo Dash Pod (used for PIDs/Codes only), Long Range Fuel Tank, OEM Style paint matched wheel arch flares, VMS in Dash <st1:stockticker>GPS</st1:stockticker> Street & Off Road Navigator, Toyo OPAT AT 305 70R 16” on 10” Rims. GVWR (GVM) Upgrade to 5,000kg(F350).

 

Just checked all the 16" F250 rims on Tire Rack, brands including American Racer and Dick Cepek.
With ONE exception all the 16" rims listed are made in CHINA.
ATX Mojave Black w/Teflon Coating

THAT ONE exception was made in INDONESIA!

Maybe 3/4 of the US on aftermarket wheels are ALREADY on CHINESE made wheels. And the other quarter are on ones made in INDONESIA. What do we do now?

The good thing about Tire Rack is at least they do specify the country of manufacture.
I'm sure many sellers don't openly disclose that 'detail'.

Reg, maybe you should check if they're making wheels in Brunei ...


Also BTW ATX are ... made in China: see http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/Wheel...sort=DiscountR


ATXLedge(Black w/Teflon Coating)

Front and Rear

Size: 16x8
Bolt Pattern: 8-170
Rec. Tire Size: 265/75-16
Weight: Not Available
Finish: Black w/Teflon Coating
Manufactured in China

Features

8-spoke design
One-piece, cast with Teflon® coating
Screw-down, exposed lug

Center cap shown included at no charge


AND, BTW, the future is here and I've resigned myself to buying Chinese wheels, the 3420lb rated ones (which is most of the 16's - all the 18's I've seen are 2200lbs)

 

Dont stress m8, its all good. If (a big if) I can get away from chinese I will but saying that Im not living in a cocoon bro. keep in mind if the country of origin is china you will be hit with 5% duty

 

G'day SSSimon,

Unfortunately we all have to resign ourselves to the reality of business these days. Look at our trucks, Brazil most spares Mexico etc.

The same with rims it seems, I think the Aussie mob ROH make theirs in the Phillipines?
A lot of Goodyear wranglers out of Indonesia and on it goes.

I found the same as you. The taller or wider you go than 16 x 8 the load carrying of the rim decreases. At least that seems to be the norm with the 8 x 170 Lug patterns. The later heavier trucks with 18 & 20" rims are obviously designed to carry the heavier loads.

Anyway, what to do...what to doooo still gotta deside on a set of rims.

Cheers,
Reg
remember:“There ain’t nothing that duct tape or roses can't fix”

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<O</O
Aussie spec Brazilian built 2005 (US 2003) F-250 Superduty 4x4 7.3Ltr Powerstroke: PHP FU2 6 Pos’n Chip, 6 x ISSPRO Promax Guages, AIS Intake, Zoodad, Hutch'd n’ Harpoon'd, Cowl Hood, AIH Delete, DIY CCV, BTM muffler, MBRP 4” Black Tip, RiffRaff FRx,HPx,ffice:smarttags" /><?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com<img src=" /><st1:stockticker>OCR</st1:stockticker>, JWVB, ARB Air Lockers Front & Rear, V10 Tranny cooler in series with Stock Tranny cooler, Deep Tranny Pan, ARB Bull Bar, Edge Evo (for PIDs & Codes only), Long Range Fuel Tank, VMS in Dash <st1:stockticker>GPS</st1:stockticker> Street & Off Road Nav, Toyo OPAT AT 305 70R 16”on 10” Rims, Moog Greasable Ball Joints, Tough Dog <st1:stockticker>RTC</st1:stockticker> Steering Stabiliser, OME Suspension & Dual Tower Shocks, GVWR (GVM) Upgrade to 5,000Kg.

 

These WERE the wheels i was gunna get Diamo Wheels Part W/PDI178087312A - DI17 Karat Gloss Black Machined Wheel

And these tyres Mickey Thompson Part 5185 - 37x13.50R-18, Baja ATZ Radial Tire

But not now

Make ya mind up ya bunch of women.

 

Well Ned,

I note that you "WERE GUNNA" (quote; I was gunna get).
Soooo, does this mean that Mr Kelly hasn't made her mind up yet

Cheers,
Reg

remember: “There ain’t nothing that duct tape or roses can't fix”

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------<O</O
Aussie spec Brazilian built 2005 (US 2003) F-250 Superduty 4x4 7.3Ltr Powerstroke: PHP FU2 6 Pos’n Chip, 6 x ISSPRO Promax Guages, AIS Intake, Zoodad, Hutch'd n’ Harpoon'd, Cowl Hood, AIH Delete, DIY CCV, BTM muffler, MBRP 4” Black Tip, RiffRaff FRx,HPx,OCR, JWVB, ARB Air Lockers Front & Rear, V10 Tranny cooler in series with Stock Tranny cooler, Deep Tranny Pan, ARB Bull Bar, Edge Evo (for PIDs & Codes only), Long Range Fuel Tank, VMS in Dash GPS Street & Off Road Nav, Toyo OPAT AT 305 70R 16”on 10” Rims, Moog Greasable Ball Joints, Tough Dog RTC Steering Stabiliser, OME Suspension & Dual Tower Shocks, GVWR (GVM) Upgrade to 5,000Kg.