I know the profiles are generally different and that sort of stuff but would switching to a light truck tire from the passenger type make the ride notably harsher? I know that switching to the BF Goodrich All-Terrains on my wife’s 95 Explorer was a mistake. I have a 99 F150 Supercab 4X4 that does mostly paved driving and after having 2100 pounds of sand in it this weekend I figured that the 1700 LB rating is what I should stick with.

 

Your measurements are the same--- Tread width/ratio type(R=Radial) diameter.

P tires have fewer belts in the sidewalls, hence the lower load capacity and softer ride.

LT tires have at least one more belt and a higher load rating, and thus a harsher ride.

I would stay with the recommendations on the sticker. If you want, you can drop the pressure 3-5psi and get a softer ride. If you have to haul anything, increase the pressure a little and you should be good to go.

 

For 99 I could have had the LT 245/75 tires on the 16” rims as an option but the dealer didn’t want to due a swap. I’m just trying to find out if there will be much of a difference like I experienced with my wife’s Explorer or is the geometry of the suspension different to make it less noticeable.

 

When you say 1700 lbs, that is the rating on the tire?

If so, you need to go to the LT tires based on this.

Two tires gives you 3400 pounds. Minus the 2100 pounds of sand, leaves 1300 for the truck. Based on 60/40 weight ratio on a truck, that means your truck can only weigh 3200 pounds. I think it would weigh more than that.

You door stick will give you weights based on tire sizes. My 2003 Toyota RAV4 has LT tires on it and it only weighs 2200 pounds.

As far as geometry of suspension, that is two different beasts, at least the rear is. Your truck is solid axle, where as the Expl is independent. Also, the suspension in an Ex is made for comfort, in a truck it is designed for load capacity and travel and is harsher by nature.

I notice a difference between 45 psi and 60 psi in my truck. But I also run load E tires.

I had 31x9.5x15 BFG's on my old truck and they ran fine. I ran 35 psi in them, and it rode great.

LT tires will need less pressure, and if you drop the pressure in the Expl about 5 psi, your ride will soften out and should be about the same as passenger tires with the wear even.

I guess I should ask this, Tire Rack says that your tire should be 255/70R-16. Those have a load rating of 2100 pounds or so. What size do you have???

 

Correction: The '95 Explorer has a torsion bar/A-arm Dana 35 IFS axle and a solid axle, spring under Ford 8.8" rear axle. (IRS was introduced in '02). I'm not real familiar with the the newer F-150's, but I believe that is similar to what you have. The main differences I would expect is stiffer springs, heavier duty shocks, and spring over axle in the rear instead of spring under axle.
Any chance the tire shop you're getting them from would let you test ride the tires?

 

Sorry, but I meant 1700 for the payload. All 99 F150s came with p235/70 16 tires unless you have a Lariat or off road package. It’s a toss up right know for either a set of LT245/75 or P255/70. As far as a getting a test ride, the shop says that once they are mounted they are mine.

 

Ok. I just didnt know that.

My theory, is always, the bigger, the better. I don't need load range E, but I run them just in case I do. I would hate to have a sub-standard tire and have a failure because I overloaded the truck.

I would recommend the larger tires and just drop your pressure. Your footprint will be larger, thus the lower pressure.