Yup. Probably "a whole lot more to it".

Good to hear you "probably drive in a more demanding fashion" yet "have not found any issues with handling, braking, ride comfort mpg or power" despite the negatives you cited.

 

if you grandma-drive your truck, why would you even THINK about bigger tires? you obviously already knew what it would do to your truck before you posted.

 

Well I actually know that I drive it hard, but most "expert" drivers out there think the same. You would surely mess your pants riding Red Mtn pass with me on a day I was pushing it. My buddy became physically ill riding in the Porsche over the same road

I think we just come back to the same answer over and over, the change you propose is minor. We are splitting hairs that 99% of people would never notice. I would say that if you go up to a 35" tall tire you are definately going to feel the trade off. Below that the average driver isn't going to notice, and staying in a size offered on stock trucks from the factory definately isn't a problem.

 

Wow! There's an enormous gray area between those who "grandma-drive" their pickups & the "experts" who "drive it hard" & all "think the same". Just as there is a chasm between those who would never "even THINK about bigger tires" & the "average driver" who "isn't going to notice" any difference between 235 & 265 tires.

Thanks for all your opinions & presumptions.

 

The million dollar highway makes me sick no matter how fast I'm going, Greenie. How they get anyone to drive the snowplow in the winter is beyond me.

To the original poster - 20K miles on a 98? Your tires probably wore out from just sitting there. I changed to 265's on my '01 after 33K miles on the OEM Generals. Those were POS tires; barely considered them much more than rim protectors. If you are still running the original stock tires, there are so many improvements in traction to enjoy with new tires (regardless of diameter).

Nobody has stated it, although it is fairly obvious. MPG's will suffer with the switch from 235's to 265's, but be sure to make the 9.9% difference in circumference part of the calculation. Adding that in doesn't make the mileage look so bad.

 

Whenever CW does a post, always expect confrontation before it's all over.
Look at past threads for an education!

 

The original '98 tires aren't anywhere near being "wore out" in the regular sense. The tread still looks great, actually exceptional for 20K miles. There's also no sign of 'dry checking' one might expect on 12+ YO tires. The tires are beginning to show early signs of belt separation, likely from a life pounding on bad roads. IMO there's no question I'll enjoy new tires "regardless of diameter".

Hadn't done "the calculation" for the increase in circumference, but realized it's significant. Have heard that it's fairly simple (at least for a dealer) to recalibrate the speedometer to adjust for oversize tires, presume odometer also can be recalibrated.

Still seems to be some question whether "MPG's will suffer with the switch from 235's to 265's" for the conscientious driver interested in fuel economy, despite your contention "although it is fairly obvious". Some very experienced drivers are "expert" at achieving much better than average mileage. One might expect it to be "fairly obvious" that those who "drive it hard" & are "pushing it" to the point a passenger becomes "physically ill riding" would get the worst MPG.

 

My point is, the odometer will be off by -9.9%, and if you don't take that into consideration when dividing mileage by gallons of gas, your mileage will drop regardless of how you drive. I didn't have the 235's on for very long, and it was 8 years ago, so I can't recall the actual mpg change, but I'm sure it was minimal.

The speedo correction can be done with several engine 'tuners' as well as by the dealer. I haven't, and my odometer is several thousand miles behind my 'actual' mileage.

 

I drive it all winter too. We unload the snowmobiles right on top of Red Mtn Pass I can't wait for the snow!

 

What gears do you run now? My 01 OFFROAD 4x4 came with 265/70R17's with 3.55 gears and ran well.

 

my 99 came with 265/70/17 stock as well with 3.55 gears. Im now running a 255/75/17 tire, which is a tad narrower and a tad taller. I honestly have not noticed any difference in MPG or handling at all. The truck runs and drives like the day i bought it.

I hope this helps.

 

I have never seen anyone abuse a quotation mark so many times in a single thread.

 

Comical - I even thought about how little sense Club Wagon's last post made while I was driving to work this morning. Out of the blue it just hit me that, whatever the guy meant, moving forward with this thread was like hitting my head against a brick wall . I decided to just skip this thread - until you posted that comical reply.

No offense, Club Wagon - I'm sure you have a point in that last paragraph; it just wasn't meant for the average Ford fan to figure out...

 

It isn't the tires. The driver has a much larger effect on milage than the tires.

Once again you seem to be looking for a glowing blanklet truism that simply does not exist.

For example, I bet you I could drive the road of my choice faster than you, and get better milage.

 

Once again you post what you believe to be "a glowing blanket truism" that's both totally irrelevant & completely off topic.

All other factors remaining the same-the topic here IS the tires & only the tires.