215 85 16 Hassles

onthehunt · **Posted:** Wed Oct 13, 2010 12:12 am

Not without rubbing. Basically same height as 245/75.

geordi · **Posted:** Wed Oct 13, 2010 12:48 am

snowman_crd wrote:

sorry about the thread jack...but do 215 85 16's fit with stock suspension?

YES THEY DO.

NO, they do not rub. I have had 2 different sets, one set that has 1/16" more tread depth (so 1/8" larger overall) than the first set, both sets were BF Goodrich Commercial T/A. One in the Highway, the other in the Traction style. Neither rubs, and I do NOT have any sort of lift or modifications to my CRD suspension. I have NOT hammered the pinch weld, the only modification I have (and it wasn't caused by the tires) is that I have cut away a section of the inner plastic wheel well liner in the front. The plastic pop rivets came loose while I was in water, and the liner got onto the tire and started rubbing through while I was on the highway after. (going straight) it wore through, so I just finished the job neatly.

Try them, your CRD will look MUCH better, and the ride will be noticeably better.

UFO · **Posted:** Wed Oct 13, 2010 10:56 am

snowman_crd wrote:

sorry about the thread jack...but do 215 85 16's fit with stock suspension?

Yes.

CATCRD · **Posted:** Wed Oct 13, 2010 11:01 am

Yes they do. I put them on before my lift.

LibertyCRD · **Posted:** Wed Oct 13, 2010 8:32 pm

In looking, I noticed some things:

A) 215/85 is more expensive than 245/75
B) 215/85 is the exact same height as 245/75
C) 215/85s are absolute pizza cutters with only 6" of tread?! ICK.

D) 215/85s are barely inside the recommended minimum width for our wheels
E) 215/85s are mostly "D" and "E" rated tires... i.e., HEAVY.
F) 215/85s are tall and very skinny, i.e. lots of sidewall flex which sucks on the highway.

I really don't see any positives whatsoever to running this size on a KJ.

flash7210 · **Posted:** Wed Oct 13, 2010 10:02 pm

Everything else makes sense except this...

Quote:

F) 215/85s are tall and very skinny, i.e. lots of sidewall flex which sucks on the highway.

How does a tall sidewall effect driving on STRAIGHT, FLAT, BORING highways?
Now, if its negotiating tight curves on a road coarse then yes, sidewalls suck.

However, a load range D tire inflated to its max rating of 80 psi does not flex much in any fashion.

Also, a load range D tire is designed for trucks that weigh twice that of a CRD. Which means I
should get almost 100K miles before needing replacement.

CRD Joe · **Posted:** Wed Oct 13, 2010 10:33 pm

I agree. There are positive and negative aspects of skinny VS. fat tires all day long. Im in the skinny realm for a KJ type vehicle. For my Long Wheelbase Suzuki Samurai Im running 38.5x 14.5 Super Swamper SX's. A different realm.

CATCRD · **Posted:** Wed Oct 13, 2010 11:37 pm

My 215/85s load range Ds are comfortable, quiet, and so far they haven't held me back off road. Plus I didn't lose mpgs to gain ground clearance.

geordi · **Posted:** Thu Oct 14, 2010 1:33 am

My BFG Commercial T/A are less expensive than the non-commercial tires or the competition. That said, the difference in the appearance between these "traction" style and the same size Goodyear "E" rated was striking. The Goodyears did look like they were 2 inches narrower. At the same time, the Traction tires (Load range D) looked to be wider at the tread than the load range E highway Commercial tires they were replacing. Looked like about an inch wider.

All were sized exactly the same.

The Traction tires are quiet on the highway, the ride is nice and smooth, and these tires have done everything I have asked of them so far, including dragging my 12,000 lb RV out of a DEEP mudpit in Virginia in March. You can't ask better off-road traction than that.

I got them for $130 a piece, and my mileage has actually gone up over the load range E highway tires - Those were heavy shoes. The Traction tires come with a deeper tread, a full 1/16" of extra rubber, so I fully expect to get at least 65k miles from them if I do no rotating at all. (I did not rotate the Load Range E tires, and got 55k from them - The difference front-to-back was not significant to make me believe rotation would have added much life) I actually have stopped rotating the tires on most of my vehicles, and have not experienced reduced lifespan. Possibly because most of my miles are on the highway.

LibertyCRD · **Posted:** Thu Oct 14, 2010 7:39 am

flash7210 wrote:

Everything else makes sense except this...

Quote:

F) 215/85s are tall and very skinny, i.e. lots of sidewall flex which sucks on the highway.

How does a tall sidewall effect driving on STRAIGHT, FLAT, BORING highways?
Now, if its negotiating tight curves on a road coarse then yes, sidewalls suck.

However, a load range D tire inflated to its max rating of 80 psi does not flex much in any fashion.

Also, a load range D tire is designed for trucks that weigh twice that of a CRD. Which means I
should get almost 100K miles before needing replacement.

How? Easy. Ever tried to tow a load on the interstate with the rear end of the Jeep wagging like a dog tail? Ever had a deer run in front of you and had to swerve on that straight highway? Ever had an idiot pull out in traffic in front of you on a straight highway? Sidewalls of tires DO matter on straight highways.

And... the load rating has nothing to do with longevity of the tread. So you will never get 100K out of those tires. You MIGHT get 60K if you're lucky and drive it easy.

onthehunt · **Posted:** Thu Oct 14, 2010 12:36 pm

My 215/85's have just about zero sidewall flex. Way less than the 245/75's I had on it before. They were hell just to get them on the wheel. They are the same width as the oem tires.225/75. They also don't throw mud/saltspray outside the wheelwells like my 245/75's did.

Buster · **Joined:** Thu Sep 09, 2010 3:42 pm **Posts:** 10

I have Kumho 215/85/16's on my CRD. They look great and out perform the stock tires big time. I have no problems with braking. I would recommend them. They are a heavier tire and taller, of course, than the stock. My mileage went down about 2 MPG but the performance they give me in the snow and everyday driving is worth it. I run about 60lbs of air. They are a load range E truck tire.

kccrd · **Joined:** Thu Mar 08, 2007 10:35 pm **Posts:** 267

Absolutely

UFO · **Posted:** Fri Oct 15, 2010 1:29 pm

LibertyCRD wrote:

flash7210 wrote:

Everything else makes sense except this...

Quote:

F) 215/85s are tall and very skinny, i.e. lots of sidewall flex which sucks on the highway.

How does a tall sidewall effect driving on STRAIGHT, FLAT, BORING highways?
Now, if its negotiating tight curves on a road coarse then yes, sidewalls suck.

However, a load range D tire inflated to its max rating of 80 psi does not flex much in any fashion.

Also, a load range D tire is designed for trucks that weigh twice that of a CRD. Which means I
should get almost 100K miles before needing replacement.

How? Easy. Ever tried to tow a load on the interstate with the rear end of the Jeep wagging like a dog tail? Ever had a deer run in front of you and had to swerve on that straight highway? Ever had an idiot pull out in traffic in front of you on a straight highway? Sidewalls of tires DO matter on straight highways.

And... the load rating has nothing to do with longevity of the tread. So you will never get 100K out of those tires. You MIGHT get 60K if you're lucky and drive it easy.

You haven't driven this tire have you? The sidewalls are not flexible, and my Jeep drives like an arrow and corners just fine. Yes, it is a heavier tire, so city mileage may suffer, but my highway mileage is unchanged despite the 5% taller tire.

TJ2 · **Posted:** Fri Oct 15, 2010 8:11 pm

Interesting, somewhat heated discussion.

Has anyone who runs over 50 PSI in any size had wear pattern down the center of the tire? I read of guys on the board running pressures that would burn a stripe down the center of what I'm used to driving. Only thing I can think of is heavier vehicle. I just bumped my BGF TA AT (traction advantage, all terrain) 225's up to 38 psi. I can't imagine taking them above 40 and not getting a centerline wear pattern. (end of off topic)

For reference, my TJ (wt 3,000) will get centerline wear at 40 psi.

I will be giving a long look to 215's in the spring when it's time for new rubber.

Whoever said thin tires in the snow are better has actually done some driving in it. People who haven't theorize fat tire will allow flotation and therefore improve traction. I ask them how well they like hydroplaning on water, but they don't get the connection.

I

geordi · **Posted:** Fri Oct 15, 2010 11:02 pm

Narrow is much better in snow, water, or anything covering a road other than the paved surface.

In answer to the question of tread wear at higher pressures, my Commercial T/A highway tread have a sidewall max of 80 psi. At that pressure, the tire is designed to ride square under load, up to and including the weight marked as the load limit. Through the 55k that I got out of mine, they wore almost perfectly square. Radial belted tires (99 % of commonly available car and truck tires) have a belt surface that runs flat and parallel under the tread surface. The sidewall belts are large doughnuts that when paired with the tread surface belt, create an almost square profile. Bulging of the center of the tread is highly difficult to achieve on modern radial tires. On higher load range tires, the structure of the tire includes multiple belts, which further stiffens the structure.

That is why the sidewalls don't flex anywhere NEAR the paper-thin sidewall of the Goodyear stock tires. Yes, the stiffer sidewalls do make the CRD ride a little harder, if you run them at the sidewall max. But at a lower pressure (But not as low as the 35 of the stock tires) they will noticeably firm up the ride, in a good way.

stumpjumper_09 · **Posted:** Sat Oct 16, 2010 12:10 am

snowman_crd wrote:

sorry about the thread jack...but do 215 85 16's fit with stock suspension?

Don't worry about the thread jack cause eveyone keeps getting confused about which size is actually being discussed here :banghead:

Some people say that the CRD is a touch lower than the gasser, I have heard of people pounding the pinch weld and trimming the bumper and having them fit. Flex could be an issue, I would test fit them before buying.

UFO · **Posted:** Mon Oct 18, 2010 12:47 am

stumpjumper_09 wrote:

snowman_crd wrote:

sorry about the thread jack...but do 215 85 16's fit with stock suspension?

Don't worry about the thread jack cause eveyone keeps getting confused about which size is actually being discussed here :banghead:

Some people say that the CRD is a touch lower than the gasser, I have heard of people pounding the pinch weld and trimming the bumper and having them fit. Flex could be an issue, I would test fit them before buying.

Anyone here have fitment problems with it? I've not read of this, and there was plenty of space for my 215/85/16s.

I run them at 45psi, no sidewall flex. With 30k miles so far, no uneven wear patterns..

warp2diesel · **Posted:** Mon Oct 18, 2010 9:06 am

UFO wrote:

stumpjumper_09 wrote:

snowman_crd wrote:

sorry about the thread jack...but do 215 85 16's fit with stock suspension?

Don't worry about the thread jack cause eveyone keeps getting confused about which size is actually being discussed here :banghead:

Some people say that the CRD is a touch lower than the gasser, I have heard of people pounding the pinch weld and trimming the bumper and having them fit. Flex could be an issue, I would test fit them before buying.

Anyone here have fitment problems with it? I've not read of this, and there was plenty of space for my 215/85/16s.

I run them at 45psi, no sidewall flex. With 30k miles so far, no uneven wear patterns..

X2 45 PSI is best pressure overall and delivers better traction and fuel economy.

215 85 16 Hassles

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