wwood

I have a new 2014 F150 FX4 Tremor, only 400 miles. No level, no lift.
Don't like the looks of the factory wheels and tires (they don't stick out at all) and want to sell them. The factory wheels are black 20X8.5 +44 offset with Perelli 275/55 R20 tires.

Discount Tire test fit a Raptor wheel (17x8.5 +10 offset) and a BFG 285/70 R17 tire on my truck and it fits fine at ride height. Turned the tires to full lock in both directions and there is no rubbing. But this setup does not allow the tires to stick out enough to suit me. And I don' t know if there will be any rubbing when the suspension is fully compressed as in driving off road.

Can I put 17x8.5 wheels with 0 offset (4.75 backspace) and 285/70 R17 tires without any leveling or lift kit and have no rubbing, even at full compression.

Don't like the idea of a spacer lift and there are few coilover leveling kits available for the 2014. I am interested in the Bilstein front leveling shocks but they are not yet available for 2014 f-150s:

http://www.bilsteinus.com/fileadmin/...WebArticle.pdf

So at this point I am thinking about the above wheels/tires and no level or lift at all, if they will fit without major trimming. I can certainly trim the plastic stuff but I don't want to mess up the metal fenders.

Thanks for any info.

BassAckwards

Without some kind of lift stuffing 33s is gonna be tight on an offset wheel. Stock wheels no problem but pushing them out makes them more likely to rub while turning. I had a 3" lift strut up front on 9" wide wheels -12 offset and they rubbed full lock in reverse.

My 0.02 cents.

wwood

Thanks for the reply. I am new to modified trucks and need more education, hoping you might have time to help. I have been unable to get clear answers from places like Discount Tire or various lift kit vendors. Read a big bunch of posts on truck forums but a lot of the info is incomplete and conflicting.

I have experience with a modified Jeep. Installed a 3" lift myself and went from narrow factory 31s with about 6" of backspace to 35X12.50R17s with 3.5" backspace (way negative offset). Jeep people talk about backspace not offset so I don't know the offset number on my Jeep wheels but they stick out over 3" past the fender flares.

Based on my Jeep experience I don't see how/why less positive offset or even negative offset can cause rubbing. The farther the wheel sticks out the less rubbing should occur as per what I see in my Jeep. We don't have fender laws here in AZ so my tires can stick out all I want and I like them sticking out a lot.

You mentioned that you had 33s on a 9" wide wheel with -12 offset that still rubbed at full lock in reverse even with a 3" strut lift.

Several questions if you don't mind.

Where was the rub and how bad was the rub. I am not afraid to trim the plastic stuff. Don't want to trim the actual metal fenders.

What difference does reverse/forward make when it comes to rubbing? How could moving forward be different than backing up when you have the wheels at full lock to the right or left?

Why does wheel/tire width make a difference. The test fit tires we put on at Discount tire were 32.7x11.22 on a +10 offset wheel compared to the factory wheel/tires at 31.9x10.83 +44 offset. I looked carefully at the test tires and there was plenty of room everywhere at full lock in both the left and right directions. I could not see a reason why a 12" wide tire would rub, appeared to be easily 2" clearance everywhere.

The Discount Tire guy said the test wheel/tire probably would not fit before we tried it and he was quite surprised when it fit fine but he did not know if it would rub on full compression during offroad use (as in stuffing the wheel going over a log or rock).

On Jeeps we remove the coil springs and use a floor jack to articulate the axle (with the wheel/tire mounted) all the way up and all the way down (full droop to full stuff) to make sure nothing rubs or binds. Don't truck people do the same? It does not look too easy to remove the coils from the front struts and I certainly cannot remove the rear leaf springs. So how do we test for rubbing/interference on an F150 during full suspension travel?

Appreciate any info.

BassAckwards

Offset is where the hub mounting surface of the wheel is relative to the centerline of the wheel. So -12 means the mounting face is 12mm away from the centerline of the wheel but being negative it is towards the back of the wheel as opposed to 12mm from centerline towards face of wheel. And of course you know backspacing is measured from hub face to back lip of wheel. A -12mm offset on 9" wide wheel is equivalent to 4.5" backspacing.

More rubbing is likely when the wheels stick out during a turn on these trucks. It's hard to explain without you physically seeing it, but stock wheels when turning, the arc they turn on fits inside the fender well. When you push them out this pushes the arc out exposing more of the tire to the fender and allowing it too rub. Jeeps are just a whole different beast, but when you do this you will see what I mean.

Where was the rub. I have factory small fender flares. It rubbed barely on the inside corner. I trimmed about a 1/4" of plastic and it was good to go.

Going backwards vs forward. Think of a race car running the quarter mile. When they launch that back end squats. Same thing if you launch hard in the trucks, back end squats down, front end rises up. When you go in reverse however the front end squats down. Not a problem if you go straight but again going straight isn't the problem it's turning. So full lock steering in reverse I had the smallest amount of rub.

You may not have rub at all with the setup you originally described, but I haven't done it myself so I wanted to warn you that it's possible and likely only small trimming would be necessary if at all.

Wheel and tire width make a difference because the wheel will effect your offset, and the wider tire may cause you to rub your Upper Control Arm. Gotta remember these trucks have IFS. If you get a super wide tire but don't push it out, your upper control arm will cut a hole in the sidewall. It's a lot of balancing to get wheels that stick out but the biggest and widest tire.

As far as a 12" wide tire I can't tell you for sure that it will rub but it's more likely while turning than the previous option. I fit my 325/60R18 with a little bit of rubbing on that same lift kit after my original trimming. So you got enough offset to clear the upper control arm and having a more positive offset helps not rub while turning. The question becomes is the leveling kit you want tall enough. I think so but it will require minor trimming.

Taking the coilovers out is a pain in the ***, and the first time you take them out and see the little nut holding the spring preload, you will quickly realize you have a live grenade in your hands until it's back in the truck. So you can jack up the A-Arms to an extent but eventually the static weight of the truck won't be enough to compress the spring and you'll just tip the truck over. You pretty much just have to go out and test it lol.

The rear your pretty much golden for anything though within reason.

wwood

Bass,

Thanks a million for the very informative reply. Everything you said makes perfect sense. I am finally learning something about pickups and really appreciate your help.

After hunting on the internet for days and watching many YouTube videos I decided to order a 3" Icon coilover lift kit which they say will solve my potential rubbing problems. Also decided on 34" tires - Nitto Terra Grapplers 305/70/R17 (33.98"x12.36") which will go on Method 17x8.5 wheels with 0 offset (4.75 backspace). The Icon folks assured me these tires and wheels will fit with no rubbing using only about 2.25" lift on their coilovers. They say that they have installed plenty of 34" tires with their 3" lift kit and had no rubbing or other problems. We will see, but I intend to install the lift kit then ask Discount Tire to test fit that wheel/tire combo to make sure it works before I order a full set.

I will post some pics and details when I get the lift and wheels/tires installed which might help somebody else.

BassAckwards

Call ahead and make sure they actually have that size in stock before going to get a test fit. Unfortunately there have been too many cases of people having us order tires swearing they would have the cash when they came in and they end up never showing up to retrieve the tires.

So once you order the tires, it's money up front and they are yours. If we have to special order them that is. On that size, it's more than likely the case.

wwood

Sounds like you work for Discount Tire?

I understand what you are saying. Luckily I have already purchased 2 sets of Jeep wheels and tires from my local Discount Tire and have a good relationship with them so I believe they know I would not back out on any deal I make. In this deal I will order the wheels from DT, and when they come in ask them to mount any 305/70/17 tire (or as close to that size as possible) that they have in stock as a test. Assuming it fits ok I can then order the actual tires I want from them. I am hoping to get Nitto's new Terra Grappler G2 which was supposed to be available 10/1/2014, but I don't see it on DT's website yet.

It is unfortunate that there is not some source available that would tell us what specific size tire and wheel combinations will fit stock trucks and trucks modified with standard lifts. Obviously the information exists somewhere but it is scattered around the country in various truck and tire shops and experienced truck owners and there is no practical way for us beginners to find it except to ask on forums like this.

Appreciate all your help.