hello everyone! i just joined this forum and already love reading all the threads! Im 23 years old and my dad has raised me to bleed chevy! My first truck was a 2001 chevy s10 ZR1. had it till last april and now i have a 2011 Chevy 1500 Ext. Cab Z71 LT. I love it. I am currently waiting on rims that i just ordered and i will soon be buying new tires. I have a few questions and im sure you guys have been asked them a million times but i just figured someone may have been in this same situation and could shed some light. my tires are 265/70 17s. I ordered BMF Novakane rims which are 18x9. So im gonna store them until i have the money to buy new tires. I have a 2 inch leveling kit on my truck and the guy at the tire store said the biggest i would wanna go without rubbing or cutting into the wheel well is 285s. Im thinkin of going with Cooper ST Maxxs but the biggest 18s they have on their site are 275s. Just wanna know has anyone had problems with 275s or 285s rubbing? remember i have a 2 inch leveling kit. And my truck has the tire pressure sensors and i was wondering what happens when you put on after market rims? does the low pressure light just come on on the dash? If you clear it will that take care of it? Any info would be appreciated and i look forward to learning alot on here!

 

Yes on the light the tire place should sell a sensors or use your sometimes and 285 should be fine with lvl kit

 

Alright thanks for the info! i wasnt sure if they could remount the sensors or what they do with them. that was probably the thing that had me the most worried. Haha i dont like messin with sensors much

 

Hey Scotty, welcome to the forum.

First, i don't have the answers regarding your tire size question. I can help regarding the TPMS questions. Many guys go with the heavier ply tires (IE LT tires) and then raise the tire pressure. However, the TPMS system will trip if the tire psi is too low or to HIGH. So if you go with those larger tires, I would not go with anything heavier than a load range "C" tire. I know it is nice to have the higher load range "D" or "E" LT tires if you are taking it off road. But you usually have to run higher tire pressures which trips the light. It adds a boat load of un-sprung weight which will drastically change your ride quality (which may be a good thing when your a young pup!!! ). But just pay attention to what load range tire you get. Most guys don't realize this mistake until they already own the tires and the light comes on and stays on because they are running 45+ psi.

If you are only going off road occasionally, then stick with "P" rated tires. That way you will easily stay within the "OK" range for the trucks TPMS system.

Hope this helps.

 

hey thanks a ton for the info eric! i never knew bout all that. haha to be honest i probably wont take my truck off roading at all, well besides occacsional gravel roads. haha im just mainly doin the bigger, treadier tires for looks. Ive been on Cooper tires website and i reeeeaaaaally like the STTs or ST Maxxs. But now with what you have told me i may look more. Do they just take the tire pressure sensor out of my stock rims and put them in my new ones or what??

 

The sensors are actually part of the valve stem. Since your truck is fairly new, DON'T let the tire sales guy sell you new sensors. They will probably be fine. They are usually good for a few years. The sales guy will say they recommend replacing the sensors with every tire change. But how else do they make money???

Since you are ACTUALLY honest about your intended use, I would definitely go with "p" rated tires. You will get much better fuel mileage and ride quality compared to the same size tires that are LT rated.

Also, something to think about. Your speedo will probably be off due to the drastic change in size. Diameter in inches (stock - 99.3" and 285/70/17 - 102.8" or 3.5% speedo error) So you may need a programmer to fix the speed. This will also calibrate other features that run off your speed (ie odometer, mpg calculator, etc). Also, I did a quick check as you did not include the aspect ratios you are looking at. 285/70/17 and 275/70/17 are common tire sizes so if you got a flat on the road, you would be more likely to find another tire than if you went with a 285/65/17.

Additionally, you should be good with the 275/70/17 which has a diameter of 101" or 1.6% speedo error).

Hope this helps

Eric

 

thanks for all the info! yeah i have the 265/70 17s on my truck right now. Stock tires and rims. I just bought the 18x9 rims and will be picking them up next week and taking them home just to store for awhile. haha i have to build my checking account back up before tires. Figured in a month id go back and order the tires and when they get those in i would have them put the tires on the new rims and then put them on my truck. This may be a dumb question but if the sensor is in the valve stem and i put on new tires and rims wont i HAVE to buy new sensors to install?? or do they have a way to take the old sensors out of the old tires and install them in my new tires??

 

Exactly. They will have to remove the valve stem and put it back on the new rims. Some rims won't accept the stock TPMS sensors so I retract my earlier statement depending on your rims. Just be prepared to pay a little more for the mounting. Definitely post pics when you get it all done. Would love to see the truck afterwards!!