Aftermarket wheels for 2014+PW

[Jack187]

I'm not understanding those heat gun pics... Haha sorry but did you just heat the inner fender liner and push the ridge in?

Pretty much. So in the picture, you will see a small channeled portion of the fender liner that runs from top to bottom, extending into the wheel well about 3/4"-1" more than the rest of the liner. It is on the outer portion of the wheel well liner. I am borrowing the heat gun pics from Skyd Ram because it makes it easy to see.

You only need to concentrate on the bottom 6-8 inches really. Once you do it, if you look at the fender from the side, you will no longer see that portion of the fender liner pushing forward towards the tire, but rather the wheel well will appear to be a smooth curve conforming to the fender flares and not protruding in on the tire. Trimming of the flare is also required, as it pushes forward at the very bottom.

You can mount a 37" inch tire without this, but it will likely hit the flare/liner when turning without this modification.

How are you liking the new cooper stt pros?!!!??

I have yet to take them off road. On road they have been excellent. No vibration. No wandering. Low road noise. They are only slightly louder than my previous Duratracs as far as hum. At times, I would even say they were quieter. I have taken them to 85 MPH and have no vibration, and the hum was minimal then as well. I went from 285 Duratracs (33") to 37" Coopers, and my gas mileage has improved. Weird. I'm not sure yet if it is me driving differently, or the decreased RPM on the highway. The only thing of note is a noticeable increase in stopping distance. The truck has plenty of power for the tires and has not been an issue. So far I am very pleased.

[olyelr]

Thanks for the info! I was checking those tires out online and thought they looked quite promising.

Are you local to traverse city then? I would love to see your truck sometime in person... Power wagons around here are about as rare as chicken lips.

[Jack187]

I'm in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. If it looks like I will ever be over that way, I will let you know!

[olyelr]

I'm in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. If it looks like I will ever be over that way, I will let you know!

Ha, thanks! Sorry bout that... I thought you said you borrowed the heat gun from skydram, but now i see it was just the pics. Duh!!

[snuffy]

So you went from a 33in to a 37in tire and you get better gas milage and no power loss? i want so of that..

[Jack187]

I am sure there is some power loss. It is just not very noticeable on the road. i am sure if I was pulling a trailer or doing some rough off roading it would be more evident. The mileage is the thing that surprises me the most. It is showing an improvement of about 0.7 MPG. This is before accounting for the 10% actual increase in mileage since the speedo is still off, so it is likely better than that.

I have a few thoughts on why this might be happening.

I could be driving more conservatively now since I give more thought to braking distance.
It could be that the lower RPM is having more of an affect than anticipated.
I have noticed the MDS seems to kick on and off less frequently as well. I am not sure how this might play into it, but it is noticeable.

[Will]

It's a tire diameter to gear ratio thing. The larger tires offset the low gears and put you more into a "highway" gear ratio... That's how mine will roll up to 125mph...

[snuffy]

yes, maybe in a perfect world but i have a hard time seeing better mpg in a day to day driving mode with 37in. tires or not losing power..

[Jack187]

yes, maybe in a perfect world but i have a hard time seeing better mpg in a day to day driving mode with 37in. tires or not losing power..

I'm just going by the readout in the EVIC for the mpg. I am sure there is a loss of responsiveness, just not much that I have perceived so far.

[snuffy]

ok, sounds good what wheels are you using?

[Jack187]

ok, sounds good what wheels are you using?

AEV Katla wheels. 17"x8.5" +27mm offset.

[cruz]

It's a tire diameter to gear ratio thing. The larger tires offset the low gears and put you more into a "highway" gear ratio... That's how mine will roll up to 125mph...

I am sure there is some power loss. It is just not very noticeable on the road. i am sure if I was pulling a trailer or doing some rough off roading it would be more evident. The mileage is the thing that surprises me the most. It is showing an improvement of about 0.7 MPG. This is before accounting for the 10% actual increase in mileage since the speedo is still off, so it is likely better than that.

I have a few thoughts on why this might be happening.

I could be driving more conservatively now since I give more thought to braking distance.
It could be that the lower RPM is having more of an affect than anticipated.
I have noticed the MDS seems to kick on and off less frequently as well. I am not sure how this might play into it, but it is noticeable.

Any change in tire size changes the FINAL DRIVE RATIO, see the example below.
With larger than stock tires it will probably hurt MPG if it's all stop-n-go driving, and probably help during long distance highway cruising speeds.

[SnakeEyes]

That actually makes sence lol by goin to a 37" it's probably more like dropping your gear ratio to closer to 3.73 resulting in better highway mileage but far less power off the line