235/85/16 vs 265/75/16

looking to get rid of my dunflops but im torn between 265/75 and 235/85.

Which would be better for gas mileage? I drive about 70 miles a day for work and i dont want to totally kill my fuel economy. What would have a bigger affect on my fuel economy; tread width or tire weight?

My offroading consists mostly of beach driving. I do fine on the dunflops at street pressure. Anyone have experience with the 235/85's on the beach? Do they need to be aired down? Would the 265/75's be better on the beach at street pressure?

Does anyone re calibrate their speedometer after only going up in size an inch or is the difference more or less negligible?

 

I run 235/85R16 and if you do a lot of soft surfaces I'd probably opt for the wider tire. I like my tires a lot, I think tall and skinny is the way to go but I do between zero and no beach driving. In deep snow, the occasional sand dune, narrow tires will dig more.

I did not recalibrate. I get about a 3% error (reads low, so you're going faster than indicated) in the speedometer. I can't say I really notice one way or the other. On the highway I wish I had more overdrive, in low range I wish I had less.

 

Do you air down for the sand dune? I love the stance on the 235's which is why I'm not sure which direction i want to go.

 

I run my tires (which are BFG A/T KO2) at around 20 psi off road. For very soft surfaces such as unpacked snow I might go a little lower but I typically don't. That's only because my deflators are set to 20 psi and I'm lazy. One thing to keep in mind about 235/85R16 is it's normally a work truck size so almost all options are load range E. That only means you'll have stiff sidewalls so you can air them down a lot if you want. But it's a narrow profile and there's not much you can do to change that.

 

I wouldn't go any bigger than p265/70/16 you probably lose 1 mpg with them

 

thats stock diameter though

 

no p245/75/16 should be the stock size for all 4x4 4 cylinders, they are a narrower tread and pretty much the same diameter as the p265/70/16 any bigger then you will see a degradation in performance and the mpgs, if you drive 70 miles per day I would keep an eye out for lightweight p265/70/16 tires,keep in mind the stock rubber weighs 32lbs. from the factory any weight increase will hurt the performance

 

yeah dude 245/75/16 and 265/70/16 are the same diameter... hence stock diameter

 

I have 225/70/16 last 6 years.

Just bought some goodyear Wrangler Kevlar 265/70/16. Will be interesting to see MPG drop.

I live on a top of a hill with a 1 mile of very zig zag sports car roads. With the double cab, and the skinny 225, there has been some dicey corners over the years...

 

I went from 235s to 265s, I didn't loose any measurable mpgs. But on steep hills it's a little noticable but not dramatic.

 

Coming from stock which size would you say performed the best and what was the mpg loss when you first went to the 235s?

 

Honestly the only time I notice any mpg loss is going 80ish through the hills of pa. Even then it was between 1 and 2 at the most. I haven't really noticed any performance difference but I haven't driven in the winter with them yet. I have about 20000 on the 265s and I had almost 30000 on the 235s and I don't think I'm going back to the 235s. The 265 just look alot more filling in the wheel well to me.

 

Great that's exactly what I wanted to know. Thanks man

 

I don't give a shit about looks, I wanted a tire that would be absolutely guaranteed not to rub on anything at stock height with zero mods or cutting so I went with 235/85 and discovered that not only are they perfect but they look great as well. They look like stock width but 1-2 inches taller. Will be getting the exact same size when the time comes to replace.

 

if you do beach go wider. I ran 235s for the better traction in snow in the Adirondacks in ny. I currently have 265 duratracs so I don't have a snow comparison yet but I like the looks of both. Btw I ran 235 cooper st maxx.

 

Congratulations?

 

I'm definitely getting 235/85-16's when I wear out my 245/75/16s.

 

Having had both....I would go with 235/85. I always air down in sand. 15 psi, never had a problem. FYI 235 has more sidewall height per lb of rubber than 265. When aired down there is a noticable difference in ride, 235s are smoother

 

What tire are you running bell?

 

Well when I bought the truck it had stock tires, once I lifted it with ome, I got these first
maxis bighorn mt 265 75 16.

Then someone wanted to buy them, so I got these shipped from NC

roadwarrior mt 235/85-16. These were great. This was the best tire size for offroad on rock, mud with hard bottom,and desert sandy trails by far. Played in many a cattle tank and all were impressed how it could cut to hard stuff and go. I even drove down the middle of the hasiampa river when no one else in huge jacked up chevies and jeeps could make it. Of course they didn't have a clue airing down, and I was crawling around like a cockroach. They lasted about 35k, they are in the shop right now a guy is giving me 150 for them today, they have about 8 to 9 k left on them.

federal curiga mt's are what I got now, there was a huge sale in Dallas and I got these mounted for less than 450. 265 75 16, they have been ok so far, but boy do they hum on the highway. If I switch frames and re gear I would like move up to 255 85 16, but it may be asking to much of the 4 cylinder, I don't know