Ordered a set of Goodyear Duratracs!!!

[JUPITERH3T]

Well, after 34000 miles it was time to replace my original tires on my H3T. After much thought, I finally settled on Good Year Dura Trac 305/70R 16's for the stock Hummer chrome wheels. I justified the tire size by comparing the stock 265/75R 16's to 285/75R 16's; 305/70R 16's and 315/75R 16's. The stock 265's look way too small, the 315/75R 16 is almost a 35" diameter tire which would rub at full lock, kill the little gas mileage I have, and make it harder to tow my 28' boat. It was very close between the 285/75R 16 and 305/70R 16. They're both a 33.1" diameter tire but the 305 picks up about 1" of additional width for a wider footprint. I like the fact that the Dura Trac tire has rim protectors....with the stock chromies being a flush wheel, the xtra little bit of setback built into the sidewall helps. Over my stock 265's I pickup 1.4" in diameter and 2.2" of width. That should help fill of the wheel wells a little better without rubbing. I may even crank the torsion bars to raise the front 1.5"..I should have the tires mounted and balanced tomorrow!

 

[Pappibri]

Good buy you made.. I have them on my H3 and Sport Trac... Love em.. I was going to go bigger, but it is still my daily driver so I did not want to lose more MPG.. When I get me another car to be my daily driver I will then go with the next bigger size.. I like to fill up the wheel wells, and right now I feel that I have too much well showing.. But I know you will love em...

 

[justin94tt]

Hate to say it the 305/70/16 is going to rub at full lock also. It is the same width as the 315/75/16 just not as tall.

 

[sinstr]

So now your ready to go wheeling with us in a few weeks???

 

[Ron46]

those are the same tires i have, same size too! i love them!

 

[JUPITERH3T]

So now your ready to go wheeling with us in a few weeks???

I'm always ready to wheel...as long as I'm not boating!!

 

[4508js]

My H3 has 285 Duratracs on it, they were on it when I bought it. I've never been a Goodyear fan but so far they seem to be decent tires. They don't have much wear so I'll leave them on

 

[alrock]

Hate to say it the 305/70/16 is going to rub at full lock also. It is the same width as the 315/75/16 just not as tall.

Might have to work on your tire sizing a bit - 315 is 1 cm wider than a 305 as the first number in the tire sizing designates width in millimeters. Of course sizes tend to vary a bit between manufacturers, models, etc. so I would not expect a 315 tire to always be exactly 315 mm wide.

I've rubbed with 295s and 305s and I think rubbing is more as a result of cranking torsion bars than of tire width, though both come into play.

 

[JUPITERH3T]

Might have to work on your tire sizing a bit - 315 is 1 cm wider than a 305 as the first number in the tire sizing designates width in millimeters. Of course sizes tend to vary a bit between manufacturers, models, etc. so I would not expect a 315 tire to always be exactly 315 mm wide.

I've rubbed with 295s and 305s and I think rubbing is more as a result of cranking torsion bars than of tire width, though both come into play.

No rubbing with the 305's lock to lock..I haven't flexed the suspension yet to see if they might rub while wheeling...

 

[JUPITERH3T]

Hate to say it the 305/70/16 is going to rub at full lock also. It is the same width as the 315/75/16 just not as tall.

No rubbing at all lock to lock!!

 

[08SolarFlareH3]

Like Alex said, it has to do with torsion bar adjustment. My 305/70R16's and my 315/75R16's didn't rub at all before leveling and after leveling they both did. Either way, it's not anything to worry about.


Sent using Tapatalk

 

[MTUH3]

My 285s rubbed on the stab bar when I leveled the truck, but not enough to notice while driving.

 

[JUPITERH3T]

Day 4 with my Duratrac. Did a 140 mile round trip to catch some hurricane surf yesterday. The Duratracs were extremely quiet on the highway and very smooth. Ran through some mud and sand along the beach and they just floated over the top..might have to invest in some mudflaps though. With the tires sticking out they sure kick up some dirt on a white truck!!!

 

[alrock]

Mud flaps and sliders that stick out do help, as these pictures show. But if you've got a wider offset (don't know if you do) then the mudflaps won't catch that.

With front mud flaps and RR sliders

Without

 

[Schwarttzy]

I like the without photo better.

 

[backcountryislife]

Btw, for folks looking to see how tire sizes actually compare when jumping from 265, 305, 315... 70, 75... etc:


Tire size calculator, pretty handy.

http://www.1010tires.com/tiresizecalculator.asp