ATV and UTV Tire Talk

One of the first upgrades our customers make to their ATV or Side by Side is a new set of tires. Tires are one of those things that wear out over time and you may have to replace several times throughout the lifespan of your machine. Sometimes it makes more sense to replace the rims at the same time, let me explain why. 

Keep in mind, your machine likely came stock with the same height of tires on front and rear but the fronts are typically skinnier and the rears are a little wider.  If you are looking to replace your tires with the exact same sizes that your machine came with it is quite simple.  You would just need to order the exact sizes that your machine currently has.  That is the most simple and straightforward option when it comes to replacing your tires.  However, if you are wanting to upgrade to larger sizes, or possibly run the same sized tires on the front and rear you would need to do a little more homework before you make a purchase, and that's the purpose of this article.  Hopefully we can shed a little light on this topic to help you out.  

We frequently hear the question: Can I run the same sized tires on all 4 corners but use my factory rims? This is a common thing our customers want to do for 2 main reasons. It allows you to rotate your tires, and it simplifies things for keeping a spare tire on hand that would universally fit either the front or the rear. The answer to the question is technically yes you could, but it's not recommended. Here's why: Your factory rims are 2 different widths.  They are usually 6 inches wide on the front and 8 inches wide on the rear.  If you want to mount the same sized tires on those rims they will not end up being the same size because they are mounted on 2 different widths of rims. For example, if your factory sizes are 29x9-14 front and 29x11-14 rear and you want to upgrade to 30x10-14 all the way around. If you mount 30x10 tires to the factory front rims they will be taller and skinnier than the same 30x10 tires that are mounted on the factory rear rims. You can cause serious damage to the drivetrain of your machine if you are driving in 4WD on tires that are not all the same height so having 2 different widths of rims creates a problem if you're trying to run the same tire size on all 4 corners. Also, you can't rotate your factory rims front to back regardless of what size of tires are on them because of their respective widths and offsets. They are only designed to be used in their designated locations on your vehicle. This is a situation where it would make sense to replace your rims at the same time as your tires if you are looking to run the same size tires on all 4.  If you are ok with using 2 different widths of tires, just like most machines come from the factory, then it's ok to keep your factory rims. When you buy aftermarket rims for your machine you'll notice that 99% of them are only offered in 1 width which is usually 7 inches wide. Having all 4 rims the same solves the issues we've discussed in this article by allowing you to rotate your tires and to run the same sizes of tires all the way around.  Please reach out to us here at Pure Offroad if you have additional questions on this topic or if you're in the market for new tires and rims for your machine.