Slappin’ bigger tires on the Sprinter

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Lee,
I’m about to buy new tires for my Dodge Sprinter and need to know what size your Sportsmobile came with. According to Dodge I can’t go any bigger than stock, but I find that hard to believe with the amount of room this thing has.
Mikey

The more you click, the more I can post. Lee Likes Groceries dot com!

Hey Mike,

My long wheelbase 2005 Dodge Sprinter 2500 came from Sportsmobile with 245/75R16 Goodyear Wrangler MT/R tires.

The stock tires are 225/75R16 all season models. That makes the Wranglers 20 mm wider and 30 mm taller than stock.

When they were new, during tight turns my Wranglers rubbed the wheel wells. These tires are very aggressively lugged, and while they make the Sprinter look mean and saved my butt in the Sea Otter Mud Lot, they are really noisy, and they wore into a scalloped pattern. Now they’re crazy-noisy.

I have 30,000 miles on the Wranglers, and I’m about to switch to a set of Toyo Open Country HTs, in the stock size. They should be quieter and, thanks to their siping, work better in snow.

Rock it,

— Lee



Wrangler MT/R (Maximum Traction/Reinforced)

Toyo Open Country HT (Highway Terrain)
4 replies
  1. Ryan says:

    Mike,

    You might check out the Bridgestone Dueller A/T’s for an all terrain tread pattern that does well on the highway. I’ve got them on my truck and they make NO road noise at all, yet they’re fairly aggressive for some light shuttling, camping etc. I’m very pleased…

  3. leelikesbikes says:

    That’s what the tire guy suggested. $300 more per set than the Toyos, but you’re right — Michelins rule.

    I used to mount and balance car tires for a living, and Michys always had the best fit.

  4. Salami says:

    Mikey,

    Keep in mind just because there appears to be a lot of room doesn’t mean a larger tire size is better. Newer vehicles with ABS and/or traction control can negatively affect these systems along with speedometer and odometer accuracy. Changing tire size can also cause other issues such as increased rolling resistance (affects full economy), load carrying capacity, and may not fit the stock wheel width.

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