Why don’t people like the OEM tires/wheels?

[thesocalexplorer]

Big bend wheels themselves weren't too bad, they look pretty good with some dirt and mud on them. The OEM duelers left a lot to be desired, with how they looked. They got the job done in light offroad and they got really good highway MPG. Adding a nicer set of tires makes the BB wheels look way better.

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[SeptuagenarianSasquatch]

Just passed 30K miles on 35" OEM Goodyear Territories (a.k.a. Wranglers) on 4DR Badlands Sasquatch.
They're very good, but not great, tires, in that they are a very good compromise of desirable qualities for a serious on- and off-road medium-heavy truck. Every tire is a result of compromises. Better mileage may make it less capable in snow and rain. Better snow and rain capabilities may make it more noisy. Increased off-road capabilities compromise mileage. Overall, I think the OEM Territories are a pretty good balancing act, for the price, weight, and the general public's needs.

My BD/Sas is my daily drive (Northeast city + highway), but I enjoy fairly aggressive off-road treks (NH, VT, WV, UT, NV). I had serious problems with punctures at first: they're notorious as "rock-chuckers," in that they pick up stones, and fling them. So ColoradoSkiDreaming (O.P.), be sure to invest in decent mudflaps if you're driving unpaved, especially at Baja speeds. They'll grab stones and fling them. A full-length step adds more protection, besides convenience getting in and out. I recommend RokBlokz flaps for serious off-roading, and the iAG step which you remove when rock crawling.

Now, regarding the punctures. I had three on well maintained dirt/clay/gravel BLM roads in Utah (e.g. Pony Express Historic Byway). I was driving a comfortable 45-65 mph on those roads, and found that the Goodyear Territories rode well, but grabbed and held stones, which then worked their way up through the ply and punctured the tires. This problem seems to self-eliminate at about 10,000 miles; one poster elsewhere said 5,000. Consider that if you buy used.

But speaking of problems, the sidewalls are thin, and I have lost a tire to a sidewall tear. In spite of all that (now that I'm poorer and wiser) I do recommend them for off-roading and medium-to-aggressive rockcrawling. They're pretty good in mud. And if you can pick up your spares on the cheap from other disaffected Bronco owners, so much the better.

I've bought KO2s at a big discount. They're in my basement for when I wear the rubber down on the Goodyears.

Keep on wheeling!

 

[Midnight_Blue]

I’m about 2k miles into a second set of stock GY Territories, because no other roughly 35” tire comes close on weight.

Instead of take-offs, I paid under $1k for four new tires installed at DT during Black Friday.

 

[CarGuy]

I’m fine with the stock WT wheels. I will change the tires to something different when the stock tires are worn. Since this is my DD/beater car, I have no intention of investing $s in different wheels.

 

[Area51BS]

Love my stock Badlands wheels. Maybe better black. But everyone else has those SAS wheels. So those would have to go. Wheels are an easy upgrade to look different.

 

[JT58Bronc]

I love the wheels and tires on by 2 door Base Sasquatch. I choose very carefully when I reserved my Bronco and decided to get what I really wanted- a slight lift, large tires and wheels. And it came with the proper gearing- so important and often overlooked when getting larger wheels and tires. The stock tires do throw a lot of rocks but they are one of if not the lightest weight tires in Sasquatch stock tire size so I will stick with them and replace them with the same tires when worn out.

 

[Black_Stallion13]

OP I’m with you on stock wheels/tires. Just picked up a set of day 1 takeoff Badlands wheels/33s for $800 on marketplace. Going to eventually put some super mild 33s on the set of original Big Bend wheels for everyday driving and keep the Badlands setup fresh for off-road trips only… crazy how much KO2s ruin gas mileage compared to the stock Bridgestones lol. Hell, I even sold the stock Bridgestones to some dude with an old Toyota for $300.

 

[Mikey1287]

Some of these after market wheels are more hideous than the OEM wheels.
Rock slinging tires had to go though!

 

[Haelous]

I think almost all the factory wheels suit the Bronco well. I'd probably rank them Everglades > Badlands Optional (d/c'd) > Sasquatch > Heritage > Badlands > everything else. OBX wheels would look better if they weren't two-tone.

I won't be swapping mine. The main reason I put different wheels on my Mustang was more grip, and I think the SAS wheel/tire setup is sufficient.

 

[Nate Train]

If I thought it was worth it to spend $300 apiece on wheels that are just going to get the hell beaten out of them, I'd buy them. But I don't have that kinda money, and if I buy nice stuff I want to keep it nice. I don't have that worry with the BD steelies. I'd like a bit bigger tires, but not a ton. I figure I'll just use the Generals until they need to be replaced and then I'll upgrade. They're working perfectly fine for me for now.

 

[CarbonSteel]

I like the WT wheels now that I have changed the beauty ring from black to silver. The Goodyear tires not so much. They catch every...single...rock off road and last time I was in southern Colorado, they slung rocks for 30 miles down the highway. I am also beginning to hear a tire whine and I believe they will become louder as they wear which is typical for a MT tire.

The OEM Goodyears are really light though and help keep the unsprung weight down. Anything that I replace them with will undoubtedly be heavier.

 

[LarryBirdsFace]

On the 4 door ones specifically, anything that's not Sasquatch looks undersized to me, because it's so big and boxy.

The factory offset on non sasquatch wheels also pulls the tire way in, and since the Bronco comes with the extended flares that most standard cars dont have, it looks like they're in too far. I actually don't have many complaints about the looks of most of the stock tires and wheels, isolated, not on the Bronco, but once they're mounted on the car they all look like they should be bigger.
Aesthetics.

I also live on a crappy dirt road and hit a lot of logging trails and roads and the stock tires and wheels just weren't gonna cut it.

 

[Coralhead]

My takeaway on non stock wheels is fine to replace with what ever type/price wheel you want. But, when you go to sell/trade the vehicle, the money spent on the wheels means nothing in the resale price. The vehicle is expected to have tires and wheels on it. Mainly you have to find someone with your taste in wheel style.

 

[indio22]

I didn‘t want my bronco lifted as it’s an everyday driver and I needed max gas mileage… so I actually like the look of the tires it came with. That being said I see tons of posts of people wanting to sell the oem and not being able to get much for them because none of you want them.

Questions - why don’t people like them?

When I need new tires I should probably look to buy some from all of you that want to ditch them rather than pay $1,200 at a tire store, correct?

Thank you for input.

My under 30k base 2-door manual is great - other than the crummy little stock 30" tires on 16x7 wheels. So I swapped those out in favor of a deal on lightly used Sas 315/70/r17 tires and Ford Ranger wheels.

Looks-wise, personally I'm not a fan of the heavy Sas wheels with that silver "hoop" thing (fake locking ring or whatever?). I'm happy with the Ranger wheels, the color is called Magnetic and is a decent match for the top and other parts of the Bronco, and those wheels had the intermediate +42 offset I was after for clearance and fitment under stock flares.

I venture people swap for a combo of performance/looks. I definitely needed more clearance for off-roading. And the manual trans with 4.46 diffs was a bit over-geared anyway for the stock tires, at least in the lower gears.

 

[userdude]

Looks-wise, personally I'm not a fan of the heavy Sas wheels with that silver "hoop" thing (fake locking ring or whatever?).

It's called a beauty ring since the wheel is beadlock-ready but Ford is not allowed to include a real beadlock ring with bolts all the way around (since they're not DOT), and it would be ugly to just leave it off. They put a faux (metal) ring that takes it's place with not enough bolts to allow it to be used as a beadlock ring. Painting it is an upgrade (WT), or take it off and paint it yourself. Seems pretty logical to me, but what do I know.

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