I’ll be the first to admit that those 35s on a Raptor look great. Question is, can you fir them on a regular stock F150? That’s the question we will be exploring in this article.
Is the clearance on a stock Ford F150 enough for Raptor tires? The Ford Raptor has tires that are not only bigger but also wider than the stock tires on your F150. Are they able to fix your F150 without rubbing?
Well, I will give you the answer right away and it is no. You cannot fit Raptor tires on an F150. In the rest of this post, we are going to be looking at why this is the case and what you can do in order to get them to fit nicely.
Will Stock Raptor Wheels Fit F150?
The reason that the F150 Raptor has that imposing look is due mainly to the tires as well as the lift that it has. It comes with a 2.2 lift off the production floor.
This gives it greater road clearance allowing it to easily support the 34 inch tires. If you are to fit the same tires on a stock F150, you will have no problem with the back tires but the front tires will rub when you do a full steering lock.
In order to have a comfortable fit, you will have to do some modifications on your F150; more on this later.
What Size are F150 Raptor Wheels?
The standard Raptor wheels are 315/70/17 whereas the standard stock F150 tires are 265/70/17. Raptor wheels are also 12 ½ inches wide compared to 8 ½ inches for the sock F150. It makes sense why the stock Raptor tires will rub against the inner fender and front crash bar. The wider tire on the F150 gives it that great off-road look that the Raptor is known for.
How to Fit Ford Raptor Wheels on a Stock F150
In order to fit Raptor wheels on your stock F150, there are modifications that you will need to do on your truck. The first thing you will need to do is use a leveling kit to give your truck a lift.
You can do this using a 2,2” leveling kit. This will often do the trick but sometimes you may have to make some additional mods. Installing a leveling kit is something you can DIY but it is an involving process and sometimes you may encounter a problem that a skilled mechanic is able to tackle due to experience.
It also takes a considerable amount of time because you will need to remove a lot of parts in order to install the leveling kit. In cases where you still get friction even after adding the leveling kit, you will need to make additional modifications in order to get the right fit for your wheels.
One of the main issues that arise in this scenario is the wheel still rubbing against the crush bar that is right in front of the tire. The crash bar is there to protect the wheels in the event of a front collision.
There is one bar on each side. They should be removable, in theory, since there are bolts that attach them to the body of the truck.
However, you will not be able to remove them without removing other parts of the vehicle first. An alternative, though extreme, would be to cut them off. Once they are out of the way, you should have enough room to maneuver.
Can I Use a 4-Inch Lift Kit to Fit Raptor Tires of F150?
An easier alternative, depending on the way you look at it, is to install a 4 inch lift kit on your F150. This will solve all your rubbing problems and give your F150 enough clearance space for the Raptor tires. Tough this would be the ultimate solution here, it does present several problems.
First of all, you may face problems fitting your F150 in the garage due to the added height. Make sure to take some measurements to establish whether there is enough head space for your F150 if you add an extra 4 inches of height.
Conclusion
As the last word, you definitely can put Raptor wheels on your Ford F150. Just make sure to select the right modification to suite your particular needs.