14" to 15" wheel & tires upgrade?

[Sphere Guy]

Have any late 2008 or later 23 ft Safari owners upgraded from 14" to 15" wheels and tires?

I'm looking for more ground clearance, etc..

Will they fit in the wheel well?

Is availability /popularity a problem for the 15" size while traqveling in case of needed replacements?

Will 10" hubs be sufficient to handle this size upgrade?

Thanks for all responses in advance.

[Goal15]

Will be interested to see where this leads as my 2006 has 14 inch wheels and tires which seem to limit availablity of tire choices

[Al - K4GLU]

You can upgrade to 15 or 16 inch but in either case you will have to get new axles since the rims are 6 lug.

[Sphere Guy]

I've found a few 15" wheels that are 5 lug 4.5 bolt pattern.

I've measured my wheel well internal dimensions but still can't determine if they will fit. It looks like it but really don't want to go thru the purchase $$$$'s for a mock up to have them not fit.

I do know that 16" will require new hubs, which means more $$$'s but don't need the extra load capability on my 23 ftr.

[SteveH]

You can check the tire size on line, compare to the size of your existing tires/wheels, and see if you have the needed additional clearance. Try tirerack.com

[Al - K4GLU]

Here is a link to a tire size calculator:

Tire size calculator

[KLEVELANDER]

Has anyone come up with a resolution to this question? Without going all in, dimension charts would indicate that a 225/75-15 tire would fit in the wheel wells on a 15" X 6" 5 bolt X 4.5" pattern, allowing slightly less than 1" increase in ground clearance and D rated tires.

Anyone?

[panheaddale]

5 x 4.5 bolt pattern wheel should be very easy to locate. Very commonly used on ford and dodge vehicles.

[KLEVELANDER]

Originally Posted by panheaddale

5 x 4.5 bolt pattern wheel should be very easy to locate. Very commonly used on ford and dodge vehicles.

Sorry, I should have been clearer; the original question was 'will the larger wheel/tire combination fit in the Safari 23 SE wheel wells?'

Has anyone actually tried this upgrade?

[tinbender]

Check here.

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f438...-lt-96716.html

[KLEVELANDER]

Originally Posted by tinbender

Check here.

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f438...-lt-96716.html

Okay tinbender! That's good info. Can we make the assumption that the wheel wells on a 2011 23' FB International are the same as on an '08 Safari SE? Picture looks similar. . .

thanks

[tinbender]

K,

I don't have first hand knowledge of them being the same but based on others from the forum that I have read about who made the switch from 14 to 15 on 23s, I would say probably. Several model years were covered in those postings including 07/08 range. Before spending any money, you could always call the ultimate source for the best answer, Airstream service center at the Mothership.

That's what I would do unless fortunate enough to have the 2 of them side by side for a measurement. The swap out won't be cheap so much better safe than sorry here.

Good Luck,
tb