Check out this lifted Ford F-550 (started out as a F-450) that belongs to Justin Wehring. It’s a tall boy on 41s. It is a 2019 truck, but Justin drives it often and takes it on many cross-country trips. This three-year-old truck will soon roll over 100,000 miles on the odometer. While it has a cool suspension setup, the super single wheels and tires is what really separates it from all the rest.
Justin needed a 4×4 heavy duty truck for his Texas-based ranch. He needed the ground clearance, 4WD capability, and an ability to tow heavy gooseneck trailers. He went for a regular cab short wheelbase 2019 Ford F-450 4×4 with a 6.7L Power Stroke turbo-diesel V8 and a 6-speed automatic transmission. He gave it a suspension lift with with a load-leveling air suspension in the rear.
Natually, Justin factory truck came with a 19.5-inch wheels and dually rear wheels/tires. Going off-road in a truck with dually rear tires can be done, but it can also be very problematic. First, a dually truck has a wide rear track. It can also get packed with mud or rocks. Also, the stock heavy-duty tires cannot really be aired down enough to be more effective for off-road driving and additional traction.
While several super-single wheel-tire conversions exist, most of them have shortcomings. Some have a multi-piece design, some are just very heavy. Justin decided to design his own 10-lug super single wheel. He made is a 20-inch forged aluminum wheel that is strong and rated for heavy load-carrying capacity. It has just the right offset spacing so that it can be used in a “wide” configuration in the front and a “narrow” configuration in the rear. Since the F-450/F-550/F-600 rear axle is wider than the front, this help to even out the front to rear track width.
These wheels also allow for 41-inch off-road MPT (or LT) type tires. These tires are large enough and also offer heavy load-carrying capacity.
I took the truck for a quick spin near our Boulder, Colorado offices. The truck rides and drives smooth. These knobby tires produce a fair bit of highway noise, but the rig tracks nice and true. I hope to do more off-road videos with this truck in the near future.
Check out the video below for MANY more details. Justin very knowledgable on this subject, and he explains it in a very clear way. Also, if you are still wondering about why he labeled it F-550 (when it started life as a F-450). It’s to confuse some of his friends who are looking for a suspension lift for an F-550 truck that does not exist.
