Recommended Smaller Replacement Tires for a Pontoon Boat

Question:

I have a pontoon boat with 175/80 13D tires on it and I noticed that they are much to close to the wooded bunk that the boat sits on and they rub when hitting bumps in the road. These tires measure 23 inches top to bottom. I have a pair of 4x12 inch wheels that I am not using and wondering if there is a lower profile tire for either the 12 or 13 inch wheels that I have that would still carry the load? Tire needs to be rated for at least 1600lbs. The stronger the tire the better since many pontoons boats ride on a tandem axle trailer. A tire 19 inches tall would only give me two additional inches clearance not sure if that is enough. Will I need to go with a pair of the short fat 10 inch tires? How tall are they? Thank you

asked by: Steven G

Expert Reply:

Steven, the Kenda 205/65-10 Bias Trailer Tire with 10" Galvanized Wheel # AM3H340 you're looking at are 20.8" tall when inflated.

So if a 19" tire would give you 2" of clearance this tire will give you nearly 4" of additional clearance which should alleviate the issue.

A 20" tire like # AM1HP52 would be able to carry the 1600 lb weight capacity you're needing, but these tires aren't going to work with your 4x12 wheels.

What you're going to have to do is swap your tires out with an entire different setup that has a smaller tire diameter like # AM3H400, but you're not going to lose the weight capacity since the tire is smaller.

expert reply by: Bryce D