1999 Ford excursion tire sizes & fitment
Approved tire and wheel sizes for the 1999 Ford Excursion, sourced from manufacturer fitment data and refreshed monthly.
Approved fitments
| Tire size | Rim size | PCD (bolt pattern) | Offset | Load index | Speed rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 265/75R16 OEM | 7x16 | 8x170 | 6mm | N/A | N/A |
1999 Ford excursion wheel bolt pattern & specs
| Bolt pattern (PCD) | 8x170 |
|---|---|
| Wheel thread / lug size | M14x1.5 |
| Center bore | 124.9 mm |
| Source | bolt-pattern.com |
Best by use case
Four tires, four jobs
See the best tires for the Ford Excursion, ranked by category →
Tire recalls & safety complaints for the Ford Excursion →
Plus-size and winter-downsize options for every Ford Excursion factory size →
Compatible alternative sizes for 265/75R16
Sizes within the ETRTO ±3% overall-diameter safe-fit tolerance. Each row links to the size's own page.
| Alternative size | %Δ OD | Category | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
265/70R17 |
-0.14% | plus 1 | Safe |
265/80R15 |
0.14% | alternative | Safe |
285/70R16 |
0.19% | wider | Safe |
285/65R17 |
-0.20% | plus 1 | Safe |
235/85R16 |
0.25% | winter narrower | Safe |
For the full list of alternatives with comfort/handling impact, see 265/75R16 upsize options. To check an arbitrary size pair, use the tire compatibility calculator.
Check a different size against this vehicle
Type any tire size below; we'll compute its overall-diameter delta against the OEM 265/75R16 and verdict using the ETRTO ±3% rule.
Common upgrade paths
- Plus-1: 265/70R17; one rim size up, -0.14% OD change. Sharper steering, mild ride penalty, modest cost premium.
- Plus-2: 265/65R18; two rim sizes up, -0.27% OD change. Noticeable ride penalty, higher pothole risk, meaningful tire-cost premium.
Use the plus-size calculator to evaluate any rim step against the OEM size.
How to choose tires for the 1999 ford excursion
The 1999 Ford Excursion ships from the factory on 265/75R16 tires mounted on 7x16 wheels. Only one approved fitment is documented for this model year, so replacement options should match the original size exactly unless a plus-size upgrade is being considered. The Compatible alternative sizes table above lists every safe substitution within the ETRTO ±3% overall-diameter tolerance.
Tire choice on the Ford Excursion comes down to three trade-offs that matter more than brand loyalty: load index (must equal or exceed the OEM number), speed rating (must match or exceed the placard), and UTQG treadwear (higher means longer life, lower usually means stickier rubber). Owners replacing factory tires with the same compound class, for example all-season for all-season, generally see no change in ride characteristics or fuel economy. Switching categories (performance summer to all-season touring, for example) is where the trade-offs show up at the contact patch.
For 1999 Ford Excursion owners considering a plus-size upgrade, the safer option is a Plus-1 step (one rim size up with a 10-point aspect drop and ~10 mm of additional section width). Plus-2 is technically viable on this chassis if the alternative-sizes table lists a Plus-2 candidate within tolerance, but expect a meaningful ride-harshness penalty and a tire-cost premium of 30–60% per tire relative to the OEM fitment. For winter use the recommended pattern is one width step down (e.g. from a 235 to a 225) with the aspect ratio bumped up to preserve overall diameter; narrower tires apply higher contact pressure per square inch on snow, which translates directly into shorter braking distances. The plus-size calculator evaluates any specific rim step against this OEM size.
Before purchasing, verify the tire size on the driver-door placard of your specific 1999 Ford Excursion, since trim levels and option packages can shift the original fitment from what is documented here. The placard reading is the authoritative source per FMVSS 110, and dealers will reference the placard rather than aftermarket catalogs when validating warranty claims.
NHTSA-reported issues for 1999 ford excursion
Top issue category: Tires (General)
Most reported: Tires (General) (162) · Tread / Belt (80) · Sidewall (48) · Bead (2) · Valve (2)
Reported across: 2000 – 2005 (6 years)
What owners described
Blowout or sudden deflation appears in 35% of these reports; about 1.7× as often as across all tire complaints. Percentages are shares of the 203 reports covering every model year of the Ford Excursion that include a written account; a single report can describe more than one problem, so they do not total 100%.
| Reported problem | This subject | All tire complaints | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blowout or sudden deflation | 35% | 20% | 1.7× |
| Sidewall failure | 21% | 15% | 1.4× |
| Tread or belt separation | 15% | 13% | 1.1× |
| Loss of control, rollover or collision | 9% | 8% | 1.1× |
| Cracking or dry rot | 6% | 9% | 0.7× |
| Bubble or bulge in the tire | 4% | 6% | 0.8× |
Mileage at failure
56 of these reports state an odometer reading. The middle report is at 30,000 miles, with 8 in 10 falling between 3,000 and 104,027 miles.
In owners' own words
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA about Ford Excursion. Reports are published by NHTSA as filed and are lightly cleaned here only to remove intake codes.
THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 FORD EXCURSION EQUIPPED WITH FIRESTONE TIRES, TIRE LINE: STEEL TEX RADIAL A/T, TIRE SIZE: LT 265/75R16. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 60 MPH ON A DIRT ROAD, THE REAR DRIVER'S SIDE TIRE EXPLODED. THE CONTACT PULLED OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND DISCOVERED THAT THE TREAD WAS SEPARATED FROM THE TIRE. THE TIRE WAS NOT REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 190,000 AND THE TIRE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 200. THE DOT NUMBER WAS VNW81XL049. DJR
I HAVE A SET OF AUTOGUARD TIRES SIZE 265/78/16 THAT WERE INSTALLED ON MY SUV APX NOVEMBER OF 2013 IN OCTOBER OF 2014 THE TIRES STARTED TO DEVELOPED CRACK ALONG THE BEAD LINE ABOVE THE RIM. THIS IS THE SAME EFFECT OR DEFECT THAT RESULTED IN THE RECALL OF AUTOGUARD TIRE SIZE 245/75/16. BOTH THE TIRE THAT WERE THE SUBJECT OF THE RECALL AS WELL AS THE TIRES THAT WERE INSTALL ON MY SUV WERE MANUFACTURES IN THE SAME TIME PERIOD AND I BELIEVE HAVE THE SAME DOT NO OF 4412.
THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 FORD EXCURSION EQUIPPED WITH B.F. GOODRICH RUGGED TERRAIN (NA), TIRE LINE: LT26575R16 LOAD RANGER E (NA) TIRES. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE TREAD SEPARATED ON THE REAR PASSENGER SIDE TIRE. THE TIRE WAS NOT REPLACED. THE TIRE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 24,000 AND THE VEHICLE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 98,000.
THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 FORD EXCURSION EQUIPPED WITH SUNFULL MONT-PRO HT781 TIRES, SIZE: LT265/75/16. WHILE DRIVING 65 MPH, THE VEHICLE VIBRATED ABNORMALLY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC TO BE DIAGNOSED. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE REAR PASSENGER SIDE TIRE TREAD SEPARATED, WHICH CAUSED A BUBBLE IN THE TIRE. WITHIN LESS THAN A THOUSAND MILES LATER, THE FRONT DRIVER'S TIRE ALSO EXPERIENCED THE FAILURE. THE RETAIL FACILITY WHERE THE TIRES WERE SOLD AND INSTALLED WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE TIRE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE APPROXIMATE VEHICLE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 166,000 AND THE TIRE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 4,999.
Complaints are voluntarily submitted to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation and are not verified by NHTSA; they represent owner-reported problems, not proven defects. Counts can be useful as a relative quality signal across comparable tires or vehicles.
Frequently asked questions
What size tires fit a 1999 Ford Excursion?
What is the bolt pattern of a 1999 Ford Excursion?
Can I run a different tire size on my 1999 Ford Excursion?
Where can I buy tires for my 1999 Ford Excursion?
What is the recommended tire pressure for the 1999 Ford Excursion?
Can I fit winter tires in a different size on my 1999 Ford Excursion?
How often should I rotate the tires on my 1999 Ford Excursion?
For broader tire questions; replacement timing, UTQG, EV-specific tires, winter swaps; see the tire FAQ.
Sources for this page
- Vehicle owner's manual tire & wheel placard; door-jamb placard on the Ford Excursion is the authoritative source for OEM tire size, load index, and cold-inflation pressure for your specific trim.
- NHTSA SaferCar; recall lookup for the 1999 Ford Excursion.
- ETRTO 2024 Standards Manual §2.3; overall-diameter math used for the alternative-size verdicts above.
- Tire & Rim Association 2025 Yearbook; load-index to maximum-load reference.
Last verified 2026-10-07.