I have a Polaris 2004 sportsman 700 and am putting new ITP MudLite XTR tires on it. I am wondering if putting size 25x8 on the front and size 26x11 on the rear will affect the machine in a negative way. Will the one inch diameter difference between the front and rear tires cause any unwanted wear or tear on the drive train, AWD, etc.? Thank you!

 

It will make the gear ratio 4% higher on the rear. I wouldn't want to be part of that experiment when 4-wheel-drive engages.

 

bad idea

 

It might be ok to put a bigger tire on the front to get the front to pull slightly faster than the back. That will help keep the front end going where you want it in the mud and help you turn a bit easier on hard ground. You'll see a lot of 4x4 jeeps with a slightly taller diff gear in the front than the back. But I can't think of a good reason to ever have a smaller tire in the front.

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: JustRandy

It might be ok to put a bigger tire on the front to get the front to pull slightly faster than the back. That will help keep the front end going where you want it in the mud and help you turn a bit easier on hard ground. You'll see a lot of 4x4 jeeps with a slightly taller diff gear in the front than the back. But I can't think of a good reason to ever have a smaller tire in the front.</end quote></div>

I just have to ask: What Jeeps do you see with different gearing? Maybe in a dedicated mud truck, but that wouldn't last long anywhere else. Especially considering that available ratio jumps are so large.

 

Well, maybe not rock crawlers, lol. But I don't see what the problem is anywhere else... even pavement! What's bad is having the back wheels spinning faster than the front. That's what binds up the drivelines. I hate taking a turn on hardpack and having the inside back wheel jump. A taller front helps that problem and in the straights the front drags the back a little which is largely unnoticeable. If you're on flat ground too long, just turn off the 4 wheel drive.

I was generalizing when referring to jeeps... Its really any 4x4 vehicle. For the most-used axle combos you can get a 4.09, 4.10, 4.11, 4.27, 4.30, 4.55, or 4.56 etc.

A 4.09 front and a 4.10 or 4.11 back is certainly better than 4.09/4.09 unless you really need the fronts and backs spinning at the same rate.

http://www.drivetrain.com/dana44.html

http://www.drivetrain.com/dana60.html


Some more reading on the subject: http://www.nwuonline.com/Forum...9&t=3271&view=previous