Does Anyone Make 16.5 Tires? | Who Still Sells Them

Yes, a few specialty brands still sell 16.5-inch tires, mostly for trailers, older trucks, military rigs, and off-road builds.

Yes, you can still buy 16.5 tires. The catch is that you are shopping in a niche market now, not the regular rack at a chain tire store. If you run an older pickup, a square-body dually, a trailer, a military truck, or a lifted 4×4 that still sits on 16.5-inch wheels, there are still options out there.

What has changed is the kind of tire you will find. This size is no longer a mainstream fitment for daily drivers, so the choices lean toward trailer tires, classic truck tires, mud tires, and work-focused tread patterns. Stock can be thin, and local shops may need to order them in.

Does Anyone Make 16.5 Tires? What The Market Looks Like

The straight answer is yes. A few makers never walked away from 16.5-inch rubber because older vehicles and niche equipment never went away. There is still demand from owners who want to keep period-correct wheels, keep a trailer on the road, or avoid the cost of a full wheel swap.

The market is a lot narrower than it was decades ago. You will not see the same spread of touring, highway, winter, and all-season choices that you get in 16-inch or 17-inch sizes. Most buyers are choosing from three lanes: trailer use, vintage truck use, or off-road use.

Who Still Buys Them

Most 16.5-inch buyers fall into a few camps:

• Owners of older pickups and vans that came with 16.5-inch wheels from the factory
• Trailer owners who still run legacy 16.5-inch setups
• Military vehicle restorers and heavy-duty hobby builds
• Off-road drivers who like tall flotation sizes on older bead-seat designs
• Farm and job-site users running equipment tires marked with a 16.5-inch rim diameter

That last group matters because some people hear “16.5 tires” and think only of old truck tires. In practice, the number also shows up in equipment sizes like 12-16.5, which live in a different part of the tire world than a highway tire for a pickup. So the answer depends on what kind of 16.5 tire you mean.

Why 16.5-Inch Tires Never Fully Disappeared

16.5-inch wheels stuck around for one simple reason: plenty of rigs that used them were built to work. They hauled, towed, crawled, and carried weight. Owners tend to keep those vehicles longer, and many would sooner buy the right tire than start changing wheels, studs, caps, and clearances all at once.

There is another reason. Some owners want the old stance and the old look. A square-body truck on period wheels does not look the same once you swap it onto a modern wheel size. For a restoration or a faithful survivor build, the wheel itself is part of the point.

Still, the old 16.5 setup comes with trade-offs. Modern tire development has poured into 16-inch, 17-inch, 18-inch, and larger wheel sizes. So the newer compounds, wider brand choice, and easier roadside replacement are usually found somewhere else.

Common 16.5 Category	Sizes You May See	What Buyers Usually Get
Classic truck highway	8.00-16.5, 9.50-16.5	Bias-ply or vintage-style tread for older pickups, vans, and work trucks
Trailer use	8.75-16.5, 9.75-16.5	Load-focused construction, fewer tread choices, stock may be seasonal
Mud-terrain light truck	33×12.50-16.5	Tall flotation fitment for older 4×4 builds and trail rigs
All-terrain light truck	35×12.50-16.5	Harder to find than mud tires, with fewer road-friendly patterns
Heavy off-road flotation	37×12.50-16.5	Niche sizing for older lifted trucks and military-style builds
Equipment and skid-steer	12-16.5	Job-site tread and sidewall strength, not a road-going pickup tire
Military and historic use	Varies by vehicle	Period-style tread, tube-type or specialty construction in some cases
Dually and heavy-haul legacy setups	Model-specific	Fitment can hinge on wheel width, dual spacing, and load range

Buying 16.5 Tires Without A Costly Mistake

This is where buyers get tripped up. A 16.5-inch tire is not just “close enough” to a 16-inch tire. The wheel seat is different, so you cannot mix and match those sizes. If your truck has old wheels and the sidewall is worn, read the wheel stamping before you order anything.

There are still real products on the market. Interco still maintains a 16.5-inch wheel tire range for light-truck and off-road buyers, and Coker still lists STA 8.00-16.5 truck and trailer tires for older work-focused setups. That does not mean every local shop will stock them. It does mean the size is still alive if you know where your vehicle fits.

Check These Before You Order

Read The Wheel Stamp First

On older rigs, the sidewall can send you in the wrong direction because a past owner may have mounted the wrong tire size at some point. The wheel stamp settles the argument fast. If the rim says 16.5, buy for 16.5. If it says 16, stop right there and shop 16-inch tires instead.

Match The Tire To The Job

A trailer tire, a mud tire, and a vintage highway tire may all share the same rim diameter and still be poor substitutes for one another. Load range, tread style, sidewall strength, and road speed matter more than nostalgia. Buy for the work the vehicle does most often.

• Wheel diameter: Confirm that the wheel is 16.5, not 16.
• Wheel width: Older wheels vary more than many buyers expect.
• Load range: Trailer and dually use can rule out lighter options.
• Tire type: Bias-ply, radial, flotation, and equipment tires do different jobs.
• Clearance: Tall flotation sizes can rub springs, fenders, or dual mates.
• Tube or tubeless setup: Some older fitments need extra care here.

If your truck pulls a horse trailer one weekend and cruises to a show the next, the right answer may not be the same as it is for a mud truck or an old camper van. The job still decides the tire.

What You Can Expect On Price And Availability

16.5-inch tires tend to cost more than nearby modern sizes because the market is smaller and the production runs are smaller. Shipping also stings more when the tire is tall or heavy. On top of that, replacement on the road can be a pain. If you travel far from home, that alone can tilt the math toward a wheel swap.

There is one upside to the smaller market: buyers are often choosing from brands that know this niche well. You may not get endless shelf choices, but you can still get tires built for work, trail use, or classic fitment instead of a generic placeholder.

Keep 16.5 Wheels	Swap To 16-Inch Wheels	Who This Fits
Keep stock look and period fitment	Gain a wider tire market	Restoration vs daily-use owner
Skip wheel-buying cost today	Lower odds of a hard-to-find spare later	Local-use truck vs road-trip truck
Keep old dual spacing and stance	Open up more radial choices	Dually and tow rigs
Use niche off-road flotation sizes	Get easier replacement at chain stores	Trail rigs vs mixed-use rigs
Stay true to the old build	Expand modern tread and load options	Show truck vs work truck

When A Wheel Swap Makes More Sense

Plenty of owners start by hunting for 16.5 tires and end up changing wheels instead. That move makes sense when the truck is a driver, not a museum piece. A 16-inch swap can open the door to more radial choices, easier roadside replacement, and simpler price shopping.

A swap often lands better when:

• You drive long distances and want easier replacement on the road
• You need a matching full-size spare without hunting online
• You tow often and want a broader load-range menu
• You are already replacing worn wheels or cracked old steelies
• You care more about easy upkeep than stock appearance

If the truck is original, the wheels are sound, and the tire choices in your exact size still meet your use, staying with 16.5 can be the smarter and cheaper move.

What Most Owners End Up Doing

Most people who ask about 16.5 tires are trying to answer one plain question: should I keep these wheels or move on? If your rig is a classic, a trailer, a shop truck, or a weekend toy, keeping 16.5-inch wheels still works. If your rig is a daily driver and you want easy replacement at almost any tire shop, a wheel swap starts to look better.

So yes, anyone still making 16.5 tires? They are. You just have to shop with the right expectations. This is a smaller corner of the market, built around older trucks, trailers, historic rigs, and off-road holdouts. Buy by wheel stamp, load need, and actual use, and you can still keep a 16.5 setup rolling without guesswork.