10-Inch Golf Cart Wheels: A Real Smooth Ride
January 13, 2023Author: Christian Attlesey
Read Time: 3-5 minutes
So you've got yourself a golf cart. It drives fine, and the kids love taking rides through the neighborhood.
You love everything about it except the wheels and tires.
They are the same ones they had on there from the factory, and you think it's time to upgrade.
You've looked online, and you see a bunch of golf cart wheel and tire options.
Many of them look nice but are so big that you would need to install a lift kit on your cart for them to work. Installing a lift kit is the last thing you want to do.
So where do you turn? 10" golf cart wheels and tires to the rescue!
This article will explore all the pros and cons of 10" golf cart wheels and the overall sizing and tread options. Enjoy!
Article Summary
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Benefits of 10-inch Golf Cart Wheels
- Plenty of wheel-style options
- Steady and stable golf cart
- Smooth ride experience
Drawbacks of 10-inch Golf Cart Wheels
- Minimal ground clearance
- Visually you see a lot of tire
10" Wheel Overall Sizing and Tire Tread Options
- Brief overview of EZGO, Club Car, and Yamaha wheel sizing requirements
- Popular golf cart tire manufacturers and their respective tire options
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If you have questions, continue on for more detailed information about 10-inch golf cart wheels! However, if you want to skip the reading and want to start looking at your options, click the button below!
Benefits of 10-inch Golf Cart Wheels
If you've read our previous article in this series discussing 8" golf cart wheels , many benefits will be similar with a few additional advantages. Let's take a look.
Non-Lifted Golf Carts: Options Galore!
Unlike 8-inch golf cart wheels, which only come in black and white finishes, 10" wheels have myriad styles and colors for you to choose from!
That means if you have a non-lifted golf cart, but you still want to be able to customize and update your cart with your unique style, 10" wheels will be great for you.
In addition to more wheel options, you also get more variety with tire options.
For example, with 8" golf cart tires, there are only a few off-road golf cart tire treads available.
With 10" golf cart rims, however, you get a wide range of off-road treads and a broad range of all-terrain and street treads as well.
For stock golf cart owners who still want options, 10" wheels are a great choice.
Your Golf Cart: Steady As She Goes
Golf carts have a reputation for many things, but one blemish on their record is a reputation for tipping over.
Although golf carts have come a long way in terms of safety with better manufacturing and more safety accessories, you need to use your golf cart properly to avoid doing some severe damage to your cart (or yourself!)
For some golf cart owners, keeping their golf cart's center of gravity low and keeping their golf cart as stable as possible is a necessity.
10" golf cart rims and tires are slightly larger than 8" wheels and tires (the smallest combo you can buy) but depending on what tire tread you purchase, they still keep your golf cart low to the ground.
For example, a 10" golf cart rim with a 205/50-10 tire has an overall diameter of 18", the same as stock golf cart tires and rims.
As a result, driving your cart with 10" wheels still allows you to hug the ground on sharp turns and make zipping through your neighborhood or the golf course as safe (and fun) as ever!
A Golf Cart Ride As Smooth As Butter
As we discussed in our article about 8-inch golf cart wheels and tires, a smaller golf cart wheel allows more tire and air to surround the wheel, which provides more padding for a smoother ride.
Even a 10" wheel with a street/turf tire gets you about 4 inches in sidewall height.
Those extra few inches in tire sidewall go a long way in bolstering your cart over the various bumps and ridges your golf cart travels over.
The people in the picture below probably had 10" wheels on their golf cart because they look happy! If they felt every bump and change in terrain, they would have frowns on their faces, no doubt!
Drawbacks of 10" Golf Cart Wheels
At Golf Cart Stuff, we are truth-tellers. We want to make sure you have the best information available when it comes to your golf cart.
As a result, we have to tell you some of the negative features of 10" golf cart wheels and tires.
Golf Cart Ground Clearance? No Sir!
One of the great things about 10" golf cart wheels is that they keep your golf cart close to the ground.
One of the bad things about 10" golf cart wheels is that they keep your golf cart... close to the ground!
If you like to take your golf cart on outdoor adventures or enjoy blazing trails through the woods- 10" wheels may not work so well.
Due to the low ground clearance 10" wheels provide, you put your cart at risk of getting damaged from rocks, roots, debris, or anything else that gets in your way (like your annoying neighbor perhaps) and can scrape and snag the underside of your golf cart.
You can mitigate a lot of this by choosing a larger tire, but 10" wheel and tire combos can only go up to 22" in overall diameter, an inch lower than 12", 14", or 15" wheels.
We suggest a bigger golf cart wheel if you regularly take your golf cart over harsh terrain.
Lots Of Tire, Not So Much Wheel
This last drawback may be a bit nit-picky, but we have spoken with many customers who didn't like "how their wheels and tires look."
Another drawback (albeit slight drawback) of 10" wheels is that if you purchase a 10" wheel with a large off-road or all-terrain tire, your wheel and tire combo is going to look a bit "tire-y."
What I mean by that is that a 10" wheel can sometimes feel a bit "swallowed up" by the tire.
If you are looking to buy new golf cart wheels and tires to help your golf cart stand out or make a statement, a 10" wheel may make that difficult.
Here are some side-by-side photos of a 10" wheel and a 14" wheel so you can see what I mean:
- Left: 14" Caliber gunmetal/machined aluminum golf cart wheel with GTW Timberwolf all-terrain golf cart tires
- Right: 10" Vampire black/machined aluminum golf cart wheel with Excel Golf Pro II street/turf golf cart tires
[ Want something a little bit bigger, but don't want to have to add a lift kit? 12" golf cart wheels may be your winner! To learn more, check out our article covering all things relating to 12" golf cart wheels and tires! ]
10" Wheel Overall Sizing and Tire Tread Options
10" golf cart wheel and tire combos range in overall diameter from 18" up to 22".
As a result, depending on what golf cart make and model you have, you may need to install a lift kit for particular 10" wheel and tire combos to work.
Here is a quick reference of the leading golf cart manufacturers and when they need a lift kit:
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EZGO Golf Carts
- 18" Wheel and Tire Combos- No lift kit required
- 20" Wheel and Tire Combos- No lift kit required
- 22" Wheel and Tire Combos- Minimum 3" lift kit required
- 23" Wheel and Tire Combos- Minimum 5"/6" lift kit required
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Club Car Golf Carts
- 18" Wheel and Tire Combos- No lift kit required
- 20" Wheel and Tire Combos- Minimum 3" lift kit required
- 22" Wheel and Tire Combos- Minimum 4" lift kit required
- 23" Wheel and Tire Combos- Minimum 6" lift kit required
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Yamaha Golf Carts
- 18" Wheel and Tire Combos- No lift kit required
- 20" Wheel and Tire Combos-
- G-Series Carts (G1-G22 Models)- Minimum 3" lift kit required
- Drive (G29) & Drive 2 Carts- No lift kit required
- 22" Wheel and Tire Combos-
- G-Series Carts (G1-G22 Models)- Minimum 5" lift kit required
- Drive (G29) & Drive 2 Carts- Minimum 3" lift kit required
- 23" Wheel and Tire Combos-
- G-Series Carts (G1-G22 Models)- Minimum 6" lift kit required
- Drive (G29) & Drive 2 Carts- Minimum 5"/6" lift kit required
Popular 10" Golf Cart Tires
Here is a list of some of the most popular 10" golf cart tires available for sale.
We've broken down our list based on tire manufacturers and the tires they carry and have given you a quick reference of where they fall regarding street/golf course use or off-road.
Arisun Golf Cart Tires
Street/Turf Tires
- Arisun Cruze Tire: An extremely popular golf cart tire, the Arisun Cruze has a classic tread that can easily cross over from the neighborhood to the golf course.
- Arisun X-Sport Tire: A slightly more aggressive street/turf tread, the X-Sport has larger tread blocks for enhanced grip and water siphoning.
Off-Road Tires
- Arisun X-Trail Tire: The Arisun X-Trail is a true off-road tire with large tread blocks that cover the face of the tire and slightly on the tire sidewall for maximum grip.
All-Terrain Tires
- Arisun Lightning Tire: The Arisun Lightning has a unique tread pattern with slightly large tread blocks that are positioned to move with the direction of the tire. This allows the tire to have increased gripping capability without being too harsh on lawns or other sensitive surfaces.
Kenda Golf Cart Tires
Street/Turf Tires
- Kenda Pro-Tour: Kenda's premier street tire, the Pro-Tour has a very common tread designed to maintain consistent ground contact and minimize drive noise.
Excel Golf Cart Tires
Street/Turf Tires
- Excel Endura Tire: A unique take on street/turf tread, the Endura has a thick rubber tread block directly down the center of the tire for seamless road contact.
- Excel Golf Pro II Tire: With small square tread blocks across the face of the tire, the Golf Pro II makes an excellent tire for golf cart owners who frequently use their carts on the golf course.
Off-Road Tires
- Excel Sahara Classic Tire: An aggressive, directional off-road tire, the Excel classic has wide tread blocks for efficient water and debris escape routes.
Wanda Golf Cart Tires
Off-Road Tires
- Wanda Backlash Tire: Similar in appearance to the Sahara Classic, the Backlash has tread blocks with more space and sharper angles for maximum gripping power.
If you have gotten to this point in the article, you now know more about 10" golf cart wheels than 99% of other golf cart owners. Well done!
We hope this has been helpful for you and has allowed you to make more informed golf cart wheel and tire purchasing decisions.
If you are in the market for some 10" wheels, we have a wide selection of 10in combos for you to choose from.
If you already have 10" golf cart wheels but need new tires, we have a wide selection of golf cart tires for sale as well!
Still have questions? Put them in the comments below, or reach out to us directly!
...You probably know him as the humorous & relatable host of our YouTube channel!
Prior to taking on marketing, however, Christian honed his industry knowledge as our Customer Service Manager. Fast-forward to present day: it’s his mission to deliver the best and most current products, resources, and overall expertise to Golf Cart owners everywhere.