The 2003 Ford Explorer has a bolt pattern of 5x4.5, or 5 on 4.5 inches. This means that it has five bolts, each fitting into bolt holes with a diameter of 4.5 inches.

The Ford Explorer, back in its heyday in the 1990s, led the success in a segment in the automobile world that many argue is very much defined. The 2003 model comes on the cusp of a redesign in the year before, and is a joy to drive, with seating for seven, good interior options, and fairly good safety features for the time.

Of course, with AWD options and an Off-Road package available, the 2003 Explorer is no stranger to the trails, either. If you plan on enhancing this package further and adding a few upgraded tires, or if it’s just that time for you to replace the tires, this

car repair

guide has everything you may need to know about your 2003 Ford Explorer tires’ bolt pattern.

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2003 Ford Explorer bolt pattern

The 2003 Ford Explorer’s bolt pattern

is 5x4.5 or 5 on 4.5. The first number tells us how many bolts each tire has—in this case five—and the second number tells us the diameter of each of the bolt holes. This diameter is 4.5 inches.

When it comes to tire replacement, bolt pattern information by itself won’t be enough. You’ll also need to know your Explorer's wheel size, offset, stud size and thread pitch, center bore measurements, and even torque specifications. Here’s that information, compiled in one place:

Factory Wheel Size: 16 inches, 17 inches

Stud size: M12 x 1.5 (12 mm stud thread and 1.5 mm thread spacing)

Offset: 20 mm to 35 mm

Center bore: 70.5 mm

Wheel tightening torque: n/a

No clue what any of that means? We’ve got you covered. The center bore size is the size of the hole in the center of the wheel on the hub of the car. Usually, wheels need to have a center bore that matches with the hub as this reduces vibrations. Some wheels come out of the factory while being hub-centric.

The other stuff isn’t that difficult to nail down. Stud size is what it sounds like—it describes the studs, or bolts, which you use to fix your tires to your car. Wheel offset, on the other hand, is a little tricker. Offset refers to how the wheels mount in your wheel wells, which gives you an idea of how much space you have on either side of the wheel. As you can imagine, it’s important to get this right because a wheel with the wrong offset may rub against your suspension or brakes, causing more problems. So, best get an offset that matches your existing setup.

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How to measure your 2003 Ford Explorer pattern

You can actually check your bolt pattern for yourself! If you don’t mind getting your hands dirty and doing a little measuring, you can actually double check whether you have a 5x4.5 bolt pattern. All you need is a ruler or measuring tape—something that can tell you distance in inches.

The first step is easy. Just count the number of bolts that are on your wheels. For the 2003 Ford Explorer, you should be counting exactly five.

The next bit is a little harder, especially since the 2003 Explorer has a five-bolt setup. You need to start measuring the distance from one bolt to the center between the two bolts across it. You can’t easily measure from the bolt directly across, since, well, there really isn’t one as it is an uneven number of bolts. Once you have this distance, you have your diameter.

That’s all there is to it! Put the two together and you have your bolt pattern.

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