TIre pressure during towing vs not towing

This past year I ran 80 psi all around from May until October. Now I'm running 50 psi all around. 2011 GMC Duramax, crew cab, 1 ton dually, long box. It rides much better at 50 psi. I carry a compressor in the 5er if needed. Been doing it this way for many years. We start camping in May and finish in October. Last summer we were on the road for almost 3 months.

So it sounds like the proper thing to do is to inflate/deflate as needed for both better rides/safety and also tire longevity. I do plan to stay at one place only one week though, and I do expect towing and non-towing mileage to be about 50/50. And since we plan to full-time, this is going to go on throughout the year with the expected annual mileage of 20k. I think its gonna be a PITA to inflate/deflate every week and even more so if I need to move the FW to dump in between...

As some have suggested, perhaps I'll look for a sort of hybrid pressure that is high enough for towing but not too harsh riding when not towing...

Not ideal to say the least - this could be a significant negative vs A Class/toad route if a happy medium pressure level cannot be found. If unloaded ride isn't too harsh, I'd rather go with convenience vs slightly higher cost of maintenance as long as there is no safety risk.

Me Again wrote:
Ron, those that you never deflated their rear tires when empty would be shocked at how much better their truck drives if they tried lower inflation. We have taken the horse to the river, however he does not want to drink!!!! Chris

X2
The contact patch on a fully inflated tire with a light load will greatly reduce traction. It will also increase tire wear in the center of the tire.

2oldman wrote:
Who is Ron?

It's a secret........

To the OP, check your door sticker and inflate your tires to the recomended tire pressure, then ride around the area, both loaded and unloaded. In reading the posts of the people who do deflate, they are saying when riding empty their TV rides very rough! If you experiance this in your TV then follow suit, if not then consider leaving the pressure at the recomended pressure!

Who is Ron?

Ron, those that you never deflated their rear tires when empty would be shocked at how much better their truck drives if they tried lower inflation. We have taken the horse to the river, however he does not want to drink!!!! Chris

Acei wrote:
Yes I am talking about the rear wheels, pulling a 5th wheel.

Ok, so some of you DO adjust the air pressure... For those who do adjust, how do you increase the pressure? Do you use a portable air compressor hooked up to the cigarette 12V power?

When we eventually go full-timing, we will drive a 1t dually. Will dually behave ok not towing when the tires are max pressured? We do expect to drive every day and sometimes 100-200 miles at a time when not towing.

Any tire shop will gladly fill or deflate your tires for you.

I have a friend that has a 07.5 RAM Dually that he tows a Heavy RV and he leaves the rear tire pressure at 80 all the time and the centers of the rear tires are wearing severely. He rarely drives the truck solo.

Look at the weight charts for your tires. I run 60 psi rear on my dually with 5K pin weight and my tires are properly inflated for my load.

Solo I air down to 45 and my tires wear very evenly and I have a great ride all the time.

allen8106 wrote:

Acei wrote:
Yes I am talking about the rear wheels, pulling a 5th wheel.

Ok, so some of you DO adjust the air pressure... For those who do adjust, how do you increase the pressure? Do you use a portable air compressor hooked up to the cigarette 12V power?

When we eventually go full-timing, we will drive a 1t dually. Will dually behave ok not towing when the tires are max pressured? We do expect to drive every day and sometimes 100-200 miles at a time when not towing.

My rears are at 80 PSI 100% of the time, no adjusting.

A simple question is why? Do you have 6K+ on your rear axle to warrant that inflation all the time?

Campinghoss@51 wrote:

Cummins12V98 wrote:

Campinghoss@51 wrote:

shadows4 wrote:
I run 65 lbs in the front and 70 in the rear all the time. 265/75/16 E tires. Works for me.

I do the same year round. My first set of tires gave me 68,000, my current set is at 58,000 miles. I don't think I will get as many miles this time as the originals.

On your next set try 72 front and 45 rear solo and increase the rears to the proper psi for the load when towing. I easily get 100-120K at those pressures with Michelins or BFG's.

I will give it a try. I ran BF the first time and Michelin this time.

Thanks.

I know part of the reason I always got great mileage was because I drove at least 30 or miles each way for work. But I have paid a lot of attention to how peoples front tires always are worn on the edges and that does get evened out when rotation since the rears are overinflated. That is why most tires don't go as long as they could.