Changing rear tires or not...

AbitaDave wrote:
OK, I have a 2015 Silverado 2500 HD diesel towing a 39' Jayco 5th wheel which we just purchased. Went to the cat scales today and I'm just over my pin weight loaded ....I'm also not impressed with the tires that came stock on my truck for towing. I have Goodyear Wranglers 265/60R20's load rated E. Any recommendations on a better tire ....

Dave,
The last several sets of tires I've had on my trucks have been Firestone Transforce AT. I've gotten about 50,000 miles out of each set with even wear and excellent durability.

If you're open to new rims, you could look for an OEM set off a GM 3500HD SRW. They will bolt right on your truck but allow for a heavier rating. I'm forget exact specifics but I think the 2500HD got a 7" rim and the 3500HD was 7.5"...regardless of my foggy memory, the 3500HD has a wider rim that accepts a wider tread tire with higher weight capacity. If you put the wider, higher rated tires on the narrower wheels you lose capacity because of excess sidewall stress so it really takes the 3500 wheels to make it happen.

I looked into this topic several years ago for my '04 Chevy 2500HD. The AAM axle GM puts in these trucks is rated for 10,000lbs. In fact, I think GM uses the same 11.5" axle in both the 2500HD and the 3500HD. The real limitation is the wheels and suspension that's bolted to it. I don't think I'd sweat 50lbs over published weights, but getting higher capacity tires will give you more fudge factor.

Kj