wmoses wrote:
I have 20" P-rated tires that came with the truck so that is factored into the current tow rating. So far I got 42k off them and they have maybe 10k more of life, so I am very pleased since factory issue tires are not known for longevity. When time comes to replace I will likely stay with the same size, maybe a little wider, but go with an XL tire. I know that the higher aspect ratio is better for additional load but with a half ton there is no real need for that or an LT tire, especially on a daily driver.
The factory tires on our '10 Chevy were the Bridgestone Dueler's 265/65/18, and had just over 20k mi on them & still got a trade allowance from Discount Tire. Only reason I changed tires was I stepped up to a set of LT's (Cooper Discover A/T3's) because I had a wiggle (like a kid that needs a restroom & can't stand still! Lol) while loaded up. 44psi cold, and still had it. Some P rated tires are better than others when loaded I guess.
Think I posted truck info before, but our truck is a 2010 Chevy CCSB Z71 4x4 5.3/6spd/3.42. Trip last year (another next month) to Northern Mi we were probably loaded around 7klbs (have weighed in at 6300lbs without water, this was w/ water & few more things for a few extra days) and truck did just fine! At one point I dropped her into 3rd (4th may have been ok- may try that this next trip) and it gained speed climbing a fairly long uphill grade without sweating (I don't know the actual grade %, maybe someone else does I75 North of West Branch, Mi). Not as steep as the mountains, but truck had no problem at all.
Hope that helps about the 7k with my drivetrain combo!
PS: I would love to see how my truck would do with 3.73 or even 4.10's, just for the fun factor! Kind of glad to see you can get the 3.73 gearing in the 2014's w/ the 5.3 or 6.2!
