New Tires For Tow Vehicle...

[longislandcampe]

I've got a 2013 Ram 1500 Big Horn 5.7 3.73 and pulling a 26' camper that's around 7,700 - 8,000 lbs. I still have the original tires on it with less than 19,000 miles on them.

I'm interested in replacing the TV tires and am looking for suggestions.

[LAJMINNIEPLUS]

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[LAJMINNIEPLUS]

gkainz wrote:
I would think E rated tires on a 1500 would make for an unpleasant ride with unloaded, but maybe if aired down for daily driving ???? dunno

I'm with you. I bought my 2016 Sierra 1500 because I liked the nice ride. Why would I want to replace the stock tires with LT tires and pump them way up in pressure and have it ride like an ox cart? I am hauling a Winnebago Minnie Plus that weighs around 7500# and the truck pulls in very well with a good ride. The truck also has rear anti-sway. I pumped my tires up to 50# just to get an idea of what the ride might be like and there was a lot of difference. Didn't like the ride at all! I am sticking with the stock P rated tires in the future. Can't really see how LT tires and higher air pressure would help me out at all. I believe if you buy a new truck with a trailer towing package, it is all set up to tow the rated load while enjoying a nice ride. Why mess with it by adding LT tires?

[longislandcampe]

So I started towing with the new tires at 40 back in April. Every trip I up them another 5 and I'm currently at 60 and it finally feels good again. I doesn't feel as good as the stock P tires but it definitely feels a LOT better than my initial tows with the new ones.

[SweetLou]

Terryallan wrote:
I really don't care what brand you buy. However, Were I you. I would NOT buy a tire that is rated for less than 2601LB per tire. Yes that is overkill for a 1500 truck. and you will never load it that heavy. But the tires rated 2601 or higher will have less side wall flex. will give you a much better towing experience.

Cooper has a tire that fits that criteria. Discoverer Plus, 2301lb as does Goodyear, Fortitude 2700lb.

Won't bore you with the story but I would never buy Cooper anything PERIOD. Many failures in all sizes

[brulaz]

cm11599ps wrote:

brulaz wrote:

cm11599ps wrote:

...
Today was the first time towing on the highway. If I got around 60 then the steering wheel felt squirmy and I made sure to put two hands on the wheel. I ended up dropping down to just over 50 and it felt better but still not as smooth as my old P tires.

Truck tires were all at 48psi. For what it's worth, I know I was probably at max payload because the rear sagged a bit and I had more stuff in the bed than I normally would. Not sure if that had anything to do with the squirmy feeling.

These are the LT-E tires, right? If so, up the pressure to 70-80psi when towing and see how it feels.

LT's but they are D's.

OK, that's a nice tire.

Pretty sure then the max is 65 PSI which gives you a 3000# weight rating per tire. So try 60-65psi when towing and see what happens.

[longislandcampe]

brulaz wrote:

cm11599ps wrote:

...
Today was the first time towing on the highway. If I got around 60 then the steering wheel felt squirmy and I made sure to put two hands on the wheel. I ended up dropping down to just over 50 and it felt better but still not as smooth as my old P tires.

Truck tires were all at 48psi. For what it's worth, I know I was probably at max payload because the rear sagged a bit and I had more stuff in the bed than I normally would. Not sure if that had anything to do with the squirmy feeling.

These are the LT-E tires, right? If so, up the pressure to 70-80psi when towing and see how it feels.

LT's but they are D's.

[Grit_dog]

And new tread on AT or more aggressive tires will feel squirmy for a while. Just happens. Put 1000mi on it and the feeling will be gone.

[brulaz]

cm11599ps wrote:

...
Today was the first time towing on the highway. If I got around 60 then the steering wheel felt squirmy and I made sure to put two hands on the wheel. I ended up dropping down to just over 50 and it felt better but still not as smooth as my old P tires.

Truck tires were all at 48psi. For what it's worth, I know I was probably at max payload because the rear sagged a bit and I had more stuff in the bed than I normally would. Not sure if that had anything to do with the squirmy feeling.

These are the LT-E tires, right? If so, up the pressure to 70-80psi when towing and see how it feels.

[longislandcampe]

My first tow with the tires was when I left the campground last Thursday. Only about a 25 minute drive home on a two lane road with max speed of about 40. No issues.

Today was the first time towing on the highway. If I got around 60 then the steering wheel felt squirmy and I made sure to put two hands on the wheel. I ended up dropping down to just over 50 and it felt better but still not as smooth as my old P tires.

Truck tires were all at 48psi. For what it's worth, I know I was probably at max payload because the rear sagged a bit and I had more stuff in the bed than I normally would. Not sure if that had anything to do with the squirmy feeling.

[longislandcampe]

BillyW wrote:
cm11599ps, I'm eager to hear what you think of those new tires compared to the OEMs. How much of a MPG hit have you taken?

So far so good but I've put less than 100 miles on them and haven't done my regular day to day driving or towing with them yet.

[TurnThePage]

Nitto has been around a long time. I think they are an extension of Toyo. Their Terra Grapplers are almost identical to Toyo Open Country A/T in every way.

In fact, the Ram Rebel came stock with Nittos at one time and even had the tread pattern integrated into the seat fabric.

[MO_Traveler]

AlmostAnOldGuy wrote:

MO Traveler wrote:
I have the same size issue on same truck...2015 RAM 1500. I was looking at the Cooper Discover HT Plus. Says it is an LT tire with weight rating of 2998 lb. Worried an E rated tire would make the truck ride like a cement truck when empty, which is 90pct of the time. Put a lot of miles on it. Looking at purchasing an Open Range Ultra light around 7500lbs loaded. Thoughts??

I would run E rated tires for a 7500 lb trailer and air them down to 45 or so when not loaded provided your TPMS does not complain too much. Manufacturer should provide an inflation table.

You may want to fire up another thread re: size of trailer for the truck (do not want to hijack this one). Check your door sticker for payload. At 7500 lbs you will likely have about 950 on the hitch. Add 100 for the WDH and see how you are doing payload wise.

Good luck,
Stu

Truck is good for the weight...tow package, low axle ratio and tow rating of 10k. Payload capacity of 1600. Just two of us traveling so not a lot of extra weight in the truck, also planned to add air bags to keep ride height the same. Trailer we are looking at is about 6400 empty. Not many options in the E rating on this size tire, found some Nitto Dura Grappler's but very expensive and never heard of Nitto brand.

[TurnThePage]

cm11599ps, I'm eager to hear what you think of those new tires compared to the OEMs. How much of a MPG hit have you taken?

[AlmostAnOldGuy]

MO Traveler wrote:
I have the same size issue on same truck...2015 RAM 1500. I was looking at the Cooper Discover HT Plus. Says it is an LT tire with weight rating of 2998 lb. Worried an E rated tire would make the truck ride like a cement truck when empty, which is 90pct of the time. Put a lot of miles on it. Looking at purchasing an Open Range Ultra light around 7500lbs loaded. Thoughts??

I would run E rated tires for a 7500 lb trailer and air them down to 45 or so when not loaded provided your TPMS does not complain too much. Manufacturer should provide an inflation table.

You may want to fire up another thread re: size of trailer for the truck (do not want to hijack this one). Check your door sticker for payload. At 7500 lbs you will likely have about 950 on the hitch. Add 100 for the WDH and see how you are doing payload wise.

Good luck,
Stu