03 Dually Winter tires

[AKsmoker]

Hey all, wondering how the 235/80/17 Goodyear GSA does on the snow and ice. Anybody out there have some experience on how this tire performs? First time dually owner but experienced winter driver. Should I bite the bullet and go with a winter set studded ($1,700 for six) or try them out first? Any thoughts on how I should spend my money?? :{

 

[Turbo Tim 1]

Just take this for what it's worth because it's not an answer to any of your questions, but when I got my truck and it had the stock Michelins in it the rear end would float like mad and be all over the place in the snow, with a foot of snow in the road it was rather hairy. When I put the BFG MT's on I didn't notice any problem with this, they seem to dig down in and not float. This is just my observation.

 

[y-knot]

I have to agree with T-Tim, I could not wait to get rid of the stock tires. It would not go, with out being in four wheel drive, and then it was wagging it's tail . I went to the BFG MUD tires and it is a whole different truck, they bite and you go thru it, not over it (snow). It was actually embarrassing, your in this big truck, and it won't go, and all the little ricers are laughing.

 

[y-knot]

Also if you do decide to get another set of wheels for summer, this place is the cheapest of the Alcoa's (which could be some nice summer wheel, use the stockers for winter), or Steel wheels for cheap secound set. www.southwestwheel.com

 

[XcumminsX]

does Alcoa makes 22. 5's for non duallys. that would be cool:--)

 

[pstillo]

Does BFG make a 255/85 MT's in 17" for the 03 dually?

 

[frijole]

17" Tires

Other than the tires made for Dodge Duallys by Goodyear, as of my last inquiry, no one else is making a 235/80R/17!!! I'd say try them when you get a good snow and see what they do and go from there on the studs. Duallys aren't very good on snow or ice, kinda like riding a big fat innertube that goes where it wants to go. I'm on my 3rd dually in 30 years, have become intimate with their reactions to slick surfaces. At the very least, carry 750 - 1000 lbs auxillary weight in the bed during winter. Good Luck!

 

[AKsmoker]

Thanks for the info, Ive had the sand bags on for traction and ride. I will try the GY GSAs out before shelling out the big bucks for new studded tires. Guess I'll add my name to the DC complaint list for being saddled with one tire manufacture for the dually 17" wheel. :--)

 

[pstillo]

I got the optional off road tire when i orderd my 03 dually. I have not had them in snow yet but i was in about 8" of mud and they were fine.

 

[Peterbilt379CJ]

Reason the rear ends on a drw truck float on the snow is insted of the weight being on 2 tires it is now spread out across 4 tires. Put 2000lbs in the bed and the ass-end wont float around at all.



just like my 18 wheeler. empty in the snow i cant do anything except spin my tires but when i am grossed out at 80,000lbs i have gone thru 2. 5ft of snow with no problem. but then again I have 2 locking differentials and a locking power divider.

 

[Prairie Dog]

The Michilins work great on my SRW 4X4. Iv'e been in snow deep enough to push it with my front bumper and it wouldn't spin unless I forced it to. I know, I know - they dont look "cool" but I couldn't be happier with the way they handle snow.

 

[tpicard]

Goodyear GSA's

AKsmoker, I have run the gsa's for a year. I put a lot of miles on between Seattle and NE. Montana. About 1200 miles one way. I made 5 trips in the winter and didn't have a bit of trouble. Pretty decenct tire for OEM. I sure now with 25,000 miles on them the performance in snow and ice will be worse. I have owned 5 dually's in the past 15 years and travel through Montana quite a bit. I have never experienced the whoa's that are talked about. These long wheel based trucks are hard to get sideways. I am sure that the roads in AK are much worse than Montana, if the tires are relatively new I would run 'em. My 2 cents. Good luck to you.

 

[Slow Six]

Winter tires

My dually came with the Good Year SRA tires. I have driven a fair amount of poor winter conditions and I am quite impressed with these tires for traction and handling on snow, ice slush etc. I don't think they are a great wearing tire but good winter traction and long wear usually do not go together. Since there are no other choices out there I am ordering more of these for winter. I really like this truck and tire combination for winter driving.

 

[dkok]

This is my third Dodge Dually and I have always studded up all 6 for winter travel. I was surprised to learn yesterday that my Les Schwab dealer shows no projected availability for a studded snow tire until next March. He recommended siping the Goodyears to gain a little traction.

 

[AKsmoker]

Tpicard, thanks for the reply. We had a little freezing rain and I too have been impressed so far. Truck seems to have some bite to the road. I broke track just once when I got to heavy on the throttle. Ok I guess I'll wait and see how they do. Next question? what about chains? If you can find them. I would assume its not a good idea for the rear axle on the outside tires, what about the front. My 3/4 ton I always carried a set to get out of trouble on those rare occasions where I should have stayed home but didn't. Any suggestions?

 

[AKsmoker]

For whats its worth we got 6" of the white stuff today and it was wet and slick. Plenty of ditch divers! I was surprised how well the GSA's performed. Truck never untracked and held the road well. Pattern seems to shed the snow. But come out of 4 wheel drive and your all over the place. I didn't know what to expect with the dually but feel confident to try the tires out rather than a studded set all around. Oo.

 

[DuallyFox]

In Alaska Also

I think that this is my first post...



I have a 3500 DRW CTD 4x4. It was my experience that the tires did just fine on the snow and ice we got this week in Alaska. I do have ~1000 lbs of p-gravel in the bed and I have an ARE cap so maybe that's why. 2 wheel drive is all I needed except for getting up to my house which is way up on the hill in Peters Creek. Didn't slide around at all -- 2 or 4 wheel drive. -Roy

 

[rncordy]

Just found your post. What brand and load range are the studded tires? I have not found any except load range C and I am reluctant to use those. Stock of course is Load Range E.



Tx!

 

[mbaston]

I have ran my Goodyears for 35K miles now. I keep about 500lbs of sand in the bed when I don't have my camper on. They do pretty good in snow and ice (I bought my truck last January). I am actually very happy with rear end stability when compared with my 95 and 00 that liked to swap ends. What I don't like about the Goodyears is wear. I hope to make the winter with these. I don't want to buy Goodyears again due to poor wear but nothing else is available.



Diversified in Wasilla has/had a set of new Goodyears that they would stud for me but I would rather try to make it until someone else makes some tires. I understand the Cooper is working on our size. I also understand that several other companies also plan to come out with tires in our size.



One thing to consider, have your Goodyears siped. It helps a lot.

 

[rncordy]

Thanks for the siping tip. I'll check into it. I am running with about 300 lbs of sand and a Leer cap. Winter has just arrived (today) so I will feel my way around and see how it goes with the stock tires. I used Kelly MSRs on my 98 and would got good mileage from them and good traction. They are only available now in Load Range C.