19.5" wheels - '03 3500 SWR

[Jeremiah]

How about a contact from members running 19. 5" wheels on an '03 3500 SWR w/3. 73 rear end. I'd like to pick your brain before I buy a set. You can respond privately or publicly, your choice. Thanks in advance.



Jere

 

[ddutil]

Jeremiah, guys, keep me posted on this, please. I found that 17'' tires are not that common, and they seem pricey as well. Some friends told me that 19. 5'' would be too stiff (hard on the butts) for my daily driver. Well, I'm starting to wonder. I will be looking for top notch winter tires next October because (you know me, I'm one of those 2x4 Cannucks... ) the stock all-seasons 17'' are way too slippery with this 305 hp truck. And I hate to get stucked and shovel.



SRW-2500-Dan-wants-to-kow-too.

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Hmm, with 3. 73 gears you're going to have a highway flyer that's a dog off the line & around town if you put 19. 5s on. Those tires are pretty tall. Wouldn't go over 245s max.



Rickson has aluminum 19. 5s in the works, might call and ask how they are coming. They will be proper offset for 2000+ SRWs.

http://www.ricksontruck.com/wheels-dodge-SRW.html

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by Vaughn MacKenzie

Hmm, with 3. 73 gears you're going to have a highway flyer that's a dog off the line & around town if you put 19. 5s on. Those tires are pretty tall. Wouldn't go over 245s max.



Rickson has aluminum 19. 5s in the works, might call and ask how they are coming. They will be proper offset for 2000+ SRWs.

http://www.ricksontruck.com/wheels-dodge-SRW.html

The 19. 5 wheels will reduce the rear end ratio to 3. 44, which is a bit less than the 3. 55 that Dodge used to offer. The '03 6-spd. is geared so low in 1st that it almost encourages the driver to start out in 2nd gear. I'm hoping a 3. 44 with tall wheels will make driving around town less doggie in the lower gears and lower the highway rpms to 1800 or so at 75 mph (instead of 2250). Whadda you think? I'm looking for someone who's made the switch.

 

[ddutil]

Originally posted by Jeremiah

. . geared so low in 1st that it almost encourages the driver to start out in 2nd gear. . and lower the highway rpms to 1800 or so at 75 mph (instead of 2250). Whadda you think?

I thought exactly that Dan

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by Jeremiah

The 19. 5 wheels will reduce the rear end ratio to 3. 44, which is a bit less than the 3. 55 that Dodge used to offer. The '03 6-spd. is geared so low in 1st that it almost encourages the driver to start out in 2nd gear. I'm hoping a 3. 44 with tall wheels will make driving around town less doggie in the lower gears and lower the highway rpms to 1800 or so at 75 mph (instead of 2250). Whadda you think? I'm looking for someone who's made the switch.

I called Rickson and they were a bit vague about the '03 except to say, "Oh, yeah, it'll work fine. " That's why I'd like to use somebody else as a guinea pig before I fork over 3 grand for wheels and tires. I've checked the TDR for earlier models and the drivers seem to really like tall tires and say they handle much better. However, there have been some issues about having to raise the truck to keep the wheels from scraping. I don't think that will be a problem for the '03s.

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by ddutil

I thought exactly that Dan

First gear is wonderful as a towing gear, but it barely gets an unloaded truck moving before it's time to hit second. It's fun running through the gears and I don't mind it, but it can be slow off the line unless the driver hits 28 hundred rpm or so in every gear.

 

[d90boy]

Where are the Alcoas that are supposed to be coming out? If I ever did it, I was thinking some 245/70 michelin XZTs. They come out to a 33. 6" tire which I think would be fine with 3. 73s. I'm also considering the 285/70/17 BFG AT that would be a 33" or so and get back to what a 265/75/16 and 3. 54s would be like.

 

[Task125]

I am waiting for my ricksons,hopefully they will be ready soon. I will post when I get them.

 

[Mark_Kendrick]

Originally posted by Jeremiah

1st that it almost encourages the driver to start out in 2nd gear.

I HAD an NV5600 in my '01 and I don't think i've ever used first without a BIG trailer uless it was in error. I've used second to takeoff gross'n 27k. . but I don't exactly drive your father's dodge either



just put it in second and let off the clutch. the '03 has 3. 73s vs the 3. 55 on older trucks. I doubt you really need first when loaded pretty heavy... just let the cummins lug a bit.



I wouldn't mind 19. 5's on my '01. but if I'm getting 6 new wheels they'll all be aluminum.



Later,

Mark

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by d90boy

Where are the Alcoas that are supposed to be coming out? If I ever did it, I was thinking some 245/70 michelin XZTs. They come out to a 33. 6" tire which I think would be fine with 3. 73s. I'm also considering the 285/70/17 BFG AT that would be a 33" or so and get back to what a 265/75/16 and 3. 54s would be like.

Here's the URL: http://www.ricksontruck.com/wheels-dodge-SRW.html. I checked it and couldn't find much. Maybe it was me.

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by Mark_Kendrick

I HAD an NV5600 in my '01 and I don't think i've ever used first without a BIG trailer uless it was in error. I've used second to takeoff gross'n 27k. . but I don't exactly drive your father's dodge either



just put it in second and let off the clutch. the '03 has 3. 73s vs the 3. 55 on older trucks. I doubt you really need first when loaded pretty heavy... just let the cummins lug a bit.



I wouldn't mind 19. 5's on my '01. but if I'm getting 6 new wheels they'll all be aluminum.



Later,

Mark

It's tempting, for sure. But the Owner's Manual urges drivers to use 6 gears regardless of the load, so that's what I do. It probably saves the clutch a little. On doing stuff in error, the biggest error I ever made was downshifting from 5th to 4th and hitting 2nd instead. Now there's a sound you won't forget!#@$%!

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by Task125

I am waiting for my ricksons,hopefully they will be ready soon. I will post when I get them.

That would be great! However, I notice you have the 4. 10, so the tall wheel should drop your final ratio to about where I am now with the 3. 73.

 

[Task125]

Thats why I went with 410s,I knew when I ordered I was going to run 35s or 19. 5 245.

 

[Jeremiah]

Originally posted by Task125

Thats why I went with 410s,I knew when I ordered I was going to run 35s or 19. 5 245.

Are the 19. 5 245s wider than the factory 17" 265s?

 

[Dean Upson]

Dean

But the Owner's Manual urges drivers to use 6 gears regardless of the load, so that's what I do

I always use all 6 gears, love it .



Dean

 

[Mark_Kendrick]

I can count the number of times on one hand I 've used the first gear on purpose.



I'm lazy. . I ain't rowin more than I have to

 

[Task125]

I know the rims have the same offset,the stock tires measure about 8 1/2 and 19. 5 245s are about the same. 8 1/4

 

[nickleinonen]

Originally posted by Jeremiah

Are the 19. 5 245s wider than the factory 17" 265s?

nope. the 245's are 245mm tread width and the 265's are 265mm tread width. so the difference is 20mm, but the overall height of the tires are different. the 245/70/19. 5 tire is ±33" tall, while the 265/70/17 is ±32" tall. now if you put a 285/70/17 tire on the stock rims, you would have a tire that is the same height as the 245/70/19. 5 being ±33" tall, but being 40mm wider



just a refresher for anyone who has forgoten [or never learned] what the numbers in a tire size are. example below...

205/75/15



the red 205 is the tread width in millimeters [mm]

the green 75 is the aspect ratio. the tire's sidewall on this example is 75% of the tread width which works out to 153. 75mm [per side]

the blue 15 is the rim size in inches



there is other stuff that is on tire sidewalls like P and LT which are ratings for passenger and light truck. the ply rating is there too [c=6, d=8, e=10... ] and speed ratings [a-z more or less in alpha order -lower letter, lower speed, higher letter, higher speed rating ->y or w being fastest (z is below them )] and there is also temprature and traction ratings, with AA being top and C being lowest [AA, A, B, C]

 

[GregSmith]

Just a clarification on tire size. The first number is actually the section width, which is the overall width of the "carcass" of the tire measured at the "bulge". Tread widths can vary depending on tire design, and are almost always (hedge, hedge) less than the section width.