2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission Funny Tire Wear

[drrhoades]

Both of my front tires are wearing on the outside edges the most. Is this a common problem. the truck drives straight adn doesn't pull at all. The tires are C range tires and they are wearing quickly all around but if the outside tire wear is a problem I would like to get it ficed before I buy a exspensive set of tires. Any suggestions would be great.

Thanks

Doug

 

[KL]

Maybe its the "C" range tires? A "C" range tire probably cant support the weight of our trucks. Most people run "E" range, but a few do run "D" range. What type and size tires are you using? KL

 

[Matt42]

Originally posted by drhoades

Both of my front tires are wearing on the outside edges the most. Is this a common problem. the truck drives straight adn doesn't pull at all. The tires are C range tires and they are wearing quickly all around but if the outside tire wear is a problem I would like to get it ficed before I buy a exspensive set of tires. Any suggestions would be great.

Thanks

Doug

Are they wearing on the outside edges of the tire treads? Or are they just wearing on the outside edge of the truck?



(1) If they are wearing on the outside edge of the truck (one edge of each tire), then it is an alignment problem or a bad track bar.



(2) If they are wearing on the outside edges of each tire (less wear in the center of the tire), then the tires are overloaded and/or underinflated.



I'm guessing that the situation is (2). There is no way that you are going to avoid replacing these tires. They are undersize for the truck, and cannot support the truck's weight. I surmise that the reason that the fronts are wearing is the truck isn't carrying a full load. However, with the weight of the engine, the front axle is at near capacity all the time, and the tires aren't up to it.



Assuming again that the situation is (2), the front tires are damaged already, and it's a matter of time before one or both of them disintegrates from overloading. The tire shop that sold these Load Range C tires to you has no business selling tires. Perhaps they will replace them at a reduced cost with tires of the proper size. Your truck came with LT-245/75R16E tires. You can probably replace them with LT-265/75R16D tires IF those tires have the same load rating .



Do not put this off. This is an accident waiting to happen.

 

[drrhoades]

When I bought the truck it had the tires on it the dealer had them pumped up to 65 psi all the way around too. They are only supposed to be 50 psi for 2700 lbs each. I am currently running 50 in the front and 45 in the back. The tires are Cooper Discover A/T 265/75-16 C. The tires are wearing more on the outside edge of the truck then on the inside of the truck but both are wearing more then the center. The truck drives straight and does not wander. I am looking into getting new tires soon but am trying to figure out if this is an alignment problem or a tire problem. Also will 285/75-16 fit on 6. 5" rims without having wear problems from being to wide?



Thanks

Doug

 

[Matt42]

Ah. This makes more sense now. You may have a combination of issues. I partly retract my gloomy post. The tires are overloaded, but not as badly as they could be. If both tires have roughly equal outside edge wear, it could be a toe-in problem, or a camber problem. Fixing camber requires replacing the lower steering knuckles. If the right front is worse, it may be a track bar.



When my track bar wore, I had no problems with tracking straight ahead, but the outside of the FR tire started to wear.



A visit to an alignment shop is warranted.



I don't know if the 285 section tires will fit. The 265 section tires will. A good tire dealer can tell you.

 

[KL]

Doug, according to the tirerack website, 285 size tires should be mounted on rims between 7 1/2 and 9 inches. KL

 

[jlhartak]

Doug,



You definitely want to go back to E load range tires. The Cummins puts a lot of weigh on the front axle (my truck 3980lbs. with nothing in the truck) combine that with the softer sidewall of the C range tires and you get rollover on fast cornering which scrubs off the outside edge of the tread. Excess wear should be checked out at the alignment shop but the positive camber design of solid front axles (which means the tires lean away from the truck at the top) contributes to wear on the outside tread edge, too much toe-in doesn't help either. The only thing you can do to mitigate the problem is ROTATE, ROTATE, ROTATE.

 

[drrhoades]

jlhartak, i think you hit the nail on the head. I was wondering if it was a rollover problem and now that I think about it the tread does seem like it is scrubbed off on the outside edges of the tire. The last bit of every tread block is lower then the beginning of the tread block. I am was going to rotate them today anyway because of the wear, just had to have the time to do it.



Thanks,

Doug

 

[Pit Bull]

Doug look in the owners manual. States you need "E" rated tires. I would take it back to the Dealer you bought it from and show them the tires and the owners manual and tell them you want new tires for "FREE". "C" rated tires are unsafe for your truck and I bet if you took it to a tire store they would not sell you "C" rated tires for your truck because of the legal liability that they would have. The wear is the roll over from the weak side walls

 

[drrhoades]

I know that the tires are rated to low and I would take it back to the dealer but they are 5 hours away and its not worth my time to argue with them because I had to fight to get a spare tire for the ride home. Luckliy I won that battle and I pulled a 265/75-16 Michilin spare from under another truck. They sure had a heck of a time partin with it, but its mine now. I think i am going to get new tires this week.

 

[drrhoades]

Well I am getting Kelly Safari AWR 265/75-16E tires today after work. If any one is running these what air pressure are you using I was thinking 60 in the front and 40 in the back. I will have to weigh the truck and do the math to get the exact numbers but I think this is close unless my weights are off 4500# in the front and 3000# in the back.

 

[jlhartak]

Doug,



60psi front 40psi rear is about right for empty. You may want to run a little more in the rear (45 or so) my 245 75R 16 Michs seem to bounce more if I run less that 45 in the rear but it may work with the 265s. If you don't have one buy a inexpensive tire tread depth quage. Then you can tell if the tires are wearing in the middle or on the edges before it becomes visually evident.