New 19.5" tires and Forged rims installed

[Turboman]

This is the exact combo I need. With the added weight of the crew cab conv, "E" tires just don't cut it. Does Michelin have a 12ply in the 265/70 size? My tire dealer swears up and down these will ride real harsh. How do they feel on bumps and freeway cracks? You might try some balancing beads from Innovative balancing, I run them in my tires and in our big trucks. They work very well.

 

[FordCummins]

I've got 16ply (Load range H) XDE M/S in a 245 on my dually, and I can tell you that unloaded they do ride harshly over expansion joints, especially under braking. The axle will get a hop to it under braking which gets rather annoying. Im hoping that some air in the airbags fixes this. When towing however, with some good tongue weight, it rides like a cadillac and the tires dont flex or squat at all. In retrospect, I should have gone with the 12 ply, but I got 16 ply tires in a day, and I needed em. Live and learn.

 

[EricBu12]

If, I put the tires up to hard pressure, then yes they would ride harsh... . 4080# per tire at 95 psi is hard. .



I air down the rear to 40 and the front to 50.



Looks like the Ricksons site has the 265 tire but in a G rating at 5510# per tire.

 

[EricBu12]

Turboman,



Michelin has a XDE 2+ 265/70R 19. 5"... that is a G rating



http://www.michelintruck.com/michelintruck/productguide/newprod/TireSpecs.jsp?tread=XDE2+



It is a 34. 4" diameter tire, overall width is 10. 3"



"G" rated at 5510# @110 psi



I am getting better mileage with these new rims and tires (the 245 19. 5)towing the 36' trailer I have. I average about 10 mpg and my combo is 23K total.....

 

[EricBu12]

Turboman,



If you want to go down a mere 1. 4" diameter smaller, the 245 70R 19. 5" 12 ply tire I have is 33" diameter and the tread is the same width as a 265/75-16" so that helps the rolling resistance with the stiff tires.....

 

[Mundgyver]

Very nice looking set up. How much recalibration of your speedometer is required (speed vs RPM now compared to before) and what did it do to your fuel economy, if I may ask.

 

[Turboman]

I just like these fat 305/70s too much. I finally got some Nittos 10 plys and I don't think they are going to wear any better than anything else. The weight rating is adequate, but with the power we have available when pulling a load, they basically burning the tread off. Other than deeper tread, the 19. 5s will do the same thing IMO. And I'm having a real hard time letting go of $2800. Yea the tires are less than half of it, but still too spend $1200 for tires, they better last more than twice what I'm getting now. If I new I could get 80k out of them I would do it. I only tow maybe 20% of the time, but that 20% is heavy towing 20k or more.

 

[CUMMINZ]

19.5s

Those wheels and 19. 5s are a great combination but I am old school and like the floatation I get with my 315s. I just wished I could get them in 10-12 ply in a mild street tread.

 

[EricBu12]

The commercial tires have a harder compound and with 21/32nds tread depth, the tires I have will last about 120,000 miles..... Big rig tires do it all the time some even more, up to 250K... . The michelin 12 ply tires are all steel so they roll better... . cooler.



Mundgyver,



I used the Superlift Tru-speed calibrator. I used the diameter of the tire to dial in the calibrator. I think it was like 2-3% bigger than the stock tires then used Mile markers on a straight road and got the accuracy to within 100' in 13 miles..... Good enough I think..... I think the RPM at 65 wa like 100-200 RPM. The tire diameter is like a 285/75-16"



I tow a 36' 5th wheel Toyhauler... A Keystone Raptor, you may have seen the posts... I am getting about 9-11 mpg average..... I did a run to Las Vegas and had headwind and hills and in 200 miles, averaged 9 mpg figured by hand. My Overhead computer for mileage is off... as is everyones is..... but I figured about 2-4 mpg more than actual on the display... . It reguarly shows 12-16 mpg on flat ground.

 

[Mundgyver]

Very nice. I am running 285'sx16 and have an electronic recalibration box under the dash which can be adjusted using a series of dip switches. I have set mine up using my GPS. Tires and wheels look very good, I think they are nicer than the Semi Truck style that seem to grab attention.