2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission new tires = "loose" feel?

[GHerrmann]

new tires

Just put new tires on mine yesterday 11-17-07 and the truck felt the same way driving home through town. sure hope it goes away!!!!

 

[Wyomingcowboy]

If you are running empty, put about 57-60 in the front and 42-44 in the rear. Should steer better. SNOKING

I am going for max tire wear. Would this be optimum for that?

 

[DodgeWarlock]

Max treadwear is even treadwear. Assuming proper alignment air pressure is critical and changes vehicle to vehicle depending on load and driving style. One easy way to get close is to make a chalk line(or tire marker line) across the entire tread side to side. Drive the truck a short straight distance and inspect the mark. When it wears off evenly acroos the tread the pressure is ballpark. Too low wears the outside first. Too high wears the middle first. Pickups pose the problem of changing loads on the rear. The best average depends on how you use the truck. Using a depth guage across the tread occasionally as you put miles on the truck will help fine tune to your needs. I tested ours the way we drive it 95% of the time, but always air up to max when towing for better sidewall stability. If you drive aggressively in the corners a little extra air will help counter the extra load applied to outside edges. With p/u's in particular rotation is key. I know people who get exceptionally good wear from some mud tires because they rotate at every oil change. It probably doesn't pay unless you do it yourself or have a free rotation plan though.

 

[J.BURCHFIELD]

I am not saying you have the wrong ratio steering box but the first thing to do when you have a wandering problem is to count the turns on your steering wheel from stop to stop. Take some weight off the front wheels/tires with a floor jack and with the engine idling if you got 4&1/4 turns you got the wrong steering box as so many of us did. Replacing it with a 3 turn box (what should have been put in in the first place) will cure the wandering problem assuming upper and lower ball joints and tie rod ends are in good shape and alignment is OK. Shocks can go bad in as little as 40K. Anything beyond that is a gift. The steering box Dodge chose to use is a GM (saginaw) box and has no markings on the outside to indicate what ratio it is. I believe when GM ships the wrong box the assembly line workers do not turn the input shaft and count the turns. They just instal it. I have written on here many times about this. My Ram is a 98 and for 7 years it drove me (almost) nuts. Then I read an article in TDR written by a man named Quigley who had the same problem. Alignment shops don't know about this and the Master Mechanics at the Dealers don' know and I doubt that Dodge knows. They got a lot of complaints which may have led them to change to Rack and Pinion starting in late 02 on the 2 wheel drives. Now that I have the right ratio I would not want the Rack and Pinion, it is not as Heavy Duty. I saw where you have an 02. I do not know if they continued to use the Gm box when they went to Rack and Pinion on the 2 wheel drive. I would turn stop to stop, then you will know if you have the 3 turn and need to look at something else. Feel free to e-mail me -- email address removed --

 

[DonTX]

I put two new tires on the front of mine last week, old ones were nearly bald, no adverse steering on mine.

 

[dram99]

i just did the ball joints and the track bar after 185k. . i just purchased 264/75/16 ten ply and did a wheel alignment. now it just pulls to the left slightly so i will be back to the dealer to fix that. . first i have to install the bar that adds a bearing to the bottom of the pitman shaft. . the steering box has to have some ware...

i suggest that you get a suspension and alignment check... .