2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission What are the best tires for the 4x4 ram

[MA2LA]

I am looking at tires right now myself and Michelin makes an "E" rated tire in 285. It is the LTX/A2. Very similar to the LTX M/S.

now if they would just make it e load range on a 17" wheel i'd be very happy

 

[Regcabguy]

Wishfull thinking.

now if they would just make it e load range on a 17" wheel i'd be very happy

Someday they'll listen. :{

 

[rluft]

Mine came with Michelin LTX. I ran a set of BFG A/T's and Cooper A/T's. I now have Bridgestone REVO's and am on my second set. Got 60,000 miles on the first set and could have ran them longer. They are quiet on the hiway, good traction in mud, load range E, as long as I kept the frontend aligned they wore evenly, and I never had a flat. The only thing I have to complain about is that they tend to pick up, hold, and then throw rocks.

 

[Gweeds12V]

I'm running the Les Schwab brand Wild Country XTX Sport, its an all season A/T. Pretty aggresive A/T, it has done good in the mud and is doing good in the snow so far. They ride great on the road. really smooth, handles great. Cooper makes the rubber, and they have a 50,000 mile tread warranty. Can't beat that! i'm running them in a 285 16" rim. GREAT TIRE! highly recommend!

 

[EricBu12]

I run BFG AT T/A in the winter on stock rims. . 285-16". . run smooth and get decent mileage. Has good traction in the snow.

Summer I run Michelin 245/70R-19. 5" 12 ply "F" rated for towing. . These have a problem balancing but run pretty good.

 

[rluft]

You're having better luck with BFG ATs than I am. I'm on my second set, and it'll be my last. I can't keep them balanced.

You might consider using balance beads from Inovative Balancing. They balance as you drive. I have used them on my pickup and motorcycle. My experience with them have been good, 60000 miles on last set of Bridgestones.

 

[LRutigliano]

My bfg tires are on there last leg

what where the stock tires on the 4x4 they where good tires

I believe the stock tires were 265/75-16 Michelin LTX M/S "E". In my opinion, these are the absolute best tires for hiway, rain and snow driving. I had these on my '01 and LOVED them. I've seen these tires go 60 to 90k on the 2nd gen trucks and they are quiet and fuel efficient.



I had BFG's on '03 and when I replaced them, I went with Bridgestone Dueler REVO's (same size) and noticed immediately that they required more hp to drive down the hiway. They are quiet, though. Why didn't I go with the Michelins?? Because they only made an LTX A/S at the time in 265/70-17 and that tire is strictly a hiway tire and looks goofy on the 3rd gens...



Be extremely careful with tires and do your homework. This very simple R&R can effect your driveablility and fuel economy tremendously.

 

[WTBurke]

The Toyo M/T's are very round and with the Innovative bead balancing it's sweet. I've had these 37 inch fatties up to 115 MPH (Smarty allowed) and it's very impressive. I had 35" Goodyear M/T's on 16 inch rims and 90 MPH was scary. Expensive... YES... 37's are $500 each... but, WOW... nice meats!

All my friends hate me... :-laf



William

 

[Davcruz]

William, I just looked at the pic of your truck, pretty much my truck but in white! I was wondering what cap you have and also your flares. They look like the ones I have also. Do you have a body lift? 37's on 5" of lift seems almost impossible.

 

[WTBurke]

Dave,

The cap was a Lear and I just recently sold it, as I no longer need it to house equipment for my sales job. I need new photos for the gallery



The flares are factory originals. My local Dodge dealer found 3 in Georgia and 1 in Texas and informed me it was the last set to be had in the country. I made this purchase about June or July of 2003 and was surprized to learn Chrysler doesn't produce accessories like this for very long.



The lift was originally a SkyJacker and I was told it was a five inch however; it's a bit over six inches. The company told me it would "settle" out in time as the front coils would relax under the load of the Cummins. It never did. I've shown this truck to a lot of four-wheel shops and their opinion is SkyJacker supplied coil springs of different heights by error. Don Thuren also made a remark about the height and encouraged me to experiment with caster adjustment on my own. By the way, SkyJacker is a "hayseed" company and I would never recommend anything except their coil springs. I will be replacing the control arms very soon. The zerk-fittings location on the control arms is insane! I called these hayseeds and asked what's up... their response was lame!



The front tires will rub just slightly on chassis compression, I've trimmed with a Dremmel-tool in very small increments to prevent tire damage. I would never launch this truck into an air-born maneuver over a small hill. Normal driving presents no trouble. Wheeling off-road, I'm very graceful with this rig.



I did have 6 inch plus lift in my signature at one time and two TDR members told me I was wrong because the SkyJacker company didn't produce a 6 inch lift at the time I purchased the kit. Well... quality control tolerance variations do occur and my lift is pretty tall for the control arm geometry... which will change soon. You know... I think I'll just adjust my signature information to reflect reality, this type of information could mislead TDR members and it's true... 5 inches of lift will not correctly accommodate 37" tires. I am against body-lifting... it's just to much other stuff to deal with.



Also, while I'm at it slamming SkyJacker... their powder-coating sucks too!



I'm not receiving email from the TDR because I'm an sbcglobal.net subscriber so I need to manually check the threads I'm subscribed to.



William

 

[BDaugherty]

I'm running 315/75R16 Procomp Extreme A/Ts. If I hadn't bought them used, I'd have the 40K mile treadlife warranty. However, if I hadn't found them used, I would have bought something different. I don't have any complaints, but I'd rather have a E rated mud terrain.



As for balance issues, I'm running Centramatic wheel balancers. So far, I like them. I mount my tires by hand in the driveway and save the extra $$ to buy something cool.

 

[Davcruz]

Thanks for the info William. I had to ask about the lift as I can make 35's rub when wheeling on my 5. 5" Fabtech lift. I will say that I am impressed with the Skyjacker Nitro shocks I just installed. The ride from these shocks is outstanding. That said, I would probably not purchase an actual lift made by them. I know what you mean about springs included with lift kits though. I installed the Fabtech 5. 5 lift on my old 1500 2000 Ram and got nearly 7" of lift in the front out of a 5. 5" lift, the springs did eventually settle to about 6. 5" though.

 

[WTBurke]

Dave, yes. . I forgot to mention the shocks are fine so no complaints and I have 70 K miles on them now.



By the way... nice looking truck. I would like to see it in a gallery format over the thumb nail. I'll post some new ones without the shell on it as soon as the weather is a little nicer for lighting. My only photo with the 37's was taken in my garage... my garage is 1800 square feet... . my home is 1000 square feet... . I have a very understanding wife :-laf



Cheers,

William

 

[DPrew]

I also like my Revo Dueller AT's. You can get the 265's in D or E load range. I put my tires to the limit (or may be past the limit)towing 17-18K up some steep hills. 100 psi Air Bags rule! The Dueller's seem to ride smoother than the BFG's and last longer. I've had the A/S and M/S as well. I think the Dueller's stick better on wet pavement. But you can't beat Michelin for ride quality when it comes to how well their tires are balanced.

 

[JA1]

I run E rated 285 Goodyear Wrangler Pro Grade. There rated to 50,000. The BFG AT's I replaced only had 22,000 miles on them. They were rotated every 3000 and wore even, CRAP. Good Luck.

 

[klaybus]

I've run Les Schwab, BFG All Terrain TA's & now the Michelin LTX M/S. While I liked the looks of the BFG's, I think the Michelin LTX's are the best "all around" tire in regards to wear & "on road" performance. They also seem to perform pretty well in snow. I've definately had a little bit of snow testing conditions lately in the Pacific NW. JMHO... .



Clay

 

[SnoKing]

I just repaced my OEM LTX A/S' with LTX M/S'. I think the A/S' were a little stiffer, as I am having to run them with more air with the 5th wheel to handle wiggle!!! The M/S are quiet on the road, but they really like to pick up rocks in the tread.



Generally happy with them.

 

[klaybus]

they really like to pick up rocks in the tread.

Generally happy with them.

Boy ain't that the truth! I'm constantly kicking rocks off the road back into my gravel driveway leading to my garage in the back of the house.



Clay