Door tag calls for 65/75. Yappin with fellas that run these heavy rigs and the mechanics at work recommend running close to max psi for longevity.
My experience with running maximum pressure in tires is the center wears out quickly. Just sharing my own experience, don’t know any more about then that.
Not wrong, each weight/tire load rating is different. You couldnt expect to run an E range tire on a 1/2 ton pickup at max pressure and have the same wear as a 1 ton. Point, my last truck weighed 5.2k, I ran E load Nittos at around 50 psi. All tires wore evenly. My current rig weighs 7.6k.
One thing I've done in the past is to "chalk" the tread. Needs to be done front and rear. Find a dry lane or parking lot or somewhere you can drive a 100 ft. or so and stop without creating a hazard. Air your tires to max inflation as noted on the sidewalls. Take a piece of chalk and scrub a wide line across a tire. Drive 100 or more feet, check to see where the chalk has worn off. It will be in the center of the tread. Re-chalk and lower the pressure 5lbs. Repeat. You end up doing that a few times before you show a good contact patch. I like 1/4" of chalk on the tread shoulders with an empty vehicle. Front usually runs about 2lbs. more than the rear. Seems to work well for wear, just don't forget when you rotate. I air up when hauling then return to the air pressure I like for those tires, on that vehicle.
Those were good, but they've been usurped, many times now. I had a couple sets of them over the years.
We have gotten great wear out of our wildpeaks on the 4runner. They really do it all without being obnoxious. In deep mud, there's surely better specialized tires, but these are a great tire for all around use.
Got to watch out a bit now days 2 classes of E rated tires- And just because they are E rated no longer means they are 10 ply tires, just some type of material/plys that equate that. I am a bit shy of any Firestone offering as I had a couple sets that the belts squirmed around on under the tread, drove me nutz looking for the reason that truck would hit a small bump and change lanes, had it in many times for alignments , did ball joints bushings ect, basically rebuilt front end from the ground up. Wasn't until one self destructed on the freeway that I caught on to what was the real problem. None of the shops including the best one in town caught it either.
A note * I hadn't mentioned wheel size and it's only important when it comes to relying on "factory recommendation" . Door stickers and such. If you run a factory wheel vs. aftermarket, width comes into play when dealing with air pressure. A narrower wheel width will cause a tire to "crown" at a given pressure compared to wider wheel. Just something to consider. Hence the "chalk" test, it shows real results.
To add to your post, adding considerably wider tires to a narrow stock rim will make a heavy vehicle wander and respond slower to turning. Similar to running on tires with 15-20 psi. Kinda like driving a boat
True, dependent on similar sidewall construction. Like comparing a 31/10.5/15 to a 35/12.5/15 on the same 15/8 wheel. You will have a different steering input and response. But changing from a C rated tire to an E rated tire changes that dynamic. The stiffer sidewalls come into play and affect your tread contact, dependent on vehicle weight and tire construction. Tires can be a huge variable when dealing with inclement weather/conditions. Remember- they're the only things between the road and the 6000lb. missile you're sitting in.
My last truck I run Dueller AT Bridgstones and loved the life and traction. My new 1/2 ton came with 20" aluminum polished rims that I am trying to save from the brine and salt we use here. I just bought a set of winter wheels and tires on tirerack.com and just put them on Friday night. 18" painted alum. rims and Goodyear Wrangler Trailrunner AT's. ( I was going to go 17" but I was worried that maybe my next truck the 17" would n't fit over the brakes as I just ad a buddy that got screwed when his new truck had larger brakes and his old winter rims wouldn't fit. I went to camp this weekend and did my test of going up a no winter maintenance road up a mountain by my camp. This road doesn't get much sun and is always icy all winter so it had about 3-4 inches of snow/ ice/ mud/ sh#t layers all over it and I made it up the whole hill without a loss of traction in 2wd only. I would have been sideways (if I could get up it even in 4wd) with the highway tire I run on the 20" wheels. I will see ow these wear but they will be a winter only tire and switch back to my other set in the spring for most of my highway driving.
If you were getting a spare set of wheels any tires just for winter use, why didn't you just get snow tires? AT tires are good, but if you have a spare set of wheels, then why wouldn't you put the best on, when they don't cost more? Yes, it's smart you went with 18's. Many new trucks are getting larger brakes, so smaller rims won't fit. Also, depending on the next truck you get, some brands like to monkey around with bolt patterns as well as the number of bolts.
Our area does a very good job of snow plowing and I don't have a use for real snow tires 99% of the time. I only need a more aggressive tire not really a snow tire, even during the winter so the AT's give me the tread I am after and mileage out of the tires I am happy with. The wheels I bought have 2 bolt patterns and 3 sets of centering rigs so I should be good for the next truck as long as I stay with a 6 bolt wheel.
Im there with you but a step up with AT KO2’s. Ive always used them, and always will use them. Id never even consider a different truck tire. I live on a dirt road, and its sloppy as can be in the winter due to no crops soaking up rain water... never misses a beat. We live in the swamp, and with all my redneck chores and games, my trucks never clean... meaning the tires get tested. I tow trailers loaded with wood, tractors, implements, whatever... never misses a beat. I have towed a bass boat 2200 miles round trip to south florida going 75mph, no stuttering. Just great tires. I get 40k out of them on average I would say. 55lbs in winter when its sloppy 70lbs in summer when things more firm for mileage increase.
I bought dedicated winter tires and rims for my wife’s Subaru Outback. That car has great traction on the road. I have taken it out in snowy weather to play and it won’t slide enough to be fun. I put the tires on over thanksgiving weekend and take them off in the beginning of May. The snow tires aren’t just about snow, they have a softer rubber compound and will grip better in cold temps. Snow tires made a believer out of me.
That's the thing with all season tires softer tread so mileage life is on the lower side. Looking around at tires for my 16 escape anywhere from $70/200 ea. $200 tires and the tread depth ain't all that great- leaves in a quandary. And some of those pricy ones do not have any warranty as well?
