I tow a trailer that weighs approx. 2k lbs. with usually 1-2,000 lbs in it. I look at the supplied booklet on tire pressures & they are not much help. I have the stock 245's on the truck at this time(hoping to get 285's in the next 6 months ;D. Thanks Jerry

 

Best source for tire pressure info would be a dealer that sells your tire brands<br><br>Because I tow heavy I inflate my tires to max pressure that embossed on the tire sidewall <br><br>Most big rig tires are considered flat if the pressure is 10 PSI below the sidewall embossed pressure

 

Jerry,<br> You are probably only talking about 400 pounds of hitch weight here. l would suspect that a pressure between 55 and 65 pounds would be good.<br><br>Bill

 

hmmm, whats it say on the sidewalls? Probably a good place to start.

 

My 3500 eats tires for breakfast so the dealer at S&amp;S is trying to run 70 psi in them.

 

pappyman said it correct back up there ;D Run them close to max if loaded and no troubles. The steer axle on my 3500 will go around 4200 most all the time and sometimes more. IMHO the door sticker psi of 55psi is not enough for that weight on two tires.<br>my 0.000002

 

I have had excelent tire wear by running light 72 front 60 rear.<br>When loaded with supplies(wood) and 3500 camper I run 65 front and 75 rear. Orig 245 Mich lasted 72k and still had tread but winter was here, I replaced with 235 Mich and have 36k on them with half tread left.<br>

 

[quote author=bulabula link=board=11;threadid=15746;start=0#148139 date=1055332031]<br>hmmm, whats it say on the sidewalls? Probably a good place to start.<br>[/quote]<br><br>There is no way that I would run at max psi (if that is what you are suggesting) with a 2,000 pound trailer. That would knock your teeth out. You are talking about no more than 300-400 pounds tongue weight, your truck won't even know it's back there. IMO no more than 55 psi.<br><br>Good luck.

 

It depends on the tires you run. I run a D range Goodyear that has a 50 psi max, which is what I run at all the time. That pressure would be a flat tire on some of the rigs in this forum. But, my best mileage and wear pattern comes at the max of 50 psi. Towing a small trailer wouldn't even make a difference.<br><br>On a side note, don't let your dealer touch your tire pressures!!! I had my truck in not long ago for service and part of their &quot;service with a smile&quot; thing is to check your tire pressures. It just so happens that the tech was at the service counter when I was picking up my truck and he mentioned that he adjusted my pressures. I asked him &quot;adjusted to what?&quot; He told me that he goes by the door jamb decal, 60 front and 80 rear!!!!! I said to him, let's go for a little walk and took him out to my truck so he could read the sidewall. He was a little suprised. Granted, I noticed the balloons I had for tires, but what if I didn't and took off for that highway drive or whatever. Blow -outs don't float my boat!!!!!!!<br><br>I'll sit down now. :-X

 

I just picked up my new 5er. ;D It has a hitch weight of 1900lbs. I noticed as I was pulling it back form Detroit it was a bit floatie. The pressure I'm running is factory suggested 50lbs.. Do you think I should increase PSI.. Will that get rid of some of that float?? Will Air bags help? When they put the 5er in my bed it only sat it down about 2 inches.. What do you think??? <br><br>Tommy

 

Tommysblue,<br>If you are not running the max pressure on the rears with that kind of weight you are asking for a blowout. D- or E-rated tires will carry alot of weight but they need to be run at the TIRE MANUFACTURER'S design pressure - not what the truck maker says. <br><br>The truck maker is just trying to get a cushy ride with the lower pressures. And everybody who hauls weight knows cushy ride = less stability under load and more heat generated from sidewall flex. The stiffer sidewalls on a truck radial are not optimized for the ride quality but for being able to handle weight and the heat generated from running heavy at speed.<br><br>For the kind of weight you are running you really need E-rated tires, even though the ride quality will suffer, especially since you don't have training wheels. Have fun, be safe.

 

[quote author=Homestead link=board=11;threadid=15746;start=0#148443 date=1055392793]<br>On a side note, don't let your dealer touch your tire pressures!!! <br>[/quote]<br><br>I don't trust anyone with my tire pressures anymore. And no matter how much I ask, nobody will leave them alone. I take my vehicles in for a rotate and balance and I'll tell them, Don't touch my tire pressures. They do it anyway. &gt; I go to the dealer for service and they adjust my tire pressure. &gt; (I like my service department, but I can't get them to leave my tire pressure alone.) Even when I had an alignment done, they adjusted my tire pressure. &gt;<br><br>Now I just assume everyone is messing with my tire pressure. I take my gauge and check everything before I leave. If it's high, I air em down. If it's low, which it usually is, I ask to borrow their hose so I can air em up. It's pretty funny when the tire service guy who just dropped your pressures has to lend you his airhose so you can air them back up.<br><br>I wonder if some of the tire shops don't set them low on purpose so they wear faster. [undecided]

 

I usually run, 65 up front, 75 in the rears, and 78 in the trailer tires. I save a little room for the sun on those long interstate<br>tows were the sun is heavy on one side for half of the day. <br>I've got right at 2k on the pin, and GCW 19260lbs. I not loaded all the way out to the max in the trailer. <br><br>Dave

 

70 in the front and 65 in the rears on my dually works best.

 

When pulling the 5er, which has a pin weight of 1130 and loaded weight of around 10,000lbs, I run 75psi in the front and 80 in the rear on 245 E-rated Michelins. When empty, I lower them down to 55psi in the front and 45psi in the rear. The truck rides good and I got 46,000 miles on the first set of tires which could have made it to 50k, but I wanted new ones on for a trip during the winter months. ;D<br> Just my $.02