? for our tire experts

[Ozzie]

Since we have a couple of tire experts here, I thought this would be a good place to inquire.
I currently have a 2001 2500HD with 245/75R 16 tires. I am nearing the end of the life cycle on these tires and am wondering if going to the 265's will be of any benefit to me.
I realize the speedometer will change slightly (can that be adjusted?), but I'm more concerned about ride, safety, handling, etc.

The truck looks like the existing tires are too small to my eye and I'm considering a little more beef. Right now I have the Firestone Steelteks and they are too noisy for my tastes.
And just for reference, we do live in the snow belt and my truck is a 4X.
Thanks in advance...


327RKS

[Montana Sky]

Ozzie,
The speedometer cannot be changed or altered in any way per GM. By going to a larger tire you will also alter the odometer, which again will void warranty per GM. Is the only reason you are looking at going to a larger tire is for looks?? I have the stock 245/75R16 size tires on this truck and tow some very heavy trailers. To date, I have never had a tire issue on either of my Duramax trucks. That totals over 87,000 miles of use.


2004 Chevy Silverado LT 2500HD CrewCab Duramax
2004 Montana 3400RL

[indy roadrunner]

Ozzie, I think we need a little more information. You say you want to go from a 245 to a 265 and wondering if this will effect your speedometer? All you are saying here is you are going with a wider tire across the tread. To read a tire the lets take 245/75R16. 245 is the millimeters of the width of the tire from sidewall to sidewall. So you can change the width without changing the circumfrence. The 75 is the heighth ratio to the width in the case 245/75 the height is 75% of the width. "R" stand for radial and 16 is the inside diameter of the wheel in inches.


Phill & Gladys
Sometimes me sits and thinks - sometimes me just sits.
06 GMC 2500HD Duramax 4x4
06 Montana 3400RL
Bichon - CEO

[Devildog]

To answer your question, I have the same type of vehicle pulling a 3295RD. I upgraded to the 265's two years ago, as the vehicle had 285's on it when I bought it, and I wanted some more of the low end grunt put back into.

The 265 Michelins run very well, with over 60,000 miles on this set, with a new set coming in about another 10,000 miles. About 15,000 miles of this was towing a 9500 lb travel trailer through the rockies and the other outwest areas. Currently have an additional 5,000 miles pulling the Montana. Tire runs great, little noise, and good traction. No standing snow driving yet, but little ice and snow here in the TN valley will stop things up, and I work for the Post Office, so I need the reliable transportation unless weather is really bad.
But make sure you are using the Load Range E tires, to get the most weight out of your rear axle carrier. Factory says this axle is rated for 6200lbs, so make sure the tire and the inflation can carry you at least to this mark. Proper inflation, rotation, etc.., what you've always heard about and I'm, have practiced.

Speedometer wise, 265's will add about 2mph per 50 miles per hour. I track this on my GPS, and it works out. Your dealer can reflash your ECM on the truck to accurize your speedometer, and also to ensure the antilock is working with the correct tire speeds. This is for a fee from the dealer, but don't know what the price would be. Additionally, if you have a perfomance chip installed or downloaded, you have the option of setting the tire size, which in effect, recalibrates the ECM for the correct mileage. This will not void your warranty, only if your new chip burns up something, just that part will not be warranted that the chip damaged. Federal Government a few years ago, wrote this into law to protect the aftermarket suppliers and consumers.

Additional infor can be found at dieselplaceforum.com. Good Chevy/GMC site.

Jim, Angie and Anna the Wonder Retriever
2001 GMC Sierra 4X4, CC, D/A
Air Helper Springs, New Engine
2006 3295RK fitted with some of the improvements from valuable MOC owners!

[LonnieB]

Ozzie, I wouldn't call myself an expert, I learn new things everyday in the tire business, as I'm sure Glenn can attest to. I do have some information for you though. Sticking with Michelin for comparison purposes it goes like this, LT245/75R16 LTX M/S O.D. 30.45" Max. load 3042 lbs.@ 80 psi. / LT265/75R16 LTX M/S O.D. 31.65" Max.load 3415 lbs.@ 80 psi.
I believe Jim is correct in his statement about the speedometer. I know Ford will do it for 35.00. I've had it done to a couple of pickups we put oversize tires on. A P265/70R16 is almost the same height as the 245's, but they are only a 4 ply tire and would be useless to anyone towing anything more than a small single axle trailer.

Lonnie
2006 Montana 3000RK, Reciever Hitch for Boat and Toy Trailer
2003 F250 CC PSD, LB, 6 Speed Manual Trans., 4X4, Air Suspension, Husky 15K Hitch

[LonnieB]

One more thing I forgot to mention, I went from LT235/85R16's to LT265/75R16's on my own pickup. The ride improved a little, the load capacity increased, but the wider tires tend to catch ruts in the pavement more. I will stick with the wider tire though, more footprint on the ground, more traction, and longer tread life.

Lonnie
2006 Montana 3000RK, Reciever Hitch for Boat and Toy Trailer
2003 F250 CC PSD, LB, 6 Speed Manual Trans., 4X4, Air Suspension, Husky 15K Hitch

[Glenn and Lorraine]

OK here's my 2 cents worth, what the heck most everything has been pretty thoroughly covered so I takin 1 cent back.

To answer your question, "am wondering if going to the 265's will be of any benefit to me."

In my opinion quite simply NO!
Now don't get me wrong YES you will pick up additional load capacity but that's only on the tires. The springs, frame, AND the GVWR will remain unchanged.
Lonnie is correct when he said "more footprint on the ground, more traction, and longer tread life." More foot print does equal more traction but more traction also equals poorer fuel mileage. I question the longer tread life.

Finally the 265's will cost more and being it's a "4X4" you also have to replace all 5 tires. Yes even the spare. You would not want 3 tires of one diameter and 1 of a lessor or greater diameter. And let's not forget the cost of recalibrating your speedometer.

So...
More cost to buy + more cost to recalibrate speedo + more cost due to poorer fuel mileage = No Benefit

My LT245/75R16s have been performing quite well and that's the size I plan on sticking with.

OK so I gave more than 2 cents worth so sue me.


Glenn
Montana Owners Home Page
RV Related Links

Glenn and Lorraine
M O C - 4 2 0



Click on either of the above for a larger image
We are using a 2005 White GMC Sierra SLE 2500HD Extended Cab, Short Bed, 4X4
with the Duramax/Allison Combo and Firestone Ride-Rite air bags
to drag around our 2004 Montana 2955RL 32'
using a PullRite 16K SuperGlide Automatic Sliding Hitch

"We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned,
so as to have the life that is waiting for us!"
You know you are retired when you wake up in the morning with
nothing to do and go to bed at night with it only half done.
BUT, Keep in mind, doing nothing can be a very
tiresome job because you can't stop to rest


Click on the Flags for the Forecast

[Ozzie]

Wow...I come back from work to find all these responses...

Thank you guys...I really appreciate your input.

I should explain my thinking a bit so you guys understand me a bit better. I'm one of those guys that always goes one notch higher when it comes time to spending my money. Not so my equipment can do more, but rather do it with a little better safety margin.
I need a 10,000 pound EQ hitch - I buy 12,000. My trailer came with load range D and went south on me...I put on load range E with high pressure valves stems and new rims. My stock Chevy receiver hitch twists on me - I get a beefy class 5 rated at 12,000 pounds.
So...now we're coming around to tires, and I'm thinking a little fudge factor again. Not so I can tow more, but so what I have isn't pushed as hard.
If the 245's will suit me well without worry, I really am not in a hurry to loose mileage and get everything re calibrated.


327RKS

[Glenn and Lorraine]

Although it has nothing to do with safety I'll tell ya what I'm gonna do to improve appearance. My next set of tires for the TV will be ROL White Letters (ROL-Raised OutLine). Had them on my 03 and it did wonders for the appearance and if I keep the Monty long enough it will also get the ROLs.


Glenn
Montana Owners Home Page
RV Related Links

Glenn and Lorraine
M O C - 4 2 0



Click on either of the above for a larger image
We are using a 2005 White GMC Sierra SLE 2500HD Extended Cab, Short Bed, 4X4
with the Duramax/Allison Combo and Firestone Ride-Rite air bags
to drag around our 2004 Montana 2955RL 32'
using a PullRite 16K SuperGlide Automatic Sliding Hitch

"We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned,
so as to have the life that is waiting for us!"
You know you are retired when you wake up in the morning with
nothing to do and go to bed at night with it only half done.
BUT, Keep in mind, doing nothing can be a very
tiresome job because you can't stop to rest


Click on the Flags for the Forecast

[LonnieB]

Those would sure look nice on your rig Glenn, with the graphics and all. I like the ROWL but you would be surprised how many I sell to people that want them turned to the inside.
Earlier in this thread I made a statement about longer tread life. I don't know that it's correct, it just stands to reason if you have more rubber in contact with the road it should take longer to wear out, only an opinion on my part though.

Lonnie
2006 Montana 3000RK, Reciever Hitch for Boat and Toy Trailer
2003 F250 CC PSD, LB, 6 Speed Manual Trans., 4X4, Air Suspension, Husky 15K Hitch

[Glenn and Lorraine]

quote:Originally posted by LonnieB

Those would sure look nice on your rig Glenn, with the graphics and all. I like the ROWL but you would be surprised how many I sell to people that want them turned to the inside.
Earlier in this thread I made a statement about longer tread life. I don't know that it's correct, it just stands to reason if you have more rubber in contact with the road it should take longer to wear out, only an opinion on my part though.

Yeah ain't that something. Years ago white letter tires were the rage. They even had white letters you could buy individually and cement them on spelling your name or whatever. I even seen them take white tire paint and fill in the manufacturers name. Also you would never buy a blackwall, they had to be whitewalls. Those with blackwalls would buy Portawalls and have them installed over the blackwalls. Now days you rarely ever see any whitewalls and only a few ROWL.
Call me old fashioned but there ain't nothing sharper than a well polished car with freshly washed whitewalls or ROWLs.
I put the BFG Radial Long Trails ROWL on my 03 Silverado and it looked like a different truck. Now don't tell Lorraine but I can't wait to replace these blackwall Bridgestones I currently have on the 05.

As far as the longer wear part? If we are talking the same brand and quality level in the tires and all other things being equal the wear should be about the same.

[LonnieB]

I guess I'm old fashioned too Glenn, nice to know I'm not alone.

Lonnie
2006 Montana 3000RK, Reciever Hitch for Boat and Toy Trailer
2003 F250 CC PSD, LB, 6 Speed Manual Trans., 4X4, Air Suspension, Husky 15K Hitch