boatpuller

i,d like to read some feedback from folks who have 3.55 with autos and gone to taller tires,thinking about going to 295,s or 305,s but a little hesitant on what this is going to due to my hill pulling power,also i turn off overdrive in town driving,would these tires keep me out of rpm range i want to be in at say 35 in town?my 265,s look a little whimpy.

wooff

Hello Boatpuller<br>I have a 2&quot; lift in the front of my truck and i run 315/75 16<br>BFG AT KO's and love the look. I don't tow all the time but i have towed a 21' maxium boat before and it did so just fine <br>i'm a canadian so sorry for the kph but on the highway at 2000 rpm i'm doing aprox. 120 kph, hope this helps a bit<br>

TPilaske

I had 285s on my 2500 w/ auto &amp; 3.55 towing a 10K 5er. Worked good. Not sure how much difference 295s would make though....<br><br>Tony

Srigs

I need to replace my current 265 75 16s and my 97 came with 245 75 16 and so is my spare. So, I'm going with the 245 75 16 and it will lower my overall height on the truck by 1/2 to 5/8&quot; overall height because of the 1.2&quot; difference. This is to give my trailer a more level ride.<br><br>Note: If you get a flat, you don't want two different sized tires on the drive wheels or you will burn out the Diff very quickly. So, if you get bigger tires then replace the spare also!<br><br>Good luck...

dodgeman01

my 94 dodge has 3.55 gears and 315 75 R16 bfg AT. I pull a lot and I saw a little difference but bought a new camplate and it made up for it. It is a 5spd<br>Aaron

4 Tons-o-Fun

I have 35&quot; BFG's and a 3.55 diff. - haven't noticed any problem with hills

Homestead

I upgraded from the stock 265/75's to 305/70's and didn't really notice much of a difference. Speedo is out about 3mph, not really any change in mileage either. I'm equipped with 3:55's with a 6spd though.

59Dsul

I run 305/70's as well, have had no problems with maintaining or gaining momentum. I switch out to smaller and skinnier tires for hard-tracked truck pulls. When driving with the smaller tires, there's very little difference I can feel (other than a thinner black mark on the pavement ;D)

DieselDaze

Ive got a 1995 with the 3:55 gears. Not too long ago, I purchased 33x12.50x16.5 BFG MT's. <br>I had to put a 2&quot; leveling kit to get them to clear, but as far as performance goes.. yes, it did take away my quickness.<br>To see before and after pics.. see my site:<br>http://webpages.charter.net/richardb.../thetruck.html<br><br>One area I noticed it the most was when the torque converter locks up (Auto tranny) it used to give me that G-Force feeling of beeing pulled back into my seat. <br>That doesnt happen anymore. <br>I also noticed that going around a specific corner, the converter used to lock up and I'd accelerate around the corner. With the new tire size, the lock up doesnt happen until Ive already gone through the corner and down the road a way.<br><br>I increased fuel mileage on the open hiway. I now get around 22 mpg on open flat hiway while driving under good conditions (up from 21 mpg).<br>Around town (moderate traffic) I havent noticed much change in mileage, but stop and go I went from 18 mpg to just under 18 mpg.<br>I dont tow, my truck is daily driver to work and back. Thus, I cannot address the towability, but Id have to guess that my ability to pull/tow heavy loads decreased with the larger tires.<br><br>I have future plans of putting on a 4&quot; lift with 35&quot; tires. However, I will definately drop my ratio to a 4:10 setup before I go with bigger tires.<br><br>Rich

Wilber1

I took the diameter of the 265's on my truck 31&quot; x 3.14 equals a circumference of 97.34&quot; or 8.11 feet. 5280 divided by 8.11 equals 651 wheel revs per mile X the diff. ratio of 3.55 equals 2311 engine rpm at 60 MPH in 3rd locked up. Divide by 60 gives 38.5 RPM per MPH. Multiply by .69 will give the RPM in OD. It is not exact because it is hard to measure the exact diameter of a tire that is not solid, but it is close enough to figure out an approximate RPM for any combination of ratio and tire diameter at any speed.<br><br>I am towing close to 10K and find that third gear is two high for the mountains in the north west with 3.55's. The stock setup does not have the grunt to stay locked up on the big hills and as soon as the TC unlocks the trans temp starts climbing big time. My truck has a few years of warranty left so I don't want to mess with the transmission by going to an after market TC and valve body with second gear lockup. I guess 4.10's are in my future.<br><br>Nick

boatpuller

want to thank everybody for input.kinda confirmed a thought i had about switching out to 4.10..i think this is probaly the best option for big tires.lots of other things on the back burner when warranty is up.bombs away!!!.i cant see why 4.10,s would cause warranty issues since its a factory offer,unless there configured differnent on the computer end of things?

pwabbott

Wilbur1, Welcome to DTR Forum. Lots of good information here<br>You have arrived at the proper conclusion for anyone towing in the western states. The Rocky Mountains, Sierra Nevada Mountains, and the Cascade Mountains can become a major challenge for anyone tow 10,000# or more without a 4.10 rear axle. <br><br>When towing the 4.10 in many cases is even more fuel efficient.<br><br>Happy towing.

Tackett

I think that how BOMBed you are will make the difference. I assume that you could tell the difference with a stock truck, but something heavily BOMBed would be able to pull it.<br><br>I went from 245/75/16 to 285/75/16 and can't tell a difference, except my RPM dropped enough that I can cruise at 75-80 without losing too much MPG. I'm considereing going to 35's or 305/75's, but want to borrow my friend's 35's before I do. I really doubt they'd be too tall for my truck, but I'd like to know for sure.<br><br>Tackett<br>-BOMB it and go bigger!

figure_9_pro

I have 3.55’s and 305/70’s and just towed a 4000lb trailer 200 miles. The truck kicked out of overdrive once on a steep hill. Checking the odometer with the mileposts it showed 98.6 miles in 100 miles of freeway. I did lose about 1mpg. I love the look and feel and will stay with the same tires when these ones are gone

RATTLINRAM

OK,,,,,,, I'll add my $.02 and you guys tell me what ya think.<br>My truck came with the A/S 245's and I need to replace them before the first of the year. They're not completely worn out @ 52,000, but I want decent tread for winter anyway. I'm very pleased with the Michelins and will go with them again. The only difference will be if I decide to go with the M/S instead of the A/S. I had thought of going with the 265's like my Dad has on his 2000 V-10, but then I got to thinking that the 245's are actually better for me when I tow the 5er and I like the way they make the truck sit. Being that it is 2WD, it sits lower anyway and I've had alot of people think it was a 1/2 ton!!,,,,,, till I turn the key!!! (and even then, I had one fella say &quot;I didn't know ya could get the diesel in a half-ton&quot :<br> The perfect scenerio would be if I could try the 265's while towing to see if there would be any big difference, but I think I'll stay with the 245's since it can't hurt with the 3.55/auto.<br><br>