Time for new tires; 65K and starting to get thin...

Will increasing from stock 265 to 285 impact my MPG? Does anyone have real experience with this?

Thanks.

 

I lost 2 MPG going from stock to 315's

 

I just put 285 BFG KO's on my truck last week. I really dont see any difference in mpg. Some people will say that you'll use a little more too get the bigger tires rolling, but I do notice my RPM's at around 60-65 mph down about 150-200 rpm's so to me, if you do use any extra fuel to spin the bigger tires off the line, you wind up saving it by dropping the RPM's at highway speeds, so to me it balances out.


By the way, my truck only had 2,400 mi on it when I went to the bigger 285's, best thing I did so far!! Better look, better wet traction, and also softened the ride a little, you won't be disappointed

 

I think 285 is the way to go. I had 315 BFGs on my '03 and it definitely affected my mileage, -2 mpg overall. It was OK for sustained highway driving but combined it was not good and city only was really bad. I opted to put the stock tires back on for towing during the summer. I sold the 315s and will get 285 BFGs or maybe Toyos for the MegaCab.

 

Thanks for the replies. I may seriously look at 285's. Has any of you had performance problems with non-stock sizes like a 285? Do 285's come in a E load rating?

 

had 285 on my old truck 01 never had any problems. Yes they come in rnge E load rating

 

Even though the BFG 285's are a D rating, if you look, they still have the same weight capacity at 3,195 lbs, as the stock E rated tires. Alot of times, when you step up to a bigger size, the weight ratings will be higher. I dont know if this is all brands, but I do know its like that with the BFG's.

 

It also depends on the gearing you have. With the 6sp and 4.11 my mileage went up with the 315's over the 265s. When I finally make my way up to 37's I know I will loose some mileage but I don't think I will need to re-gear, 2nd might actually be usefull then.

 

The other thing I noted about the 315s is the rubbing when making tighter turns. I could handle this with the short wheelbase '03 but I really think I would have found the increased turning radius a pain in the behind with the long wheelbase MegaCab.

 

When going to larger tires I don't think size matters as much as type. If you go to an all/mud terrain tire you are going to lose mileage because of softer compounds and tread patterns. In general with a larger diameter tire you are also going wider which also contributes to lower fuel mileage. So rather than just looking at sizes you need to compare Highway tires to Highway tires in the same width.
After alot of arguing at a goodyear store on the phone with a factory rep because the shop couldn't explain it right, you can't just look at the actuall weight rating of the tire to guage it. The difference between the load range D and E are the sidewall ratings. Even though the larger diameter tire in a D range is rated for more weight it is only rated for so many pounds per square inch on the sidewall. As you increase the surface space of the sidewall you have to accordingly increase the strength of the sidewall to match, which it was explained to me made such a tire economically unreasonable to manufacture for such a limited market. So in short if you use your truck for heavy hauling D rated tires even rated with the higher weight rating will not safely handle it on the sidewalls.
This thread would also be helpful if it were moved to the general sections, cause tire issues are something that we all fight with.

 

i saw the same thing happen.

 

no rubbing with mine and the truck's stock.

 

Once you do change the tire size go by the dealer and have them calibrate the ECM. This will make the odometer and trip-o-dometer accurate again. Cost me $40

The ones that lost 2 mpg, what axle ratio are you running and have you had the ECM calculated for the revolutions per mile for the tire?

 

I just put 285 BFG KO's on my truck about 3 weeks ago and had the same questions, the truck did not hall worth *hit with the new tires and had no power. The rmps dropped from 2000 at 70mph to about 1700 . Last week I had the speedo recalabrated ($62.00), what a difference, back to the old truck but with bigger tires . It looks like I lost about 1 mpg overall. But they are great looking tires, I do wish they were "E" rated, but maybe next time.

 

I don't understand. Recalibrating the speedometer would have no effect on the performance.