Truck Still Has Rough Ride!

chiriquiris · February 24, 2010

Me and my dad have pretty much the same truck except his is an 04 Sierra. We both just put the same kind of shocks on our trucks but his rides a lot smoother now and mine continues to be very rough around certain areas! What could I do to fix this? My truck is an 03 ext. cab silverado 2wd and his is an 04 ext. cab Sierra 2wd. Thanks in advance.

Matt_ · February 24, 2010

what are the wheel and tire specs (size,model,style) for both trucks and what tire pressures are you running?

chiriquiris · February 24, 2010

what are the wheel and tire specs (size,model,style) for both trucks and what tire pressures are you running?

I have BFGoodrich 265/70/16 and he has Goodyear Wrangler 235/75/16.

nickvrebel · February 24, 2010

there is also two different suspension systems that were used on those trucks. One was the "smooth ride suspension package" and the other was the heavy duty (forgot the official name).... if you look at the springs on the end there is either a red piece of tape or it is absent, sounds like one of them has it, the other doesn't. I think the red tape was the smooth ride package, but I could be wrong.

Silverado4x4 · February 24, 2010

what are the wheel and tire specs (size,model,style) for both trucks and what tire pressures are you running?

I have BFGoodrich 265/70/16 and he has Goodyear Wrangler 235/75/16.

Theres the first reason as your tires are bigger and wider and his are smaller and more narrow, BFG tires are a ruffer riding tire.

csheatz · February 24, 2010

What kind on BFG's? and whats the load rating? are they P or LT tires? This could be the main reason, other than a different suspension

chiriquiris · February 24, 2010

I'm pretty sure the suspension is the same. We both run our tires at 35 psi. The BFG's that I have are a P rated tire and I think they're called "rugged trail" or "rugged terrain" or something. His tires are p rated as well. I don't know what else it could be. Could it be anything other than the tires? Thanks for all the answers.

Bowtie2Sierra · February 24, 2010

It's possible it could be something other than the tires but I'm betting it's the tires. If you want to test that theory, put your wheel & tire combo on your dad's truck and vice versa. See if your truck rides better.

ken1mod · February 24, 2010

Sir,

The recommended tire pressure is for a full load. We rarely have our beds filled with dirt or shotgun shells. Most of the time they have a max load of two bags of groceries, right?

Correct tire pressure is directly related to load. On the internet, you can find charts that give correct pressure for load. This used to be in the owners manual.

Everything will get better, handling, braking and ride if you run about 25 psi pressuree in an unloaded pick up rear tires.

Ken

chiriquiris · February 24, 2010

It's possible it could be something other than the tires but I'm betting it's the tires. If you want to test that theory, put your wheel & tire combo on your dad's truck and vice versa. See if your truck rides better.

I might try that. If my truck seems to ride better, then I know what tires I'm getting next time.

chiriquiris · February 24, 2010

Sir,

The recommended tire pressure is for a full load. We rarely have our beds filled with dirt or shotgun shells. Most of the time they have a max load of two bags of groceries, right?

Correct tire pressure is directly related to load. On the internet, you can find charts that give correct pressure for load. This used to be in the owners manual.

Everything will get better, handling, braking and ride if you run about 25 psi pressuree in an unloaded pick up rear tires.

Ken

I've never heard of that... I'm not sure if I want to be driving around with only 25 psi in the rear tires. And besides, my dads rear tires are at 35 psi just like mine, and his rides smoother.

dlstewart01 · February 24, 2010

The proper tire pressure is on the label on the door jam.

Do not run the tires under-inflated. It is dangerous because they will overheat and can fail. That was one of the problems in the Ford/Firestone tires failing. Fords tire pressure recommendation was too low for the tires.

Also under-inflated tires will ware out on the edges prematurely. And handling can suffer.

Silverado4x4 · February 24, 2010

Running under inflated tires could also pop the bead on a sharp turn.

chiriquiris · February 25, 2010

The proper tire pressure is on the label on the door jam.
Do not run the tires under-inflated. It is dangerous because they will overheat and can fail. That was one of the problems in the Ford/Firestone tires failing. Fords tire pressure recommendation was too low for the tires.

Also under-inflated tires will ware out on the edges prematurely. And handling can suffer.

Yeah, I don't feel comfortable driving around knowing that my tires are underinflated. My mpg's would suffer too, right? So the chances are that it's my tires giving me the harsh ride? I thought it would be something else since my tires are p rated just like his and we both run 35 psi. Does anyone else know what it might be?

dlstewart01 · February 25, 2010

The proper tire pressure is on the label on the door jam.
Do not run the tires under-inflated. It is dangerous because they will overheat and can fail. That was one of the problems in the Ford/Firestone tires failing. Fords tire pressure recommendation was too low for the tires.

Also under-inflated tires will ware out on the edges prematurely. And handling can suffer.

Yeah, I don't feel comfortable driving around knowing that my tires are underinflated. My mpg's would suffer too, right? So the chances are that it's my tires giving me the harsh ride? I thought it would be something else since my tires are p rated just like his and we both run 35 psi. Does anyone else know what it might be?

Check the glove box label for the suspension RPO code.

Heavy duty...Z85

Smooth ride...Z83