Best tire PSI?

[Cmillerjr]

I just traded my '14 1500 crew cab LTZ/z71, for a 2500HD High Country 6.0. This is my first 3/4 ton truck, so I'm wandering. What PSI should I be running to get the best combination of tire wear and MPG? I'm going to be empty 95% of the time so I don't see the need to have the pressures cranked up. A friend said to run 55 in the front and 50 in the rear. Another said 55 all the way around. What do you guys recommend?

[RyanbabZ71]

What does the door jamb state?

 

 

Ryan

[Cmillerjr]

55 in the front 80 in the rear, but that's full payload.

[Chevor]

Depends on the tire. Higher pressure will result in better economy. Some tires round in center under higher pressure.

[rjkinpa]

I've just traded my 2008 gmc 2500 in for a new 2015 2500 double cab.. the 2008 i ran 55 all the way around if higher id burn out the middle of tires.. learned from experiance. New truck starting at 60 around to see how they wear.. hope that helps. Better ride with less pressure.

[newdude]

Try 60-65psi all around.

[crankman]

I am running 55-60 all around and carrying around a decent payload it rides pretty dang smooth.

[Cosmic Charlie]

This is my 3rd 25HD - 04, 11, & 15

 

Un loaded ...

 

to keep the Dash Light out I run 50 Front & 55 Rear

 

for even better ride 45 Front & 45 Rear but the TPMS light will come on & stay on, (just press OK button to clear at each restart)

 

I usually get 75,000 - 80,000 miles out of a set of Michelin 18" LTX2 (stock tires) with many tires rotations

 

I drive 90% highway at 75 mph and average 13 mpg +-

 

Towing my boat and plowing snow I add air

[ShotgunZ71]

This is my 3rd 25HD - 04, 11, & 15

 

Un loaded ...

 

to keep the Dash Light out I run 50 Front & 55 Rear

 

for even better ride 45 Front & 45 Rear but the TPMS light will come on & stay on, (just press OK button to clear at each restart)

 

I usually get 75,000 - 80,000 miles out of a set of Michelin 18" LTX2 (stock tires) with many tires rotations

 

I drive 90% highway at 75 mph and average 13 mpg +-

 

Towing my boat and plowing snow I add air

Charlie, when you air them back up, do you go to the 60/75 ratings on the door? I have the 20" rims and the door jam has 60F/75R for full load. Right now, I'm at 55/60 so far. Might drop them a bit more as you were saying.

[SMiller]

I air down until the tread is flat on the pavement, front 55 rear 35 but I drive a 3500 and no tpms, frat tread equals even tread wear, great traction, and good ride.

[Cmillerjr]

Thanks all, I've ended up with 55 in the front and 65 in the rear, to keep the TPMS from going off.

[Cosmic Charlie]

Charlie, when you air them back up, do you go to the 60/75 ratings on the door? I have the 20" rims and the door jam has 60F/75R for full load. Right now, I'm at 55/60 so far. Might drop them a bit more as you were saying.

 

My boats weighs 8000 lbs and I run the rears @ 65 psi - front don't seem to matter much maybe 50-55 fronts

 

my plow weighs 1000 lbs and the fronts need maybe 50 lbs minimum the be fine, unless I'm going to drive in the highway for a while, then more like 60 lbs (on highway use with plow the more the better)

 

Unloaded - you can keep lowering the psi down until you notice the tire has a slight bottom swell, then add some air back in - at lower pressures its a fine line if it's very cold then hot out again - my tires can vary maybe 6 psi from a cold morning to a warm sunny day (sunlight really warms up the tires just parked) I don't really prefer running them less than 45 front 40 rear - if you experiment with tire pressure be sure to check the tire temp after driving on the highway, warm is normal and any thing more than warm need more air added ...

 

rotate at least every 10,000 miles especially when lower pressures are used - fronts will show slight more wear on the outside edge just from low speed turning like in parking lots

 

not everyone agrees with me about this ...harder tires = better mileage & longer tire life, if that's what you want - vs a better ride

[Cowpie]

I took the same methodology from my commercial semi trucks and applied it to my 2500. Commercial large truck tire manufacturers provide a load pressure chart on their tires that shows proper PSI based on general loading the tire will be used. For instance, even under max load on my drive tires, the recommended PSI is 95-100 PSI even though the tires are rated for 120 PSI. Lower max load, lower pressure. I got 447,000 miles out of my last set of drive tires on the semi truck, and still had 8-9/32nd tread left with no uneven wear. Dealer gave me $150 each for the old tires. Now, the auto and pickup tire folks and OEM's don't feel we have the candle power to deal with such things, so they just have the recommended pressure if my pickup is at GVWR. Based on how the heavy truck tire folks charts on recommend pressures based on weight, I extrapolated that info and run my 2500 tires are around 50-55 PSI when empty or light loaded.

 

Contrary to common belief of running hard tires to gain mpg, I actually improved mpg slightly on the 2500 by running the lower pressure. I conclude that it is because there is less wheel "hop" going on on bumpy roads that cause the engine to do micro throttle alterations in conjunction with the limited slip feature. At least the theory sounds good. Ride is significantly improved overall, as well as general handling, and if the theory is true, should have better tire life in the long run.

[ShotgunZ71]

I'm going to try the 50 front/55 rear and see how it is and if they get too hot. Having the Duramax engine, I may need to put 55 in the front due to the weight, perhaps. I'll see how warm they get and go from there.

[Cowpie]

yeah, I would reverse that and have 55 up front with 50 in back. All the weight is up front when empty. While I generally keep things the same PSI all around (50-55), with a heavier Dmax, having a little more PSI up front compared to back is probably a good thing.