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Question and recommendation on new tires

704 views 4 replies 3 participants last post by  6.2Blazer 
#1 ·
I presently have fairly worn 285/75/16s on my 07 Duramax classic crew cab. I tow a 10k pound TT with a tongue weight of 800+ pounds. I would like to down size to a 265/75/16. My question centers around the 285s that come on the truck. I read when you go to a 285 you have to trim and adjust the torsion bars. If I go to a 265, do I need to reverse this procedure, if in fact it was done, and is this something a alignment folks will handle as part of the realignment.
Also I need a recommendation on tire brands. In addition to towing the TT, I do a small amount of light "off-roading", usually on forest service roads in the mountains.
 
#2 ·
I presently have fairly worn 285/75/16s on my 07 Duramax classic crew cab. I tow a 10k pound TT with a tongue weight of 800+ pounds. I would like to down size to a 265/75/16. My question centers around the 285s that come on the truck. I read when you go to a 285 you have to trim and adjust the torsion bars. If I go to a 265, do I need to reverse this procedure, if in fact it was done, and is this something a alignment folks will handle as part of the realignment.
Also I need a recommendation on tire brands. In addition to towing the TT, I do a small amount of light "off-roading", usually on forest service roads in the mountains.


If you go to a 265, you would not HAVE to reverse the procedure. The torsion bars would have been turned up to level the truck and clear larger tires, this in turn makes the ride pretty crappy. One way to tell is if you dont have the factory rake, meaning the front of the truck sags and sits lower than the rear If you are going to downsize AND have it aligned I would probablly turn them back down if you don't care about the look of it being level.

It's hard to say if the alignment shop will do this, but you can do it easily and would probablly get better results. even number of turns on the torsion bolts wont result in the saem result for ride height on both sides. I would loosen both several turns ten measure one side, go lower if needed by loosening that side some more. When you get the desired height turn and measure the other side until it matches.

As for tires do you want an certain look or does functionality outweigh image? Do you want cheap or is money no object? I really have no experience with the towing aspect, but I like the nitto terra grapplers for what you described. Not too expensive, can get in a Load E (probablly), somewhat an all terrain tire, looks fairly good.
 
#3 ·
Thanks BR. I'm basically looking for the most bang for the buck. As long as the "look" is adequate Im ok but functionality and safety take precedence of looks. My main concern is towing the TT. I do some light off roading but nowhere near an extreme, so at most a A/T tire will do the trick. There are so many brands out there and I had my share of fair, at best, tires over the years.
 
#5 ·
The torsion bars may not have been messed with. I have an '03, my dad had an '02, and cousin an '05 all with 285/75R16 tires and none had the torsion bars adjusted for the tires. My dad and myself had BFG AT's on stock alloys and it required a small amount of trimming to avoid any rubbing. Mainly taking the corner off the front lower valance (bottom of bumper). Both of us also did a little work on the plastic inner fender liner, but it never would have hurt anything just made some noise in the right situation.
 
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