Tires and towing

[mostwanted]

Please school me on this subject. What tire ratings should I use on a suburban that is going to be towing a K5 crawler on a wood deck trailer? I know load range E would be ideal, but it seams as if they don't make that range in the styles I like.

 

[6.2Blazer]

You need to look at the actual weight capacity of the tire, just not whether it's D or E. The weight capacity takes into account both the letter AND the size of the tire. For example, my current 285/75R16 "D" rated tires are listed at 3,300 lbs. capacity, while my old 245/75R16 "E" tires are only rated at 3,000 lbs.

 

[rjfguitar]

Look closer to the actuall weight ratings of the tires of your choice. It's actually pretty hard to overload even a D rated tire.

 

[mostwanted]

so what would be an approximate tounge weight with a 7000lb K5 on the back? With two tires on the tow rig rated @ 3000lbs each, a maximum combined vehicle weight could ony be 6000lbs max? I am sure my suburban weighs close to that alone.

 

[6.2Blazer]

so what would be an approximate tounge weight with a 7000lb K5 on the back? With two tires on the tow rig rated @ 3000lbs each, a maximum combined vehicle weight could ony be 6000lbs max? I am sure my suburban weighs close to that alone.

Most vehicles that are pulling a trailer I see on the road have at least 4 tires . So 4 x 3,000 = 12,000 lbs. The general guideline when pulling a bumper pull trailer is 10-15% tongue weight. So assuming the Suburban weighs 6,000 lbs. and 50% front to rear weight distribution, and then add 700-1,000 lbs. for trailer tongue weight and you only have around 4,000 lbs. on the rear two tires, which are rated for 6,000 lbs. total.

 

[rjfguitar]

Most vehicles that are pulling a trailer I see on the road have at least 4 tires . So 4 x 3,000 = 12,000 lbs. The general guideline when pulling a bumper pull trailer is 10-15% tongue weight. So assuming the Suburban weighs 6,000 lbs. and 50% front to rear weight distribution, and then add 700-1,000 lbs. for trailer tongue weight and you only have around 4,000 lbs. on the rear two tires, which are rated for 6,000 lbs. total.

He's got it nailed down right there. I've got D rated Coopers on my Dodge diesel, they hold up 2,900lbs. Even with my triple axle gooseneck that is rated for 18K, I can still only get roughly 2K of that on the truck, which is only something like 2,225lbs per tire on my rig.