Tire recommendations for 2WD Ram 2500

[oliver1555]

I've had traction problems on wet grass with my travel trailer hooked up and wet boat launches with my 1,100 lb boat/trailer. The Michelin's just don't have any grip on anything but pavement. With my new property and hopefully a new tractor in my future, I'd like to find a tire that has some better traction with decent tread life.

Reference posts #7 & #15. Heavy in the front, light in the back, plus lots of torque. Your Cummins is putting out more torque at idle than many gas engines produce at maximum power. I have a set of Michelin LTX MS tires on my Dodge 4x4. In 2wheel drive without a load, it doesn't have much traction off pavement. With 2000# pounds in the back, it's a whole different experience. 4x4 is a great convenience, but correct weight distribution with a 4x2 is very important. My dad spent his entire life in Wyoming and Montana and never owned a 4x4. He always loaded the bed with plenty of weight in the winter and rarely had a problem.

 

[dodge man]

Having been a Cummins owner in the past, a lot of the above comments are spot on. A 2wd Cummins like yours is often considered almost a holy grail in terms of fuel mileage. The early common rail 5.9's made great power while in a 2 wheel drive could haul down an honest 20 mpg. Your truck is a great tow vehicle, but it will never be a good off road vehicle. Mine was a 2004 Quad Cab short bed 4 wheel drive. It did great in the snow but not so much in the mud. Just to heavy and yours being 2 wheel drive will do a lot worse. I would just use the truck for what is good for and just not worry about off road traction.

 

[Raspy]

Having been a Cummins owner in the past, a lot of the above comments are spot on. A 2wd Cummins like yours is often considered almost a holy grail in terms of fuel mileage. The early common rail 5.9's made great power while in a 2 wheel drive could haul down an honest 20 mpg. Your truck is a great tow vehicle, but it will never be a good off road vehicle. Mine was a 2004 Quad Cab short bed 4 wheel drive. It did great in the snow but not so much in the mud. Just to heavy and yours being 2 wheel drive will do a lot worse. I would just use the truck for what is good for and just not worry about off road traction.

^^^ This is really the bottom line. The problem has nothing to do with "too much torque" as was previously mentioned. It's a very heavy engine in front and only rear wheel drive. Weight in the bed will no doubt help some, but then you have to carry around a bunch of ballast all the time.

Toyo MTs on the rear would give you the best traction on grass or mud, but they'll do nothing for you on a boat ramp. You really have a highway only truck. And for that use, it's great. As dodge man mentioned, the early 5.9 2WD trucks can give excellent mileage and have great power. Plus they seem to run forever. My '04 at 280,000 miles ran better than brand new and used no oil.

 

[oliver1555]

The problem has nothing to do with "too much torque" as was previously mentioned.

I took DP's comment "too much torque" to mean that it is very easy to lose traction when starting out because of the amount of low end torque the Cummins delivers at idle. I agree with that. After you get rolling, it's much easier to manage.

"Too much torque" in the general sense, would be like saying you had too much money, or too much s**.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I took DP's comment "too much torque" to mean that it is very easy to lose traction when starting out because of the amount of low end torque the Cummins delivers at idle. I agree with that. After you get rolling, it's much easier to manage.

"Too much torque" in the general sense, would be like saying you had too much money, or too much s**.

Exactly. At one time I had 3 diesel trucks, a 99 and 06 F350 and a 04 F250. All diesel. I also had a 08 Nissan Titan.

All 4 were 4x4. All 3 diesels sucked in mud or snow as did my previous 05 Dmax. It was tough to control the torque/wheel spin and as mentioned heavy on the front axle. The Nissan Titan was the tool of choice for pulling something out or hitting the back roads during a heavy snow fall.

 

[yelbike]

I once followed tire rack reviews once with Firestone destination AT, I was didn't like them at all. The reviews were great for wear. I found they worn prematurely, they had minor cracking when only 2 years old. I travel on gravel roads. Traction was poor even when new but I didn't expect much though. All that to say reviews can be deceiving.

I run duratracs (on my 5th set, all on different trucks) and love them. Much more quiet than you'd expect, great traction in all situations and wear is decent.

BF ko2 are getting great reviews.

Two weeks ago I bought a new to me f150...I know, I know it's not a Dodge . The dealer had new takeoffs on it. They were hankook dynapro atm. They seemed good for mild traction, quiet.
Good luck!!

 

[Rick in MS]

Having been a Cummins owner in the past, a lot of the above comments are spot on. A 2wd Cummins like yours is often considered almost a holy grail in terms of fuel mileage. The early common rail 5.9's made great power while in a 2 wheel drive could haul down an honest 20 mpg. Your truck is a great tow vehicle, but it will never be a good off road vehicle. Mine was a 2004 Quad Cab short bed 4 wheel drive. It did great in the snow but not so much in the mud. Just to heavy and yours being 2 wheel drive will do a lot worse. I would just use the truck for what is good for and just not worry about off road traction.

I do get an honest 20 mpg on the highway unloaded if I keep it to the speed limit or less. Truck has been great over the last 50,000 miles except when the road surface is loose or wet. I've never tried to and still don't intend to try to do anything "off-road" - except for my drive way.

Still, it's time for new tires...

 

[Rick in MS]

I once followed tire rack reviews once with Firestone destination AT, I was didn't like them at all. The reviews were great for wear. I found they worn prematurely, they had minor cracking when only 2 years old. I travel on gravel roads. Traction was poor even when new but I didn't expect much though. All that to say reviews can be deceiving.

I run duratracs (on my 5th set, all on different trucks) and love them. Much more quiet than you'd expect, great traction in all situations and wear is decent.

I like the Tire Rack reviews to get a general indication but lots of times the reviews on a particular tire are not for the vehicle I'm driving.

Besides, I'd rather come to a tractor or towing website to ask how tires perform under the conditions that I may see.

The Duratracs are a tire that I looked at initially for my Jeep and also for the Ram.

 

[Rick in MS]

2wd diesel 2500!...that is just Un American!..haha

Living in the country without 4wd has got to be tough, I wouldn't put a dime in that truck and try and sell it as soon as possible

:scratchchin::thumbdown:
I will have to buy a tractor for the new property before I think about a new truck. I know the limitations of my truck even if I don't like it. I'm already cautious, will have to be more so if I'm trailering the tractor. Also looking at a gooseneck trailer instead of a bumper pull.

I've already told the wife I really want the next truck to be a 3/4 ton 4x4 gas-burner.

 

[HHR]

Just bought a set of Cooper Discoverer ST Maxx tires and they work very well off the pavement and are barely noticeable on the road. They seem to be in the same class as the Wrangler Duratrac but have a much tougher sidewall.