2016 Ram 2500 Cummins 20" Tire Pressure

[Rich Jenkins]

We have a 2016 Dodge Ram 2500 with the Cummins Diesel, 20" wheels.

Tire pressures recommended on the door jam seem awfully high to me: 65 front, 80 rear.

I also checked the Firestone web site, they agree with 65/80.

We are new to towing, and will be using the truck for our 27' FC FB.

If you have a similar rig, what tire pressures are you running?

Second question: Should I / can I deflate a bit off these figures when not towing? The ride seems VERY firm to me at 65/80.

Thanks for any advice.

Rich

[Mrjkq]

Rich, congrats on that RAM. Stick to the tire pressure recommended. I've had two HD trucks & believe me the door sticker is the bible.

[Wabbiteer]

Low pressure up front and the 'tail wags the dog', the lateral forces of trailer rebounding side-to-side wiggles the nose of the tow vehicle as the front tires rock on the softer sidewalls. Very disconcerting.

[alano]

We've got the same tires but don't mind the ride. if you lower the pressure, the TPMS system will activate.

[crisen]

Your dodge is a lot newer than mine but are you sure the isn't a sticker specifying lower rear pressure unloaded? My '08 is 60 psi front always but 75 rear loaded and only 45 rear unloaded. I run 65 front and 55 rear when empty and increase rear to 75/80 rear towing. We also have a cap on it towing and a pretty full load.

[switz]

We have the stock Michelin LT265/70R17E tires on our 2012 Ram 2500HD. The axle ratings are 5,500 front and 6,010 rear. The recommended tire pressures are 60 psi front and 70 psi rear. However, unloaded the rear tire pressure can be reduced to 45 psi. One must switch the TPMS operation to the non-standard mode.

[Rich Jenkins]

Wow thanks for the quick responses.

Yesterday I got a flashing tire pressure warning. En route from Tampa, I saw 75/85 while rolling on I95 northbound. This morning here in Savannah, I am reading 65 / 77 at 54F ambient. Wierd.

(The truck pressures match my gauge pressure which matches the pressure I see on my portable inflator pump.)

I will keep monitoring the pressures as it gets colder on the way north. We are headed to NJ to collect the AS at Colonial Airstream on Monday.

Thanks again for all the advice, I appreciate it.

[KJRitchie]

I have a 2015 Ram 2500 CTD Crew Cab Big Horn with Firestone 285/60x20 Transforce AT. Max pressure 80psi. The EVIC showed all four tires close to 80 when I picked up my truck. I lowered them to 75. I commute once a week with the truck and the ride doesn't seem that bad to me. The TPMS hasn't given me any alarms. I've towed a few weekend trips since I purchased in August.

So your tire pressure is currently set 65f/80r and the TPMS hasn't alarmed? I've read on the forums 70psi seems to be the low end for the rear tires with the TPMS. To get the TPMS adjusted requires the dealer.

I need to check my door tire load sticker to see what it says.

Kelvin

[brian2424]

I have a 2015 Ram 3500 and tow a 27' front bunk. When running the 65 front and 80 rear pressures I was getting sway and porpoising. Not a lot but enough to make me unhappy. It was going to be a couple of weeks before I could get a WD anti sway hitch so decided to try 80 / 80 pressures. Wonderful improvement! Almost cancelled the order for the new hitch.

[Plan-B]

Originally Posted by Llando88

Wow thanks for the quick responses.

Yesterday I got a flashing tire pressure warning. En route from Tampa, I saw 75/85 while rolling on I95 northbound. This morning here in Savannah, I am reading 65 / 77 at 54F ambient. Wierd.

(The truck pressures match my gauge pressure which matches the pressure I see on my portable inflator pump.)

I will keep monitoring the pressures as it gets colder on the way north. We are headed to NJ to collect the AS at Colonial Airstream on Monday.

Thanks again for all the advice, I appreciate it.

You might know this but in case you don't:

- TPMs are good for indicating an issue. They are not always as accurate as you would like. They don't replace a good hand held tire gauge .
_ only adjust tire pressure when the tires have cooled to ambient outside temperatures. Example, if you set your tired at 80psi cold, and your TPM reads 85psi while driving, that is okay. Your tires will work at an indicated higher than recommended psi , if you started out in specifications.
- For every 5,000 ft altitude change there is a +/- 3 psi pressure change in your tires.
- for every 10F change in ambient air temperature your tire pressure will react to a +/- 1.0psi. This is more important to manage than altitude change.
- in my Ram manual it notes you can have a delay in an accurate TPM readings, after you have adjusted your tire pressure, up to 10 minutes, and you must drive for that time period to be expected to ensure a proper measure. i have seen this. I assume the TPMs don't feed data to the computer in real time, only periodicall, and might have a motion sensor to wake up. Not sure really why on this one.

I prefer 65 front PSI on 20" E rated tires, my preference, with the loads we are carrying with AS and empty. I can't speak for the Ram but my two previous F-250s with 20" wheels, going below 65 psi, nearing 60 psi, can become dangerous with what has been come to be known in the Ford world as the 'death wobble'. So, don't go below 65 in the front.

I noticed you might be relying on an air gauge on a portable pump? If so please go purchase a really good air gauge. Most cheapo over the counter air pressure gauges are notoriously off, some as many as 10psi. You can google this one and there are some good deals and reviews on Amazon for good gauges that don't break the bank. For all the money you have in your rig, and safety too, spend the $35-75 for a good air guage.

[guskmg]

If in doubt go to a Cat scale a weigh the front and rear axles loaded for towing. Then go to the Michelin charts and see the recommended pressure. BTW Doran PressurePro guarantees their sensors to be accurate to +- 1 psi. I have check all of mine and they are more reliable then even a Bourdon gauge. Forget a stick or handle gauge.
guskmg

[Rich Jenkins]

Well, so with temp at 54F in Savannah this morning, I cranked up the truck to get 65/79 on the tires, tpms alert was on.

After 20 miles heading north, the tpms indicator went out, and did not return.

We're in Hopewell VA tonight, headed to Lakewood NJ Sunday.

Since the cold tire pressures are 'in spec' per the door jamb sticker, and I've gotten no further alerts, I'm just going to leave them where they are at and continue to monitor the pressures.

The ride today was noticeably more directional and stable today. Firm but not outrageously so, must be getting used to the truck. Love the diesel though.

I'll add any updates after we collect the trailer next week.

Thanks for all the comments, I genuinely appreciate it.

[Rich Jenkins]

Ok, rereading the manual, I may have actually been getting a 'TPMS malfunction'.



The bit about flashing for 60 seconds then staying on, with no message, is what I was seeing.

So who knows; might be Gremlins.

[KJRitchie]

Today, with temperatures in the mid 30s, I ran errands in my 2015 Ram. What was about 75psi when ambient temperatures were in the 90s was at first showing in the mid 60s psi. Some tires in EVIC showed 5 or 6 psi lower than others close to 65psi. No TPMS alarms on the EVIC. After putting a few miles on the truck the TPMS display equalized and were all around 68-70psi. The ride seems OK for me, after all its 3/4t truck and don't expect it to ride like a car.

Its going to get cold tonight so tomorrow I'll check the pressures with a gauge and pump them up to 70psi all around.

Kelvin

[switz]

If running around town with nothing in the truck bed, check your manual to see if one can lower the rear tire pressure to 45 psi. The ride is much improved.

I have found running 80 psi towing makes the truck a little less susceptible to 'wandering'.

I rotate tires front to back every 5,000 miles. You have to reset the TPMS if you are running the recommended 60 front and 70 rear psi numbers or you will get error codes.

Note that when at high elevations (like over 5,000 feet), to satisfy the TPMS error codes you may find your have to add 4 psi to the tires. My experience on the Goldwing TPMS was adding 5 psi. Still remembering to not over inflate the sidewall maximum pressure.

[Rich Jenkins]

Just an update, I've had the truck for about two weeks.

The tpms 'malfunction' has gone away and not returned.

I'm guessing it went off due to the step change in pressure to the values stated on the truck door sticker the second day.

Thanks all in the thread for the suggestions, appreciate it.