Quote:
Originally Posted by tgpmd1
Do you need an E rated tire? The ride will be much harder since the psi will be higher.
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Need? Well, when my 14" 205/R14 Kumhos rated for 2271 lbs at 65 psi blew out -- two of them -- I decided I needed a bigger safety margin -- alot bigger. The fact that I had a blow out tells me that not only did I not have wide safety margin, but I didn't have one at all.
The D-rated 225/75R15 tires I was faced with were rated for 2540 lbs at 65 psi. That's only 500 additional lbs total to prevent blowouts -- which is not insignificant -- but I wanted a safety margin on top of that. I have had 3 blowouts, and they are a real bummer.
In contrast, the E-rated 225/75R15 tired are rated for 2830 lbs at 80 psi. However, I ride with my E-tires at 65-70 psi, which is not too much higher than a D-tire. 80 psi, when the tires are cold, is very very bad. Don't ask me how I know this.
Since I run them with 65-70 psi, obviously my weight capacity is not 2830 lbs. But I am confident it is still higher than the D-rated tire with the same amount of air. And even if the weight carrying capacity isn't significantly higher, I'm hoping the extra plies of the E-tires, all else being equal, provide some additional delay before a blowout.
Dave