how much weight to smooth the ride on a 3/4 ton Ford?

[oldryder]

New F250 crew 4wd 6-1/2' box. 4000lb load capacity. Bought for towing but will be used occasionally for road trips. Wondering how much weight must be added to the box to soften the ride noticably. I assume the added weight will hurt mileage a bit but worth it to us to smooth the ride. I'd use sandbags or possibly make custom fitted bed liner segments out of 1-1/4" engineered stone.

I figure someone else has already done something like this so hoping for advice.

 

[Mountain high]

Running at a lower tire pressure and just ignoring the TPMS warnings when unloaded on a 3/4 ton pickup will smooth the ride.

 

[Tulecreeper]

My RAM 2500 rides just fine with the tires at recommended pressure (80 rear/75 front), and the only things I've added were an aluminum tonneau cover, a swing-away plastic tool box in the bed (with maybe 30# of tools), and the usual stuff behind the seat.

 

[Babe2201]

Add some weight to it and increase it a little bit at a time. Seeing how it is a Ford you might never get a smooth ride out of it...

 

[Mountain high]

My RAM 2500 rides just fine with the tires at recommended pressure (80 rear/75 front), and the only things I've added were an aluminum tonneau cover, a swing-away plastic tool box in the bed (with maybe 30# of tools), and the usual stuff behind the seat.

My 2016 Ram 2500 rode just fine too at the OEM recommended pressure (65 rear/60 front) due to a softer off-road suspension. Came from the factory with Load Range D 33 inch tires with a maximum 65 PSI per the sidewall. The Load Range E 35 inch tires that are on it now have the same Load Capacity and maximum 65 PSI as the factory installed OEM tires. Fiberglass topper, brush guard, and the factory installed 12,000 pound winch along with skid plates makes it ride more like a car versus a 7,000 pound truck.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

What constitutes good ride quality is very much a personal thing. Could be very firm, very soft, or anywhere in-between.

With a 4000 lb payload and no passengers in the truck, it probably takes several hundred lbs to make much difference. It takes a bit of the stiffness out of the rear suspension.

Running the tire pressure at its lowest safe psi may well help more as far as daily driving is concerned. Typically the "recommended psi) on the placard on the driver door post is sufficient for a fully loaded vehicle. Weight the truck (axle by axle) and get a tire inflation chart for your tire size/brand and see if you can't use a lower psi.

Extra weight in the truck bed has only a modest impact on mpg as long as you travel on predominantly level surfaces. Weight isn't a major factor until you start climbing grades or do a lot of stop & go (traffic) driving.

 

[TheBar]

My new Ram had a very hard ride until it got 30K miles on it. After that it rode like a Cadillac. Also loved the old fashioned seats with soft padding and real springs instead of Styrofoam.

 

[Tulecreeper]

Running the tire pressure at its lowest safe psi may well help more as far as daily driving is concerned. Typically the "recommended psi) on the placard on the driver door post is sufficient for a fully loaded vehicle. Weight the truck (axle by axle) and get a tire inflation chart for your tire size/brand and see if you can't use a lower psi.

I found it interesting. No matter the brand of tire, for my size tire all the inflation charts show the same 80 rear/75 front PSI (80 PSI is the max sidewall pressure). In fact, some of the brands have a red warning on the item description page that says (paraphrase), "For some vehicles, this tire conforms to a different inflation pressure than listed. Always go by the listed PSI on your door pillar and in your manual." My pillar and manual both say 80 rear/75 front. I have never had a truck before that said to keep the PSI at max.

And the manual says these pressures are to be maintained for normal everyday driving, up to and including max GAWR. And even if I wanted to, my TPMS won't let me drop the pressure more than 10% or the warning comes on my dash screen and the chime sounds and won't stop until I air them all back to 80 PSI and start over. So, if I have to keep it within 10% of max anyway I may as well keep them where the pillar says to keep them.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I found it interesting. No matter the brand of tire, for my size tire all the inflation charts show the same 80 rear/75 front PSI (80 PSI is the max sidewall pressure).

That's because any tire that conforms to the Tire & Rubber Association standards will have essentially identical construction for a given type, size & load range. There are differences in tread design, mileage, UV resistance, etc, but the sidewall strength and pressure usually work out the same. That makes the inflation tables pretty much interchangeable across brands for a given tire size & type.

But all those tables will also show lower pressures for reduced load, so if your actual weight is less than what was assumed for the recommendation (usually max GVR loading), you can run the tire at a lower pressure commensurate with the actual weight the tire carries.

 

[Sprucegum]

At work we used to put a steel plate in the box, 4x8x3/4 = 650 pounds

 

[Tulecreeper]

That's because any tire that conforms to the Tire & Rubber Association standards will have essentially identical construction for a given type, size & load range. There are differences in tread design, mileage, UV resistance, etc, but the sidewall strength and pressure usually work out the same. That makes the inflation tables pretty much interchangeable across brands for a given tire size & type.

But all those tables will also show lower pressures for reduced load, so if your actual weight is less than what was assumed for the recommendation (usually max GVR loading), you can run the tire at a lower pressure commensurate with the actual weight the tire carries.

That's the issue - I cannot lower the PSI more than 10% below that specified on the pillar or my TPMS warning engages and will not go off until I completely air all of them back to 80 PSI and start over.

So, even though my base rear axle weight is actually 2600#, and even though the Firestone inflation chart indicates I can lower the rear PSI from 80 to 65, if drop it from 80 PSI to 65 PSI and even 1 more PSI oozes out the TPMS will activate and I have to air it up again. It's a conundrum, so I just leave it where it is because my owners manual says to keep it at 80 PSI for all driving up top and including max GAWR.

 

[Tulecreeper]

At work we used to put a steel plate in the box, 4x8x3/4 = 650 pounds

I've heard of doing that. And then what did you do if you needed that 650 pounds of cargo capacity back to haul something?

 

[Joezeppy]

My 1500 rode like a dream; my two 2500's not so much; my 3500 "rides like a truck". It's downright annoying sometimes on the poorly-maintained country roads around me but I knew what I was getting into when upgrading. IT's worth every penny when hauling the 5th wheel! Smoother would be nice but I can't imagine removing sandbags or other weight when I needed to use the bed. And what happens when you're out and make an impromptu large purchase?

 

[Sprucegum]

I've heard of doing that. And then what did you do if you needed that 650 pounds of cargo capacity back to haul something?

Volume wise you are missing less than an inch of space, weight wise you are SOL

 

[Tulecreeper]

Volume wise you are missing less than an inch of space, weight wise you are SOL

I was referring to the weight.

 

[Onyrlef]

I've heard of doing that. And then what did you do if you needed that 650 pounds of cargo capacity back to haul something?

I'm gonna go out on a limb and predict he took it out.

 

[Tulecreeper]

I'm gonna go out on a limb and predict he took it out.

He said no.

 

[UTTransplant]

Our Ram 3/4 ton diesel truck had two sets of tire pressures in the owner!‘s book, one unloaded and one loaded. When we took the tires to the unloaded range (45 all around IIRC) the ride was quite acceptable; it is a truck after all! At the 65-70 pounds (again, IIRC) it was awful if we weren’t towing. The TPMS made all kinds of complaints at the lower pressures, but we just mostly ignored it. We did check pressures whenever we started it up, just to make sure.

 

[IBTripping]

I lowered the air pressure on my F250 and it made a big difference in providing a less harsh ride. The TPM comes on and I just ignore it. And, the tires are not showing any unusual wear pattern.

 

[Tulecreeper]

Our Ram 3/4 ton diesel truck had two sets of tire pressures in the owner!‘s book, one unloaded and one loaded. When we took the tires to the unloaded range (45 all around IIRC) the ride was quite acceptable; it is a truck after all! At the 65-70 pounds (again, IIRC) it was awful if we weren’t towing. The TPMS made all kinds of complaints at the lower pressures, but we just mostly ignored it. We did check pressures whenever we started it up, just to make sure.

I lowered the air pressure on my F250 and it made a big difference in providing a less harsh ride. The TPM comes on and I just ignore it. And, the tires are not showing any unusual wear pattern.

I can't ignore mine. The message flashes on the screen non-stop, and the chime sounds every 10 seconds until I turn off the engine, then just starts up again when a start the truck. The only way to make it stop is to air them all back up to 80 PSI, then lower the front back to 75.