question on tires and stock height truck

hello all,

this is my first post here and i have a few questions for anyone who can answer them.

first off, i just bought a black '05 2500HD LT ext cab w/ the 6.0L. so far 1000 miles and loving it. my questions have to deal with tire sizes at stock height. i have asked around at different local tire shops and have looked online and it has come to my conclusion that the largest tire you can use on this truck at stock height with stock 16x6.5 wheels is a LT285/75R16 (33" diameter). this tire will cause no rubbing over bumps or while turning correct?

also, i have a question about the front torsion bars. i know you can "crank them up" which i personally don't know if it's a good or bad thing to do however, i just want a more "level" stance. i know they make leveling kits whick consist of torsion indexed keys and longer travel shocks. is this a good thing to do? (ie: will it cause problems with my 4wd , pinion angles, etc.). will i be able to fit even larger tires on the truck with the added two inches in front? there's a guy on cardomain.com with my identical truck with the front two inches higher by one of the methods listed above and he is running LT315/70R17's. is this possible with the front cranked-up? by the way, i do not want to lift my truck with a suspension or body lift. stock is fine for me, just would like it to look level.

sorry for the vague posts, just trying to get awnsers from people who know first hand.

I leveled the front of my '02 HD by cranking the adjusting bolts 8 turns in. Any further and I would have had to change the keys, but I didn't want to get too close to the frame control arm stop as that will cause problems on road crowns and bumps. Also will put a bigger bind on the C/V's. This brought the front up almost 2" and looks better. Ride is slightly stiffer, but not very much. Glad I did it. Make sure you get an alignment right after, because that will give you about 1/2" toe in as well as change the caster and camber slightly. My buddy liked the looks of my truck after I did it, so he did the same with his '05 HD crew.

285/75R/16 is about as tall as you want to go without a real lift, even with the bars cranked. The tire comes close to the corner of the bumper and you may want to trim the plastic valance with a sharp blade. However, 305/70R/16's are the same height (32.8"), but I can't say if they will rub the liner or not. That is also getting a shade on the wide side for the skinny 6.5" factory rims. :2cents:

thanks for the info. what i'm trying to get around is lifting the truck (either suspension or body) as well as no fender trimming. truck is high enough for me. i will more than likely go with the LT285/75R16's on my stock 16x6.5. the stock tires are too puny for this truck in my opinion (i know they were put there for payload reasons). i would like to raise the front about 2" to give it the "leveled" look as i stated above.

thanks for the info. what i'm trying to get around is lifting the truck (either suspension or body) as well as no fender trimming. truck is high enough for me. i will more than likely go with the LT285/75R16's on my stock 16x6.5. the stock tires are too puny for this truck in my opinion (i know they were put there for payload reasons). i would like to raise the front about 2" to give it the "leveled" look as i stated above.

I agree 100%. IMO the HD's ride surprisingly well for 9200 GVWR and the steering and suspension work well in stock form. The HD models already have a 2" body raise from the factory due to the beefy frame height. Level the front and use 285's and people will think you have a lift kit in there anyway. It will look and drive good, and won't have the silly looking little skins on it anymore.

You will still be able to haul a house with it anyway!

Will that cause the speedo to be off?

Will that cause the speedo to be off?

Sure will. You will be going 70.04 mph when your speedo reads 65. The 285's are almost 2.5" taller than the 245's.

http://www.net-comber.com/tirecalc.html

Good thing you are starting out with a 4.10 ratio.