Do I really *need* E rated tires?

I agree, I doubt E load are killing your mileage, its likely the diameter causing more throttle input to maintain speed, and the wider square edged tire increasing wind resistance causing more throttle input to maintain speed.
Your tent and awning are absolutely hurting your mpg. Getting 14 winter and 16 summer, you are actually doing great on MPG. I've asked some people what they get with 2nd gen 4.0 all built out, they say 10mpg...10!
I recently learned that E load actually need to be aired up a bit more than a P or C load to have a comparable contact patch, so maybe bump them to 38 or 40psi or up 5 psi from where you have them

 

these are the exact tire i run. I really like them and the mpg drop was negligible, tire noise is a bit loud but I listen to music while I drive and passengers don't seem to care either.

 

Agree.

 

I have Jeep TJ with Goodyear MT/Rs that went from C rated 32" to E rated 33", and I found no difference in ride or mpg. IMHO get the tire you want and not worry about if it's C or E.

 

I run Cooper STMaxx 265/75/16 E rated tires and my gas mileage dropped very little.

I don’t have “E” rated tires to carry a load, I have them to get me home. Living in the mountains and driving a lot of forest and gravel roads. After having a rock rip the thread of a “P” rated tire to where it couldn’t be repaired and a seeing a friends “C” K02 on a JLU get ripped in the same way, two different times. What that happens to a tire on a trail, like Engineer Pass and then finding a place to change it can suck and if it’s in the wrong area, can really suck.
I’ll stick with “E” rated tires.

 

2021 OR here. Bought it a year ago last week. Run my business out of it, so it’s loaded to capacity at all times. At 20-21k, I had a rock puncture repaired with the OEM tires. A few days later, another went flat and I took it into Big O for repair. They claimed it ruined, so I made the mistake of buying a set of their house brand 4 ply being as I was there. Should have just bought ten ply then, but they didn’t have what I wanted.

Fast forward and my regular tire man convinces me to go ahead and buy the next set before the end of the year because I drive a ton and tires can be sketchy to get now. I order a set of Mastercraft AXT 10 ply.

In the last six weeks, those Big O tires had a total of I think four flats. One rock puncture repaired, then the patch blew out on it (put an old OEM back on to try and then wear the set out), a nail in another, and had a slow leak for a few days. Said screw it and took it in. Had another rock puncture AND a nail in that one.

Basically got 32k from those Big O. $850 down the tube.

I like the MC so far. Upped it again from 40 psi to 45. Ride is perfectly acceptable. Verdict is still out on mileage, I think I may lose a bit, but it’ll take a few thousand miles to really tell on that.

I would have gotten a 6 or 8 ply, but there were absolutely none available. I’m mostly on the highway, but do see enough gravel and rock roads that the peace of mind of a heavier tire is helpful.

All that said, I had a half ton before that had an odd size and there was no OEM size 10 ply, and I didn’t have any tire related issues in 260k with 4 ply, loaded to capacity just like this one.

 

Your wording implied that the tires had a 1000 lb capacity, which is not true

 

Some observations by a lurker...


I ordered E loads recently. I've read everything from "no difference" to "drives like a dump truck"

Something that typically sn't discussed is what is the wheel size? Does your truck look like a shopping cart with huge wheels and low pro tires? It's going to feel like a train. The smaller the wheel size, the softer the ride.

Air down appropriately and chalk, and the difference will be the weight difference in the tire, which equates to about a bag of sand.

 

I am running 285/75/16 Nitto Ridge Grappler “E” rated and they ride pretty stiff. Great off road but street driving is hard and I have been running them a bit lower at 27PSI. I like the confidence off road knowing that I have them though. They seem to be getting louder too and they were pretty quiet when new. Have had balanced and kept it aligned more than a couple times to keep the wear even.

 

No you don't.