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I'm not condoning towing overweight
I'm just wondering how consistent some of the people that seem most vocal about it are
on other safety issues.
Aftermarket Headlight Bulbs?
Speedlimits?
285/65 Tires on 7.5" Factory Wheels (Minimum is 8.0")?
Aftermarket Headlight Bulbs? - If you put retrofit HID bulbs in the stock halogen reflectors of your 1998 Ram you should be beaten. If you do your homework and build a decent set of headlights with HID specific projectors then im cool with that. I did it on my Jeep because had such poor factory lighting.
Speedlimits? - I drive at a comfortable and safe speed which may or may not be above the posted speed limit. Are cars not safer, better handling, and more capable than even 20 years ago? Have speed limits been increase since then? I once heard that the Canadians were testing a technique where they set the speed limit to the maximum speed at which most people felt comfortable driving and it resulted in safer driving because people's speeds were more consistent. Overall they were going faster, there was just less confusion and chaos. If I drive at 55mph in a 55mph zone and everyone starts passing me across the center line, is that safer than me driving at 60 mph and them staying behind me cause they are content with that speed?
285/65 Tires on 7.5" Factory Wheels (Minimum is 8.0")? - I've got nothing here. I run a 33" Duratrac but its the same 275 width my truck came with stock. If I really felt the need to run 315/xxRxx I would buy a proper wheel.
Aftermarket Headlight Bulbs? if they cause glare they are no good. No glare = run whatever you fancy
Speedlimits drive according to road conditions and traffic flow
285/65 Tires on 7.5" Factory Wheels (Minimum is 8.0")? No real opinion. Never crossed my mind to put wider tires than a rim would be specd for
I'm not condoning towing overweight
I'm just wondering how consistent some of the people that seem most vocal about it are
on other safety issues.
Aftermarket Headlight Bulbs?NO
Speedlimits?5mph over, at most
285/65 Tires on 7.5" Factory Wheels (Minimum is 8.0")?NO
Retired Firefighter/EMT and full-time member of the Weight Police.
I'm not condoning towing overweight
I'm just wondering how consistent some of the people that seem most vocal about it are
on other safety issues.
Aftermarket Headlight Bulbs? Not all are bad, but if you blind me with your cheap HID kit in your stock halogen housing, you will get blinded by light bar (unless there are innocent cars around to save you).
Speedlimits? Usually 5 mph over, but some places/times it is just safer to go with the flow of traffic.
285/65 Tires on 7.5" Factory Wheels (Minimum is 8.0")? Interesting. My 285/70 are spec'd for down to a 7.5" wheel. I guess the extra sidewall makes a difference. They are on 8.5"s though.
Weight and speed are related. The higher the speed the higher the loads on the vehicle, the more energy is required to stop, etc.
The weight police need to be the weight/speed police if they want to be consistent.
So true! I'd rather see someone going 10 mph below the speed limit and slightly overloaded than going 10 mph over and right on the weight limits. Ideally, people drive within both weight and speed limits. Towing fast doesn't save much time but it sure wastes a lot of fuel - and if you have a small tank you may actually be on the road longer if you tow fast due to more frequent fuel stops.
I'm not condoning towing overweight
I'm just wondering how consistent some of the people that seem most vocal about it are
on other safety issues.
Aftermarket Headlight Bulbs?
Speedlimits?
285/65 Tires on 7.5" Factory Wheels (Minimum is 8.0")?
I spent a lot of time and money testing out various LED bulbs to find a set that maintains the proper cutoff line and prevent blinding other drivers. I did this because the stock lighting is really bad, and I was sick of seeing people putting in cheap LED bulbs and HID kits that aren't consistent with the light source placement in the reflectors, and this throws off the entire geometry of the reflectors causing glare and lighting up treetops.
I assume you mentioned this because of the link in my signature. If you read the first page you'll see why I did it, and how I went through the steps to ensure the bulbs I chose aren't blinding. The entire point of the thread was to share affordable bulb options that are safer to use than the cheap Chinese crap you can buy on ebay and amazon. Have a look through some pages and you'll see how everyone is quite happy with them, and they're all posting pictures of a nice sharp cutoff.
Speeding, I don't do it. We have speed traps and photo radar traps everywhere. I'm never in a hurry and have no reason to speed, and the best part is I never get speeding tickets in the mail...
My tires and wheels are stock, and my winter wheel/tire set are also stock sizes purchased at the Ford dealership. My next set of summer tires will also be the stock size.
I'm not sure what the point of this thread is but it sounds like you're justifying towing overweight by pointing out that other people are breaking rules, which doesn't make sense. If you see someone speeding, that doesn't mean you can also speed... That just means you're both in the wrong...
Last edited by BlackBoost; 09-18-2018 at 11:28 AM.
It seems like people think breaking the rules can sometimes be safer. For example, modifying headlamps that were professionally engineered to motor vehicle safety standards, or speeding to match the flow of traffic.
I spent a lot of time and money testing out various LED bulbs to find a set that maintains the proper cutoff line and prevent blinding other drivers. I did this because the stock lighting is really bad, and I was sick of seeing people putting in cheap LED bulbs and HID kits that aren't consistent with the light source placement in the reflectors, and this throws off the entire geometry of the reflectors causing glare and lighting up treetops.
I assume you mentioned this because of the link in my signature. If you read the first page you'll see why I did it, and how I went through the steps to ensure the bulbs I chose aren't blinding. The entire point of the thread was to share affordable bulb options that are safer to use than the cheap Chinese crap you can buy on ebay and amazon. Have a look through some pages and you'll see how everyone is quite happy with them, and they're all posting pictures of a nice sharp cutoff.
Speeding, I don't do it. We have speed traps and photo radar traps everywhere. I'm never in a hurry and have no reason to speed, and the best part is I never get speeding tickets in the mail...
My tires and wheels are stock, and my winter wheel/tire set are also stock sizes purchased at the Ford dealership. My next set of summer tires will also be the stock size.
I'm not sure what the point of this thread is but it sounds like you're justifying towing overweight by pointing out that other people are breaking rules, which doesn't make sense. If you see someone speeding, that doesn't mean you can also speed... That just means you're both in the wrong...
I didn't post this to pick on anyone. Ive just noticed some people are more vocal about it than others. I'm just curious if it's a character trait (always abide by the rules) or a pet peeve.
09-17-2018, 07:24 PM
Weight Police Step Inside
