CoyoteThistle
Adventurer
It's the Sprinter cab chassis (or cutaway if you prefer). Only comes with DRW with AWD. Looks like they do a supersingle for the RWD model but tire diameters front and rear are a little different so not available with AWD.
Dual Rear Wheels and Mild Off-roading - Is it Really That Bad?
- Thread starter CoyoteThistle
- Start date
Interesting, thanks.
I've put a total of around 350,000 miles on 3 dually work trucks. All had service bodies and weighed 8,000 to 11,000 with nothing being "hauled". With a load of supplies in the bed I've been around 13,000 pounds.
For many years my 2005 Chevy dually also carried a truck camper from time to time.
I work off road about once a week. Mostly rocky roads but some mud. I've had a rock stuck between the tires once and that was in my own driveway. My trucks do great in snow but they do have weight, good tires, and G80s.
For many years my 2005 Chevy dually also carried a truck camper from time to time.
I work off road about once a week. Mostly rocky roads but some mud. I've had a rock stuck between the tires once and that was in my own driveway. My trucks do great in snow but they do have weight, good tires, and G80s.
AbleGuy
Officious Intermeddler
Oh yeah, another fun thing with duallies…accessing the valve stem of the inside tires to air up or down or just double check your pressures.
With your Sprinter van, you might want to look into getting valve extenders for those inside tires. And don’t be cheap here or you might find they leak. Get the braided steel ones, not the rubber ones.
Last tip about valve extenders if you get them…you also should figure out a way to anchor them to your outside wheel so they don't rub on the edges of the wheels (and spring leaks) or centrifically spring loose when you’re driving.
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With your Sprinter van, you might want to look into getting valve extenders for those inside tires. And don’t be cheap here or you might find they leak. Get the braided steel ones, not the rubber ones.
Last tip about valve extenders if you get them…you also should figure out a way to anchor them to your outside wheel so they don't rub on the edges of the wheels (and spring leaks) or centrifically spring loose when you’re driving.
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deserteagle56
Adventurer
Widest part of any heavy duty truck, be it SRW or DRW, is the mirrors. (I'm talking about the tow mirrors 95% of heavy duty trucks are equipped with.)
Yes, the bed of a DRW truck is wider than that of a SRW. But if the mirrors on the cab fit, say through a narrow drive-thru, then those rear fenders will fit also.
😂 Like whiskers on a cat! Really… Expensive… Whiskers!
I always laugh when I see people fold them in to clear stuff.
calicamper
Expedition Leader
The difference between 3peak rated and just m-S rated is huge. Out west 3peak is generally the best “all season” option for those of us that occasionally do snow vs say Michigan people who drive on skating rinks 5 months out of the yr😆
1stDeuce
Explorer
Sprinters do have a very close front/rear outside track width, even on the dually which is great. For pickup trucks, the mirror theory is kinda moot... In the real world you're often turning as or after you squeeze the mirroros (which fold...) through. The dually wheels do not fold in, and so when you turn, they hang even further to the inside of a turn than the mirrors, by a long shot. The effect is that close quarter maneuvering with a dually pickup is comparable to a SRW truck with a MUCH longer wheelbase...
Man, I didn't even know the awd sprinter was available as a dually, or cab chassis... Pretty cool starting platform!!
In '68 I worked for an Engineering bunch, drove some big Ford dually, had a flat and I had to change it. The owner had fabricated a piece of pipe that attached (bolted or welded, don't recall) to the rear end axel inside the inner wheel and arched over that inner tire and had a plate that aligned between the two tires hanging down almost to the wheels. So, I asked him. In the event any debris stuck between the tires, that flat plate steel piece would knock it out. I had to drive in construction sites, rocky roads, etc. never had an issue as that mod worked, never had a stone or anything between the tires. Like a "J" upside down.So I know all the standard reasons why dual rear wheels are frowned upon off road. Main fear seems to be rocks stuck between tires damaging sidewalls. Also more tire pushing through deep sand or snow instead of single rear tire following the tracks of the fronts. That all makes sense, but what does it mean in the real world? I've seen plenty of dually ranch vehicles on a wide range of dirt roads out west here - where there are rocks and snow. In the off road camper world, dual rear wheels seem to be unacceptable however. I know singles look cooler and more off-roady and give more tire size choices, but is there really more to it than that?
For context, I'm looking at platforms for a 4X4 or AWD camper build that will wind up in the 10k lbs total weight neighborhood. I have absolutely no illusions that something that big will be a real off road vehicle but it would see plenty of dirt roads, snow, and likely some sand here and there. But, 95% of driving will be on highways where the extra stability of DRW sounds like an advantage. And the extra cost of converting to super singles is not appealing. My preferred platform at this moment is only available as DRW, but that is really the only downside of that truck. Trying to get you all to talk me into it being okay(or a horrible idea
Thoughts?
I'd say it depends on what most of the driving would be on, not for rock climbing I guess but anything else duallies carry more weight and are safer.
CoyoteThistle
Adventurer
It is! It was barely on my list when I started thinking about my next build, but yeah, there's a lot to like.
These attachments are common on big mining trucks. Often ending in a ball so that no sharp end develops.