super singles good or bad?

I don't have a lot of experience with them. Only about 60,000 miles worth on mine. In the snow and rain my drives slide around at highway speeds of 55+. Nothing too serious but you'll notice it if you're looking for it.


You'll get stuck pretty easy if you don't have full lockers depending in the type of super single. Mine are made for fuel economy so they don't have much tread depth. I've gotten stuck at a few places I've delivered too.

Personally I'll take duals over super singles any day. Just my opinion

Ethan

 

width wise they are narrower then duals, and spongy, in high winds I felt like they made me sway more. they say they save fuel but I have not see any proof yet . with loses of traction and difficulty in replacement. I cant image they save enough money to justify using them.

 

I have over 600k driving miles on SS. The only difference I've noticed is that the truck "wallows" a bit under full load. Weight savings for the tractor is about 400lbs, and that is going from duals on steel to singles on aluminum.

Fuel savings, toss up. I went from worn duals to new singles and didn't see any change, but usually when you go from a worn set to a new set of tires you lose 5%. The newer tread designs for duals probably are almost as good as singles.

Traction issues, haven't had any. Been a few times that I've been the one to make it over the hill without problems, but I have dual lockers. But I also have that perfect shift control possible with an autoshift.

One flat, no blowouts. It's easy to run a pressure gauge on each tire. It's easy to see if a tire is low. The flat I had I didn't know about until a passing driver pointed at my drive tire. I pulled into a rest area that was a mile or so up the road and found it. I was pulling an empty at the time. The axle end was about four inches lower than it should have been with the sides of the tire v'd into the rim. I had no phone or qualcomm access at the rest area so I drove the truck about 3 miles up the road to a truck stop and had the tire fixed there. It had picked up a bolt that punctured the tread.

Bottom line, if I was looking at another truck singles would be ok, but not a deal breaker if it didn't have them. Buy singles for the weight savings, or for ease of service, but it's not worth the cost of converting from duals to singles.

 

Had A flat on an unloaded semi-dump trailer, left rear. The trailer dropped dramatically and I could not air the tire up. The tire spread out and openings between it and the rim was too big. Of course that can happen with any tire . Had sit and wait for the company tire man. This was city work and A big box store parking lot was handy.

 

Drive a company truck currently with them and can tell you on not well traveled interstates in the rain they spin ALOT. Not around corners I mean going up hills. I notice it a lot in NH,VT, and North or Western Maine.

Snow- imagine food as the description of snow type
Powdered Sugar-they float a lot more but dont spin bad just sort of sponge feel w/ more drift
Corn meal-fine no difference from duals
Mashed potatoes-pull over your done any hill at all and you won't move safely enough to be worth iit
Fried Icecream-if a decent crust you'll be ok if more mashed potatoes then crust may have issues
Ice-cant move at all

Had 1 blow out loaded at 44,680LBS and needed tire and rim for passenger side rear tandem due to immediate dropping due to weight.

Fuel Savings-I don't see any over other trucks I've owned/driven but this is the first Cummins I've run. I know i can do way better w/ duals and a Detroit 60 w/ dry van (Avg7.7) and a detroit 60 w/ a flat bed and duals is the same as i get now maybe a little lower (6.3-6.7 depended on the month) but higher avg weigh.

Real world facts for you to judge fuel economy:

Motor-2011 Cummins ISX 475
Avg Load weight- 38,000
Area Run-North East US/Quebec/Ontario
Road Type-75% interstate/ 25% State roads/ 2 lane US Highways
Avg Speed- 61 MPH (65 interstate/ 55-60 hghy/ state rte's)
MPG Avg- 6.98 summer/6.67 winter blend
Avg idle time-45 min a dday
bunk heater avg- 8.75 hrs a day

 

My truck has 'SS' on it.

Its a love/hate between them and duals.

This is my take on them and I like them much better now that the BF Goodrich are gone and Michelins have taken their place.

Pro's:
Smoother more comfortable ride.
Easier to check air pressure and air up (Albeit takes longer to air up).
Less weight.
Fuel mileage.

Con's
The BF Goodrich would get squishy with heavy loads near gross weight. The Michelins not so much, but still some what noticeable if you are looking for it. (I believe this is due to the lack of 2 more side walls when compared to duals)
Flat tires, well your pretty much dead in the water until it can be replaced.
Aesthetics,.. the singles have a love it or hate it visual appeal to them. Older classic truckers will generally be turned off and not like them strictly due to their visual difference. I personally havent made up my mind and am still on the table over this. I'm 44 and they remind me of a Pro Street 66 Chevy II I built years ago. Kinda cool but not exactly practical.

This will be my second winter with super singles and I honestly havent noticed any traction issues vs duals. They seem to be about the same concerning icy conditions,.. but I think they do better in muddy or wet soft ground ground. They dont seem to 'rut' into the ground as much as duals do. I just left Jersey on the 8th and was in the middle of that noreaster and also had the pleasure of being caught in the middle of all that snow from western NE on into Ut and Nv. I didnt have any problems what so ever. Sucked for the 4 trucks I saw on both sides of west bound 80 near MM-22,.. plus there was a truck who rear ended another just before we got to that. Of course,.. I was the guy riding on the packed snow in the left lane instead of riding on the black ice in the right lane.

I'm on the fence with super singles personally. I wont turn down a truck with them,.. but then I wont go looking for a truck specifically to have them either.

Edit:
I should mention some fuel mileage facts as well,.. as I think this truck does quite well for what it is.

2008 KW T660 with 72" sleeper, twin 150 gal tanks.
Big bore C15 CAT (625hp motor) set at 475hp.
18 spd with 3.25 gear ratio.
Tractor is posted as having a 19200 lb curb weight. (According to the pillar sticker from Paccar)

My average load weight is between 42k - 43k. I am almost always at or near gross with this truck. Often I can not fill the tanks in order to prevent being over gross at the scales. For example,.. with 44k in the box I can only fill up to 5/8-3/4 tank and even there I'll be over on my drives but knowing I'll burn off enough fuel to be ok by the time I hit the scales.

Primary lane is I80 coast to coast. I run Stockton/Sacramento California to Manchester New Hampshire and back. I run I80 into NJ for a fuel stop off exit 4B, then take 287 up to 87 to catch I84 into Conn and then I90 to 290 up to 93 north. Thats my main route and rarely do I deviate.

I average 6.27 mpg across the board. I can get as much as 7.8 mpg coming out of Cheyenne and on into western Ill (East bound)... and go as low as 5.5 mpg crossing Donner or while in the hills of I80 through PA. I keep cruise set at 65 - 67 mph. Turning approx 1350 rpm at 65 mph. This is the sweet spot for my truck and mpg. Empty I have no problem maintaining an honest 8 mpg.

Hurst

 

I drove on them with TMC years ago and liked them. I think traction is better in some situations (there is more weight per sq inch of tire surface with SS). But mostly I appreciated the fact there is that many fewer tires you have to gauge and inspect. And if they have onboard pressure readers, they're that much nicer.

 

you don't get the traction. i have yet to see ss's with beef like a single.
i get stuck too much.

and chaining is a little harder.

you can't go as fast. the middle flexes out the faster you go. causing all the wear in the middle.

flat tire. your screwed.

fuel mileage. haven't seen it.

only advantage i see is less tire pressure to check.

i'll stick to doubles.

 

If your in rural areas allot you can usually get a dual tire even in a small town. SS you may have to wait longer.