What advatages (did-advantages)is there to buying a dually over a non-dually?

Why do we need them?

Pros & cons please. Objectively.

 

Never have owned a dually (have driven a few), but off the top of my head here are some advantages of a SRW:

Fits in one parking spot
Easier to navigate through tight spaces
Easier to keep in your lane of the road
Better mpg
Better ride quality


Some DRW advantages I have heard are:

Provides better stability and tracking when towing/hauling an especially large load.
If you have a rear tire blowout while towing or hauling, you will still have a tire up to support you on that side, hopefully avoiding an accident.
DRW models usually have a higher payload capacity.

 

As far as I am concerned I see little use for DRW pickups, unless towing REALLY heavy loads alot. Back in the day you needed duals to carry heavy loads. But today the tires are alot better and thus duals aren't needed to handle any loads you could fit in a pickup, or are likely to tow.

 

In todays laws you need a dually if you stand a chance against the DOT if your are hauling bigger loads out on the road now they will nab you in a second. If you haul big loads, 5th wheels and such the added tires will stabilize your truck out alot better basicly if you tow alot get one if not get a 250.

 

Typically the amount of weight a truck will carry is determined not by the truck, but by the tires. I.e., Two load range E tires will carry about 3,000 pounds each, or 6,000 pounds for two. Knock off 3,000 pounds for the weight of the back of the truck, and you're down to about 3,000 pounds. Knock off another thousand pounds for your extended cab, etc., and you could have a payload of less than 3,000 pounds.

It doesn't take long to eat this up with a big 5'er. On the other hand, if you had one, you'd already know this, so as a practical matter its the difference between carrying two cubic yards of dirt versus one, or two pallets of 60 bags of concrete, versus one, safely.

I say safely from the point of view of being loaded with a payload of 6,000 pounds (or more) and having a tire blow.


Another issue is brakes, which are the same between the SRW and the DRW, except that the dually has twice as much tire surface actually in contact with the road.

Another factor is that the SRW is considered better than a DRW in snow because of the DRW's tendency to float over the snow and not "dig in" like the SRW.

Some people say that having more tires is more expensive, while others say the wear on the rear axle is only half as much.

By the way, which side do you butter your bread on? Some people like the looks of the duallies, some don't. Duallies come with the cab lights because they're 8' wide....

I'd have to say in general, that without a specific weight/stability application in mind, the differences are minor. In fact, an SRW technically has a couple hundred pounds greater towing (not payload) rating.....