[amishmatt]

Picked up a barley used 2009 access cab 4x4 over the holidays, and I'm looking to replace the stock 245/65/16 Dunlop AT20's with something a little beefier. I'm not offroading on a regular basis, and certainly not rock crawling, but I'd like something more aggressive than what I have for better traction in snow and on forest service roads.

Currently looking at the 265/70/16 Michelin LTX AT2 and the Bridgestone Dueler AT Revo 2. Any other suggestions for a tire with good road manners but decent traction?

 

[buildyourown]

Yokohama AT/S
Love them. Very good and predictable in the snow. Better than the BFG, IMO
No louder than the really hard smooth tires my truck came with (TRD Sport)
Lots of dirt roads and no issues. Great in the rain too.
Reasonably priced and made in Japan.

 

[WestCoastHucker]

BF Goodrich All Terrain-T/A'S

 

[boogenman]

The Cooper Discoverer A/T3 is a great tire and bit less $$ than what you are looking at. It rides smooth and quiet on the highway and is awesome in the snow.

If you want more aggressive look at the Cooper S/T MAXX.

The Wild Country Xtx is also a nice tire.

 

[kickstand]

I ran bfg all terrains on my toyota, this was a while back and the beads leaked a lot, but in 99% of all situations tey were a good tire.

I loved the bridgestone duelers on my H3 and Silverado, bar none the best on road truck tire, great in snow, rain, and not terrible off road in mud or sand or rocks.

For reference I have also owned super swamper SX's, bfg muds, regular swamper tsl's, thornbirds, irocs, etc. So although I mention the bfg at's and bridgestone as being ok in off road situations I am aware there were much better off road options, but when also combining the need for 90% of your driving or more to be on road they are good options.

 

[amishmatt]

Thanks for all of the suggestions, and keep them coming if I'm missing anything.

I was originally considering the Yoko Geolander's, but haven't read as many good reviews on them as the Michelin and Bridgestone's, and the treadwear doesn't sound as good as some of the others. My father-in-law has the Geolander AT's on his Tacoma and doesn't like them (though I'm not sure he knows why). But, they are cheaper.

My dad has the Revo's on his 4 Runner and loves them, and our use is going to be about the same.

I've never owned Michelin tires, they always seemed overpriced, but the LTX AT2's are competitive with the Revos, seem to get better treadwear, and are highly recommended by a couple of local tire shops.

I think the BFG's are just more tire than I'm looking for.

 

[IH8Rice]

so ya ditched the Matrix for a the perfect shuttle truck?? awesome!

 

[amishmatt]

Werd. Dakine pad has been ordered.

 

[CrabJoe StretchPants]

3X on the BFG AT KO's. I have about 70k miles on my current set on the Jeep and will be replacing them with the same soon.

 

[DirtMcGirk]

285/75/15 BFG mudders

 

[ridiculous]

I have heard nothing but good things about the Revo's my Jeep is due for tires this spring and that's what Ive got my eyes on.

Question for the BFG AT KO owners. Did you notice a drop in gas mileage going from a radial to cross pattern? What about noise level?

 

[DirtMcGirk]

Mine were louder, but the truck has always gotten about 17mpg.

 

[CrabJoe StretchPants]

I have heard nothing but good things about the Revo's my Jeep is due for tires this spring and that's what Ive got my eyes on.

Question for the BFG AT KO owners. Did you notice a drop in gas mileage going from a radial to cross pattern? What about noise level?

When you say "radial to cross pattern"....what exactly do you mean? You don't mean radial to bias ply, do you?

 

[buildyourown]

When you say "radial to cross pattern"....what exactly do you mean? You don't mean radial to bias ply, do you?

It refers the the general pattern of the tire. HWY manners vs mud performance. Nobody makes bias ply tires anymore except maybe for period correct resorations.

 

[CrabJoe StretchPants]

It refers the the general pattern of the tire. HWY manners vs mud performance. Nobody makes bias ply tires anymore except maybe for period correct resorations.

Many offroad tires are still available in bias ply. I'm pretty sure every model Interco offers has bias and radial options.

 

[kickstand]

It refers the the general pattern of the tire. HWY manners vs mud performance. Nobody makes bias ply tires anymore except maybe for period correct resorations.

It is better to be thought a fool then to open your mouth and prove it.

 

[Raingauge]

BF Goodrich All Terrain-T/A'S

x2 for the BFG's.

 

[ridiculous]

When you say "radial to cross pattern"....what exactly do you mean? You don't mean radial to bias ply, do you?

haha. I dont know what I mean exactly.

Radial to me


Cross pattern ( no tread channel goes around the circumference of the tire in a relatively straight manner). I would think this would be harsher on gas mileage and increase noise.

 

[Mr Jones]

Don't have a Taco, but I do have a 4 runner. Using General Grabber AT2's. I like them better than the BFG TA KO's I had on there before. Felt grippier in the snow. Dirt and sandy terrain the AT2 and TA KO feel identical. AT2's are already prepped to turn them into studded snow tires. Good wear on the Generals. Last measurement, I still have maybe a 1/4" above the wear bar on 40k. I only expect to get 34-45k on a set of tires anyways....

General Grabber AT2

BFG TA KO

 

[Raingauge]

I used to get ~70,000kms on a BFG's on my Frontier. On my Tundra I get ~60,000kms depending on how much I'm towing.

 

[Mr Jones]

Here's a price list from tirerack.com
I've narrowed the field a bit to hopefully zero in on what you're looking for.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/TireSearchResults.jsp?customSizeSearch=&width=265/&ratio=70&diameter=16

General grabber AT2 is at $131 each. SMOKIN DEAL!

 

[buildyourown]

It is better to be thought a fool then to open your mouth and prove it.

Bit harsh. Maybe I should have said, nobody buys bias ply tires anymore except for specialty apps.
Is there an advantage for off-road? I'd imagine they are more expensive since the volumes would be so low. Or are cheap trailer tires and the like still bias?

 

[CrabJoe StretchPants]

Bias ply = stiffer for lower tire pressures and better sidewall construction to resist tearing.

 

[bizutch]

FYI...Goodyear Wrangler Off-roads get a $100 rebate if you buy a membership to Treadlightly on thie website. Cost $25. Knocked my purchase down $75 overall.

May want to check them out.

 

[kazlx]

BF Goodrich All Terrain-T/A'S

This.

 

[Uncle Cliffy]

I just put a set of AT/KO's on my Taco. Mileage went down a touch, but WOW they're good in the snow...

I'll buy another set when I wear these out...

 

[kickstand]

Bit harsh. Maybe I should have said, nobody buys bias ply tires anymore except for specialty apps.
Is there an advantage for off-road? I'd imagine they are more expensive since the volumes would be so low. Or are cheap trailer tires and the like still bias?

I have expensive bias ply tires on my trailer. Better load capacity for my app. As for off-road they are typically tougher, harsh? Maybe, I'm sorry, I'm a dick sometimes I take most of it back.

 

[Quo Fan]

I guess I'm the only one with Firestone Destination AT on my '08 Taco. Lost about 2mpg when I put them on, and they are good in snow and unimproved roads. My job requires that I occasionally drive on unimproved roads, and these tires work well for me.

 

[amishmatt]

I guess I'm the only one with Firestone Destination AT on my '08 Taco. Lost about 2mpg when I put them on, and they are good in snow and unimproved roads. My job requires that I occasionally drive on unimproved roads, and these tires work well for me.

Did you go up a size, or was the mpg loss all due to the tread pattern and weight?

 

[aixelsyd]

I got the Revo 2s and went up 1 size for my Tacoma. Lost maybe 1 mpg over all but love the way these tires handle. We just got the Michelin LTX AT2s for my wife's Pilot. They feel very good. Stopping and corners, the handling is noticeably better. Haven't had any snow yet but I'm confident they will not disappoint.

 

[demo 9]

BF Goodrich All Terrain-T/A'S

T/A K.O

Were the cheapest for my truck of any tire, and they are good offroad-Ford Raptor/TURD rock crawler approved

 

[Quo Fan]

Did you go up a size, or was the mpg loss all due to the tread pattern and weight?

Same size. MPG loss I believe is due to the higher rolling resistance of the AT tires. My truck doesn't "coast" like she did before I got the new tires.

 

[kazlx]

I definitely lost some mpg when I changed tires. I went from stock to around 32" bfg. I only work 5 miles from home, so usually it's not a big deal, but I notice on road trips.

 

[in the trees]

Hankook Dynapro ATMs are nice as well. Have them currently on my FJ and they are pretty decent all around.

 

[Scrub]

I definitely lost some mpg when I changed tires. I went from stock to around 32" bfg. I only work 5 miles from home, so usually it's not a big deal, but I notice on road trips.

Almost any time you "up-size" the tire diameter from the stock size you lose mpg. But on the upside, your odometer doesn't actually count as many miles as you actually drive depending on how much you "up-size" the tire diameter. This may help if lease or plan on selling your vehicle in the future.

 

[amishmatt]

Hankook Dynapro ATMs are nice as well. Have them currently on my FJ and they are pretty decent all around.

Can you comment anymore on the Dynapro's? How are the road manners (ride, noise, mpg, etc)? They've been getting great reviews, but most comments are about their offroad ability.

 

[kickstand]

On a stock truck, with a near stock sized tire, off road ability will often be limited more by tire size and clearence then by available traction, and in most cases what you want out of an offroad tire on a near stock truck is durability and resistance to flats, cuts, etc.

That said, find the tire with the best on road manners for your local driving conditions, snow, ice, rain, mud, etc.

Anytime you increase the aggressiveness of the tire you will also increase rolling resistance. If you increase diameter you will also notice less mpg, less acceleration, and decreased braking performance (though in some cases a wider tire although heavier and taller may provide better braking in some circumstances due to increased contact patch with the road).

Keep in mind, your speedo is not 5 mph off when you go to a bigger tire, it is a percentage off, so if it is off 10% it will be off by 1mph more for every 10 mph faster you go. And yes, with a taller tire your odometer will also read lower, so the mpg difference you are seeing by calculating your mileage will seem worse than it really is unless you are calculating on actual miles traveled instead of what the odometer is reading.

 

[Raingauge]

I know a few guys that run these and they like them.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Goodyear&tireModel=Wrangler+DuraTrac

 

[bean]

I know a few guys that run these and they like them.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Goodyear&tireModel=Wrangler+DuraTrac

I was just about to post the DuraTracs. I don't have them, but it's what I plan to put on the Land Cruiser next summer. They're supposed to be exceptional in snow.

Another tire that's worth checking out is the Nitto Terra Grappler. Lots of the Land Cruiser guys are running them.

In the past I've had a couple sets of the BF Goodrich AT TA K/O. I was mostly happy with them, but neither set lasted more than about 30k miles. That was disappointing.

The Cooper Discoverer AT was pretty good when we had them. It was a couple versions back so I don't know how that experience applies to the newer ones, but I'd certainly consider them.

 

[in the trees]

Can you comment anymore on the Dynapro's? How are the road manners (ride, noise, mpg, etc)? They've been getting great reviews, but most comments are about their offroad ability.

This is a little bit of an apples to oranges comparison, but I had Maxxis Bighorns before the Hankooks. And I think they perform better in daily driving conditions. Overall the Dynapro ATMs have been good on the road, relatively quiet (very low hum) and awesome in the snow. Wear has been very good with about 1.5 years of driving (maybe 20-22K miles). The are 10-ply as well. The Hankooks are stone-throwers, though. When I lived in VT, we lived off a dirt, gravel road. And I was always hearing small stones getting kicked up into the fenders and sliders.

I'd buy them again.