Choosing a tire question for SMB 4x4

[ctb]

Tires!!!! What a dilema!! They look cool but how do they wear, loudness, durability, and so on…I was at a loss, looked at many internet chats, reviews, etc…Thats when I asked John at Quadvan what he suggested (since he owns and drives a 4x4 van himself)…he went off the board (from my final picks, Toyo & BFG) and suggested Goodyear…he runs the tires himself and commented on how low PSI the tire can be run/ran…OK operated under those conditions and with great success…he said that the tire is a bit soft, so great in ice and snow too, but wears a little more than some…but as a great point, its always nice to run on brand new rubber, and every three to four years isn't bad…so, I took his suggestion (he is an expert in my book) and bought five Goodyear Duratracs for the SMB..Man am I glad I took his advice (he has been nothing but right in so many aspects of the 4x4 design, gearing, rims, suspension, 4x4 and its many options)…they are quiet for such an aggressive design, great traction (trouble with Iowa snow…HA!), and look VERY/WAY cool! And with tires so close in comparison and price, isn't that what we all really want?!? A bad-a$# tire to compliment our BAD-A$% vans? That is my thought! Good luck! And happy SMB'ING!!

[ANZAC]

I'm really happy with my BFG's. I can't remember if any of the people with tread issues were running E-rated tires. With the correct inflation they are great on the highway. I keep a real close eye on them every trip. I have a TPMS and monitor temp and pressure, and I examine them every gas stop.

I had one BFG that went out of balance and couldn't be balanced correctly and it got replaced under pro-rated warranty. No issues since. Plenty of off-road use up some steep rocky roads here doing search and rescue. Are they the best off road/mud/wheeling tire? No. But 90% of my miles are highway miles.

For my XJ Jeep I just got some 32" Duratracs, haven't tried them out yet but got them mainly because they are good winter tires. You can also stud them.

[ctb]

Just got back from a 11K mile trip (Breaking in our "Sportsmobeebs", "Sporty" for short) that crossed the Arctic circle twice…once on the Dempster and once on the Dalton…I have to tell you, I am extremely happy with our Goodyear tires! We were on gravel roads (and I don't mean a typical Iowa gravel road that is relatively smooth compared to these roads)at least a third of the time with heaves, pot holes, thick dust (that you could feel hydroplaning Sporty), loose gravel and washboard throughout. These tires laughed at the whole matter easily giving us great traction, NO FLATS, and kept our PSI in check. We ran through mud that stuck on sporty over an inch thick and felt no loss of traction! I didn't baby Sporty either. We drove it as if we stole the thing! The tires quieted down quite a bit too as the trip progressed. I will have to update on wear, but if I had to do it all over again…I would STILL go with Jon at Quadvan suggestion and go Goodyear….a mighty fine tire that was in the mid range of price, but on the high range in satisfaction! I will download pics and trip report soon!

[ANZAC]

Imagine driving the Dempster in winter! (I've done it twice)

[PatO]

I've had at least 18 BFG AT & MT tires over the last 20 years with out a single issue. I have the AT's on my van right now. I ran 295's Load Rating D's on my first set, I feel better with the E's and I have a light 4x4 SMB van.

[geoffff]

Oh boy another tire thread! There are plenty of details & opinions about tires here on the Forum, and if you really want to know all sides I encourage you to dive deep by clicking on "Search" and reading up.

I'm currently running General Grabber AT2 tires at the 305/70R16 size. These tires are essentially BFG KO T/A clones. They are D-rated tires. My van is on the "lighter" side, at 9500 lbs fully loaded. I used to run 285/75R16 BFG KO T/A tires, and switching to the larger size lets me run lower pressure, and therefore significantly improves off-pavement ride even without airing down.

-- Geoff

[E350]

malonec: FYI:

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=8399&hilit=best+tire+choice

Update on the Michelin LTX AT2 on my wife's Dodge Dakota: 67,000+ miles now and we will easily get 70,000 on them, but given that they are at the end of their lifespan, I will not drive the Dakota the snow this Winter until we replace them with a new set of Michelin LTX AT2.

Since putting them on my wife's truck, I have put them on my 2002 E350 4x4 van (below) and my 1995 Bronco (full size). They are not a dedicated Winter tire, I have a set of studded Hercules Trail Digger M/T tires on a second set of wheels for serious Winters, but for an all-round tire which gets great wear, it is the best non-dedicated Winter tire I have ever driven. And I ski in excess of 40 days a year (including Telluride) and this will be my 17th year as a part-time ski instructor at Kirkwood, CA, so for a Sacramento valley person, I drive quite a bit in the snow, so if you are a snow Sportsmobiler, I hope this helps.

On the other hand, if you are a sand Sportsmobiler, others here can help you better.

[Sheriffdoug]

G'day,
I spent weeks researching over 15 different tires, eventually settling on Cooper ST Maxx 285 x 70R x 17. Very impressed, slightly aggresive pattern, but very quiet as well and has the Cooper Tire 50k warranty and available everywhere. Has 3ply sidewalls, 10ply tread, with puncture guard sidewalls.
Good Luck.

[4MacFam]

Overland Journal Tire Test (someone else typed this up)

They tested 7 tires – BF Goodrich All-Terrain T/A KO, Dick Cepek Fun Country, Falken WildPeak A/T, General Grabber AT2, Goodyear Wrangler All-Terrain Adventure, Toyo Open Country A/T II, and Cooper Discoverer A/T3 – in size LT265/70R17E on two 10th anniversary Jeep Wrangler Rubicons. For on-road performance, they compared handling limits, braking, slalom, skidpad and wet cornering performance, and conducted a highway test. For on-trail performance, they used a dirt oval, a rut test and a rock climb. The trick was to make everything repeatable, controllable and objective as possible.

They gave all-around summaries of each tire’s performance, and then listed the general pros and cons of each:

Bf Goodrich All-Terrain T/A KO -

Pros: Three-ply sidewall
Good damping and deflection on dirt
Classic all-terrain design

Cons: Poor adhesion
Poor wet traction performance
Excessive lug chipping and tearing
Did not complete rock climb

Dick Cepek Fun County –

Pros: Good lateral on-pavement grip
Mechanical keying on rock from large tread lugs
Deep tread

Cons: Did not complete rock climb
Unpredictable at high speeds on dirt and pavement
Poor straight-line braking performance

Falken WildPeak A/T –

Pros: Class-leading dry rock traction
Excellent initial grip on dry pavement
Smooth and quiet on the highway

Cons: Vague on-center feel
Trends toward oversteer on dirt
Fast wearing due to soft compound and lug pattern depth

General Grabber AT2 –

Pros: Good lateral on-pavement grip
Direct and accurate at speed
Excellent grip at speed on dirt
60,000 mile warranty

Cons: Did not complete rock climb
Firm ride quality
Poor straight-line braking performance

Goodyear Wrangler All-Terrain Adventure –

Pros: Quiet and stable on the road
Fastest slalom average
Highest lateral g on skid pad
Excellent braking characteristics

Cons: Limited grip in all dirt conditions
Did not complete rock climb
Overshoot after countersteer

Toyo Open County A/T II –

Pros: Good line-holding on dirt oval
Excellent carcass and lug deformation
Smooth and quiet on-highway
Excellent on- and off-pavement braking performance

Cons: Lowest overall pavement performance
Poor wet traction performance
Shallow tread depth

Cooper Discoverer A/T3 –

Pros: High-speed control and predictability on dirt
Greatest range of performance
Best wet pavement traction

Cons: Lacks three-ply sidewall

“Editor’s Choice and Value Award: The Cooper Discoverer A/T3 was the overwhelming winner and a genuine value. The cost saving is no doubt a result of the company being one of the world’s largest tire manufacturers. The A/T3 was the second fastest through the slalom and wet corner, third fastest through the skid pad, and had the third shortest braking distance. On the highway the Cooper was direct, quiet, and smooth – a tester favorite for long-distance cruising. One would think that all of this pavement performance would result in a lackluster dirt showing, but the Discoverer was an animal on the dirt oval and provided huge driver confidence. This directly translates to improved safety for an overland traveler. The Cooper was also one of the three tires that climbed the rock face successfully.”