# Tire Time



## JerryH

Looking for some winter Tire suggestions for my 4 door Duramax. I run Michelins during the summer. And have been running BF Goodrich All-Terrains T/A's for winter. The T/A's haven't held very well compared to my previous trucks. I think this truck is to heavy for the T/A's or they are to soft? The truck isn't lifted, I run stock size tires. This is a grandpa truck. I don't go mudding but do travel dirt roads and snowy roads. I'm not looking for a super aggressive tread because of tire howl on the freeway. 

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks


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## Fowlmouth

Not sure what size you are running now, but Hankook makes a few really nice all terrain tires. I put a set on my Jeep 2 years ago, they have 20,000 miles on them. They are made by Hankook and called Lauffen X Fit AT's. They are a load range E. I had them rotated and balanced last week and they have no wear on them. They are still at full tread.:shock: I told the service manager they were the best tires I have ever owned on any vehicle. I know you will get a lot of responses, but this is what has worked for me.

I have Cooper Discover ST's on my truck, but they are a bit noisy. They have a more aggressive tread design.


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## DallanC

I had Hankook DynaPros and LOVED them for about 1 year and the entire set just self destructed, splits and cracks down the tread pattern. Complete trash. After the 2nd unfixable flat they warrantied the entire set.

I moved to Cooper AT3's and absolutely love this tire. 2 years on them now and still well over .5" tread. My truck had P class tires and I opted to special order in C class tires. Really helped with trailering and handling yet retaining a decent ride. Class D/E would be what you want for the DuraMax.

I was talking with my wife the other day about how many sets of tires I've had to buy in my life for various vehicles. Fairly astounding total number of tires. 4 sets in the past 2 years alone.

But as it stands now, Cooper AT3's are my hands down favorite truck tire.


-DallanC


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## 3arabians

I had some cooper discover st's on my f350 for a couple years. Like fowlmouth said they were a bit noisy but I loved them. Great tread and the lack of wear was impressive for a mud terrain. I tore a sidewall on one tire due to a freak accident in the Uintahs and upgraded to the cooper discover STT Pro. So far they are an even better tire. They added some new fandagled technology that really does reduce the noise substantially and eliminates those pesky rocks that get stuck in your tire after long drives on dirt roads. They have also performed well under heavy loads. 

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## goforbroke

I have had 
bf ko's
good year duratrac
toyo RT
cooper sst

going to try nitto ridge grappler next

I liked the duratrac the most, best winter tire I have had yet. I just want a mud tire look that is why I'm trying the ridge grappler.


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## Hoopermat

2nd 
Good year dura trac. 
They are a Great snow tire good in mud and ride very well for how agressive they are.


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## PBH

I run Nitto Terra Grappler G2's on my truck ('15 Duramax) and my wife's 4Runner. They are a good AT tire. Nice and quiet. Great alternative to Toyo.


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## muleydeermaniac

I run BFG T/A's on my Excursion and have 30K on them and still at half tread. I religiously rotate every four thousand miles and they have been great. In the past I have also run the Toyo all terrains and did well with them too.


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## Critter

Just remember that if you want to get the maximum amount of wear out of any tire you need to match them with the load that you expect to carry.


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## JerryH

Thanks guys. Got er done


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## DallanC

JerryH said:


> Thanks guys. Got er done


Oh you dont get off that easy, what did you pick? :grin:

-DallanC


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## CAExpat

> Just remember that if you want to get the maximum amount of wear out of any tire you need to match them with the load that you expect to carry.


To add to that a little; when running non-oem tires, use the recommended pressure settings for the tires you're running NOW, not the door sticker. Whenever I take my truck in for a rotation, despite my advising the kid always blasts 80lbs in all four tires. It rides like a chuck wagon until I get home and put 55 front and 40 rear as recommended by Toyo on their pressure charts. Many times poor or improper tire wear is our own fault due to improper pressures...or a host of other things :smile:


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## JerryH

DallanC said:


> Oh you dont get off that easy, what did you pick? :grin:
> 
> -DallanC


Okay try not to spit your soda allover your screen. Delinte DX10's. Yep I went cheap this go around. My truck is not a daily driver. On average I put 5,000 miles on it a year. I'll run these tires Sept - Feb and switch back to the Michelin's for the summer. Time will tell?

The sad thought is the BF Goodrich TA's I just took off only had around 20,000 miles on them. Yes they were rotated and inflated properly. All the tire shops said. Oh yah BF Goodrich was a good tire in the 90's.


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## Fowlmouth

My tires on my truck will rot away long before the tread wears out. I put about 500 miles on it a year. I changed the oil in it last month, the last oil change was March 2015. I put a whoppin 1100 miles on it since then. 

Those tires look pretty good really. Let us know what you think of them after a few miles.


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## DallanC

JerryH said:


> Okay try not to spit your soda allover your screen. Delinte DX10's. Yep I went cheap this go around. My truck is not a daily driver. On average I put 5,000 miles on it a year. I'll run these tires Sept - Feb and switch back to the Michelin's for the summer. Time will tell?


Hey I dont judge, those seem fine, better than bald tires for sure.

If you had any idea how many sets of cheap azz PowerCats I wore out in the 1980s LMAO...

-DallanC


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## muddydogs

goforbroke said:


> I have had
> bf ko's
> good year duratrac
> toyo RT
> cooper sst
> 
> going to try nitto ridge grappler next
> 
> I liked the duratrac the most, best winter tire I have had yet. I just want a mud tire look that is why I'm trying the ridge grappler.


I have put a few sets of the Nitto Ridge Grappler on a few of my work trucks and they seem to be holding up very well on rigs that see a lot of off highway use. Put a set on my own pickup but only have a couple thousand miles on them so far, I'll know more later this fall after hunting season I sure.


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## DevilDog09

I run Cooper Discoverer ATPs (Discount Tires version of the AT3s) on my 2005 F250 Crew cab. Have been awesome. Took me through some pretty good country last year in the Uintas. Highly recommend!


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## 3arabians

That's balsy!!

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## goosefreak

DallanC said:


> I had Hankook DynaPros and LOVED them for about 1 year and the entire set just self destructed, splits and cracks down the tread pattern. Complete trash.
> 
> -DallanC


Interesting, I got 87,000 miles out of my Hankook AT's and they still had tread on them when I got rid of them.. they have been the best tire for me thus far

I currently have the Cooper AT3's and that are decent.. they seem to be wearing faster than others I'v had.. they look nice though but, I haven't had that wow factor with them.
Regardless, I would say they are a good all around tire


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## RandomElk16

I don't like the BF Goodrich TA's. They came on my tundra new and wore out within 15K miles. I also haven't had good luck with the Goodyear Wranglers on HD trucks. They came with my new dodge and wore out within 20K.

Have hated all my Hankook but father in law loves em. My dad had a lot of chunking with the Cooper's on his Dodge.


In the end, all my trucks end up with Toyo MT's on em. It has been my hands down favorite tire. Have heard great things about the AT2 and the RT as well. Nitto Terra Grapplers for AT are also solid. 


Figured I would post this for future tire lookers lol.


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## CAExpat

> In the end, all my trucks end up with Toyo MT's on em.


So I passed on the MT's and went with the RT's because I was warned about how poorly they did in the snow, what's your experience with that?

I can attest to the fact that RT's suck in the mud (not designed for it), as discovered up in Idaho last weekend when I nearly putting my truck in the drink about four times just trying to turn around. I hiked about 8 miles in the rain that day and got a bit damp, the sweat of those 4 minutes in the mud had me soaked.

I only run Toyo and would love to go to the MT if they perform in the snow at least nearly as good as the RT.


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## muleydeermaniac

I have TOYO MT's on numerous different vehicles and have had no problems in the snow. I also have them siped on the middle tread as well.


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## DevilDog09

3arabians said:


> That's balsy!!
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk


It's crazy how fast the thought of "how am I gonna explain to my wife why my truck is on its side in a puddle" raced through my mind when my left tire sank. Next time I'm just driving straight through. Easier to pull it out than roll it back over


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## BPturkeys

My experience...traction in not the main issue with tires on a 4x4. If you use your truck on dirt/backcountry roads the big thing is ply failure. You're driving down a dirt road at 40 mph and you hit baseball sized rock, you can literally break that tire and the air leaks out. 
Off road requires heavy 10 ply "LT" truck tires. These "SUV" tires they are putting on new trucks now days are not a good choice for a lot of "off the paved road" use. Just my experience.


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## RandomElk16

CAExpat said:


> So I passed on the MT's and went with the RT's because I was warned about how poorly they did in the snow, what's your experience with that?
> 
> I can attest to the fact that RT's suck in the mud (not designed for it), as discovered up in Idaho last weekend when I nearly putting my truck in the drink about four times just trying to turn around. I hiked about 8 miles in the rain that day and got a bit damp, the sweat of those 4 minutes in the mud had me soaked.
> 
> I only run Toyo and would love to go to the MT if they perform in the snow at least nearly as good as the RT.


I haven't had any issue with them in the snow. Especially in terms of offroad performance. Any diesel truck with that heavy of a front end coming down a slick paved hill is subject to some booty sway 

I also have to say, this winter I used tow mode and my jake break in the snow... huge difference! Slowing down quick on paved roads was way better with being in a lower gear (tow) and the engine braking occurring. Just a tip I learned and love.

The new ones I have are a Load Range F, although I am not sure I can tell a difference from the Load Range E other than ego lol. I do believe the F is 12 ply, the E is 10 ply.


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## DallanC

F... good lord, my tailbone hurts just to hear that.


-DallanC


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## RandomElk16

DallanC said:


> F... good lord, my tailbone hurts just to hear that.
> 
> -DallanC


You know, I haven't really thought it has been bad. The only truck I have had that rode rough enough for me to cuss was a 2006 F350. It was just not a nice ride no matter what conditions.

The way they make these new diesels... wow. They are just smooth. The new Ram on air ride is crazy.


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## DevilDog09

I wanna know what idiot designed I-15 so that in 3/4 ton pickup or more you get shaken to death!!!


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## DallanC

It seems to be any long bed or extended cab truck, my halfton does it constantly.

Whats worse is the micro-grooving they put in the concrete. My commute vehicle "tram-lines" on those things like you wouldn't believe. It yanks the whole rig back and forth like a wheel is coming off following those groove lines.


-DallanC


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## CAExpat

My old truck was an 04 quad cab long bed, on the interstate it would bounce right a long with the joints. It did that on I-5, I-80, I-15; it didn't matter, it would do it. I compromised with a short bed on my 06' and now it's fine, I still see the poor souls getting beat up in the long beds. It's a bizarre phenomenon that is only a matter of a few inches.

With regard to tires, i'll go with MTs then next go-round. While tires do matter significantly in snow driving, as mentioned I believe the most effective component is the operator.


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## RandomElk16

CAExpat said:


> My old truck was an 04 quad cab long bed, on the interstate it would bounce right a long with the joints. It did that on I-5, I-80, I-15; it didn't matter, it would do it. I compromised with a short bed on my 06' and now it's fine, I still see the poor souls getting beat up in the long beds. It's a bizarre phenomenon that is only a matter of a few inches.
> 
> With regard to tires, i'll go with MTs then next go-round. While tires do matter significantly in snow driving, as mentioned I believe the most effective component is the operator.


What type of truck do you have?


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## hondodawg

DevilDog09 said:


> I wanna know what idiot designed I-15 so that in 3/4 ton pickup or more you get shaken to death!!!


My F150 Screw 6.5ft bed does it really bad since I went with heavy LT tires. 
Wife gets pissy every time it happens that I had to have those expensive tires.

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## Fowlmouth

DevilDog09 said:


> I wanna know what idiot designed I-15 so that in 3/4 ton pickup or more you get shaken to death!!!


It's even worse with a 6.5" lift...Believe me!


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## 3arabians

I love it when someone rides in my truck for the first time on the freeway. At first they are happy and compliments rain in about how much better they can see from up here. Truck starts to shake a little and instantly they get a look on their face like they are about to be in a plane crash. I just keep on driving as if nothing is happening. Its hilarious! I drive a F350 crew cab long bed with a 5 inch lift and 35s BTW. It gets a little unstable on the freeway at times regardless of the tires.


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## DevilDog09

Haha oh good gracious I don't even wanna imagine the shake with a 6.5 lift. I had a 06 F150 crewcab with the short bed and I never noticed the I-15 shake. I was also stationed down in San Diego and took the I-5 to base everyday and never noticed it.


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## CAExpat

> What type of truck do you have?


Last three trucks have been Dodge Ram 2500 diesels, two long beds and now the short bed. I only miss having the long bed during the fall hunting seasons.

My old truck had thousands of dollars in suspension work but it didn't matter, the joints in the road made it like a whoop section on a moto track. Speed certainly was a factor, but you were either going too slow and would be run over, or would have to run at about 85-90.


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## RandomElk16

CAExpat said:


> Last three trucks have been Dodge Ram 2500 diesels, two long beds and now the short bed. I only miss having the long bed during the fall hunting seasons.
> 
> My old truck had thousands of dollars in suspension work but it didn't matter, the joints in the road made it like a whoop section on a moto track. Speed certainly was a factor, but you were either going too slow and would be run over, or would have to run at about 85-90.


That's my favorite right there. We have 2 matching-ish 2013 and 2016 now.

Haven't been the long bed route. I really wanted it this time, but just didn't end up happening. Maybe next one!


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## 35whelen

I like bfg ko2s


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## middlefork

Got to try out the Goodyear Duratrac's in the mud today getting out of the mountains. I was impressed.
Load range E on my F150 Crew cab long bed and except for a little noise rides fine on the I 15 expansion joints.


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## Huge29

About the only one I havent seen mentioned, Big O Big Foot made by cooper. it is about the only truck tire with a real warranty. I have had some Toyo open country on my f150 for 3 years and 40,000 miles. I bought the truck used and the tires were brand new with nobbys still on them. Since I didnt buy them I dont have the rotation covered, so embarassingly I havent rotated a single time and they have done quite well. I reckon I still have no less than 25% of the tread life remaining. 
I think BFG has really done downhill since 90's too. Goodyear seems to be awfully overrated. I bought some take offs that were pretty new, didnt last 18 months, Ill never by Goodyear or BFG again. I do hear a lot of people who like Nitto, never tried them myself. I use nothing but LT, ask folks how well P rated tires do down on the Henry's...not good, matter of 10 miles and they are done.
I drive a '13 F150 and used to drive it 60 miles a day on I215 and regularly on I-15; never had any of this rough riding issue mentioned. I keep the tires a little high pressure for towing.


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## CAExpat

> Got to try out the Goodyear Duratrac's in the mud today getting out of the mountains. I was impressed.


I ran through two sets of Duratrac's on my Jeep, best light duty tire out there IMO. They cleaned out very well and were quite aggressive off-road for not being being specifically marketed as a "mud-terrain".



> I drive a '13 F150 and used to drive it 60 miles a day on I215 and regularly on I-15; never had any of this rough riding issue mentioned.


Comparing the ride of a '13 F150 to a 3/4 or 1-Ton diesel is apples and lawnmowers. IFS and soft rate rear leaf packs that all together are about as thick as my single overload spring will give a far superior ride to an 8000 pound diesel chuck wagon. Then again, we typically don't buy them because of ride quality. Our Sequoia is essentially a Tundra as far as chassis/drivetrain, and it rides phenomenally better in comparison.

More important than what tires people buy, it's folks keeping them properly inflated and within spec for wear limits. It's quickly becoming the time of year we see those who drive too fast for the conditions and it's accelerated by poor tires.


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