Tow vehicle/daily driver tires

Hey I need input before I shell out a small fortune for tires on my truck. It's both my daily and my tow vehicle.  95% of the driving is on asphalt but there is the need at times to get off the road. I also live and work where it snows. I need E rated tires  and would like A/T tires but  no more aggressive than necessary.  I've been looking at Nitto ridge grapplers but not sure what kind of wear life I'll get. The Firestone Transforce tires that came on the truck lasted about 47k miles. If your situation is similar to mine what are you running. What would you stay away from.

samthetramp said:

Hey I need input before I shell out a small fortune for tires on my truck. It's both my daily and my tow vehicle.  95% of the driving is on asphalt but there is the need at times to get off the road. I also live and work where it snows. I need E rated tires  and would like A/T tires but  no more aggressive than necessary.  I've been looking at Nitto ridge grapplers but not sure what kind of wear life I'll get. The Firestone Transforce tires that came on the truck lasted about 47k miles. If your situation is similar to mine what are you running. What would you stay away from.

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I have some Cooper Discoverer A/T 3 tires. I don't think I'll buy them again. They are great tires as far as wearing but they do have a fairly aggressive tread and do not ride that smooth and are a little noisy. I've had them for almost 3 years and have about 30,000 miles on them. There is still alot of tread left. I'm going to replace them in one year.

I love the At3 awesome tires great price, ive had 7 sets of coopers on 5 different vehicles and just put 3 sets on an 2017 ford edge a 2007 chev cobalt and a 2008 mitsu galant ive had them on 3 trucks and will be putting them on my 17 dually. Bfg tas dont last neither do the toyo open country or nitto terra grapplers any 10 ply tire is going to be stiff but my 5ervis 16000 dry so its to be expected the zmichilins ltx3? I have on now suck at 30000 miles they are toast i dont drive my dually much in the snow but i did my 13 duramax and thry handled well and as Rene says they are a little noisy but noghing like a mud terrain. The Michelin is quiet expensive and over rated - the pilot sports on the vette were awesome and expensive lol

Have been using Yokahamas for several years.  Quiet smooth ride decent tread life.

currently facing the same for a truck I just bought. I had a 2001 dodge 3500 that I ran 2 sets of toyo open country at on, got close to 60k from each, only did ok in snow but otherwise a good tire. Had cooper at3s on a jeep grand cherokee and they lasted well, prob over 50k, great in the snow but a little louder on the highway (it didn't bother me just passing info). I have firestone transforce ht on a 2001 dodge 2500 and hate them. ride rough and no wet traction.

I've run the AT3's on a Jeep and they did well. Have Nitto Terra Grapplers on a Chevy 1500 that was my DD/TV for 4 years and they're still on it. Love them. The Firestone Transforce are at 47k and near bald. They're ok as far as asphalt but that's what they're designed for. Just not pleased with the mileage and need something that won't get stuck in wet grass. I buddy of mine has the Nitto Ridge Grapplers G rated on his Chevy 2500 and loves them. He doesn't pull a 5ver but has a goose neck trailer that weighs 18,000 dry. The tread wear seems to be good so far.

Guess I'm gonna look at comparisons between the Nitto Ridge Grapplers and the AT3's.

Thanks guys.

I am on my second set of Nitto Duragraplers on my F250 (thanks to a recall on the first set when they were 4 years old), overall I am very happy with them as an all around truck tire, 95% on pavement use, 5% on gravel roads, etc..

Isaac-1 said:

I am on my second set of Nitto Duragraplers on my F250 (thanks to a recall on the first set when they were 4 years old), overall I am very happy with them as an all around truck tire, 95% on pavement use, 5% on gravel roads, etc..

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Is the F250 a daily driver?

It was a daily driver when I first started using these tires, it has now be relegated to hauling stuff on the weekends, pulling utility trailers (5x8, 18 ft car hauler, or 24 ft gooseneck pipe top), etc.

I've been using Hankook Dynapro ATX tires on my Jeeps(4 Wranglers, 2 Cherokees)since I got my first Wrangler in '02.  They always worked good in the mud and snow when we lived in Arkansas, and after spending last winter in Arizona and learning to air them down in the desert, I found they worked pretty good like that, too.  Not all that expensive, either.

I have 2016 ram 1500. I absolutely love my Nitto Terra Grappler G2. Very quite and enough tread for A/T.

Almost any E rated tire is going to ride rougher, stiffer sidewalls. I have the Cooper AT/3 load range E on my Silverado. Running normally at about 45 lbs. Take them up to 50-55 when pulling the trailer. Noisier than my original P rated tires, but not annoying.

They are date stamped and have a shelf life! Be sure they are not old as they rot with time, not just use. If they have been sitting on a shelf for years, they are probably not good tires. I think this link will explain. https://ag-safety.extension.org/tire-safety-expiration-dates

Using Goodyear Wrangler Trailrunner AT.  Reasonable balance of tread design, price and E load rating. Purchased at Sam's Club. They do pick up small rocks more due to the tread design. I liked the Michelins that were on it when I purchased the truck and they were in good shape - top of the line tires with a more "summer" tread design.  We put 6,000 more miles on them but felt the 2001 date of manufacture was good reason to change. 

Extremely hard to beat the performance of BF Goodrich A/T T/A KO2 tires. They repeatedly win Baja races. I ran them for years on my vehicles and never had problems. Not even in 8" of snow in a field. The only downside was they would break a belt about 3/4 through their useful-life (tread wear).

I went with Goodyear Wrangler Adventure with Kevlar for my current truck. My F150 is 2wdr with electronic locking rear axle. I replaced Hankook tires because I would get stuck in my backyard if the grass was wet, while hooked up to my 5th wheel. The Wranglers handled the wet grass no problem, even 2" of mud under it and pulled the 5er out without issue. I did have to lock the rear axle. Managed to test them out in one snow storm before winter subsided, no problems. As for road noise, none. They aren't cheap, but worth every penny so far.

Your best option is an All-Terrain tire, especially one rated for snow use. Look for a tire that has staggered sidewall lugs, plenty of sniping in the tread blocks to wick away water and grip snow. you want the snow int eh snipes, snow grips snow which gives you traction on snow. You also want large center channels for the water to channel away fromt eh blocks. The staggered lug and sniping reduce road noise. The kevlar adds 2 layers of toughness to the sidewall to resist rock, tree root cuts. Shop around and read the tech bulletins on each tire. Take the tire reviews with a grain of salt. Most people post to justify thier purchase.

I used to work in a service center and we sold tons of tires. the longest lasting was Michelins. Cooper tires are okay, but look better then they perform. Had a set of 33" on an S-10 Blazer for off-roading. They did great in the mud, so-so on sand/snow, and rain was iffy. But they were a mud tire, not an All-Terrain.

I was spektical of the Goodyear Wranglers, the Goodyear Trail Runners I had before didn't perform very well and had about the same ratings as the Wranglers. I have to admit the Wranglers are one of my favorites to date. I have tried a variety of tires from a variety of manufactures. The best perofrming tires was by far the BFG KO's. These  Wranglers are a close second.

wanted to followup for the OP -

just had a set of Cooper AT3 XLT installed and the ride is so much smoother than the Transforce AT I had. I was thinking they would create a lot of road noise but not so

Had Goodyear Wranglers on both of my F250 when I bought them.  Worst wearing and noisiest AT tires I have ever owned.  Swapped to BFG ATs on both and never looked back. Last set looked good with over 60K miles when I traded it in.

Run Nitto Mud Terrains on my Raptor. Low noise for a MT but they wear pretty fast (about 20K...I buy two at a time and run new on front). Wish I could fit BFG MTs but Ill rub at full turn with true 35s without buying aftermarket fenders.

rbTN said:

wanted to followup for the OP -

just had a set of Cooper AT3 XLT installed and the ride is so much smoother than the Transforce AT I had. I was thinking they would create a lot of road noise but not so

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That's actually the tire I decided to go with. Having them installed next week.

Thanks for all of the replies.