Preferred Tires?

Hantke · September 3, 2015

I'm looking for a new set of tires (the dealer installed tires are pretty small comapred to the rest of the truck), what do you prefer? this is my first "decent" truck so i don't really know what to look for, I'm thinking between the Fierce Attitude M/T, Toyo R series, or perhaps something similar if i find it. I've got a minor lift so I'm looking for about 33" tires, pictures are a plus!

Use: i drive a lot on back-country roads both to and from work, and i also spend a lot of time on gravel roads and dirt / mud (depending on Oregon Weather) roads so an all-season or more aggressive is better. Anyways, any opinions on the matter would be great!

Thank you!

Formulabruce · September 3, 2015

Always a loaded question, BUt for fuel economy, ride and durability I like the Michelin LTX Ms2

My truck Came with 245 16's and I run 265's ( one size up) and still " E" rated. I use a mileage XS super tuner for my speedo and shift points.

I have had these on two 2500 trucks. Best fuel economy for a 2500-3500 truck, and best ride, and very good in snow. They dont have the "Agressive" look many like, but those tires with big edges eat up fuel and $$

If you want agressive, look at next post.. and please rotate your tires!!

kstruckcountry · September 3, 2015

Here is a good article comparing some different all-terrains and their pro/con's: http://expeditionportal.com/where-the-rubber-meets-the-road/

Because I spend some time on gravel and drive in some nasty conditions, I want a tire that is as close to 100% reliable as possible. Because of that I run E rated (10 ply) tires. Closing in on 28,000 miles on the current rubber without a flat ( ) Snow traction is big for me also, like 4x4 I may not need it often but when I do, I really need it. Good wet traction, decent dig in mud, and a decent ride are all on my list.

I would decide what is most important to you, go over tire reviews and specs, and pick the tires that fit what you want them to do. Sounds like Toyo RT, Goodyear Duratracs, Cooper ST max would all be good tires to check out if you want something aggressive but still all-terrain.

PS: moved your thread to the Tires section, but left a link in the HD section.

jake111 · September 3, 2015

I'm now on my 2nd set of (are you ready for this?) BFG AT/TA/KO 265 E's. I got about 50k miles out of the first set and they could have gone further, but I had a big trip coming up so I replaced them. I'm at 30k miles on the 2nd set now and lots of tread left. More than half of these miles are with a 2500 lb. camper in the bed.

Some others have had horrible experiences with these tires where they wouldn't balance and/or wore out quickly. I can't say why, but I don't think they were the 265 E's. Others complain that they kick up gravel, and I'd have to say, yes, they do. I'm not sure about deep mud/cleaning performance.

I see they have been superseded by the KO2 which looks like it's getting good reviews so far.

(on edit): I only rotate tires when they start showing different wear from front/rear, which hopefully is not until 15-20k miles. Any sooner and I consider it a problem with the vehicle and rotation is then an attempt to cover up the problem.

Babyhauler · September 4, 2015

I am very happy with my BFG All Terrain T/A's 265-75-16. Quite on the road, ride and handle good, even with 9k to 14k lbs on trailer. They are about 6 months old now. I have been stuck twice with them with heavy trailer. My fault as I forgot the tail will wag the dog with 12,000 lbs of loaded trailer behind a 7,000 lb truck..., on a slope..., kinda sideways..., wet ground..., and the load would not slide out of the dump trailer. Mud Terrains would have driven me out but I do not want to listen to them all the time. Oh, I got pulled out by a 1987 Cadillac Hearse. No Kidding. I was so ticked off, I forgot to take a picture.

The Michelins are one of the best tires you can buy. I have had several sets and they were quite and lasted longer than other tires.

My son's Toyo's are much louder.

Good luck & post with what you buy.

Hantke · September 4, 2015

Thank you! Lots of great ideas and stuff to look into! I don't really care about looks so much, I'm more of a function over fashion person, but I'll get back to the researching now.

And thanks for moving the thread, I haven't figured out how this specific forum works quite yet

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Hantke · September 6, 2015

Costco has a deal for some 285/75R16 BFG TA Ko2's for $850 installed, i think I'm going to buy those, might go for a 295 if they make it, but the 285's will be fine to

patriot · September 6, 2015

http://trucktracks.com/en/

cuttingedge · September 7, 2015

Nitto tires would also be a great brand to consider specially Motivo model.

karlmg · September 7, 2015

Toyo OPen Country gets my vote. Agressive off the road yet smooth and quiet on the highway.

Hantke · September 7, 2015

Do you run the Toyo open country A/T or M/T? I think the MT was the one les Schwab was trying to sell me for $450 a tire, they did look nice though

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Hantke · September 10, 2015

Always a loaded question, BUt for fuel economy, ride and durability I like the Michelin LTX Ms2

My truck Came with 245 16's and I run 265's ( one size up) and still " E" rated. I use a mileage XS super tuner for my speedo and shift points.

I have had these on two 2500 trucks. Best fuel economy for a 2500-3500 truck, and best ride, and very good in snow. They dont have the "Agressive" look many like, but those tires with big edges eat up fuel and $$

If you want agressive, look at next post.. and please rotate your tires!!

I have the Ms2 245/75R16's on now, i don't mind them (minus being way too small compared to the truck), but its almost skiing / snowboarding season, and they aren't snow rated, i did find that the new KO2's are snow rated though. if these were larger I would probably hang on to them and give them a test run.

What kind of fuel economy are you looking at? I've been experimenting with my edge juice W/ Attitude (came with the truck) and while my mileage varies between 14-18 MPG (the latter being just driving to / from work, the first was an entire tank of 3 miles trips while i was moving), I've tried stock, mileage mode, and drive mode (not hooked up, level 0, level 1, and level 3) and have seen no change in fuel economy.

kstruckcountry · September 10, 2015

If economy and snow are your main concerns, there are better tires than BFG's, for much better prices.

Formulabruce · September 10, 2015

I get 17 mpg on trip with the Michelin's, but in the 265 size, which fit the wheel well better

Hantke · September 11, 2015

Fuel economy isn't really a main concern of mine, its nice, but i'd only really be concerned if my MPG dropped by a significant amount, 1-2 MPG isn't a big deal to me.

I have noticed that the MS2's don't do so well at my current jobsite (extremely steep hill) and they break loose really quickly, not sure if its just having so much torque on such small tires or what, but it doesn't take much when backing up a hill loaded down with plywood for the tires to start spinning, so i'm not too impressed with that factor.