Duratrac tires - not smooth on highway.

Yondu · December 30, 2018

I know these trucks are a bit more sensitive than they should be and that's one if the reasons why when I bought my truck I kept the original wheels and tires when I put a more agressive set on. If my truck developed an issue I wanted to put them back on and not give the dealer a reason to ignore vibration issues.

I had an extra set of oem 18s, standard non z71s so I had some P rated 275/65r18 Duratracs installed. After a few hundred miles I noticed from 65-75 it vibrated. Not terrible but noticable. Went back to Discount and they roadforce balanced them and determined that one was defective, not round. They replaced it and it seemed like they were smooth, but I don't drive on the highway a ton.

About 800 miles later I noticed again, 65-75 I had a vibration. Not as bad as the first time, but enough to go back to have them checked out. They claim they were off by .5 - 2 oz. After the rebalance I went right to the freeway and they were no better.

I went home and reinstalled my original wheels and tires and drove for 30 miles at 65-75mph and the truck is perfectly smooth (original tires are Goodyear Fortitude HT).

This is where I am now. Is this the result of an agressive AT tire? should thrybbe perfectly smooth on the highway? I feel slight steering wheel shimy and in the seat/floor. Or is it just defective tires? I know they use Hunter tire balancers at Discount Tire and they say they did road force.

BlueSilvyZ71 · December 30, 2018

I have 275/65/18 on stock rims. They are louder than the Fortitude HT but I'll gladly deal with it this winter for snow traction. I've honestly had some vibration, maybe, but it's hard to tell because of how bad the roads are here.

Hillwood · December 30, 2018

Don't buy tires for looks..
Buy them for the purpose you have!
Big knobby.. Big noise..
Research before you buy!

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ftwhite · December 30, 2018

The last Duratrac's I had were LT versions and took 8-10,000 miles to mellow out on the highway. They just seemed to grip everything, including highway ruts and grooves.

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Yondu · December 30, 2018

1 hour ago, Hillwood said:

Don't buy tires for looks..
Buy them for the purpose you have!
Big knobby.. Big noise..
Research before you buy!

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I don't care about the noise and I have not complained about it. I hardly notice any additional noise.

Vibration from 65+

Booger T · December 30, 2018

Road noise is louder, as for vibration, little to none unless there is crap built up on inside of rims which is quite frequently this time of year as the roads turn to crap with rain and snow melt. On the plus side I think that the Dura Trac's do well in mud and snow. No complaints here

SierraHD17 · December 30, 2018

I think the Duratrac is a POS tire but I have had a couple sets and unless they got cupped they ran smooth. Noisy ( especially once you get down around 70% or so)

and relatively useless but they did run true down the highway. Wouldn't surprise me if you have another new one on the truck that is out of round or already separating.

Edited December 30, 2018 by SierraHD17

TXGREEK · December 30, 2018

I know these trucks are a bit more sensitive than they should be and that's one if the reasons why when I bought my truck I kept the original wheels and tires when I put a more agressive set on. If my truck developed an issue I wanted to put them back on and not give the dealer a reason to ignore vibration issues.

I had an extra set of oem 18s, standard non z71s so I had some P rated 275/65r18 Duratracs installed. After a few hundred miles I noticed from 65-75 it vibrated. Not terrible but noticable. Went back to Discount and they roadforce balanced them and determined that one was defective, not round. They replaced it and it seemed like they were smooth, but I don't drive on the highway a ton.

About 800 miles later I noticed again, 65-75 I had a vibration. Not as bad as the first time, but enough to go back to have them checked out. They claim they were off by .5 - 2 oz. After the rebalance I went right to the freeway and they were no better.

I went home and reinstalled my original wheels and tires and drove for 30 miles at 65-75mph and the truck is perfectly smooth (original tires are Goodyear Fortitude HT).

This is where I am now. Is this the result of an agressive AT tire? should thrybbe perfectly smooth on the highway? I feel slight steering wheel shimy and in the seat/floor. Or is it just defective tires? I know they use Hunter tire balancers at Discount Tire and they say they did road force.

First off, DuraTracs are designed for terrain and not so much highway. I’ve never met a DuraTrac owner that was completely satisfied with his or her tires especially ride quality. I love my Nitto Ridge Grapplers which were designed for all around less noise/off road use/ ride quality. First upgrade I went with KO2’s and immediately returned them for The Nitto Ridge Grapplers which have completely impressed me far and beyond. Recommend: though all E rated tires will give you a harsher ride, I’d look into a tire that focuses on ride quality just as much as off-road pluses.

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Yondu · December 30, 2018

My Duratracs are not LT, they're standard P like comes stock on the Midnight Edition 1500s 19 Rebel and Trailbosses have LT Duratracs. I can't imagine oem would accept a truck that vibrates on the highway.

Never tried the Ridge Grappler, the duratrac was supposed to be better with road characteristics. Reviews said the sidewall was softer and provided a better ride.

Looking at the Cooper AT3 4s now as a middle road between my oem tire and the duratrac

Edited December 30, 2018 by Yondu

Hillwood · December 30, 2018

If you let the Duratracs get cupped, they will cause some vibrations.

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Yondu · December 30, 2018

They have 1200 miles on them. Been a problem since day 1.

14GMCZ71 · December 30, 2018

I have the DuraTracs in the OEM size my truck left the factory with - P275/55R20. You can hear these tires but I don't get vibration.

Hillwood · December 30, 2018

They have 1200 miles on them. Been a problem since day 1.

You're stock wheels and tires ride smoothly... So logic says it is your wheels and tires causing the vibration...

Take the truck back to the tire shop and take them for a ride... See what they have to say... Tell them that this is not acceptable...

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14GMCZ71 · December 30, 2018

Might check those 18" wheels without the tires mounted.

FYI - I have over 7,000 miles on my DuraTracs.

What is your truck's OEM/stock wheel/tire size? Does the overall height/width of the 18" wheel/DuraTrac set-up closely match your OEM/stock set-up?

Edited December 30, 2018 by 14GMCZ71

Yondu · December 30, 2018

My oem setup is 265/65r18 Fortitude HT (all season tire with a hint of all terrain). These are different oem 18s with 275/65r18 Duratrac tires. So the new setup is .6" taller and .5" wider.

14gmcz71 - glad yours is smooth on the highway. I just wanted to make sure I didn't have unrealistic expectations. 3.5-4mpg loss was more than I thought it would be, but otherwise the noise and other AT tire sacrifices don't bother me. I can't deal with the shake though.

I'll get some new tires and see what happens. Not sure if they'll let me return these as it's been about 45-60 days, but I have been there a few times for this, the first within a few hundred miles.