Things to note when looking for new tires.

[Mike D.]

At the moment I am based in San Jose, Ca and still running the tries that came with the truck but I will be relocating to Reno, Nv in the coming months. I am looking to buy my first set of all-terrain tires but I'm not sure where to start.

• Which brand do you use/ recommend?
• How big of a tire can you get before having to make any changes to my truck?
• What should I know before picking a tire?

 

[ASNOBODY]

The BF Goodrich K02 has been incredible for me, I'd definitly recommend them.

Depends what kind of vehicle and clearance, gearing, suspension etc. issues you may have.

This is the one mod you should not cheap out on :P

 

[Mike D.]

The BF Goodrich K02 has been incredible for me, I'd definitly recommend them.

Depends what kind of vehicle and clearance, gearing, suspension etc. issues you may have.

This is the one mod you should not cheap out on :P

The family and I are just getting started which is why we are still running the stock tires (P245/75R16) on my everyday driver. I have a stock 2WD 2014 Tacoma.

Tires were going to be my first purchase especially since we will be relocating soon. I do have the KO2's on my list as well as the GG AT2's.

 

[dblack]

I had bf Goodrich ko2’s in my tundra.

My KO2’s I had trouble with. I couldn’t keep them balanced and at 40% wear they howled like a banshee and had a resonant drone. Otherwise I liked the performance in varied terrain. Lots of trails and a couple Moab wheeling trips.

Currently running Toyo open country at2 extreme. I think the ko2’s had a better sidewall traction. With the ko2 I didn’t find myself sliding into ruts like I do with the open country. Having said that... I’ll take a tire that’ll balance over one that won’t any day.

On my Jeep I have Mickey Thompson ATZ P3, but it’s only been a month. The jury is still out, but I’m super not happy with the balancing. 2 of the 5 tires went back as unacceptable weight had to be applied to balance them. Even the new ones they sent me had too much weight but I was tired of trying to find consistent quality.

 

[NightCrawler]

I run 33" Cooper STT Pros with a 5.5" suspension lift. The wheels are remarkably quiet on the highway and haven't let me down at all on the trail. I guess a fourth question would be are these for daily driving?

 

[Mike D.]

I run 33" Cooper STT Pros with a 5.5" suspension lift. The wheels are remarkably quiet on the highway and haven't let me down at all on the trail. I guess a fourth question would be are these for daily driving?

Yes,

The truck is my daily driver but then it's the family truck on the weekends.

 

[mad4runner]

Hi. Any one have experience with Nitto Ridge grappler. And right away another Q : I have 4runner 2014 trail .tires 265 70r17. If I serch by model and make for tire on Nitto manufacture site it not given me option for Ridge grappler but if serch for size my stock rim size they do have it. So I missing something???

#8519

 

[vidkun]

Hi. Any one have experience with Nitto Ridge grappler. And right away another Q : I have 4runner 2014 trail .tires 265 70r17. If I serch by model and make for tire on Nitto manufacture site it not given me option for Ridge grappler but if serch for size my stock rim size they do have it. So I missing something???

#8519

I have Ridge Grapplers and like them so far. Had Terra Grapplers before these. Happy to answer any questions I can.

I’d double check the tire width of the ones you found against the width ranges for your wheels. That could be one of the reasons they’re not coming up in a make/model search.


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[FJ81]

Weight rating is very important, and will determine ride quality to some degree. I had E rated AT KOs on my old Dodge Ram. They were a good tire. I run Wrangler MTRs on my fzj80. They are loud. But they have a proper load rating for my nearly 6k lb truck even at low psi. Also consider that if you go too big on the tire you will not be able to fit a full size spare in the stock location. Since I went to 315s on the FZJ80 I ended up sticking a swingout tire carrier on it. It is possible to shoehorn a 315 on my truck in the stock location, but it is tight. Also bigger will yield less mpg and also sluggish acceleration usually. Not necesarily deal breakers but things to consider.

 

[professorkx]

BF Goodrich KM2 on all of my rigs and my offroad trailer, and been that way for years. My wife's jeeps has almost 60,000 miles on her KM2 tires, but she has a mall crawler that just sees the snow and mud on the long dirt road in the winter to our property. I air down often for traction, and in the winter with lots of snow, I run 25 pounds max, and still get 40,000 miles.

If yours is primarily a road rig, get all terrains. If you do a mix of rocks, mud and snow, I like the KM2. The KO2 is a good compromise tire, that works everywhere offroad, but does not work great anywhere except the highway...IMHO.

In addition, Pay attention to the weight of the tire, as this is all unsprung weight, so you want a tire in your size that does not tip the scale on the high end. My son had 35 inch tires on a jeep he bought that weighed more than 30 pounds more than my 35 inch KM2...EACH. Rode like a tank. Switched to a lighter tire in 37 inches, and the ride quality improved immensely. Tire weight is an important metric...

 

[Mike D.]

I'm still new to having a truck but where do I start when taking weight of the tires in to consideration? How do I determine what the best weight ratio would be?

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[mad4runner]

I'm still new to having a truck but where do I start when taking weight of the tires in to consideration? How do I determine what the best weight ratio would be?

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My guess is that moment when manufacture recommendation get involved by make and model of your car.

I'm still new to having a truck but where do I start when taking weight of the tires in to consideration? How do I determine what the best weight ratio would be?

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#8519

 

[FJ81]

As luck would have it Ronny Dahl on youtube just put up a tire video. You should check it out.

 

[mad4runner]

Best way to buy? Online if it's cheaper? Or authorized dealer?
If you get in trouble with waranty and balance and .....

#8519

 

[krzyboy2o]

Got my wheels and tires (Toyo open country AT2’s) at California Wheels in Campbell. Guys there are cool. Ask for Tommy. So far the tires have been great with 95% freeway and 5% off-road.

If your more off-road, go with the ko2 or generals.


Cool guys there.


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[trfkcop]

Tire Rack will show you what fits your rig, and will ship to a local installer for fitment...

 

[Mike D.]

Got my wheels and tires (Toyo open country AT2’s) at California Wheels in Campbell. Guys there are cool. Ask for Tommy. So far the tires have been great with 95% freeway and 5% off-road.

If your more off-road, go with the ko2 or generals.


Cool guys there.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks, I'll check them out.

 

[Sparky]

Given that it's a family vehicle, it's 2wd, and you'll more than likely be in snow, I'd consider something on the conservative end of the all terrain spectrum. Something like a cooper at3 that has lots of siping and a proven track record for traction, but also good offroad. The more aggressive AT tires wont be as forgiving in the snow. That's my take but I don't know what kind of trails you're planning on running

I've had good luck with America's Tire on Stevens Creek, by the old Rover dealer. I'd also be curious to hear about your decision to relocate, I'm considering Reno if I can find something in public health up there.

 

[Mike D.]

Given that it's a family vehicle, it's 2wd, and you'll more than likely be in snow, I'd consider something on the conservative end of the all terrain spectrum. Something like a cooper at3 that has lots of siping and a proven track record for traction, but also good offroad. The more aggressive AT tires wont be as forgiving in the snow. That's my take but I don't know what kind of trails you're planning on running

I've had good luck with America's Tire on Stevens Creek, by the old Rover dealer. I'd also be curious to hear about your decision to relocate, I'm considering Reno if I can find something in public health up there.

Our main goal is to find trails that will let us camp out in secluded areas or just get away. We have never rock crawled before and are pretty new to offroading.

The upcoming relocation is the result of my work relocating me to our new facility. The cost to operate a new facility in Reno in addition to lower rent was a big selling point for my department. The entire family loves camping and the little one has never seen snow, so our relocation is a big highlight for us.

 

[Mike D.]

As luck would have it Ronny Dahl on youtube just put up a tire video. You should check it out.

The video was great. Thanks for the recommendation.

One question I have though. How do you determine if a tire will be too heavy for your vehicle as mentioned by @professorkx "In addition, Pay attention to the weight of the tire, as this is all unsprung weight, so you want a tire in your size that does not tip the scale on the high end. My son had 35 inch tires on a jeep he bought that weighed more than 30 pounds more than my 35 inch KM2...EACH. Rode like a tank. Switched to a lighter tire in 37 inches, and the ride quality improved immensely. Tire weight is an important metric...".