need advice for snow/light off-road

Hello all, I bought my 08 PreRunner new 3 years ago and love it, so far. I haven't made any mods yet and it still has stock tires. I live in New Jersey at the shore, and am looking for advice on how to make my truck better in the snow, on the beach, and for some off-road fun. It's been ok so far, but I'd like to be able to take it a little further with confidence.

 

First thing is get better tires.

 

Bfg km2 255/85/16. Tall but not wide and heavy. Cut through snow and mud better than some 33x10.5

 

this^^^

for the uses you described, tires will be much more beneficial than a lift or anything else.

as far as choosing a tire, i'd stick with an all terrain tire. mud terrain tires tend to dig into the sand a lit quicker. a good all terrain will have plenty of tread, but also give you the float you want on said without jsut scooping eh sand out from under you.

 

these are an amazing tire, but once the snow gets packed down, they don't grip as well because, like most mud terrains, they don't have the very thin sipes which are what give you snow traction.

 

what are the best/biggest all-terrains i can get without a lift?

 

265/75/16 is the biggest size you can go without a lift (32" tire). idk about the best tire for your uses since I didn't grow up in snow.

 

I'd recommend a good all-terrain tire as well. If your not getting into the deep stuff (snow, mud, etc.) and your driving mostly highway then mud tires are probably not for you. We get lots of snow around here in Ontario, Canada so i decided to go with Goodyear DuraTracs... These tires perform very well on road (winter rated) and excellent off road. BFG all terrains are a great contender too. Both these tires will wear much better than a Mud Terrain so thats something to keep in mind as well.

 

hey pigpen....go here http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/north-east/41121-nj-tacos-187.html ... this is the nj thread. good bumnch of guys who will help you out on all you need. we can talk about things there. welcome to the forum. we go wheelin a lot and most of us are always down for the almost any weekend. stock tires are fine to hit some snow, i have stock tires and if you check the nj thread i linked, you will see lots of capability with stock tires.

 

here is a example of them in use
like mentioned prior, its a all-terrain tire that is also snow rated.
I used to run BFGs but gave these a try and wont be going back.
I got rid of my stock tires before the first snow touched the truck
ya i could of gotten through winter with then,
but now way near as good as i can with the duratracs

 

Been happy with my General Grabber at2...BFG ATs are also good.

 

i know of a pigpen in new jersey...do you skim?