Life with Duratrac's.

Bluegrass taco they used sticky weights on those rims in your pic? There is not enough flat surface on the inside of that rim, there is a beveled edge weights don't sit correctly with those rims, I just mounted Goodyear Duratracs on my 15 Tacoma with the same rims, I tried to get the shop to use sticky weights but they said they will fall off and would not guarantee the balance them.

 

There's a flat surface wide enough to put 'em 2 weights wide.....Near the center of the rim. I have a balance and rotate warranty that cover's 'em as long as there's legal tread depth. Not an issue except for the one segment that didn't have good "sticky" on it. The others you would have to chisel 'em off to remove them.

 

The weights for the face for the rim (outside) should be placed as close to the inside edge as possible when you road force balance the tires. My old FJ rims had sticky weights never a problem, these Tacoma rims didn't have enough surface area to be balanced correctly with sticky weights.

 

Must be some difference in rims from mine to yours....Mine were road force balanced also, and balance perfect. SOME of the weights are nearer to the inside edge. Some are centered (as they needed to be in order to get them to "zero". All things equal, they ride VERY smooth and no vibration, showing zero wear in 5000 miles, and the weights are staying put with the exception of that one segment that just didn't have enough "sticky".

 

That is possible, but I have to agree with you those tires are sweet, the real test is the winter's snow...

 

Our first snow is in the forecast for this weekend. Unfortunately, it's supposed to be more sleet and ice than snow, and daytime temps in the mid to upper 40's, so there won't be much opportunity to try out the tires. Last winter, we got 9", and 19" 3 days later before the first round had a chance to melt.....While I was sliding around on Yokohama Geolanders.

I have had the opportunity to try 'em off road. We went to Black Mountain Off Road Adventure Area in Harlan Ky about a month ago. The Duratracs performed beyond my expectations.

 

This morning on the way to work, I got to get the truck up to interstate speed (75mph) for the first time since yesterdays balancing. At speed, you would be hard pressed to tell if the truck was moving or not. Smooth isn't descriptive enough. Perfect would be a better word!

 

I have a 2015 tacoma currently with stock 265/65r17 tires as pictured below. I put 45 000km / 28,125miles on over 10 months of driving back and forth to work and fishing/offroading trips. I loaded my truck up with random gear including my 13.5' fishing kayak pictured or my suzuki king quad. Never had an issue. I happened to have experience with tires before and knew that the duratracs were a softer sidewall and increased my pressure to 36 cold and 40 when loaded. After all those miles I only wore the Standard load versions down to 11/32 (factory is 14) and because I am picky with my tire shops I had the tires right the very first time. Biggest thing about balancing a toyota truck rim is to use the lug centric adapter for the tire machine. Hope this helps others as well.

ps. the shot where my truck is in the tree's is a skid trail in December and I was the only one to make it up and out and had a 100% slope (1 up for 1 across)

 

Alrighty! Time for an update! I'm up to 7500 miles on my Duratracs. They've been put to the test off road enough times now that I think I made a good choice. They've been in mud, in dry dusty dirt, rocks, shale, and loose sand. The last one was a bit of a learning experience. We were far enough from any air compressors I didn't want to air 'em down. When I hit the sand hill, I dug in pretty good on the first couple attempts. Backed up and matted the skinny pedal and made it up the incline. I'm quite sure they would have performed better with less than the 38psi I was running. As far as the rocks and shale, no issues. I was told Duratracs would slice up bad in sharp rocks. So far, not the first sign of a cut or mark on 'em.

On the road, they're wearing like iron. I'm 110% pleased with how they ride. Put a blindfold on and you'd have a tough time telling if and when the truck was moving. Smooth as glass! I'm convinced all the early issues with balancing would have been non-existent had I put enough air in 'em from the get-go.

I religiously keep records on gas mileage. (For re-imbursment by my employer) With a mix of city and highway miles, I get 19 (+ or - no more than 1/2mpg) and have got over 22 on a couple highway trips.

Long story short, 7500 miles in, I'm pleased with the way Duratracs LOOK, Pleased with the way the PERFORM on the road, and pleased with the way the PERFORM off road.

I'll be back!

 

I'm about the same mileage as you with my Duratracs and no balancing issues or complaints here. They are wearing well. Haven't measured but looks like new. I'll measure the threads at the 10K mark and report back.

 

Nice report Bluegrass. I also drive an 11 TRD OR DCSB with LT 265/75-16C Duratracs on stock OR wheels. 5,000 miles on the tires so far and no rubbing under any conditions, no vibrations, and no balancing issues although they required a bit more weight than I would have liked. Been running 35 psi but think I will try 38 as you suggest to see how it feels. Dry and wet handling have been good. After two snow days they seem to work very well in slick compacted conditions. I really need a few more snow and ice miles to make a good judgement but I don't think there will be a problem. They also are working very well off-road in dirt, broken granite, and basalt but I worry a bit about the sidewalls. Not enough concern to make me wish I had gone with the heavy ten ply Es though. Airing em down to 20 psi (will go 15 next time things get tough) makes me feel like the truck can tackle just about anything. Haven't played in the sand yet but they arent meant to be sand tires. Aired down I suspect they will be acceptable, not good or great, if good technique is used. Spinning them just a bit sems to clear mud from the lugs reasonably well but I haven't encountered a lot of bad mud yet.. Hopefully their performance doesn't change too much as they wear and they last at least 40K to 45K miles.

 

I can tell you that at 40 psi here in N Utah the snow handling has been less than impressive for me on my 285/75 16 DuraTracs. They are about to get dropped significantly in psi to try and correct that issue. When you're stopped on a mtn pass and you're the only vehicle sliding around at a dead stop you figure out pretty quickly that somethings wrong with your tire pressure. Never had any of these problems with my STMaxx. With the snow pounding us like it is now I'm going to drop to 32/30 I think and check it out. If not, they're coming off at about 12k on them. Even with 200 lbs of sand in the bed the grip hasn't really improved. We shall see how it does when the pressures get adjusted down.

 

Sliding at a dead stop on a mountain pass??

 

Yep. Had to maneuver over to the snow/rumble strips on the side to get traction. Rode the rest of the way down on those "drunk bumps" lol. 2"aal in the rear, 5100s up front.

 

Wow, terrifying. I'd be interested to hear the difference in performance after you air down.

 

I'll update afterwards. Right now I'm in TN for the holidays, truck is at the airport in SLC. Should be able to report after I drive it home from there next Monday. Oh, it's 65 and raining here fml

 

It's been a while since I updated this thread. Not a lot to report until lately. I'm closing in on 10,000 miles. Couldn't be happier! Duratracs are wearing evenly, and very little wear at that! No issues with balance. Still seeing what appears to be excellent gas mileage by the standards of other Tacoma's. (Low in the 18-1/2mpg range, high in the 22 range, figured at every other fill up)

I recently had the first opportunities to try 'em in the snow. First round was 1/4" of ice with 3"+ of powder on top of that. No complaints. At one point, I was on a solid sheet of glare ice. NOTHING short of an Abrams tank was gonna bite on that stuff! Second snow netted closer to 8" at the house and 14" not far from home. I was VERY impressed at the traction and control. Again, couldn't have been happier!

Next "event" will be in the upcoming days when I put new shocks and coil springs on my truck. That'll include an alignment and having tire balance checked. The new suspension will give me adequate clearance for 33"'s. Already kicking around the idea of 285/75/r16 lrE's, in, what else.....DURATRACS!

 

It's beena month since I updated this thread. Yesterday was the 10,000 mile mark, and with that, tire rotation. All's well! No unusual wear, barely any measurable wear. 1 tire was 1/4-oz out of balance. Other 3 were still spot on! During the last month, I upgraded suspension parts. The 2" spacer lift in the front went away. In it's place, Bilstein 5100's OME 885X's and 1/2" plates. In the rear, new Deavers 2" AAL and 5100's. With that, a slight adjustment to front end alignment and that's spot on! The ride went from pretty daggone good to excellent. In fact, this is now the best riding 4wd I've ever owned (out of 17 different trucks) If the tires weren't great, no way the ride would be this good!

I've had the chance to try 'em in snow. Nothing but glowing reports there.

Several off road trips. All good there too!

I'm keeping my Duratracs.....

 

well....It's been a while! Almost 6 months in fact. Life has been busy. Had 2 cancer surgeries, did well with that. I'll get a scan in 3 months that'll tell me if I have a clean bill of health, or more treatment. I FEEL better than I have in 10 years. Gotta take that for what it's worth and be happy.

Now we're into the late summer and fall 4-wheeling trip season! We did a couple 1 day trip in the last month. Got another one this coming Sunday, then 2 more single day trips, and a 3 day run through Black Mountain coming up in October. The Duratracs are still performing better than I hoped. I had them rebalanced a few weeks ago. The tire shop used a new brand of "sticky weights". After one week, some of them had slung off. Went back and rebalanced AGAIN....same results. So, this past Saturday, we did them ONE MORE TIME, this time with conventional lead "clip on" weights. They'll stay! The Duratracs are wearing great. Just a tic over 2/32nds wear in 22,000 miles. No feathering. No scuffing on sidewalls. No cuts or abrasions. I attribute much of the great wear to having proper alignment specs and great suspension. The Bilstein 5100 (@ 0"), 885X OME coils (w/1/2" top plate spacers) STOCK UCA's, and Deavers 2" AAL is all that AND a bag of chips! I managed to get 2.9 degrees of caster with stock UCA's on a lift that netted 2-5/8" front lift. I'm still getting from 19 to 21 mpg, depending on where I'm driving. Much city driving, but a few long road trips with cruise dialed in @ 70MPH....The latter is where I get the 21 mpg.

A few months ago, I put together a CO2 inflation set up. This enables me to air down (to 16 to 20 psi, depending on where we're at) and re-inflate back to 32 to 34, depending on circumstances, when off roading. Nothing but excellent results to report there. In sandy and muddy conditions, the Duratracs respond well to lower pressures. When in mostly rocky conditions, I stay closer to 20 psi. The ONLY negative I've found with CO2 inflation is, I'll pump 'em to 34psi, and in 2 to 3 days, I'll check and find them at 30 to 31 psi. I'll deal with that for the luxury of being able to air up/air down at will.

I'm starting to get the itch to change a few things on my Tacoma. One area would be to step up to bigger tires. I'm torn between 285/75/16's or 255/85/16's. The Duratrac 285 is ENORMOUS compared to some 285's. And they don't offer (yet) a 255/85/16. So....I may be forced in another direction. I would have made the change already, ecept for the fact I'm so pleased with the Duratracs. A buddy has 285/75/16 Duratracs on his FJ. We're gonna do a swap in a few weeks so I can see just how much cutting and sawing I'll need to do. I MAY go that route.

Who knows? I may just stick with the 265/75/16 Duratracs.....Hard to toss out a plan that works so well!

I'll follow up in a few weeks with another post. Should have some wheelin' pics by then.