Tires.........

I looked over the tire thread, it's pretty old.
Want mostly highway so want reasonably quiet but I do drive fire roads, dirt roads & snow. I have Konig chains but want to be less dependent on them.
Tires I have now are BFG Rugged Trail TA with 58k miles on them with 20% tread left. They are a shit show in snow.

I went by tire store & they are offering 2 tires. I feel I need a list of tires to take with me as I have no idea when they are reading off different choices.
Size is a 265/70R16- 4 tires
The spare is new & is a BFG in same size as others or I'd go up to a 75. I think it's an inch taller.

Ironman AllCountry AT
No mileage warranty. They were really pushing this brand but a phone search said they are loud & wear fast. Price includes tires, fees, installation, road hazard, new TPMS sensors, check alignment, lifetime rotation, lifetime repair, lifetime balancing and tax.
Total price. $961.59

Falken Wildpeak AT3W
55k mileage warranty- are snow rated
Same details as above
Total price $1233.93

Road hazard is included but I would probably deduct the $140

Any experience with these? or something else?
I have BFG KO2's on another truck & those are a no on this one.

 

What kinda snow driving you doing (like non plowed snow roads or plowed roads with light snow and ice?) If the later you wont find a better all season tire than the Michelin Defender LTX M/S.... nope its not an AT, but it will surpass an AT in everything other than deeper snow and mud.

 

Duratracs self clean well, have siping, and can be studded

 

Those BFG Rugged "fails" were awful

The Falkens are severe service rated and are a reputable company. I would 100% recommend them over the cheaper ironman tires.

I run cheap all terrains, but I have a dedicated snow set for winter. The falkens are a great year round tire choice.

Edit: I see the iron mans are from Hercules. Which is USA made, I've never heard of them as I'm in Canada, so I have no real experience with them.

 

Falkens are pretty righteous in the snow and mud. They've gotten me through some hairy sections of forest road without even threatening to break traction.

Some sizes are a major pain in the ass to keep balanced, however. It's kind of a roll of the dice.

 

My street at mountain house is an incline. It's plowed after snow stops but gets icy. The BFG's are a nightmare getting up the street to my driveway- probably 1/8 mile. Big running start & hang on! More than once I've had to chain up just to get to the house. Dirt roads that have gravel are no issue. I usually stay home until roads are plowed, it's the black ice that's scary. That's chain time. It's usually less than a foot but we've gotten 2-3 ft overnight.

 

Snow driving is probably off & on for 3 months. So, I need a tire that covers everything. As bad as the BFG's are, I feel anything will be an improvement. Actually I drive alot of fire roads & dirt roads- sometimes muddy for access to fishing.

 

Anyone with experience with the Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac?
50k warranty, mountain snowflake rated, aggressive tread but says quiet on pavement.
They are about 17 bucks a tire more.

 

Cooper Discoverer AT3 4S. Two Canadian winters, by far the best AT tire I’ve had on my truck over 16 years. When these are done, I’m going back for more.

 

Sounds like you might have to deal with a decent amount of snow. I get some snow in Southern IL but it’s not something I really have to worry much about since it’s so flat around here.

Anyways, when I bought tires, I was between the Michelin Defender, the Falken Wildpeak AT3, and a Continental TerrainContact AT.

I ended up with the Michelins and I think I made the right choice. Insanely quiet and comfortable, and excellent wet traction. Haven’t driven them in the snow yet, but I have no concerns.

I read mixed reviews on how quiet the wildpeaks were, but finally decided that the people that thought they were quiet previously had more aggressive AT tires. Those that thought they were loud previously had highway tires. I decided that on-road comfort was most important to me.

 

Sounds like you need an AT tire. Have you considered tire rack? They have a lot of tires available and free ship to an installer in your area.

 

Always buy good sheets, socks and tires.

Don’t cheap out (not that 960$ is cheap) with those funky brands. Go with the well established and reputable brands, it’ll save you time, money and heartache in the long run. Then again, YMMV.

 

I would second the Coopers or Nittos ridge grapplers for an all around tire...order from Tire Rack, have them delivered and then just take them somewhere for installation. I have 2 sets of wheel and tires, and we get LOTS of snow in Northern Michigan, my winter tires are Nokians, and they do OK on forest roads (I work for the Forest Service) but for summer, Yoko Geolanders have been great!

 

Maybe I need to find other tire stores. Most don't want to install Tire Rack stuff so they jack up prices like crazy on incidentals plus 0 warranty from them. The biggest deal are TPMS sensors. Buy tires from store, it's 67 bucks for 4 installed & programmed. If I bring tires in or have shipped from Tire Rack- it's $365 for sensors & none will install your sensors. By the time you add in all the BS charges- I'm not saving much. If I buy from store, I can just drive in for an issue. Not sure how that works with Tire Rack & using a store that didn't supply the tires. Deal breaker for me.

Coopers are USA made tires last I looked. Ran them for years on my Suburban. I've only been to 2 tire stores & neither carry Coopers.

 

If you live in Palm Desert, there is a Big O tire, and online it says they carry both Cooper and Nitto tires...

 

I have been running General Grabber ATXs for about 10K miles now and I really love them. I know they’re not on your list but I’d say they are worth a look.

A lot of people never consider them because there’s a common misconception that they only come in E load but they make your size in the SL rating.

$304+ General Grabber A/TX Tires

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=General&tireModel=Grabber+A/TX

I have the E rated Grabbers and I think the amount of road noise is minimal for an AT tire. They are fantastic on wet and dry pavement and obviously very good off road as well. And they have the three-peak mountain snowflake. Plus they look killer.

 

Take a look at Mastercraft Stratus AP. They seem to work and my wallet has been much happier in fuel savings now, too. I do have dedicated BFG Commercial Traction tires for the Winter

 

I do right now. We have 2 homes. One is desert & the other in Tehachapi mountains. I'll check out Big O. We also have a Ramona Tire that's a Firestone store but they carry other brands like Westlake, Nittos, etc

 

Another vote for the Coopers if you can find some. I had Hercules on my truck when I bought it - they were beasts in the snow but on dry highway they were noisy and had a lot of vibration. I threw some used Coopers on that I got off another member here and they've been great. I run them year round.

 

So I went by Costco- wasn't impressed with the customer service. Couldn't be bothered to print a quote. I had to jot down the numbers. Irritated I was wasting his time. Wouldn't show me the tire, they are behind chains.
Michelin XLT A/S
$1124.00 w/ TPMS sensors
Not a All Terrain- more of an all season- found that out when I got home

Sams Club- great customer service! Printed what I wanted.
Goodyear Wrangler Workhorse AT
3 peak snow/mountain rated
50k tread warranty
$962.00 w/ TPMS sensors

Pirelli Scorpion All Terrain Plus
Warranty 50k
3 peak snow/mountain rated
$938.00 w/ TPMS sensors

I like the look of the Pirellis, a little more aggressive than the Wranglers. Wranglers would probably be quieter on highway.

Right now, I'm liking the Pirelli & the Falken.
I'll look at others.