I agree with most of what you said! I don’t believe in duratrac”Kevlar” on HD pickups but do think they wear good on lighter rigs. One tire for miles is Toyo m-55s about 6 years ago but they are dog shit on ice. Most durable hard rubber for heavy pickups on gravel, they priced out and changed the compounds too.I’m about the same, I average about 25k on a set of tires, and am good about rotating them, but gravel kills tires, even on little pickups (always have E rated tires too or I’m getting flats regularly)
The ko2’s held up well on my wife’s tundra, over 40k, now she has the falken at3… the ko2’s were doing so good on the tundra I decided to give them another chance
Ordered e-rated ko2’s, and got 2 flats in under 2 months, and then was looking at them… c rated. Go to the tire shop, show them my receipt that I paid for e rated, so they ordered me the right tires after 5k miles of the c rated… I was commuting 400-650 miles every week working in the spring and summer, so I did get 30k on them, then they got slick at 50% tread, but still had some life, then I got a rock flat late fall and decided I will never consider them again, I have had them on 3 rigs and got flats on all of them, and was never impressed with their performance.
I don’t care much about long tire life as much as traction through the life of the tire, I wish I could find the info on what tires were not made of 2 compounds to get more life out of them, the only ones I know are the same compounds in the whole tread is nokian, but their rock proofs don’t look like they would have great traction on wet pavement
The cooper maxx hold rocks worse than any tire I have had on a small pickup, don’t seem to be as bad on full size pickups, but I couldn’t stand them. I got a set when they first came out and I sold them to my sis in law cheap after a couple weeks.
Since the cooper stt, I have been on the search, and currently have falken mt’s, and when these are toast, I will be trying the duratrac. That was the stock tire on my pickup but weren’t e rated so I didn’t trust them, but they do make my size in the e rated and they seem to have good traction in most conditions
They are a good tire. I am no fan boy, but I am a fan of what works. They work. They do look good, but what matters is if they perform good. So far it’s a yes from me. If I wanted a stouter tire, I’d look hard at the Mickey Thompson Baja Boss A/T. Similar tread pattern, 3 ply sidewall vs a 2 ply and very serious sidewall biters.You guys are introducing me to something new. Was not familiar with the Falken but they look intriguing. Oddly enough was at Zamzows lawn and garden today and when did I see? Wild Peaks on a tundra. Look like stout tires.
Absolutely, the m-55 is a bomb proof tire, but would be a horrible choice for a little midsize pickup like a taco or Colorado, but great for commercial/utility rigs.I agree with most of what you said! I don’t believe in duratrac”Kevlar” on HD pickups but do think they wear good on lighter rigs. One tire for miles is Toyo m-55s about 6 years ago but they are dog shit on ice. Most durable hard rubber for heavy pickups on gravel, they priced out and changed the compounds too.
Thanks! I just put those on. I shopped around and the coopers were the cheapest.Cooper AT3 have been very good on a couple different trucks.
Any more input on the Nokians? Get a chance to try them in any mud yet? I just got an 03 gx470 and need tires. Those and the toyo opencountries are what I am looking at. I have seen reports in offroading groups that the falkens are supposed to be made in thailand, but could be chinese. The nokians are made in TN!After 40 years of at style tires, still haven’t found perfection. Something not always noted is vehicle weight which can favor one tire over another.
50% wear really defines a tire for me, as they all seem to do well initially. My 2000 tundra has not liked original KO, Cooper st3, Hancock at. They have liked the duratrac a lot. Although not the best road tire, darn good on mountain roads, snow and muddy corn fields. I’m careful now in rain and ice as they are below 50%.
Another great tire all around was the Nokian rativva except in muddy conditions. Best none dedicated snow tire I’ve ever used. No longer made.
The new nokian outpost at we put on wife’s forrunner. Pretty impressed so far but our winter was pretty light this year. Real good road manners and casual off road was non issue.I need to use it more before I try them on the tundra.
Nitto Ridge Grapplers are made in the US, if you want to add them to your list. Several of Nitto’s tires areAny more input on the Nokians? Get a chance to try them in any mud yet? I just got an 03 gx470 and need tires. Those and the toyo opencountries are what I am looking at. I have seen reports in offroading groups that the falkens are supposed to be made in thailand, but could be chinese. The nokians are made in TN!
I agree. The Kevlars are junk. My Taco came with a set, they have about 15k miles on them and are at least halfway through the tread, don't grip well, and one just got a flat on a gravel road.The duratrac would not be a tire I would consider even on a half ton pickup, but they seem to do pretty well on the midsized. My biggest problem with tires is them losing traction when worn down a little, my first zr2 I bought with 30k on it, and it had the factory duratrac on it, and they still had some life left, but more importantly, they still had good traction on wet roads… my current one had 15k when I bought it, and I liked the stock duratrac a lot, but I couldn’t trust a c rated tire so I swapped them
I don't know how much snow you drive in but I went from KO2's to Cooper at3 xlt's. The at3's are nice tires and great for highway/backcountry road mixtures. Being from Minnesota though, most of my off road driving is plowing across frozen and snow covered lakes to our fishing holes, quite often pulling a 3k pound fish house. In the ice, snow, fresh, hard, or slushy, there is no comparison, the KO2's are the clear winner and I can't wait to get them back on for my next set of tires.I know this is a repeated thread but I like to think some guys enjoy talking truck stuff no matter how many times it comes up. I have an f150 that I need to get some tires for. I am looking for some other opinions/experiences for a tire that is 70% highway/interstate/town, 30% forest service roads/desert gumbo/county roads, pulling a 28ft bumper pull camper. I am trying to get a good tire but not break the bank. I have kO2s on my oil field truck but I am hoping to not shell out that much for tires. The truck sits in my driveway 5
Days a week. I have been look it the falken at3s, Firestone destination xt, Goodyear wrangler workhorse at, general graber at/x. Not opposed to another tire. Just trying to save some pennies. Thanks guys and gals!