Best dedicated winter tire?

[milehighassassin]

I've used geolanders on a work truck in the winter, they were horrible. Great summer tire


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[T-Bone]

Just put a set of Michelin LTX A/T 2's on my dodge 1/2 ton. Expensive but they seem to be a good all around tire. Also made the ride buttery smooth.

 

[MORSNO]

I have Michelin LTX A/T 2's on my truck also. Yes, they are a great A/T tire, however they are not a dedicated winter tire like the OP is looking for. M/S, A/T, M/T tires are not in the same class for winter ice & snow traction. Blizzaks, X-Ice, Ultra Grips, etc are dedicated winter tires that far exceed normal compounds in the winter.

 

[Dogmeat]

I ran Duratrac on my company truck last year. Do nothin but drive mountainous roads all winter.....all temps....all conditions.....CRAP !!! Would never buy them again. No traction.....bad breaking....not bad in fresh snow... otherwise crap. Loud and too soft....35000kms and need to be replaced.

Been running yoko geolanders on personal truck for years and work pretty good....but going to a good studded tall skinny tire this year...dony know which one yet.

My last designated winter tire was a studded Traction King, not sure who makes them as it was over 10 yrs ago when I bought them. They finally wore out and thats when I decided to try the geolanders for the winter.

IMO....a studded ,tall ,skinny winter designated tire is the best choice. It cuts through the snow much easier and isnt pushing as much as a fat tire. Fat tires look better, but think practicality. As mentioned before, if your gonna buy a tire for the winter, why you buy a mud tire? Also, where I live, it is illegal to run studs after April or May.

Were you drunk while you were driving on the duratracs?

I drive ~50,000 miles in a pickup a year between work and play, and I have never had a better all around tire than the Wrangler Duratracs .... And for as aggressive as they are, they are pretty quiet too .... that is because they don't have the super-deep shoulder lugs like the mud tires do.

 

[hivoltagesledhead]

WOW.....opinions are free....Duratraks suck, are loud and crappy on ice !! If you like em...buy em..if you dont...then get something else. I dont like em. Wont buy them again....going back to a designated winter tire and a good summer tire.

Thats what I like from my experiences.

 

[SpencerA]

Are Wild Country Studded tires crap? At what point does a stud not effective anymore? Is it when their just worn all the way down flat or are they way less effective when the tips start to round out even know they still stick out of tire?

 

[rhalloran]

WOW.....opinions are free....Duratraks suck, are loud and crappy on ice !! If you like em...buy em..if you dont...then get something else. I dont like em. Wont buy them again....going back to a designated winter tire and a good summer tire.

Thats what I like from my experiences.

I'm a pretty diehard dedicated winter tire guy, but I bought Duratracs this year because A) Dogmeat & others rave about them B) they're studdable (I don't have issues with studs wearing off....shrug) and C) I can run them year round.

I've been using the Cooper Discoverer M&S for the past several years - dedicated winter tire, studded, awesome, but they wear out FAST on the dry.

Duratracs seem like the compromise-kings; I _COULD_ run them all summer (likely will not, unless they suck), they won't melt when it is warm/dry, shrug, who knows.

I will certainly pitch them if they suck, even a little, but between DM and others (and reviews on other forums, but this place wins - no one cares more about snow performance than the people here....), I'm pretty optimistic.

Mine only have ~3k on them so far (600mi/week commute, only drive the truck 1-2 days a week), they've got no visible wear, are not loud at all. Yet? Dunno.

Will post a FS ad if they suck, and a review.

Right after they sell.



RH

 

[AKSNOWRIDER]

For a stock sized winter tire..with or without stock studs...you will not do better then these.........General AltiMAX Arctic LT these generals if you search consistently rate as the best snow/ice tire out there............or..do as I do and custom stud your own, they are the best out there........

 

[Rprecision]

Cooper M/S Studded 10 Ply on a dodge Diesel in CO. From Wolf to Mesa to Ears and everywhere in between. They have earned my trust

Another thing to think about is availabillity. Almost every ambulance around runs coopers. The tires are popular and available + when you jack one up = easy to replace.

Oh, I tried the Duratrac thing, it was a bad choice for my application, had nothing but problems

 

[FCR112]

Cooper M/S Studded 10 Ply on a dodge Diesel in CO. From Wolf to Mesa to Ears and everywhere in between. They have earned my trust

Another thing to think about is availabillity. Almost every ambulance around runs coopers. The tires are popular and available + when you jack one up = easy to replace.

Oh, I tried the Duratrac thing, it was a bad choice for my application, had nothing but problems

Rprecision,
I have been from WC to GM to RE on my bald arse scarey worn out after 18 months Falken Wildpeak junkers last year as well. They have lost any trust for me and I feel like I am providing a public service announcement when I say stay FAR away from them if you are searching for an AT tire.

Back to topic. Please elaborate on your "Duratrac thing" experience. Size? Dually? Were they studded? What problems did you experience exactly?
Thanks

 

[yamahahaha]

Blizzacks are my favorites.Was never a dedicated winter tire person until we bought a Yukon Denali XL that had these already on it. Now thats all we run on the wife's vehicle in the winter. I have had 2 sets of Duratracks on my truck and only got about 20'000 miles out of them. And I rotate every 5000. As hot as it was this last summer I dont think any tire lasted though. I run an allterain on my truck now currently Nitto terra grapplers never ran them before so we will see how they do.

 

[richracer1]

Well, before they jacked the prices up, I went and got a set of 265/70-17 10ply Firestone Winter Force w/studs yesterday. I traded in the junk OEM Bridgestone Duravis tires to lower the cost. With the trade-ins I shelled out a little over $800 OTD. In the summer, I'll run my Hankook ATm tire I already had on another set of rims and slap these on when the snow flies.

 

[Dogmeat]

At the risk of being labeled blasphemous in some circles ...

I am not impressed with Cooper tires. I've run several sets of them over the years, from A/T tires, to mud tires, and last winter a pair of studded dedicated winter tires ..... and the rubber compound they use is just flat out not as good as thing premium brands.

You get decent tread life out of them and they are a lot more affordable which is why they sell so well, but IMO the traction is not as good as it is with a Michelin or BFG of the same tire class ....

With that said .... I just priced out what I want my next set of tires to be for my new truck .. 305/65/17 BFG A/T's .... and they are $300 a tire.

I bet I can get something in Cooper or Nitto trim in that size at a lot less, but I'd trust those BFG tires with my life .... Same goes for the Duratracs, but I can't get them in that particular size.

IDK, I'm just not a huge fan of the Cooper tires on slick roads

 

[hivoltagesledhead]

Did not like the BFG AT's or the Duratracs......I dont know but maybe it is just the conditions I drive in.

 

[XXL]

I just ordered a set of 245 75 17 E unstudded Hankook I-Pike winter tires from the local CO-OP. $900.00. I run a 265 70 17 in the summer but am a fan of narrower tires for snow. The tires are real close to the same height. I also have extra wheels so I can swap them at home. Now, if it will just snow????

 

[mt.sledder]

I just ordered a set of 245 75 17 E unstudded Hankook I-Pike winter tires from the local CO-OP. $900.00. I run a 265 70 17 in the summer but am a fan of narrower tires for snow. The tires are real close to the same height. I also have extra wheels so I can swap them at home. Now, if it will just snow????

Hope you have better luck with the hankook's than I did. I had the 265-75-16's and ran them studded up for 5000 km. They were still like new but sucked so bad I couldn't stand it. Sold them and put on the studded duratracks and loved them. Ran them the whole winter and they performed real well. 3/4 ton duramax crew cab pulling anything from a 28' bumper hitch to a 38' 5th sled trailer to Revy and not just to the parking lot but up the logging roads.

 

[hivoltagesledhead]

Funny story......I've been expressing my dislike for the duratrak tire on here and some people think I'm an idiot for not liking them. I went to the store where I bought them for a flat repair and rotation and they could not believe how worn out they were for 38,000 kms. So i asked them," What tires do you run on your shop trucks" in the winter? I figured if you want a good winter tire then buy the ones the tire shops run.....well......they run studded Duratraks in the winter and non studded in the summer...go figure !!!

I still dont like them and would never buy them again !!!!

Talk about mud in your face

 

[whittaker727]

BFG K/M 2 sipe (no snow in town 2/3 of the time for studs) tall and skinny tires keep me out of the ditch. 255 80 17 comes out to a 33" tall tire with a 8" wide foot print. Low noise and aggressive tread pattern for mountain driving. Looks like hell having a 9" lift with 33" tires all winter, but it performs like a rock star.

 

[XXL]

Hope you have better luck with the hankook's than I did. I had the 265-75-16's and ran them studded up for 5000 km. They were still like new but sucked so bad I couldn't stand it. Sold them and put on the studded duratracks and loved them. Ran them the whole winter and they performed real well. 3/4 ton duramax crew cab pulling anything from a 28' bumper hitch to a 38' 5th sled trailer to Revy and not just to the parking lot but up the logging roads.

Now you tell me!!!!!! LOL
The local guy says they sell alot of them, an most guys like them. I sure hope they work, time will tell. I'll post up if we ever get any snow, I havent even put them on yet, still sitting in the shed.

 

[Thistledoo]

What about the nokian hakkapeliitta?

Anyone have experience with these? Supposed to be the latest and best in studded tire technology????