Winter Tire Suggestions

[delicaguy]

I am just waiting for my L400 to arrive and looking for suggestions as to whether members have found that an All Terrain tire has been sufficient for winter (interior BC) or whether the advantages of a dedicated winter tire has outweighed their cost. I welcome any suggestions.

[Green1]

depends on the all-terrain tires. look for ones with a good winter rating, and stay away from BFGs at all costs. (I don't know why so many people swear by them, they always perform the worst in all tests, and I can tell you that my 4x4 work truck on BFGs does worse than my old 2wd van did on .... uh-oh, name is escaping me, same tires Erebus runs... he may have to help me out here...) also for winter we found that my old hankook all-season street tires on the delica would match and/or outperform many all-terrain tires (though come summer they couldn't handle mud)

I've heard really good things about the nokian all-terrain tires, in everything except tread life, but apparently they're really good winter tires.

the ones I would recommend, though I have to admit that I have never run them myself yet, are the hankook dynapro ATM. they sound to me to be the best of all the classes.

[loki]

well I for one found my BFG AT KOs great on/off road in snow, rain, slush, dry, whatever. But maybe I'm an idiot, all I know is my van never even tried to slip.

[Green1]

but what direct comparisons have you done with the BFGs?

[loki]

they are better than my winter duellers where that's for sure. I think there is a possibility that some don't like the BFGs that are from an older run, rubber compounds are changed and tread patterns too. But I'm not here to argue, just giving my opinion and point of view.

[jessef]

I've run many tires.

Best and worst for an all-terrain in the rain (slick road) + snow (slushy and deep powdery snow)

1. Nokian Vatiiva AT's - best on rain/slush/icy roads. Soft sidewall flex. Not as good on hard rock/deep powdery snow. Packs easily.

2. BFG AT's - good on deep slush/dry roads/logging roads. Medium sidewall flex. Worst on ice/rain and light powder dusting. Packs just as easily as the Vatiiva's.

3. Yokohama Geo's - very similar to the Nokian's but a bit harder compound = better on logging roads, suffers more on ice.

4. Goodyear Kevlar MTR's - (new) soft compound makes it stick to rain slick/ice/powdery snow almost as good as the Nokian's. Much better than the BFG AT's. Hard sidewall and large lugs can plow through 3 feet of snow/powdery dusting easily. This is the only tire I've had that has the best 'all-around' every terrain tire. Downside = very heavy, expensive and must rotate religiously. If not aligned/balanced, they will wear fast.

5. Goodyear DuraTrac's - (new) snow/ice/dirt compound. 'supposed' to be the little brother to the Kevlar MTR. I'm running them now. So far, they are better than all of the above for road slick rain and packed snow. The BFG's ride harder and they resemble bald tires compared to these when you cut them loose. I have yet to see how these fare on ice and deep snow. They should be good.

I've tried TSL's, SS's lots of 'off road' specific tires, many AT's.

Out of all of them, I'm still on the fence between the Goodyear Kevlar MTR's and the new Duratrac's. Still need to put more miles on the Duratrac's.

I was the biggest supporter of the BFG AT KO's. I ran the old style BFG AT's for a long time as well. I swore by them and pushed everyone on them. That was until I began using other tires with newer technology/compounds.

The single one thing that the BFG AT's have going for them is tread life. That is all. You can run them up to 50-60,000 km's and sell them on craigslist claiming 75-80% tread left. The compound is hard and cut so that it wears very wear (slowly). Downside is they are horrible on any slick surface, especially ice and slimy slush which we get here a lot. My 'horrible' is based on my experience with other tires on the same Delica in similar conditions. They are not the worst AT tires, but there are much better one's that grips surfaces easier. They just wear faster and are usually a bit more costly.

My opinion is you need to just try out different tires. What I like may not be the right tire for you.

If you want a serious off-road tire that is bulletproof, has good road manners and will take you anywhere, then the Kevlar MTR is for you. It's a hybrid MT/AT.

If you want the best all-around tire that is affordable, light and aggressive. Goodyear Duratrac's the one. Verdict is not in on ice/deep snow yet but seeing how it paddles through mud, deep snow should not be an issue.

If you want a winter-specific AT tire that you can run all-year round with really good road manners/quiet and is great in the winter, then I would choose the Nokian Vatiiva's.

If you want an average AT, the Yokohama's are there.

If you want a tire that will last you 5 years and still look new, the BFG AT's are them.

If you are looking at used BFG AT KO's, be aware that they can still look new after years of driving. I've seen ad's were guys were claiming 'almost new' whereas they were in fact ready to toss out.

They are all different.

I think the Duratrac's are the best alternative to a very aggressive mud tire but sipped for ice and cut for good road manners.

[delicaguy]

Lots of great information so far. To jfarsang a question. In a post last year you seemed very pleased with ProComp AT's - what are your thoughts now.

[jessef]

I really liked them. Pretty much similar to Nokian AT's but a 'touch' more aggressive.

I wanted something with more bite (goodyear's) and I started reading/hearing about Procomp changing their outsourcing which lowered the quality control in the past few years. In reference to that, you can read about more blown procomp tires than any other at today. A shame as it was my fav tire back in the day. But of course that's hearsay and they could well be just as good as the set I had years back.

[FalcoColumbarius]

For all it's worth ~ I really dig my Yokohama Geolandar AT-S's (All Terrain-Soft). Never really used anything else on my truck but these tyres have proved themselves on many applications, including ice. I think it is important, 'though, to mention that although the rubber is what connects you to the road ~ it's the driver that tells the rubber what to do.

Falco.

[BCDelica]

Haven't run the gambit of offroad tires like Jesse; but did have two Delica L300s for several winters, hers running Nokian Vatiiva AT and mine running BFG AT. So 'ill through in my two Satangs worth.

I've run many tires.

Best and worst for an all-terrain in the rain (slick road) + snow (slushy and deep powdery snow)

1. Nokian Vatiiva AT's - best on rain/slush/icy roads. Soft sidewall flex. Not as good on hard rock/deep powdery snow. Packs easily.

Quieter on the pavement, vans side by side on a iced over bridge the Nokains were far better than the BFGs, withstands use of V-barred chain chains with less 'chipping' of tread than the BFGs, easily the better year round tire of the two for normal use.

2. BFG AT's - good on deep slush/dry roads/logging roads. Medium sidewall flex. Worst on ice/rain and light powder dusting. Packs just as easily as the Vatiiva's.

Better in mud and hard rock, bit better in deeper packed snow, throws plenty of small rocks inside your fender when new, rocks like to stick in the tread and let there presence be known on the highway, may not be the best AT tire but looks good, better tire of the two for high speed (Delica high speeds that is) on gravel roads IMO.

[docsavage]

The answer to whether you need a dedicated set of winter tires depends upon where you live in the interior and depends on the typical winter driving conditions. If you only get wet snow that disappears fast, the all terrain tires are probably sufficient. If you live where the roads get ice buildup and you can get the crazy freezing rain, side roads in the towns/cities not cleared, etc (like most of the interior, especially up here in the mid north), then get a good set of winter tires. I ran all seasons for many years before I finally put dedicated winters on - and what a huge difference. I am now a firm believer in winter tires and will have a set as long as I live where it gets winter. The new tire compounds and tread designs are far superior to the old winter tires (basically a regular tire with studs) that used to be available.

Two year ago I bought a set of Nokian Hakapellita SUV 5's without studs (I'm not sold on studs yet) and they are amazing. On my annual winter pilgrimage to Alberta I was cruising along thinking the roads were pretty darn good. When I stopped at my spring at Moose Lake I could hardly walk on the ice on the road. The tires did not belie the icy conditions, needless to say my pace was somewhat slower after that. I have run my tires through this summer as well and they are holding up well (they are awesome in mud too for some reason). I will be able to get a third winter out of them (about 40,000 km so far). So maybe you could get these tires at the beginning of winter, run them straight for two years (depending on mileage) and get new winters again.

For my company truck we are required to have a set of proper winter tires for safety purposes. Also, many roads in the interior require you to have winter tires (look for the signs). I find with winter tires I use 4wd less so I save money on fuel and wear an tear on the front end.

[Firesong]

I have to put in my two cents
I've run Different BFG, Yoko's , hancooks...
And I still come back to my Cooper ATR's
They handled the offroading I've done, the Icefishing.. deep snow,
excellent highway handling and noise.

I didn't mind the hancooks but the tread made quite the noise on
the highway. I put about 1500km highway each month driving
to AB and back summer/winter.

James

[Green1]

Which Hancooks did you have? I'm really curious to find someone who has experience with their new Dynapro ATM tire (it's only been out for about a year or so) it's getting great reviews from the pros, but I'm having trouble finding anyone who'se actually used them...

[jessef]

They look just like the Terra Grappler's. If they are similar cut/compound, then that will be a good AT tire. The Terra's just didn't come in my size.

[MardyDelica]

how about General grabber 2, they have a nic ecompound same as Bf goodrich but i think general grabber is better.
Cheers;