GodwinAustin

I am looking to replace the hugely awful Goodyear RT/Ss on my Taco with 31x10.50 Firestone Destination M/Ts - I really like the size as they are a FULL 31" tire and plus they seem like they would be real good in the snow

The thing is I really am worried they will be too much tire for me - I do a ton of highway driving - NO mudding.

Basically these things need to be awesome in the snow and on rutty logging roads - but will these MTs just melt away and become unbalanced with all the highway driving I do?

Basically is it stupid for me to get these MTs since I never go in mud and spend most of my time on highways and in snow?

4rnr

you seem to be a perfect candidate for bfg at's

boogyman

depends on what you really want them for.. if you plan on actually using them, then get them. If you want them for looks, then get them. If you're *truly* concerned about performance on the highway, get another tire.

I have the bfg at's.. so I second the opionon above. I love them and I do a lot of fwy driving with some offroading. I've got about 8000 miles on them so far and they've barely worn down at all.

Cebby

Ditto to the above rec's. I ran BFG AT's on my 4Runner (2 full sets) and have them on my JGC now. Good all around performer.

payyourtoll

I have two opinions on this.

A> They are only 31" !! Get the fattest, nastiest, ugliest tires you can if you are staying...small!

B> Don't get the M/T if you do mostly highway. I had the same dilemma, MT or AT?? I opted for AT with all of the highway I do. Your tires will wear quicker on MTs I'm sure you know.

My vote: go for an aggressive AT

GodwinAustin

well thanks guys - basically these are my priorities for the tires

1) more clearance while remaning at 10.5" width or narrower (this why the destinations instead of BFG A/T they the dest m/t are a little bit bigger at 31" as opposed to 30.7" for the BFG)

2) snow traction

3) treadwear

-dont care about ride, noise, looks,blah blah blah

Also, just to comment, the RT/s are the worst tire on the planet in the snow IMO - I need 4wd with the smallest amount of snow covered incline

FilthyRich

FWIW Tyres International in ohio www.tyres1.com has General Grabber AT2 in 31x10.5x15 4 for 379.80
From the looks they might just fit your need. Not sure about shipping cost, but an aggresive AT

jacksonpt

I'm not going to comment on whether or not they are too much tire for you, but I've been very VERY happy with mine in the snow. I live on the biggest hill in town that rarely gets plowed - the tires are great in fresh unpacked snow and on that packed snow/icy crap you get after a day's worth of traffic has packed down the snow.

I love em.

FWIW... I'd rather have too much tire than not enough tire. Have you thought about going with a cheap highway tire for summer?

GodwinAustin

Jackson I thought about having two sets of tires but I really dont want the hassle of remounting new ones every spring and fall...plus I do wheel a bit in the summer; so I would still want a moderately aggresive tire - and summer is when I would need the extra clearance I am looking for

As far as the destination I thought they would be real good in snow - and then I read this guys review on tirerack :

Vehicle: 2002 Ford F250 SupCab 4wd XLT
Location: Boulder, CO
Driving Style: Spirited
Miles driven on tires: 8,000 Driving Condition: On Road/Off Road
Reviewer's Overall Ratings: 5.78 out of 10
Review Submitted: 2005-03-07

I drive some very gnarly and sometimes unmaintained Colorado mountain roads to get to job sites. While I usually run the Bridgestone Revos, I thought Id try these Firestones for a winter tire since September of 04. I also had them studded. I will say that they are a very decent rock crawler and mud tire. They do self-clean well. But I found their performance in snow and ice on paved and unpaved roads to be mediocre at best, even though I had them studded. They absolutely do not stick on hard-packed snow and ice, their performance was inferior to the Bridgestone Revos I usually run, even worse than the Michelin LTX M/S I have on another truck. They *look* big and brawny, like you could go anywhere with them, but they are *not* a decent winter tire at all. I would strongly suggest that the users of these tires have them siped for winter driving conditions. On two occasions I got stuck on the uphill grades of mountain roads that were packed snow and ice, and only a few inches deep...Even with studs and even though I have a locker in the front AND with 800 pounnds of sand ballast in the bed, I repeatedly got stuck in less than 4" of packed snow and ice, helplessly spinning all four tires. They are noisy on the road, not quite so bad at highway speeds. Its about the end of the winter driving season so I had them removed and went back to my Bridgestones. Next year, Ill have them siped when I put them on, if they dont grip on snow any better, theyre off to Ebay. You rock crawlers might like them, though, I never saw any chunks come off of them and the tread seems to last a long time.

Cebby

.3" of clearance will come in handy with all the extra trips to the gas station. Count on losing 2-3 miles per gallon using a Mudder vs. an AT. .3" isn't clearance. .15" is. Since all their measurements are done on 8.5" wide wheels, you can pretty much forget a true comparison to reality.

Mudders are good in deep snow, but the big tread blocks aren't that great on light snow on a hard surface. I have BFG MT's on my 4Runner and AT's on my JGC. Only when the snow is deep, is the Runner is better. IMO, running mudders year round for 3 months of potential snow is nuts. The reason you need 4WD is because there is no weight on your rear wheels in a Taco. Put some $5 sand bags back there and you'll be surprised at the improvement.

I got 45K each out of 2 sets of AT's on my 4Runner with crapppy alignment. Probably could have gotten 10-15K more with more religious rotation and alignments.

My 4R came with RT/S's. They were junk.

GodwinAustin

Cebby I like your thinking there -

I agree with you on the Goodyears being awful - I had 450lbs of sand in the bed this winter and the RT/Ss still couldnt grip for crap -they are awful
good for donuts in ski area parking lots though

Bigkahuna808

I got the BFGs A/t kos. They are good choice. The only downside is that I have to run alot of pressure in my tires. I put 40lbs in it to keep it inflated on the street. Anything under that and it looks flat. Also it can be said that the tires pick up more rocks on the roads that a damn geologist

Tato97T100

I am not a firestone man, dont know too many. I had a 93 4runner, with 31' MIcheline M/S-which is not for snow, but great for highway-got 70,000 miles easily- Would say go with BFG, or on a cheaper scale-with Bridgestone, they have some fairly aggressive tires.

Im a Michelin man, i couldn't reccommend any great snow tires, some awesome all-arounds would be LTX A/T-which are good for occasional snow, but if you live on a hill or something-i wouldn't know.

green91runner

look like a pretty decent tire for the price... dunno what the reliability/wear would be like on them.. also, which company makes for 'general', anyone know?

terryjmatthew

General / Continental are the same company. Originally from Hanover, Germany.
Who knows where the tires are actually built. (Seems like I remember them being built in Akron??)

4rnr

I had a set of rt/s's on my 4runner and I had a rear auto locker. In 2wd I couldnt get up a 5 degree incline in the snow. Those tires suck. My bfg mt's are much better in the snow but for on road snow the bfg at's are the best i've had. They are about the most aggresive at's I know of.

GodwinAustin

I like the look of those general tires - however I remember a thread on here saying treadlife was short - still thanks - perfect size and the tread looks aggressive.

By the way that website has great prices on the BFG ATs - 113.00 for 31x10.50 I think tirerack has them for 130 something - has anyone dealt with them before?

Joyota

I used to run Continental's on my motorcycle and they wore great. I currently have General Grabber AP's

They're a different tread pattern, but made by the same company. They've worn very nice so far. I've owned the truck since April of 2004 and the tires were on it when I got it. The previous owner had way too much pressure (45lbs) in them and they were wearing a lot in the middle. Since I've aired them down some (32lbs), they haven't gone down more than 1/32" since then. I'd say that was pretty good wear.