About to need new tires on my 2009 Z71. I've got a slight body lift for leveling so I can fit bigger tires. I'm a bit up in the air on tire brand and size.

I had Nitto TerraGrapplers AT at first, size 305/55/20. Then I lucked into a friend selling hhis Mickey Thompson Baja ATZ's in the same size. Paid $400 for the set that had about half tread (20k miles of wear) and I've put nearly 25k more on them. They're at about 4/32 right now. Great tires, but much noisier than the Nittos.

I'm looking at quite a few different brands. Toyo Open Country, Yokohama Geolander, Nitto TerraGrappler, BFG All terrain. Any other recommendations? (Michelin M/S will definitely come up but I like a little more aggressive look.) Most miles are highway but I do need moderate off-road capability as hunt some back woods areas.

As far as size, I want to go narrower but slightly taller. 285/65/20 seems about right. 34.5" tall, which I'm reasonably confident will fit fine and not scrub. Strange thing is that 285/65 tires are waaaay more expensive, for some reason, than 275/65. Anybody know why? I mean, there's more rubber there, I get that, but they are $100 more per tire. They're also $100 more than 285/60 and $75 more than the 305/55.

If I go all the way down to 275, will I notice it? I don't load the truck up all that often. Once a year or so I'll go put a couple yards of mulch in the bed or tow the pontoon a couple of miles down to the boat ramp. I'm not in the mud often.

Any thoughts on brand or size?

Are the more expensive tires LT vs. P series in the cheaper?

I see plenty of the Cooper A/T3 around here.

Nah, all LT tires.

Last time I replaced the tires on my 2003 Tacoma I went with Cooper Discoverer AT3's and have been very happy with them. Great traction in snow and mud, will probably buy another set after they wear out.

I was very happy with the cooper st maxx on my last truck. They didn't come in the 20" size I needed this last go round, so I went to general tire.

For the life of me...I can't remember the tire model. I really like it a lot though. Here's a pic I have from just after I put them on last spring:

General Grabbers most likely. Thanks.

i do not like the Michelin or Toyo on your list. Had both.

I like Cooper and Hankook. BFG are also good, but much more expensive and do not think they are that much better.

I don't know about the 20's, but I put a set of 265/70/17 geolanders on my truck and they suck! Traction is ok, but they are soft sidewalls. The truck handled great before, now it's mushy.

Huge fan of the Nitto's.
Have them on my truck (second set).
My preference is performance over longevity and mileage.
YMMV

I've been very impressed with the Nokian tires. I had them on my Dodge dually, and currently have a set of their Rotiiva AT tires on my 4Runner. These are "P" rated. The Rotiiva AT Plus are "LT" rated.

Purchased a Ram Dually with a set of Cooper something-or-other LT's on it. They were absolute garbage. Ended up with ply separation in 3 of 6. Put a set of Michelin LTX A/T2's on it based on the reviews on Tire Rack and they have been awesome. 50K so far and I expect to get 20K more out of them. Quiet and excellent snow traction. I highly recommend them.

I have the Nitto Terra Grapplers and have been very pleased with them in all conditions. They do need a few hundred miles to break in as they first seemed slippery both in dry and in the wet and now they are great. I was told it may have been some of the oils from the processing. I have had them since 2014 and they are about only 1/4 worn. make sure you rotate them regularly. God Bless

Nitto

I went with Nitto terra grapplers, but I’ve heard good things about the Falken Wildpeaks AT3W.

I have Toyo Open Country A/T 2's on my Ram 2500 diesel.

Definitely consider only looking at load range E to get the 10 ply tires.

I also really like Goodyear Wrangler Duratracs. Expensive, but worth every penny. Had them in Arizona and never got stuck with them in dirt, rock, rain, mud, ice or snow.

I liked my Goodyear Duratreks for about 20k miles on my Ram 2500 but now as they started wearing their noise level has increased and I find their traction on snow is not what I expected. Since I tow a 5th wheel I will probably be going to Michelin's the next time around.

Wrangler Duratracs. I had them on my Jeep Wrangler a few years ago. They were great in snow, and rain. Never had a problem with them. Aggressive looking, and I have them on my 2013 RAM 1500 and I still love them. excellent traction, great off road. A little pricey, but well worth it IMO. Check them out on Tire Rack.

Nittos were way quieter than the Mickeys. As most of my miles are on blacktop, I do want a fairly quiet tire. Going with 275/65/20's should get me in rigbt around the $1200 mark, which is pretty reasonable.

quote:

Originally posted by 64dodge:
Purchased a Ram Dually with a set of Cooper something-or-other LT's on it. They were absolute garbage. Ended up with ply separation in 3 of 6. Put a set of Michelin LTX A/T2's on it based on the reviews on Tire Rack and they have been awesome. 50K so far and I expect to get 20K more out of them. Quiet and excellent snow traction. I highly recommend them.

Agreed. Had two sets myself. Many good miles mixed bag of terrain. Not off road.

I have a 98 Ram with 2" lift.

I put 33" Nitto Terra Grapplers on and they are terrific. I am extremely happy with them and if these ever wear out (no sign of it yet after 20,000 miles) I will be getting another set.

And normally I am a Michelin fan, for my wife's MDX and my BMW 335i.