Narrowed down to a few tires

[TylerV76]

Ordered the Rough Country 2.5" leveling kit today and hoping to install it Friday. Since Ive got to do an alignment anyways, I figure I'll get new tires Saturday and get the alignment free. Now I've got to make a final decision on which tires Im getting so I can schedule the install.

Size wise, Im going with 265/70R17 on stock wheels so I don't have to do any trimming or modifying the crash bars etc. Im between a few different tires and would like some real world experiences if possible.

Dirt roads are common and a few can get a bit hairy during the rainy season. Snow/ice is a big factor. When I go camping, I tend to end up in some sandy areas. Road noise is something I want to keep down as well. As you can tell from the few Im looking at, Im looking for a more aggressive tire.

1. BFG KO2 LT265 /70 R17 121S E1. These are what Ive planned on since I knew I wanted to swap out the stock's. The only thing that concerns me is wear and stopping in the rain. Ive read that these can be a bit slick in the rain and after the first year with them the traction isn't all that great.

2. WRANGLER DURATRAC LT265 /70 R17 121Q E1. These are quickly becoming more and more intriguing. Ive read these have better stopping power in wet conditions than the KO2 and are quiet with great snow traction.

3. NITTO RIDGE GRAPPLER LT265 /70 R17 121Q E1. Not really sold on these but would love to hear real world experience with our trucks.

4. COOPER DISCOVERER ST MAXX LT265 /70 R17 121Q E1. I love the way these look but don't have much information to go on with them as far as performance.


Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Im trying to get a tire thats going to be able to handle most things I throw at it and last at least a couple years.

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[Msfitoy]

No Falken AT3W?

 

[TylerV76]

No Falken AT3W?

Didn't really have that aggressive look I was going for. Same with the General Grabbers. I haven't seen the Falken's on the Ranger so maybe it looks better than just the tire looks? Performance wise Ive read pretty decent reviews on them but they never seemed to really come out on top in the reviews Ive watched. It seems to always come down to the KO2's and the Duratrac's.

 

[AzScorpion]

I have the Nittos and love them! Very quite on the highway and aggressive enough for the trails which I've done some rocky - sand trails. I did a ton of research before buying tires and while they all are very good I just liked these more. Plus there are a few other members on here who've been running these,some with over 10K miles and a lot more off roading than me and have had nothing but good things to say about them. One other note and you can take this with a grain of salt is when I called a couple local off road performance shops and asked them their opinion between the Nittos and the BFG's they both told me to go with the Nittos.

 

[coblueberryranger]

Falken Wildpeak AT3 275/65/18, Love them!

 

[Msfitoy]

It is pretty aggressive to me and practically noiseless...I think Falken makes a mud tire sibling to this tire too...

Didn't really have that aggressive look I was going for. Same with the General Grabbers. I haven't seen the Falken's on the Ranger so maybe it looks better than just the tire looks? Performance wise Ive read pretty decent reviews on them but they never seemed to really come out on top in the reviews Ive watched. It seems to always come down to the KO2's and the Duratrac's.

 

[TylerV76]

I have the Nittos and love them! Very quite on the highway and aggressive enough for the trails which I've done some rocky - sand trails. I did a ton of research before buying tires and while they all are very good I just liked these more. Plus there are a few other members on here who've been running these,some with over 10K miles and a lot more off roading than me and have had nothing but good things to say about them. One other note and you can take this with a grain of salt is when I called a couple local off road performance shops and asked them their opinion between the Nittos and the BFG's they both told me to go with the Nittos.

Your truck is the reason I started looking at the Nitto's actually. The biggest down side I've seen with these is the reviews really start to disappear after about 20,000 miles. I put on between 18-20,000 miles per year and I can't seem to find much info on these tires past that 20,000 mile range. I'm hoping to get close to 40,000 per set.

I also see folks getting away from these when it comes to snow. Most reviews say they are competent but always go back to the Duratrac's and KO2's. Where these seem to shine though is sand, rock and road noise.

 

[sbacpo]

4. COOPER DISCOVERER ST MAXX LT265 /70 R17 121Q E1. I love the way these look but don't have much information to go on with them as far as performance.

I've got about 6500 miles on these and had about 35,000 on them on a 2012 Wrangler. IMO they are very good on the dry pavement, sand and mud. Pretty good in the rain. They are a little noisy if that's an issue. I don't hesitate to recommend them.

 

[TylerV76]

Falken Wildpeak AT3 275/65/18, Love them!

It is pretty aggressive to me and practically noiseless...I think Falken makes a mud tire sibling to this tire too...

I'll have to stop by a shop tomorrow and see these in person. They look better on the truck than they did alone. Still can't tell if they have enough of the look Im going for but definitely interesting enough to check them out. Thanks!

 

[Msfitoy]

I'll have to stop by a shop tomorrow and see these in person. They look better on the truck than they did alone. Still can't tell if they have enough of the look Im going for but definitely interesting enough to check them out. Thanks!

Here's a wider shot...you might consider going up in size...these are 285/70-17

 

[TylerV76]

Here's a wider shot...you might consider going up in size...these are 285/70-17

I assume you modified the crash bars to get the 285's? Anything else you had to trim?

 

[AzScorpion]

Your truck is the reason I started looking at the Nitto's actually. The biggest down side I've seen with these is the reviews really start to disappear after about 20,000 miles. I put on between 18-20,000 miles per year and I can't seem to find much info on these tires past that 20,000 mile range. I'm hoping to get close to 40,000 per set.

I also see folks getting away from these when it comes to snow. Most reviews say they are competent but always go back to the Duratrac's and KO2's. Where these seem to shine though is sand, rock and road noise.

This was my main reason for buying these. Sorry can't help you with that white stuff,moved away from that crap years ago. lol Good luck!

 

[Msfitoy]

I assume you modified the crash bars to get the 285's? Anything else you had to trim?

I removed them entirely

Not trying to sell you these tires but I highly recommend them...have over 27,000 miles on them and they're still pretty fresh...sipes are all still visible...

 

[TylerV76]

I removed them entirely

Just the fronts or rears also?

 

[Deleted member 1634]

It is pretty aggressive to me and practically noiseless...I think Falken makes a mud tire sibling to this tire too...

The mud version would be worse in the snow, possibly even worse than the stock tires. Mud tires by design are not good in the snow.

Your truck is the reason I started looking at the Nitto's actually. The biggest down side I've seen with these is the reviews really start to disappear after about 20,000 miles. I put on between 18-20,000 miles per year and I can't seem to find much info on these tires past that 20,000 mile range. I'm hoping to get close to 40,000 per set.

I also see folks getting away from these when it comes to snow. Most reviews say they are competent but always go back to the Duratrac's and KO2's. Where these seem to shine though is sand, rock and road noise.

The Duratracs are the ones I always think of for snow. My brother had a set on his Gen 1 Ranger during college. Spent 5 years in the snowiest place in the US (outside of the mountains) with over 300" per year average. And during some of the worst storms it was just him out on the roads without any issue. Spent a lot of time pulling other people out that way though. haha He swears by the Duratracs and will likely get a set for whatever his next truck is. I've considered them, but I just do too much highway driving and not enough serious off-roading to warrant them.

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