285 Dedicated Winter Tire?

M

moorei2

Member
I have dedicated winter tires (Nokian) in stock size in my 4Runner that I usually run in cold weather. I have recently done a 2/1 lift with KO2 in 285/70/17 and wanted a 33 in winter tire to go with lift.

I know I can run the KO2 in winter as they are snowflake rated, however was wondering if guys know of a dedicated 285 winter tire that isn’t a LT tire for our trucks? I could run my 265 winter tire but trying to avoid that (mostly for looks).
 
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Personally I would stay with the KO2 which is an excellent winter tire for most conditions. The only advantage a dedicated winter tire has over the KO2 would be on slick ice, for the dedicated winter tire has a soft rubber compound and many more sipes; the result is very quick wear. If you sill want a dedicated winter tire, you might look into the Bridgestone Blizzak.
 
There are a lot more options if you are wiling to change wheel size to 18 or 20" wheels.

For example a 275/60/20 is 33" tall and comes in almost every brand and tire tread you can think of including all of the typical winter tires. This is the size I use for my street tires and keep my 17" wheels for my offroad tire set. Bonus - 275/60/20 is the stock size on many or most half ton trucks now, so the tires are super cheap too!
 
fkheath said:
Personally I would stay with the KO2 which is an excellent winter tire for most conditions. The only advantage a dedicated winter tire has over the KO2 would be on slick ice, for the dedicated winter tire has a soft rubber compound and many more sipes; the result is very quick wear. If you sill want a dedicated winter tire, you might look into the Bridgestone Blizzak.
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Thanks. I think this is route I am going to take based on the research and responses so far. I guess I will have some wheels to sell lol
 
I ran Hankook iPike 235/85/16's on my Frontier for 3 winters and they were unstoppable. They make a 235/80/17 version. Not as cool looking as a 285 or even 265, but if your goal is winter traction, it works. FWIW, we have heavy, wet icy conditions here in SE Michigan, but I did get to try them in light fresh 1'+ powdery snow a few times in northern MI and they were great then as well.
 
If you're stuck on 285's, look at the Cooper AT3 4S and AT3 LT, or the Firestone X/T. I'm leaving out Falken AT3 due to my personal issues with not getting them to balance.
 
I run the Nokiaan Rotiiva 285s which are 3MP rated for winter. Haven't /driven/ them in the winter yet so I can't say if they're any good.

But they ride good and quiet in the summer/fall :D
 
pDubs said:
Why do you think this? This isn't true.
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When the snow is too deep to reach traction below - floatation is the name of the name of the game. The wider and taller you can fit the better.

For shallow snow and/or ice, narrower tires sometimes work better.

Lots of snow and ice conditions exist. Generally everywhere in the world with deep snow the consensus is always tall and wide tires work best.
 
Wildpeak AT3W has been great in every condition. Kind of blows my mind how good those tires were. Going back to them in a few months after my Duelers die.
 
Why don't you want to run an LT?

We're in Edmonton, Alberta and our roads can be ice and snow covered for 7 months of the year. I put studded lt275/70/17 Duratracs on my wife's tacoma and lt285/70/17 on my 4r and I've never looked back. They're still amazing even 5 years on after the stud points have been mostly ground off
 
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