I hear bad things about these tires!

[dturner479]

We bought a new Limited a couple of months ago. It came with Bridgestone Dueler H/T 684II tires in size P245/60R20. In reading reviews of these tire it seems that they are crummy at best in the wet and snow. Living in Montana this is not the best setup heading into winter. Has anyone gotten winter experience with this tire?

I sure wish it had come with Michelin's like my TRD Tundra has. I hear nothing but great things about that tire, and they have sure felt good so far.

 

[Jhalko]

They aren't great but I drove two Colorado winters on them so you can make it around fine, you'll just have to lock into H4L more often. Search for the threads on limited tires and wheels, some have gone with an unapproved tire size for michelins without issue and had good results. I went a different route since I do some easy to moderate off-roading, better tires will make a huge difference, with my current setup I rarely have to bother locking the center diff for traction on snow. I'm sure others may have a different opinion...

 

[Ol'Baditude]

Yes, pretty much everyone who's purchased a 4runner in Canada; they're the stock tire.
They're fine in the winter, as long as the person using them knows how to drive in the winter. Like any other non-winter specific tire on the market, a winter tire will out perform it. Not much more to say.

 

[rigtec]

"...it seems that they are crummy at best in the wet and snow."

Hi dturner,

You must first recognize "What this is & Where you are"! This is 'first and foremost' a diy forum! What these hobbyists really enjoy doing most is improving and personalizing our vehicles to be ready for anything that we may encounter e.g., Earthquakes, 'erupting volcanoes', hail-storms, tornadoes, avalanches, Blizzards, meteor showers, quasars, 'Halley's comet', asteroid storms, tidal-waves...etc. lol!

The tires that come stock on our new 4Runners are usually A 'compromise or middle ground' tire. The real high performance tires out there will hug the roads with the agility of a wild 'young cheetah'. The problem is when we're at the pump! The truck weights upwards of 4,800 lbs (2 and a half tons); and with two hundred, seventy ponies under that hood (278 ft-lbs torque) it does consume it's fair share of fuel. So Toyota had to find a way to stay competitive (or in the ballpark) with so many other capable SUV's out there on the roads these days!

By using a stiffer rubber tire, it would be much LESS agile, offer more road mileage and, use less fuel at the gas pump! But most of us need more traction whether on the open road, or off-road; so we usually replace those stock tires ASAP! I removed the stock tires before I hit three thousand original miles. So it's not entirely that the tires suck (all things being equal), tis' just our personal mod objective! I put an ad in the 'classifieds' here on the forum. Someone w/ 50,000 miles on his truck, saw my ad and bought my 'semi-new' (3,000 miles on them) tires! I got $400 dollars for my Yokohama 245/60 R20, bought four GdYr Eagle LS-2's for $760 w/Mnt & bal, received an $80 dollar 'mail-in Rebate' from Good*year and only shelled out $260 bucks for my four new Good*Year Eagles!

Best to you!

 

[LandCruiser]

They are great tires for driving on smooth, dry highways.

They're shit for everything else.

 

[philsey]

If I had a new LE, in Montana, I'd use the oem wheels/tires as 'summer' tires and a winter set of wheels with dedicated snow tires.

Whether the wheels are 17" or 20" is mostly a matter of style/cost - either work - much better cost/selection with 17" tho. Most agree that Bridgestone Blizzaks or Nokian Hakkapeliittas are the best snow tires. Once you run dedicated snow tires in the winter, you'll never be sorry.

 

[444]

they are great tires for the first 20,000 miles. After that they are racing slicks

 

[Ezlife45]

Limited tires

My '14 down here in the South came with Geolanders

 

[whodat]

I grew up in Iowa, so I've had my fair share of snow. Moved down to Fort Worth TX 2-3 years ago. Had a snow/ice storm at that time and schools and business shut down. My workplace said it was optional to come in so I asked if anyone came in, and of course there were a few people who came in. Being from the midwest, I couldn't let some Texans show me up in a snow/ice storm I had stock tires at the time and while driving in 4HI to work, at a very slow speed, I passed a bunch of trucks in the ditches. I did slide at some turns, but I took them too fast for the road conditions at the time. There was a steep hill I was worried about because it's one of those hills that once you reach the apex, you can't really see what's in front of you because it drops right away. Got a good steady controlled speed going and the stock tires did wonderful, no slipping backwards or anything. Another steep hill that I was not too worried about turned out to be backed up with cars struggling to get up top. I hopped the curb and drove on the snow covered grass (approximately 3-4 inches of snow) and passed the line of cars waiting for their turn to attempt the hill.

Now, as others have mentioned, compare snow tires to stock tires, the stock tires will definitely suck. But if you know how to drive in the snow (slow and steady), and know how to avoid other drivers who don't know how to drive in the snow, then eventually you'll get where you will NEED to be. Best advice I got from someone (I think he was a snow plow driver) was don't go out unless you NEED to.

I have GY Duratracs now and currently back in IA, and I can say they are way better than stock tires. But I have noticed I drove more recklessly with Duratracs, almost in a cocky-manner. Normally I would avoid small snow drifts or at least slow down for them. But one time I didn't and the 4R shifted to the left, luckily no one was next to me. Since then I pretend I don't have Duratracs and drive like I have stock tires.

Long story short, even after a snow/ice storm, stock tires got me to my destination by driving in 4HI, and driving slowly and steadily.

 

[grimmjeeper]

I grew up in Iowa, so I've had my fair share of snow. Moved down to Fort Worth TX 2-3 years ago. Had a snow/ice storm at that time and schools and business shut down. My workplace said it was optional to come in so I asked if anyone came in, and of course there were a few people who came in. Being from the midwest, I couldn't let some Texans show me up in a snow/ice storm I had stock tires at the time and while driving in 4HI to work, at a very slow speed, I passed a bunch of trucks in the ditches. I did slide at some turns, but I took them too fast for the road conditions at the time. There was a steep hill I was worried about because it's one of those hills that once you reach the apex, you can't really see what's in front of you because it drops right away. Got a good steady controlled speed going and the stock tires did wonderful, no slipping backwards or anything. Another steep hill that I was not too worried about turned out to be backed up with cars struggling to get up top. I hopped the curb and drove on the snow covered grass (approximately 3-4 inches of snow) and passed the line of cars waiting for their turn to attempt the hill.

Now, as others have mentioned, compare snow tires to stock tires, the stock tires will definitely suck. But if you know how to drive in the snow (slow and steady), and know how to avoid other drivers who don't know how to drive in the snow, then eventually you'll get where you will NEED to be. Best advice I got from someone (I think he was a snow plow driver) was don't go out unless you NEED to.

I have GY Duratracs now and currently back in IA, and I can say they are way better than stock tires. But I have noticed I drove more recklessly with Duratracs, almost in a cocky-manner. Normally I would avoid small snow drifts or at least slow down for them. But one time I didn't and the 4R shifted to the left, luckily no one was next to me. Since then I pretend I don't have Duratracs and drive like I have stock tires.

Long story short, even after a snow/ice storm, stock tires got me to my destination by driving in 4HI, and driving slowly and steadily.

I have a similar tale to tell. I too grew up in Iowa and moved to the Fort Worth area (via California) and found myself back in Iowa (via Austin and OKC). My stock Jeep Cherokee with similar stock tires to every other SUV out there did alright in the snow so long as you knew the limitations of driving on snow. My current Jeep has Duratracs and I find myself out playing in the fresh snow and having a good old time needing only 2wd when I would have needed 4hi with stock tires.

All factory stock tires are a compromise that undemanding drivers will call "adequate". There are much better aftermarket options that most people on enthusiast forums will choose but the stock tires will probably be "good enough" to live with until you get around to swapping them out.