Is there a magic snow A/T tire out there?

[socalkid]

it's been over 15 years but when I had my 98' Taco I spent a year in Lake Tahoe (including a winter working at Alpine Meadows) and ran Bridgestone Dueler A/Ts (not the Revos) and they we're more than up for the task. it's been 10 years since I last owned a truck but I remember those Duelers wore like steel, when the tires on my new to me Runner need replacing, I'll throwing on those Deulers.

https://www.bridgestonetire.com/tire/dueler-at-rh-s

 

[nobb]

Wow, the ever-rare A/TW! I checked local tire stores and "they can get them" but have no one asking or buying them. Not exactly new tires, they've been out there a couple years.

What part of the country might you live? And what did you think of compact snow or ice? ((1) Somewhat controllable. (2) Not-so controllable. Or (3) crazy out-of-control!

I'm in Canada and got the A/TW near end of the season for a really good price. Packed snow is still surprisingly good and controllable. The Duratracs were good when brand new but after a season or two their performance suffers noticeably in any condition other than snow (of which their large blocks are good at). Ice of course gets tricky, even with a proper winter tire and the only way around that is studs.

 

[FlipStyle54]

If you don't need an AT tread, The Michelin LTX M/S is a great Street/Snow tire. It's tread design will fill up with mud easily but that same design will bite in snow.

 

[Cree]

Hankook Dynapro ATM. Severe duty rated. I've had fantastic luck with them.

 

[Black798]

I also strongly recommend the Falken Wildpeak AT3W. Ive had mine on for roughly 15,000 miles and they have never let me down. I mainly run them as summer tires but used them for a few months last winter and was never disappointing. They grip much better than I would expecting snow and ice. Before I put the Wildpeaks on I had my Blizzak winter tires on and only noticed any significant change in traction on shear ice where the blizzaks blew doors off the wildpeaks but I think that they would do that to any AT tire because they are specifically designed for ice. Otherwise the Wildpeaks work amazing on all terrains and I have no complaints.

 

[sportscarfan]

I have Goodyear Duratracs and I can say they are really good in the snow. A few years ago when they were fairly new, I was coming home from a winter backpacking trip in Utah and when I got to Vail, CO I hit a blizzard that I had to drive through almost all the way to Denver. Many vehicles did not make it up Vail pass. By the time I got to the Eisenhower Tunnel there were very few vehicles going in either direction. Of those that were left, I was the fastest thing on the road and despite terrible visiblity due to blowing snow, at no point was I worried about traction.
I'd buy them again.

 

[Scramble]

Since you dont need a LT tire... Best tires I ever owned were Pirelli Scorpion AT's. Absolutely amazing in all conditions & I got 72k out of them. Rain, snow & sand at the beach. Great at taking corners fast too. Italian sports car heritage. I agree with the above poster about the BS Dueler. I had the original Revo 1. Not as good as the Pirelli but close.

 

[UnderFire]

I really like the bfg at ko in snow, amazing control. I went through a pretty decent amount of snow last winter in the runner without 4wd, even messed around a bit and never felt out of control. The duratracs on my dad's tacoma didn't seem to do quite as well, decent but not great.

Sent from my Z958 using Tapatalk

 

[White_Knuckles]

Interesting responses you all have provided. Great info and experiences. The focus was on winter (useful) performance where you could run them a bit in the hot season as well. Thus the "magic" tire.

Still pursuing the elusive beasts and but a new flavor popped up. The Les Schwaby "Back Country A/T". Cooper/Dean made. The hype states snow and severe weather rated but of course not a "true" winter tire. Anybody heard of these? Intraweb doesn't get any hits of value, thinking they're a newer tire and not well reviewed yet?

 

[absalom]

Snow tires are fantastic off-road. Stupid soft compound, and decent tread make obstacles a breeze. If I'm doing a combo of snow and off-road driving, I'll take snow tires all day long. A/T's just don't compare in wet and icy conditions.

 

[3bears]

I really like my ko'2s for most of the year
however I do live and work in the snow and Oregon's famous black ice, and steep hills, so I switch to studded snow tires when the snow hits.
I also do a lot of driving on forest service roads, my driving is prob 60/40 pavement gravel.
I went with wintercat sst. reason being, three years back a guy was selling a used set mounted on 3rd gen 4runner rims. he said that he plays in the snow on mt hood since he could walk, and the wintercats never let him down. He was selling because he bought a 5th gen and could not use him on that rig, and bought wintercatts for his 5th gen.
I put two winters on them till the studs were gone, and replaced them last year with new ones, the same. he had two seasons on them
Ill see how much more snow I can get into this year as next week we are installing an elocker.

however, I don't think one could find a magic tire that does it all,

 

[JohnOfTheJungle]

I put Falken Wildpeak AT3W (265/75 r16) on mine a few months ago, picked up 4 on eBay for $550 shipped.

It is winter rated so I'm confident it'll do well this winter in the snow, the tread is aggressive and I'm sure will tackle any terrain I need it to. It also does very well on the road, I haven't had any issues in the rain, and it cruises well on the highway, so to me this tire is a great choice.

 

[Amonk1]

I have been very happy with my set of Kumho AT51s. They are cheap, 10-ply, aggressive looking, and also snow-rated. I've never gotten stuck with them offroad or in the deep snow we get at the ski resorts here. No highway howl from them that I've noticed. I've only got 5k on mine so I can't comment on wear, though so far I would definitely buy them again.

 

[fblainen11]

Khumho is a South Korean tire. I'm a bit iffy about them as they are a bit new if I recall correctly. I think they're owned and operated by Hyundai.

Haven't heard much about them.

 

[White_Knuckles]

OP Closes the Case

Snow tires are fantastic off-road. Stupid soft compound, and decent tread make obstacles a breeze. If I'm doing a combo of snow and off-road driving, I'll take snow tires all day long. A/T's just don't compare in wet and icy conditions.

The statement above rings of absolute truth. Another quote from Absalom reads, "I can confidently say I would much rather go off-roading with winter tires, than snow/ice driving with A/T tires." Agreed, a magic tread design and compound is not to be had quite yet. They're getting close though!

I'm certain many of the recommended A/T's would have served me well as a hybrid snow/ice tire. I welcome some fun power sliding with a tad under-steer mastering rear-wheel drifting techniques but my wife? Not so much.

I landed on Coopers Discoverer M+S. The point of this 4wd beast was winter traction when my wife's mini-copper is grounded due to 5" clearance issue. I'm thinking the uber-siped and squishy Coops will be the ticket. I'll continue running them year around but they'll only see 1K summer use so basically, burn 'em up.

Very interesting input from all. Perhaps this thread will help others with so much good tire information. Thanks all.

 

[zoombyu86]

Wild Country XTX have been amazing to me!!!! I have used them in snow with my 2000 Limited with AWD and they are phenomenal. They are extremely cheap. They are quiet on road and balance well. My friend who owns a local tireman suggested them or BFG KO2. He said if he didnt get the BFG so cheap since he works there, hed still be running the XTX.