Nitto Terra Grappler G2 LT265/70R17 – a review in real time

[Hawaiian4runner]

I also don't know where this "KO2s are terrible in the rain" comes from. I've had 265 Cs, 275 Es, and now I have 285 Cs and love them (18k miles of driving). Yes, if I take a corner fast in the rain in 2WD I can get the back to slip just a tiny bit. Hardly a "scary" thing as it'll happen even in a FWD car.

In addition to that, they're great off-road and even better in snow/sleet/icy conditions.

Had 285 Es. I think they were KOs not KO2s but I'm not certain. Rubber turned hard as rock at about 32,000 miles. No scary moments on turns but accelerating from a dead stop, very slight incline with even the slightest moisture on the pavement usually resulted in wheel spin. Pretty embarrassing when your beefy looking off road ride cannot handle pavement that any car can. And they hummed like a bastard on dry pavement.

They also suck in sticky mud but that's not what they are intended for anyway. Treads fill up instantly and you get zero traction.

 

[2flyfishin]

About half the tread depth.
They go from fine to oh shit.

No middle ground.
I've run them on my work truck.

They still look great, but after nearly spinning out at low speed on a couple off ramps I went to a different tire.

I had this problem with the original KO’s. It was so bad that I never considered KO2’s. With the KO’s I had instances in the rain where I was really bad trouble just getting started from a stop at a light. The irony was they were still great in the snow. I’ve had a couple of friends who got the KO2’s and loved them in the beginning and later on started having the same problem. From what I heard, the Jeep is going to have KO’s, not KO2’s.

 

[WVhillbilly]

I like these.

Awesome in snow, great in mud, no issues in rain.

They are a little noisy, but the only time I needed 4WD this winter the snow was deep. As in pulled the air dam loose from the front bumper deep.

These are on my work truck, and at times I have to take it stupid places.

 

[1996_Valencia_Owen]

Are either the coopers or nittos mountain snowflake?

Makes a huge diff as the cops don't make you bring or show chains if your tires are snowflake rated.

 

[4runnerpeaceofmnd]

Are either the coopers or nittos mountain snowflake?

Makes a huge diff as the cops don't make you bring or show chains if your tires are snowflake rated.

If you are looking for an AT tire with mountain snowflake on them look at the Hankook Dynapro ATm. I have been very happy with them in all different weather conditions, from weekend getaways to Vermont in snow, sleet, rain, to beautiful sunny weather, never had any issues with the tire.

 

[sbronemann]

I have the P rated TerraGrappler G2's on our 4Runner. Currently at 31k and still wearing great. Expect to get another 20k out of them before they need changed. Don't have a depth guage but been very happy with them. Was so happy with them that I put a set of LT285/65/R18's on my F-150. Absolutely love them so far after about 1500 miles only. Amazing what just tires can do for a vehicle. The stockers are JUNK. And a bonus....the LT's are made in the USA, but the ones on the 4Runner are made in Japan. But made me very happy they are made right here in the USA! Woot woot

 

[mf2kta]

To 2012sr5, I completely disagree with a lot of what you said. I had Terra Grapplers on a 2006 4R and they were great. Based on your review and some others, I bought the 10ply G2's for my 2018. As soon as I left the tire place I noticed a huge difference. They are heavy! I had to apply more accelerator all the time. And they are LOUD!! They howl on the freeway, especially over 65mph. I do go off road and I do pull a small travel trailer. I figured I could benefit from the 10 ply. I don't think it was worth the trade off.

I just switched out to the 4 ply's. Luckily Discount Tire has a very generous return policy. As soon as I left the parking lot from Discount, I noticed a huge difference. Less gas pedal was needed and much quieter on the freeway.

The shoulder of the 10 ply is much more aggressive. I think a lot of the noise is coming from that (just my UN-educated guess). I have no doubt the 10 ply is more durable and will hold up better to extreme conditions. For me the trade off wasn't worth it.

I'm not posting this to argue with you, but just to inform others that the difference between the 10 ply tire and factory tires is HUGE in my opinion. Even the guy at Discount said it was "dumb" for me to get an LT tire on a 4runner. At this point, I would agree. Again, just my .02

 

[2012sr5]

To 2012sr5, I completely disagree with a lot of what you said. I had Terra Grapplers on a 2006 4R and they were great. Based on your review and some others, I bought the 10ply G2's for my 2018. As soon as I left the tire place I noticed a huge difference. They are heavy! I had to apply more accelerator all the time. And they are LOUD!! They howl on the freeway, especially over 65mph. I do go off road and I do pull a small travel trailer. I figured I could benefit from the 10 ply. I don't think it was worth the trade off.

I just switched out to the 4 ply's. Luckily Discount Tire has a very generous return policy. As soon as I left the parking lot from Discount, I noticed a huge difference. Less gas pedal was needed and much quieter on the freeway.

The shoulder of the 10 ply is much more aggressive. I think a lot of the noise is coming from that (just my UN-educated guess). I have no doubt the 10 ply is more durable and will hold up better to extreme conditions. For me the trade off wasn't worth it.

I'm not posting this to argue with you, but just to inform others that the difference between the 10 ply tire and factory tires is HUGE in my opinion.

What size? Again, in 265/70R17, the LT G2s are 45 lbs, the P-rated G2s are 40 lbs, and the Dueler is 41 lbs (per Nitto's and Bridgetone's websites). My truck accelerates the same with the Duelers and the G2s. 4 extra pounds of rotational weight on each corner is like having what, a hundred pounds or less extra in the truck? Do you notice a difference when you have a 10-year-old in the truck with you?

I remember they mounted and balanced mine really quickly. I had driven 10 miles to the shop and waited for barely an hour for mine to be installed. I noticed no loss of acceleration, no sluggishness, but a more planted feel and less leaning in turns. I'm about 15k+ miles in, and while I can hear them on the highway if the radio isn't on, they're still really quiet, and I get no shuddering or wandering at speeds up to 80mph.

Even the guy at Discount said it was "dumb" for me to get an LT tire on a 4runner. At this point, I would agree. Again, just my .02

For how I use my 4R (mostly on pavement, but regular off-roading in and out of water with LOTS of rocks), it made sense to me, especially seeing how poorly the 4-ply G2s fare off-road (check out this guy).

And if these last 50k, I'll be thrilled to put another set on my 4R.

 

[KP Texan]

If you are looking for an AT tire with mountain snowflake on them look at the Hankook Dynapro ATm. I have been very happy with them in all different weather conditions, from weekend getaways to Vermont in snow, sleet, rain, to beautiful sunny weather, never had any issues with the tire.

I concur with this.

After reading through countless threads on AT tires and considering options from BFG A/T KO2s to Falken Wildpeaks, I finally decided on the Dynapro ATm. This is the third set I've owned (first on a 2006 Tundra and second on a 2013 F-150), and I have no complaints about the way they've performed for me. Additionally, Consumer reports gave them a top rating for A/Ts, and they are also used as OEM on many vehicles, including on some F-150s. Not that OEM tire picks are a good testament to tire performance but, ever since the Firestone debacle, I think manufacturers pay pretty close attention to tire quality.

Being that I spend 95% of my time on the road, noise, handling characteristics, acceleration/braking, and fuel efficiency are top priorities for me. They weigh 39 lbs per tire in the stock size P-rating, and I noticed no fuel mileage hit after I changed over. I've had them about 2000 miles now in various road conditions, and much prefer them over the stock Duelers.

All of that being said, I'll certainly post an update if I have any issues.

 

[encitrdpro]

Weight of 10 ply tire

FWIW, I looked up the weight of the 10 ply tire on Nitto’s site, and it says they are 45 lbs. My local dealer said his computer shows them as being 50 lbs, which would decrease acceleration. Its hard to imagine they can go from a 4 ply to 10 ply tire and only add 5 lbs of weight. Just my $.02.

 

[bigbadpoppa]

damn, didn't know the KO2's were so poor after awhile in the rain. Thankfully I didn't buy any tires yet.

Are these NITTO tires better in the rain than the stock duelers?
Anyone fit these in the 275/70/17 on their stock suspension? On Nitto website they don't have 275's listed in the G2?!
Any rub when locked?


I'm actually quite surprised on the duelers on how acceptable they are in the rain. As for road noise, on hwy I still find them very loud, not sure if it's the tires or just the overall wind / hwy speeds.

It's rains and snows a lot where I live, so I need some solid tires that can handle this with the odd weekend rush into some bush trails.

 

[2012sr5]

FWIW, I looked up the weight of the 10 ply tire on Nitto’s site, and it says they are 45 lbs. My local dealer said his computer shows them as being 50 lbs, which would decrease acceleration. Its hard to imagine they can go from a 4 ply to 10 ply tire and only add 5 lbs of weight. Just my $.02.

I asked the guy who did my install at NTB what weight he had for my LT265/70R17 G2, and he said 50 lbs. I said, ha, I knew they couldn't be 45 lbs with an E load rating! He said, no, if Nitto says they're 45 lbs, then they're 45 lbs. He said the weight NTB has on their shipping label is a shipping/freight weight, and it's almost always a little higher than the manufacturer's spec.

 

[2012sr5]

damn, didn't know the KO2's were so poor after awhile in the rain. Thankfully I didn't buy any tires yet.

Are these NITTO tires better in the rain than the stock duelers?
Anyone fit these in the 275/70/17 on their stock suspension? On Nitto website they don't have 275's listed in the G2?!
Any rub when locked?


I'm actually quite surprised on the duelers on how acceptable they are in the rain. As for road noise, on hwy I still find them very loud, not sure if it's the tires or just the overall wind / hwy speeds.

It's rains and snows a lot where I live, so I need some solid tires that can handle this with the odd weekend rush into some bush trails.

We've had one of the wettest years on record as far as rainfall in middle TN, and these G2s have performed really well. We don't get much snow, maybe one snowfall a year that sticks if we're lucky, so I can't really tell you how well they'd do in regular, heavy snow. If you get a lot of snow, maybe a snowflake tire like the Hankook mentioned on page 2 here would be better for you.

 

[bigbadpoppa]

Oh darn. No snowflake symbol on these? Thats a deal breaker for me then. Our hwys require them and they have inspectors checking.

 

[TallyTrailRunner]

265/70/17 g2

Just got mine installed today 265/70/17 G2.
Really like the way they ride, incredibly happy with them.
Very slight noise, more sure footed than stock tires.

 

[mudmancrash]

Oh darn. No snowflake symbol on these? Thats a deal breaker for me then. Our hwys require them and they have inspectors checking.

I just checked both my G2’s (285/70/17) and my original Terra Grapplers (265/70/17). Neither has the snowflake. Both are technically passenger/light truck tires and relatively lightweight. Perhaps the heavier E version of the 285’s has the snowflake.

I will say these tires are very good all around tires, and pretty darn good in the rain and the snow. Good mileage. Quiet compared to the rest.

May be worth noting that some states make exceptions on the snowflake for 4WD vehicles with M+S. Too bad yours doesn’t.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[2012sr5]

Checkin in...

23k miles in. They're maybe slightly louder on the highway, but they still feel and perform great. :music:

 

[2012sr5]

Hit 25k on these tires this week!

I wish I had something new to report on the tires, but it's really just more of the same: quiet on the pavement, great offroad.

I replaced my stock SR5 wheels with some SCS F5s in 17x8.5 and had these G2s mounted up. I lost about 7lbs on each corner, and given that these tires are only 4lbs heavier than the Duelers I had before, my tire/wheel combo is 3lbs less per corner than stock, and that's with 10-ply LT tires. Exciting! :cowboy:

 

[Hadelson]

I have a set of KO2's stock size C Rating on 17 TRDP. Up to 20K, great Snow traction and no issues on wet surfaces. Very picky about maintaining alignment and Balance and set pressure at 36PSI. Now have 22K on them. At 20K …… literally wet traction went down the tubes. I do not have a heavy foot. Any water on the road when you start and breaks tractions. No lost traction on turns, but I've backed way off throttle when its raining or wet.


I won't be purchasing KO2's again

 

[Bullitt44]

Thank you everyone for the responses!!!