One set vs two sets : tires and wheels

[SlvrV8Rnnr]

Here's the scenario- I've got sr5 wheels and just got Stealth 6 wheels. What do you do with them? One set year round or summer set and winter set? Only a 12 mile round trip to work and my off-road needs consist of a lot of gravel roads and farm fields/pastures. I have a feeling duratracs are going to mentioned a few times. I've considered running them year round but on the other hand I feel like I should be using the sr5's. Not real concerned about cost. Just want the right setup or setups!

 

[NJshadow93]

Duratracs should suit your on and off road needs just fine. I'd mount them on my nice wheels and sell the SR5 wheels personally. I'm also saying that because I've done that for both of my 4Runners so far.

 

[xxaarraa]

"Summer" and 'Winter" tires are associated with high performance sports cars. Not trucks, especially those that barely make 230 hp. My personal opinion - pick the set of wheels you like and get a good set of all year tires mounted on them and be done with the hassle. YMMV eace:

 

[KidVermicious]

A second set of tires and wheels take up space and are a hassle, so I'd say it depends entirely on your winters. Farms and dirt roads just need a mild AT tire and a little common sense. If that AT will suffice on your winter roads, then there you go. Ditch the rims you don't want and enjoy a simpler life.

Since you mentioned them, Duratracs are a good all-around tire, if a bit on the spendy side. They won't perform on nasty roads the way a dedicated winter tire like a Blizzak will, and they won't perform offroad like a real mud-terrain will, but for mildish winters and mildish offroad they're great.

 

[RunnerAK]

A second set of tires and wheels take up space and are a hassle, so I'd say it depends entirely on your winters. Farms and dirt roads just need a mild AT tire and a little common sense. If that AT will suffice on your winter roads, then there you go. Ditch the rims you don't want and enjoy a simpler life.

Since you mentioned them, Duratracs are a good all-around tire, if a bit on the spendy side. They won't perform on nasty roads the way a dedicated winter tire like a Blizzak will, and they won't perform offroad like a real mud-terrain will, but for mildish winters and mildish offroad they're great.

+1

If your winters are extreme, even trucks benefit greatly form a dedicated set of snow tires.

 

[SlvrV8Rnnr]

I appreciate the responses guys! I was actually pretty set on getting a set of blizzaks for the sr5's but i started second guessing that idea as I don't see them lasting very long with how much gravel I drive on.

 

[Jan777]

sorry

Sorry to be b-a but that's simply wrong: tires have to fit the traction you get on the surface regardless of the type of vehicle, and for a 4WD off road SUV it DOES make a huge difference to have the correct tires for the terrain! Just try to drive in fresh snow with low profile summer tires and you know what I mean!

"Summer" and 'Winter" tires are associated with high performance sports cars. Not trucks, especially those that barely make 230 hp. My personal opinion - pick the set of wheels you like and get a good set of all year tires mounted on them and be done with the hassle. YMMV eace:

 

[MikeInNH]

I run AT tires all year long. During the summer I do some off-roading for some of my remote camping trips. And during the winter the AT tires are excellent for snow. The Cooper AT-3's I've been using are EXCELLENT in snow...very good off-roading..and very good in dry and wet roads. The Cooper Discovery HT tires are better during the summer on dry and wet roads then the AT-3s, but lack the snow and off-road ability.

 

[A10GAC]

I have a summer & a winter set for my car (it's an '05; no TPMS) and even with "Ultra-High Performance" (Tire Rack must make these categories up) all seasons on my summer rims there is a night and day difference between the all seasons and the winter tires.

That being said I run a set of Nokian WR G2 SUVs on the 4Runner. I'm on my second set and have no complaints. The first set balanced out well, were a great year round New England tire, and lasted 49k+ miles. I have about 10k miles on the second set and still have no complaints.

The 4Runner is my wife's daily driver and only sees gravel & dirt roads occasionally, the Nokians are fine for that. I've heard great things & looked at the Cooper AT3 as a possible alternative to the Nokians, but, they looked a bit too off road'ish for the back & forth to work stuff she typically does.

Now, if Toyota offered a summer/winter TPMS switch option for the 4Runner like they have in the Land Cruiser (or if someone here figured out the mod) I would have a second set of wheels & tires for the 4Runner as well.

 

[xxaarraa]

Sorry to be b-a but that's simply wrong: tires have to fit the traction you get on the surface regardless of the type of vehicle, and for a 4WD off road SUV it DOES make a huge difference to have the correct tires for the terrain! Just try to drive in fresh snow with low profile summer tires and you know what I mean!

Dude, I live in New England, which gets some very extreme winters, so we know what we are talking about when it comes to "fresh snow" and winter traction.

Point is this: "ultra high performance / summer" tires aren't as useful in a big heavy truck that makes very modest power. Tires have as much to do with the type of vehicle as they do with the type of surface. My suggestion to the OP was to just get a set of all seasons (plenty to choose from in the AT category) and run them all year, instead of doing the summer/winter swap. This isn't a Ferrari or a Porsche, it's a 4Runner. Peace! layball:

 

[rinkman07]

Once I get my second set of SCS wheels I'm going to hang on to my originals. I'm going to use the original 17'' wheels and tires during the winter because they already have corrosion spots and I don't want all that salt and crap on my good wheels.

Tire wise, I have Nokian's on there now but I'll get something a little more "streetable" (if that makes sense) on my new wheels to hopefully save on gas.

 

[SlvrV8Rnnr]

Once I get my second set of SCS wheels I'm going to hang on to my originals. I'm going to use the original 17'' wheels and tires during the winter because they already have corrosion spots and I don't want all that salt and crap on my good wheels.

Tire wise, I have Nokian's on there now but I'll get something a little more "streetable" (if that makes sense) on my new wheels to hopefully save on gas.

Are you saying you have two sets of SCS wheels? Or are you saying the factory wheels are looking bad?

One of the reasons I'm considering using two sets is to protect the SCS wheels from Iowa winters/salt.

 

[TOPSECRETTUNDRA]

This is the first winter I decided to try to KM2s in the snow. Very sketchy to say the least. I put my snow tires on the next day. I get about 200" of snow per year where I live though.

 

[rinkman07]

Are you saying you have two sets of SCS wheels? Or are you saying the factory wheels are looking bad?

One of the reasons I'm considering using two sets is to protect the SCS wheels from Iowa winters/salt.

No, sorry that was confusing. I have my original factory set and soon I will be picking up a set of SCS wheels. So two sets total. The original factory wheels have lots of bubbling and corrosion already so I'll use those in the winter.

 

[SlvrV8Rnnr]

Well, I've come to some conclusions... Maybe...
Option 1, I'm going to run the Duratracs on the SCS wheels round.

Option 2, I'm going to put KM2's on the SCS wheels for the summer and on the SR5 wheels run a good snow AT tire... Cooper at3, firestone at or michelins.

I've looked and looked at pictures of the SCS wheels and it just doesn't make sense to me to buy a wheel for their looks and put a boring looking tire on it. Option 1 and option 2 both give me what I want on the SCS wheels. As for option 2, since the KM2 isn't great in the winter I'll need to find something different for the snow.

 

[Martinjmpr]

I run 2 sets...

But that's because I sort of "fell" into them.

I was looking to replace my 16" SR5 alloy wheels with some 17" FJC black steelies because I like the way they look, but when I found the steelies, they had BFG MTs already on them. Since MT's aren't that great in snow/ice, and since my factory SR5 wheels had a pretty nice snow tire on them already (Cooper Discoverer M+S) I just run the BFGs after the snow is gone or when I go on my first off-road trip. Last Summer I also kept the MT's on all Summer long even though most of my travel was on-highway. This year I think I'm going to put the Coopers back on after my desert trip in March/April, and will run the smaller, quieter Coopers for Summer as well.

Eventually one or both sets of tires will wear out and when that happens I'll probably just go to AT tires and run them year 'round, most likely on the FJC steel wheels.