Tires P-rated vs LT vs P-XL?

[-JD-]

Been looking at a new set of Toyo open country AT 2 to go on my stock 20” wheels.

The size I’m looking for 275/55r20 is only available in a P rating.

However they also make it in an XL version in that size. However it does not come with the mountain snowflake rating that the non XL version does.

Anyone know what the XL rating means for the construction of the tire? Any improvements to the sidewall or tread puncture resistance? Toyo refers to it as extra load but not sure what that means and there’s not a lot of info on their website.

They also make it in an LT 265/60r20 which is slightly narrower and a bit bigger in diameter. Might rub a bit as the smaller size rubbed slightly but probably livable.

Having trouble deciding which to go with so if anyone with experience with these tires has any input I’d appreciate it. I do off road. Nothing too aggressive but more than just fsr. However it’s few and far between four serious off roading these days. I like the idea of better fuel economy from a p rated but worry about blowing a tire as I never have with an LT.

 

[MrGainzz]

All trd pros come with P rated all terrain tires(Nitto Terra grappler) and it seems to do well in this video.
YouTube



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[-JD-]

All trd pros come with P rated all terrain tires(Nitto Terra grappler) and it seems to do well in this video.
YouTube



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Good to know. Do the trd pro guys have any issues with sidewall strength?

 

[Ctrulock]

I just bought some E load tires falken wildpeaks 265 70 17 (stock size) also got an alignment after. I guess I got lucky on the people who balanced them because no shimmy or shake at all at any speed. I have 42 psi in fronts and 40 psi in rear the ride is perfectly fine not harsh at all. I don't have KDSS.

 

[thatoneguy]

You may find this thread of owners offroading their 5th gens on P-metric tires valuable. I did. If You Off-road Your 5th Gen with P-metric Tires Please Vote

I have decided for my medium duty offroading that I am not afraid of P-metric tires, and am buying P265/70R17 Wildpeaks next month.

If you're extremely concerned about your sidewalls offroading, you could consider getting rid of your 20" wheels to start, those shorter sidewalls aren't helping in the durability department.

 

[Bmnorm2]

Been looking at a new set of Toyo open country AT 2 to go on my stock 20” wheels.

The size I’m looking for 275/55r20 is only available in a P rating.

However they also make it in an XL version in that size. However it does not come with the mountain snowflake rating that the non XL version does.

Anyone know what the XL rating means for the construction of the tire? Any improvements to the sidewall or tread puncture resistance? Toyo refers to it as extra load but not sure what that means and there’s not a lot of info on their website.

They also make it in an LT 265/60r20 which is slightly narrower and a bit bigger in diameter. Might rub a bit as the smaller size rubbed slightly but probably livable.

Having trouble deciding which to go with so if anyone with experience with these tires has any input I’d appreciate it. I do off road. Nothing too aggressive but more than just fsr. However it’s few and far between four serious off roading these days. I like the idea of better fuel economy from a p rated but worry about blowing a tire as I never have with an LT.

For your question: Ctrl-click Discount Tire | Tires and Wheels for Sale | Online & In-Person

Tire basics here: Ctrl click Discount Tire | Tires and Wheels for Sale | Online & In-Person

 

[<<<<]

P rated, it is a passenger vehicle after all. LT only if you want more unsprang weight and pay more money.

 

[hoppyjr]

That’s missing some context ^

If you’re sticking to highways and well maintained dirt/gravel roads, P-Metric tires will be just fine.

If you’re venturing off-road or desire stronger sidewalls for added puncture protection, then look at LT’s.

I chose BFG K02’s on several truck based vehicles, like the 4Runner, Jeep JK, etc.

I’ve had great luck with Yokohama Geolander G015 and Falken Wildpeak tires on Subarus and other car based SUV’s.

 

[thatoneguy]

That’s missing some context ^

If you’re sticking to highways and well maintained dirt/gravel roads, P-Metric tires will be just fine.

If you’re venturing off-road or desire stronger sidewalls for added puncture protection, then look at LT’s.

Your post is just as lacking in context.

Again, I've posted a link to that long running thread here of owners offroading, often very heavily, on P-metric tires (usually A/Ts and M/Ts).

10% of respondents in that thread that have offroaded their 4Runners on P-metrics had tire failures at some point. 90% did not.

Whether to go with LT's offroading in one's relatively lightweight 4Runner is a personal call. It is by no means required, and it is far from a guarantee that you will just pop a good P-metric A/T or M/T offroading. A guy on that thread had done 5,000 heavy offroading miles on his P-metrics, nothing but smiles. Perhaps the most important question discussed in that thread was how many situations really exist offroad where a P-metric would pop.... where the same tire in an LT would not. Like others, I would estimate those situations do exist, but are few and far between.

Companies like Falken have explicitly stated that the puncture protection of their P-metric Wildpeak is EQUAL to that of the LT Wildpeak--the LTs are for heavy high load vehicles, not for extra pointy rock protection. Good enough for me, I'm willing to believe what the manufacturer says.

 

[hoppyjr]

Your post is just as lacking in context.

Again, I've posted a link to that long running thread here of owners offroading, often very heavily, on P-metric tires (usually A/Ts and M/Ts).

10% of respondents in that thread that have offroaded their 4Runners on P-metrics had tire failures at some point. 90% did not.

Whether to go with LT's offroading in one's relatively lightweight 4Runner is a personal call. It is by no means required, and it is far from a guarantee that you will just pop a good P-metric A/T or M/T offroading. A guy on that thread had done 5,000 heavy offroading miles on his P-metrics, nothing but smiles. Perhaps the most important question discussed in that thread was how many situations really exist offroad where a P-metric would pop.... where the same tire in an LT would not. Like others, I would estimate those situations do exist, but are few and far between.

Companies like Falken have explicitly stated that the puncture protection of their P-metric Wildpeak is EQUAL to that of the LT Wildpeak--the LTs are for heavy high load vehicles, not for extra pointy rock protection. Good enough for me, I'm willing to believe what the manufacturer says.

Good for you. The internet is full of experts!

 

[<<<<]

It is called an opinion and you are entitled to one also. That is the way Forums work.

 

[hero1234]

Ive never had a problem with p rated tires. Having said that more ply obviously better. But a long nail or long narrow sharp rock is gonna go through 4ply or 10 ply if hit right anyway.

 

[stiles_s]

Hate to open up this can if worms, but the 245s give pretty good rim protection on the 7” 20s. Why not go 245 or 255? I would worry more about peeling the tire off the rim with a super pinched 275 than I would popping a sidewall. Just imho.

Also weight is your enemy. Check out the specs. The 20s are already heavy. The factory 245s are much lighter than the factory 17” tires so it almost evens out. But xl rating and especially LT in 275 is going to turn them into boat anchors.


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[-JD-]

To update this thread. I went with the P rated Toyo Open country AT2 in a 275. I ran them for several years. One of the longest wearing A/T tires I've ran in terms of mileage. No sidewall or puncture issues. I just recently replaced with with the new Open Country A/T3 which I find slightly better all around and I just hope they last as long as the AT2.

 

[thatoneguy]

To update this thread. I went with the P rated Toyo Open country AT2 in a 275. I ran them for several years. One of the longest wearing A/T tires I've ran in terms of mileage. No sidewall or puncture issues. I just recently replaced with with the new Open Country A/T3 which I find slightly better all around and I just hope they last as long as the AT2.

I presume the implication is that your new A/T3's are also P-metric?

I got my P265/70R17 Wildpeaks on a month ago. Took them on a few miles of realllly pointy rocky trails this past weekend, no issues. Not expecting drama in the 50-100 miles of Colorado offroading I'm doing next month.

 

[AZ Craig]

I presume the implication is that your new A/T3's are also P-metric?

I got my P265/70R17 Wildpeaks on a month ago. Took them on a few miles of realllly pointy rocky trails this past weekend, no issues. Not expecting drama in the 50-100 miles of Colorado offroading I'm doing next month.

Honestly, if you only have the truck offroad occasionally, you should be fine, especially with the Falken which is a pretty burly tire even in P-metric. Between my two 4Runners and my previous Jeep, I've run all of these tires::

BFG KM (load C)
Nitto Trail Grappler (load C)
Nitto Exo Grappler (load E)
Falken Wildpeak AT3W (load E)
Nitto Terra Grappler G2 (P-metric)
Yokohama Geolander X-AT (load E)

The only tire I've ever damaged "fatally" on a trail was a BFG KM which got a fatal side wall slice on Black Bear Pass (but luckily just a slow leak).

After close to 100K miles on a combination of load E Geolander X-AT and load E Falken Wildpeaks, I'm honestly ready to go back to a XL or P-metric tire to see if I can save some money on gas (especially with wheeling less often the last few years). One thing I did like on the LTs was that they were generally a little bit bigger (bigger diameter, deeper tread) than the P-metric versions, but the new Mickey Thompson Baja which comes in XL at 265/70R17 is really tempting as it is nearly as large as the LT. Another advantage of P-metric/XL is that the tires are generally $50 to $75 cheaper than the LT version. So you are already ahead $200 to $300 at install.

 

[thatoneguy]

Honestly, if you only have the truck offroad occasionally, you should be fine, especially with the Falken which is a pretty burly tire even in P-metric. Between my two 4Runners and my previous Jeep, I've run all of these tires::

BFG KM (load C)
Nitto Trail Grappler (load C)
Nitto Exo Grappler (load E)
Falken Wildpeak AT3W (load E)
Nitto Terra Grappler G2 (P-metric)
Yokohama Geolander X-AT (load E)

The only tire I've ever damaged "fatally" on a trail was a BFG KM which got a fatal side wall slice on Black Bear Pass (but luckily just a slow leak).

After close to 100K miles on a combination of load E Geolander X-AT and load E Falken Wildpeaks, I'm honestly ready to go back to a XL or P-metric tire to see if I can save some money on gas (especially with wheeling less often the last few years). One thing I did like on the LTs was that they were generally a little bit bigger (bigger diameter, deeper tread) than the P-metric versions, but the new Mickey Thompson Baja which comes in XL at 265/70R17 is really tempting as it is nearly as large as the LT. Another advantage of P-metric/XL is that the tires are generally $50 to $75 cheaper than the LT version. So you are already ahead $200 to $300 at install.

Good points.

When I bought the P265/70R17 Wildpeaks, the same size was also offered in LT265/70R17 load range E. And when Discount Tire installed them... they screwed up, and accidentally put on 4 LT E's and only one P. I had them fix it on the spot. But hey, for several minutes I had to wait and look at my 4Runner, which had an LT E on the front and a P on the rear, which was an easy comparison to see the extra tread depth an LT comes with.

More tread depth is always nice, and it did look better, but I love how these P's drive on road, very refined by 4x4 standards.

 

[Grug556]

I have a few sets of C and E rated, also have P metric. I dunno the Ps are nice and soft and drive well, but I find one area they are not good on is they seem less stable in cross winds than E or C LTs. This is with KING and XREAs suspension. As most know the BUS doesnt like even minor cross winds to much.

 

[CutthroatSlam]

2014 SR5 with Cooper AT3 LTs and over 3 weeks of highway and off-roading to access fishing spots in Montana, I averaged 19.1 mpg over several tanks of gas. So I stand corrected over previous post in other thread that we lost 0.5 mpg with LT tires. There has been no loss in fuel efficiency.

 

[CutthroatSlam]

Honestly, if you only have the truck offroad occasionally, you should be fine, especially with the Falken which is a pretty burly tire even in P-metric. Between my two 4Runners and my previous Jeep, I've run all of these tires::

BFG KM (load C)
Nitto Trail Grappler (load C)
Nitto Exo Grappler (load E)
Falken Wildpeak AT3W (load E)
Nitto Terra Grappler G2 (P-metric)
Yokohama Geolander X-AT (load E)

The only tire I've ever damaged "fatally" on a trail was a BFG KM which got a fatal side wall slice on Black Bear Pass (but luckily just a slow leak).

After close to 100K miles on a combination of load E Geolander X-AT and load E Falken Wildpeaks, I'm honestly ready to go back to a XL or P-metric tire to see if I can save some money on gas (especially with wheeling less often the last few years). One thing I did like on the LTs was that they were generally a little bit bigger (bigger diameter, deeper tread) than the P-metric versions, but the new Mickey Thompson Baja which comes in XL at 265/70R17 is really tempting as it is nearly as large as the LT. Another advantage of P-metric/XL is that the tires are generally $50 to $75 cheaper than the LT version. So you are already ahead $200 to $300 at install.

My experience, the LT tires last longer. Probably get 20% more miles out of them, which alone justifies the increased cost. Then there are all the other benefits including better survivability while off-roading.