Truck tire specs - the finer points

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Ashful said:
Not railroading, I think we were already in the mud. ;-)

And I get what you're saying on the branding. Same as Acura and Honda.

BTW, I was never a Chrysler fan, quite the opposite! My impression of the company for most of my life was that they cut corners and made things cheaply to provide a lot of performance (namely horsepower) in the least expensive package. I think that was probably a fair assessment, at one time. But then when Chevy, GMC, and Ford all discontinued manual transmission in their pickups, Dodge was the only option left for those who wanted a manual trans in a 4x4 v8 pickup! I bought a Ram 1500, very reluctantly, and it ended up being the most reliable vehicle I had ever owned over twelve years. The material quality wasn't fantastic, but that's when I realized weight and material quality doesn't always translate into a reliable design, or vice versa. In the fifteen years since then, I have to admit, I've become more impressed with their higher-end offerings (namely SRT).

I guess you could say I'm an SRT fan, they just happen to come in the shape of Dodge vehicles. ;lol
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Chrysler just now dropped the six speed manual from the Ram 2500/3500. I'm with you and generally steer clear of ChryCo due to materials quality issues. However, I couldn't find any Ford F350 7.3 ext or four door cabs in my area for a decent price, so I went with the Dodge.
 
Ashful said:
Not railroading, I think we were already in the mud. ;-)

And I get what you're saying on the branding. Same as Acura and Honda.

BTW, I was never a Chrysler fan, quite the opposite! My impression of the company for most of my life was that they cut corners and made things cheaply to provide a lot of performance (namely horsepower) in the least expensive package. I think that was probably a fair assessment, at one time. But then when Chevy, GMC, and Ford all discontinued manual transmission in their pickups, Dodge was the only option left for those who wanted a manual trans in a 4x4 v8 pickup! I bought a Ram 1500, very reluctantly, and it ended up being the most reliable vehicle I had ever owned over twelve years. The material quality wasn't fantastic, but that's when I realized weight and material quality doesn't always translate into a reliable design, or vice versa. In the fifteen years since then, I have to admit, I've become more impressed with their higher-end offerings (namely SRT).

I guess you could say I'm an SRT fan, they just happen to come in the shape of Dodge vehicles. ;lol
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My 2004 Ram 1500 4.7 5-speed manual has been horrible. I've put $2000 in parts between 75000-100000 miles, and that's with me doing all the labor and buying genuine mopar parts online versus at the dealer. My 1998 Neon is still kicking no problem. I'm sticking with Honda going forward, have had not a single issue, literally nothing has ever broken.
 
tadmaz said:
My 2004 Ram 1500 4.7 5-speed manual has been horrible. I've put $2000 in parts between 75000-100000 miles, and that's with me doing all the labor and buying genuine mopar parts online versus at the dealer. My 1998 Neon is still kicking no problem. I'm sticking with Honda going forward, have had not a single issue, literally nothing has ever broken.
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Yeah in general I have not had good luck with Chrysler vans or trucks
 
tadmaz said:
My 2004 Ram 1500 4.7 5-speed manual has been horrible. I've put $2000 in parts between 75000-100000 miles, and that's with me doing all the labor and buying genuine mopar parts online versus at the dealer. My 1998 Neon is still kicking no problem. I'm sticking with Honda going forward, have had not a single issue, literally nothing has ever broken.
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I can understand that. In my case, my 2005 Ram 1500 only required one repair in 12 years, and that was self-inflicted damage: a torn rubber boot in a front half shaft CV joint, which occurred off road. We are all going to have different experiences, but my worst vehicle was a Chevy K1500, which required more repairs in five years than any other four vehicles I’ve owned, combined. I’m now on my third Dodge, and still happy with them.

Another factor is mileage. I buy new, and usually sell before I hit 70k miles. I keep multiple cars at any time, and never put much more than 5k per year on any one of them. My experience is that EVERY brand with a transmission and ICE is going to start costing you $$ after 70k, and I’ve developed that theory over the course of owning numerous brands. I just put $7k into my wife’s stupid Volvo this year, because she refuses to let me get rid of it, and it’s over 100k miles. It has been a great car, with zero repairs required, until this year.

And to get back to the subject at hand, a chunk of that was new tires, but I went from Michelin to Hankook on that car, bucking the trend.
 
Ashful said:
I can understand that. In my case, my 2005 Ram 1500 only required one repair in 12 years, and that was self-inflicted damage: a torn rubber boot in a front half shaft CV joint, which occurred off road. We are all going to have different experiences, but my worst vehicle was a Chevy K1500, which required more repairs in five years than any other four vehicles I’ve owned, combined. I’m now on my third Dodge, and still happy with them.

Another factor is mileage. I buy new, and usually sell before I hit 70k miles. I keep multiple cars at any time, and never put much more than 5k per year on any one of them. My experience is that EVERY brand with a transmission and ICE is going to start costing you $$ after 70k, and I’ve developed that theory over the course of owning numerous brands. I just put $7k into my wife’s stupid Volvo this year, because she refuses to let me get rid of it, and it’s over 100k miles. It has been a great car, with zero repairs required, until this year.

And to get back to the subject at hand, a chunk of that was new tires, but I went from Michelin to Hankook on that car, bucking the trend.
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Cars have come a long way. The days of sell at 70k are over.
 
sloeffle said:
You probably should check your facts. The tires were manufactured by Firestone and not Bridgestone.

Good luck in your search for a new set of tires on your truck.

P.S. My dad has forgot more about the tire manufacturing process than you and I will ever know. And I don't appreciate you insulting his knowledge.
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He is kind of right because Bridgstone owns Firestone,Michelin owns Uniroyal,BF BGoodrich,GoodYear owns Dunlop and Continental.And so on and so on.If you dig deeper you will find other major brands will own other minor brands.
Dig deep enough and you may find all tire makers are owned by a food company.
 
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SpaceBus said:
Cars have come a long way. The days of sell at 70k are over.
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Its amazing the deals you can get on cars and trucks a year or 2 old with very low miles. Even brand new trucks that are last model year. My sons friend was waiting for the 2019 silverados to come out (like myself) and when he went to the dealer for one he balked at the $53k sticker price and 775 a month payment. Left with a new 2018 Silverado, essentially the same truck for 31K ,$441 a month ,after incentives. I guess the only way im buying a new 2019 is when the 2020s come out.
 
Seasoned Oak said:
Its amazing the deals you can get on cars and trucks a year or 2 old with very low miles. Even brand new trucks that are last model year. My sons friend was waiting for the 2019 silverados to come out (like myself) and when he went to the dealer for one he balked at the $53k sticker price and 775 a month payment. Left with a new 2018 Silverado, essentially the same truck for 31K ,$441 a month ,after incentives. I guess the only way im buying a new 2019 is when the 2020s come out.
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I rarely buy anything new. My wife bought her car new in 2013 and I bought a new car in 2009, but I don't own it anymore. My truck is an 06 Ram 3500 quad cab 4x4 six speed turbo diesel I got for a steal. I would have loved a new 3500 Dually diesel four door six speed, but I didn't have $60,000+ for a new truck.
 
Bad LP said:
The worst time to be on the logging roads is after they are graded. Raises every single sharp rock to the surface.
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Been there many times. Last fall I had to do about 10 miles laying the first tracks on freshly graded roads. Going slow resulted in no issues.
 
mellow said:
No love for Nitto's? Love my terra grapplers on my f250, plenty of traction in the mud and can take a lot of weight.
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You mean the Ridge Grappler 4-ply? They’re on my list, but not the top choice. I think Nitto makes some great tires, although the reviews for the grapplers aren’t all good, in comparison to some of the other AT types. They do get high marks for being one of the quieter AT tires, though.
 
Ashful said:
You mean the Ridge Grappler 4-ply? They’re on my list, but not the top choice. I think Nitto makes some great tires, although the reviews for the grapplers aren’t all good, in comparison to some of the other AT types. They do get high marks for being one of the quieter AT tires, though.
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Their MT is amazing, but not very long lasting, definitely a soft compound.
 
SpaceBus said:
Their MT is amazing, but not very long lasting, definitely a soft compound.
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I believe you, but this is a highway machine that I need to take off road, not an off road machine that I need to take on the highway. [emoji3]

Right now, I’m leaning most toward the 8 ply LT BFG All Terrain T/A KO2. Heavier than I’d like, but a good choice in so many other regards.
 
Ashful said:
I believe you, but this is a highway machine that I need to take off road, not an off road machine that I need to take on the highway. [emoji3]

Right now, I’m leaning most toward the 8 ply LT BFG All Terrain T/A KO2. Heavier than I’d like, but a good choice in so many other regards.
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Yeah, exactly why I didn't recommend it. I think the BFG will treat you fine. It is a great all purpose tire, hence the popularity.
 
Ashful said:
I believe you, but this is a highway machine that I need to take off road, not an off road machine that I need to take on the highway. [emoji3]

Right now, I’m leaning most toward the 8 ply LT BFG All Terrain T/A KO2. Heavier than I’d like, but a good choice in so many other regards.
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My current tires are General AT2, not happy with them in the snow. My local tire shop talked me out of the Toyo AT II's, too many returns/failures. This winter I'm going with the BFG's. If I had a buck for every truck around here that have BFG's on them, I'd retire.
 
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Personally I prefer offerings from Cooper VS BFG for an LT tire, but you can't go wrong either way.
 
Ashful said:
Discoverer A/T3?
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That is what's on my bronco now and I like them not the greatest in the snow but fairly good. I am probably going with the discoverer sst pro when I up size them. But the at/3s are a good all around tire.
 
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AlbergSteve said:
My current tires are General AT2, not happy with them in the snow. My local tire shop talked me out of the Toyo AT II's, too many returns/failures. This winter I'm going with the BFG's. If I had a buck for every truck around here that have BFG's on them, I'd retire.
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Can't imagine what was wrong with the tires. I've recommended them to many who fell in love with them right after break in. They, like myself keep buying them for a reason.
 
Bad LP said:
Can't imagine what was wrong with the tires. I've recommended them to many who fell in love with them right after break in. They, like myself keep buying them for a reason.
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Which ones? Tons of complaints about the Toyo AT’s, not hard to find. Google is your friend. I loved Toyo’s M410 model, but their AT is apparently not comparing favorably with others on the market.
 
Ashful said:
Discoverer A/T3?
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Those aren't a bad tire, but I like the S/T for a dual purpose tire. It's been a while since I have looked at their lineup, so it might have changed.
 
trivant traction king tires are my favorite LT tire at the moment. Probably not exactly what you are looking for but they work great in the snow and mud and I still have not yet managed to get a flat with them in the bush been stupid. I dont find them loud or a weight issue but then again I drive a crappy old ford 7.3 with a straight pipe so my opinion doesn't really count. I have had the bfg and the generals and liked the generals more mainly due to the fact they cost me less.
 
Ashful said:
Which ones? Tons of complaints about the Toyo AT’s, not hard to find. Google is your friend. I loved Toyo’s M410 model, but their AT is apparently not comparing favorably with others on the market.
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I love my Toyo AT's. If there are that many bad reviews I must have got a great set. They look decent, quiet, great traction, good wearing so far. One thing I've learned about online review searching. There's a lot more people posting issues than are posting positive feedback. I always look at reviews but take them with a grain of salt.
 
Chimney Smoke said:
I love my Toyo AT's. If there are that many bad reviews I must have got a great set. They look decent, quiet, great traction, good wearing so far. One thing I've learned about online review searching. There's a lot more people posting issues than are posting positive feedback. I always look at reviews but take them with a grain of salt.
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This is true, about the reviews. I’ll check them out! I’ve just recently found guys reviewing their own tires on YouTube to be a better source than reviews on tire sites.

I had planned to have this done by now, but some stuff came up at work, and i had to set this aside. I’ll be getting back to it soon.
 
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