265/75/16 duratrac

Any reviews on the C load 265/75/16 Goodyear duratracs? Spefically off-road and sidewall strength

I’m considering them against 255/85/16 copper SST Max which are E load which are 13lbs more per tire than the C rated duratrac

Winter driving conditions in my area include snow and some ice

 

Mine have been great, I do not rock crawl but they have been great in mud and out on the farm.

 

I have E rated Duratracs now. I had D rated Duratracs on my old FJ. The Duratracs work great in the snow. If you drive around in sharp rock, I would get the E’s. These trucks aren’t fast or gas sippers anyway. If you stay away from shale, quartz, lava cinders or such go with the C’s.

 

Yeah I would stick with the duratracs due to weight I have them in my truck and have done great on access roads through power lines and snow ice and rain they handle pretty damn well I don’t even bother throwing it in 4wd unless they’re is significant snow. Some road noise but no more than other agressive a/t tires.

 

If you plan to add weight to the truck in the future go to a higher load rating whatever tire you decide on.

 

I had C-rated Duratracs for about 45,000 miles and took them on some pretty rugged trails around Colorado and Utah. Not "rock crawling" exactly, but some stuff where I needed a spotter to get through a few obstacles. Sidewalls definitely rubbed on some rocks during that time, but I never once got a flat. However, I also never aired them down for a trail. So if you plan on airing down, I can't speak to sidewall strength in that regard.

As far as snow and ice, Duratracs are amazing. And even after 45,000 miles, they still had about 7/32s tread left. The road noise was getting to be WAY too loud for me though, so I traded them in and put the money towards a set of Ultraterrains instead. The UTs don't look quite as aggressive, but they still look pretty aggressive. And so far they perform similarly to the Duratracs but without the road noise. They probably wouldn't perform as well as Duratracs in mud either, but I don't tackle mud very often.

 

I’ve ran both those exact tires plus the Duratrac in a E load in that size. The Max and Duratracs have very similar performance in both dry and wet conditions (the Duratracs might be slightly better in the snow) The Duratracs are a little noisier especially as they wear but it isn’t bad. You will definitely notice the weight of the Coopers. Since there isn’t much of a difference in performance I would stick with the lighter Duratracs. The E rated version is still about 7 pounds lighter than those Coopers. The real benefit of the Coopers would be the added ground clearance but it’s not that much. If you don’t regularly hit some rocky trails go with the C rated Duratracs. If you do hit some rough trails or tow or carry a bunch of weight, I would go with the E rated version. If you plan on regearing and building a overland vehicle, I would choose the Coopers. They are both good and proven tires. Can’t go wrong with either. And both are studdable. Just need to figure out exactly what you plan on doing with your truck.

 

I can speak to winter usage of duratracs...
- good in loose snow
- poor on packed snow
- very poor on ice
- good in slush

 

Other than a dedicated snow tire, have you used other tires that performed better?

 

Hmm...good question...I can't really make a robust comparison for Tacomas I've owned, I've switched between cars and Tacomas and tires a few times over the last decade, but just wasnt happy running the duratracs in the winter. Not from a comparative conclusion however so perhaps I'm not the best source of comparative info lol. Just noticed "ice" on your post which makes me shiver with regards to duratracs

 

Yokohama Geolander GO15 is about as good as it gets in a AT tire. Not quite as aggressive as those other two but about as good as your going to find without getting into a dedicated snow tire. A great all around tire also.

I live in Sunriver Oregon where there is measurable snow on the ground for at least several months of the year and is at the base of Mt Bachelor where we drive in and on snow for close to half the year. I speak from over 30 years in driving in this stuff. Already got snow on the ground (see pic). Make sure you take advise from the pros or from people with experience and no bias. Actually had a guy try telling me last year how good KO2 tires are in the wet and snow. What a joke that was as they are average at best in any wet condition. Do your research and don’t take too much advise from us as too many people give advise on this forum without much experience except with what they own.

 

No AT tire or even all season tire is going to perform great on ice. You will need a dedicated winter tire for that. But the Duratracs are studdable so they can be a solid tire driving on ice also.

 

Limited ice or hard packed snow driving, when I said snow/ice I just meant the day of and the day after snow storms

 

I think the C load is more for jeeps, I would go E.

 

E rated tires are rated for 1 ton diesel trucks that can pull in excess of 14,000lbs, with payload ratings in excess of 3000lbs.

why would a Tacoma need E rated tires? Our trucks max around 1100lbs payload and 6400lbs of towing

 

You must not wheel? The biggest benefit in going with a E rated tire is for the extra sidewall plies. When off roading you run into these things called rocks that can tear your tires up especially when you air down. I’ve torn the sidewalls up on several C tires on my Tacoma (the last being a KO2) but have never torn a sidewall on any of the E tires I’ve ran.

 

Rocks...? Nope sorry never heard of such things!