Tires that also work good in snow/ice but are not snow tires

ok, I have been watching video after video or different tires and I want to get some first hand experience on tires for my truck.

First off, I will be running 255/85/16 tires.

Second is my uses.... I dont go off road much, gravel roads, boat ramps, and some very light dirt trails to get to a fishing spot. No rock crawling at all, very little thick mud.
But in the winter time I ice fish, that means I get to drive on lakes. Lakes are great for having big snow drifts, bare ice, and "speed bumps" in the form of ice shelves. In my normal day to day driving it will be dry or wet pavement, I dont go out much if its snowing as I just dont have a reason anymore, but if I am out ice fishing and it starts snowing, I need to be able to make it up a boat ramp.

So I have 4 tires that I am looking at.
BF goodrich KM3
Yokohama geolander m/t g003
Cooper Discoverer st maxx
Falken wildpeak m/t01

discoverer maxx I hear sometimes pull due to the tread design on them
wildpeaks can chunk apart but are $70 each cheaper than the rest of the tires
geolanders and km3 I have not heard of too big of issues.


So, if you were me, what tire would you choose and why?


My truck -
2018 trd offroad long bed
trd pro suspension with 1.5 inch eibach lift (2.5 inches lifted over stock trd offroad)
stock wheels
interior is heavily sound proofed, but tire noise would like to kept at a minimal.

 

The cooper without question, but that said I wouldn't daily any of them in Minnesota during the winter. I've driven on all of those except the Falken, and its basically a controlled slide on ice.

I hate KO2's but would chose them over your choices for ice.

Ideally you should look at 265 75 16 for more choices with 3 peak severe service ratings. Like KO2, Duratrac, Toyo AT3, Falken AT3W etc.

My 2 cents, I'm in Alberta north of you. Never been to your state but I've been in Idaho and Washington.

 

The thing is 90% of my driving is going to be dry pavement. I will be ice fishing 1-2 times a week, and it would be about 1000 feet of snow/ice driving at low speed (under 10mph) windows down seat belts off.
Where I am in MN we usually get 5-6 big blizzards, then the rest of the time its just -8 degrees and windy.

Ill look at some 265/75/16 and see if anything catches my eye.

 

Lived "up north" there for the first 20 years of my life, we didn't ever buy "snow" tires. Oh, they help, but folks will lead you to believe it's the only way to get around.

The big thing is that the tire material stay pliable in cold weather. Look for the snowflake symbol on the side. Aside from that driving slow on the ice can be done with steel wheels, anything you buy that's snow rated will be just fine.

 

Oh I have lived here in MN for 38 years, I've driven fwd, rwd, awd, 4wd, everything in the snow. I can handle any of that. I just want to best tire that will provide good traction in the snow/ice of a lake, but also give me a good ride on road (but also fill out my wheel wells as I am lifted) Most cars I would just throw some all seasons on and drive like normal, but for my tacoma I want it to look good but give me what I need.

 

I'm rolling on KO2's in AK. have used them on a few trucks over the years. They aren't amazing compared to a real snow tire, but they do pretty good.

 

Looking at some more sizes, I kinda like the toyo open country in a 235/85/16. Skinny for the snow, bigger than stock, and I would save nearly $500 over the 255/85/16 options.

 

Add Duratracs to your list.

I run siped duratracs 235/85/16 all year working in the bush. They are very good in snow, siped, they are good on ice but no where near a Blizzak/Michelin X-Ice. Without the additional sipes, they are ok on ice, better than most AT tires.

Today

 

got any pics of your sipe pattern? I have cut a few tires but that was to soften up the lugs for rock crawling not snow.

I have ran duratracs and thought they were good in the snow for the first 10k then they hardened up, just like most tires.

 

The Yoko G003 MT's or the Toyo Open Country AT3's would be my choice. I've heard a lot of positives about the Goodyear Duratracs offroad, but they're noisy. The Toyo AT3's are super quiet. (Probably my favorite tire right now) The G003's have a nice sidewall bite and Yokohama is known for quality.

I've run several sets of the Michelin LTX M/S, but only on road. They're super soft and quiet, but they dry rot too quick.

 

ok, new list of tires.... 235/85/16s

falken wildpeak at3
toyo open country at3
wrangler duratracs

Im diggin the look on the duratracs, they seem to have a good rating and also have more tread depth than the other 2 tires.

 

I'd prefer a wider tire than those 235s. The stock 265 tires already affect the trucks handling negatively imo. But definitely the AT3's or Duratrac's if you want something more aggressive.

My cousin runs the wildpeaks on his f150. He says they're drive almost like a bias ply until they warm up, but I know he bought them because of the price. They used to be cheaper than most others. They're noisy, but nothing like a mud tire. He liked the BFG KO's too.

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/new-toyo-open-country-r-t-trail.780348/

 

Take a look at the Kenda klever RT. Hybrid tire. Cool thing is that they come pre studded for icy conditions which might be nice for you if you’re driving on the frozen lakes often. I did extensive research on these for months before I got them. I’ve yet to see a bad review on them.

 

subbed to see what you end up with

 

Just curious, why not Cooper Discoverer AT3 4s? They are awesome on ice and snow. I live in Michigan and they’ve handled the weather here great. I’ve been through a lot of really deep snow and have yet to struggle. I daily them to work and they handle well and aren’t overly noisy.

 

I'll get a pic later today. I just ask the shop to do it when I buy them. Their machine runs a blade back and forth while the tire rotates. Nothing fussy.

It is my work truck. I swap mine out roughly every two years with still some tread left. I'll look at them in the Fall and see if I can get another winter from them and if not I swap them out. I give a friend a good deal on my old ones and he'll get a summer out of them on his Cherokee.

 

My 265 75 16 Duratracs perform great in the snow and all conditions. They aren’t loud either

 

Im looking at tall skinny tires for the most part as they work better in the snow, but also fill out me wheel wells. My truck looks goofy right now being 2.5 inches lifted with the stock tires.

I looked at those, they look good but I wanted something with a more aggressive tread to get up some of the gravel/dirt boat ramps.

 

I’ve used them on a couple of boat ramps and had no issues with slipping. They are really grippy.