Hey guys,

I've got a 2018 XL 6.2 4x4 with Bilstein shocks and snow plow springs up front. Currently I have a set of 315/70-17 Grabber ATX tires on 17" zero offset wheels. I kept my OEM 17" steel wheels as well, so I have two wheel options.

I'm looking to get a new set of tires and I'd like to know what my options are (sizes and tire models). I've been looking around online, comparing tire sizes, etc. and I was hoping someone can share their experience/setup.

Ideally I'd like a narrower tire to increase fuel economy and get some power back; I'm not a fan of how sluggish the truck feels, especially towing. As far as diameter I'd prefer either the same or slightly bigger. I assume the width is the limiting factor as far as rubbing. The truck does not have mudflaps, nor does it have the front air diffuser thing, whatever that's called. I took that off very early on because it kept scraping when I'd go off-road.

I'm thinking about going with the Toyo Open Country in 35x11.5. I would assume that while these are 0.6" bigger, the fact that they are almost a full inch narrower will increase fuel economy or at least not be any worse than it already is. Any chance of these fitting without a lift? Stock rims or the zero offsets?

Any other input is more than welcome. Thanks!

 

Its probably the height thats hurting as well.

Maybe try the 285/75 or 295/70 sizes in a tamer tread and lighter weight.

I think the copper at3 in 285/75/17 is what will do best. Lightest, not much shorter, not too aggressive tread.

Good luck.

 

You don't like your current sluggishness, but want the same or larger tire?

 

Thanks for the recommendation. I hadn't considered the Coopers. Do you have any personal experience with those? I like the off-road traction of my Grabbers, but perhaps a less aggressive tread would be better for the style of driving I do currently. I don't do as much off-road driving as I used to, but I still do on occasion and I'd prefer not to be limited by my tire choice.

Another thought, I think just dropping some width even with the same overall diameter would help quite a bit. Less weight, less rolling resistance, etc..

 

Goodyear Duratracs they have a high load index and last 50k+ miles. I've had 285s on my OBS for the last 30k miles and they are at least half tread towing a lot of those miles. Not really any highway noise.

 

Thanks! Are those 285/75-17s? Nice looking truck!

What's that doodad with the eyelet for? Securing a load of some kind? Mud flap hanger?

 

Kind of depends on what you call "off road". Mud, sand, rock climbing.

I've found driver skill has more to do with my off-road experience than what kind of tires I have.

I've also found that 99% of the time, my truck is ON pavement, so I need to cater to that use case, and not expect an 8,500 pound truck built for towing is going to be very good off-road with ANY meat under it.

So I say that to say (1) define your expectations properly of what you think you should really expect from a SuperDuty off road and (2) cater to the greatest use case for the truck and dont buy aggressive tires for the 1% of the use case time at the expense of the 99%.

Of course there are 1 million brodozer drivers in the US right now that would disagree with me.

 

The duratracs on my truck have 40k on them now, they definitely howl at some highway speeds, you are almost there...lol Still one of my favorite tires for this truck, I will probably replace them with the same this fall.

 

I got upset at Goodyear back 12 years ago or so. I several tires develop bulges in the sidewall. They claimed road hazard and would not replace. But it happened on several tires in the same place on the tire. So it wasn't a road hazard. Then they claimed I was overloading the truck with my GN horse trailer. But it's the same trailer I've pulled for years with no problems with other brands of tires. 6-7 months after I replaced they came out with a recall, But wouldn't reimburse me any because I didn't have the S/N off the tires. So no more Goodyear for me.

I've had good luck with the Coopers tires I've had over the years. But now Cooper is owned by Goodyear. Hmmmm.

I just bought some Micky Thompson Baja AT tires. They are made by Cooper. Hmmm, sounds like I contributing to Goodyears bottom line no matter how I like it.
I bought the MT Baja AT tires because they were Three Peak winter rated. had a 50,000 mile tread warranty, had a good looking tread pattern and mostly because they were Buy 3 and get 4 tires on sale. I get them installed on Wednesday, We'll see if I still like them next week.

 

That eyelet and bar were a part of the camper tie-down system. I removed it because I bought a camper shell for it 2 years ago that has been on it ever since.
I have 285s on a 16" rim but it is a 33" in English. 126 load index.