Tire help- Wrangler Duratrac or ???
 

I am needing to replace my tires (Firestone destination 265/75R16) that are worn out at 55K miles. I am looking for a more agressive tread that look good but handle better in the snow and ice. I live in the Northwest so ice is the main concern. My truck is mainly used on highway and towing my 36ft 5th wheel. I occasionaly have to park and tow over grass/dirt/mud (the firestones suck for that).

Has anyone tried this tire out on a diesel crewcab F250 4X4? I hear they tend to be mushy and sway while towing. I don't need that.

Any input would be appriciated. I am thinking about upsizing to 285/75/16. Other suggestions for tires are welcome.

Thanks

what model firestone destinations are u using now. the LE or the AT. i have had the AT and also the MT. i have had great luck with both and they can be studded for ice.

I haven't ran the Firestones but I have Hankook DynaPro AT/M's in 265/75R16E and they are GREAT in the snow. Tons of siping from the factory. You can get them in 285 also, and I would have went that way, but they didn't have the 285s in stock when I was there buying. They look great without being a mud tire, stick very well in all conditions, E load rating, and quiet on the road.

I have the Duratrac's. They are pretty good though I don't drive in snow and ice. Just fields and mud.

I tow a lot, like 4-5000 miles every month. The tires are less stable than others I have used for towing but I don't think you'll ever find the "holy grail" of tires. I can tell you from personal experience that towing your 5er will not be uncomfortable. You may notice a little more movement from wind/passing trucks but certainly not enough to be white knuckled. Maybe a 16" tire will be stiffer than the 18" ones I have?

Only other thing, they do make noise and get a little louder with added weight of cargo or trailer.

I like them, I have not decided if I will get a second set of them or go with something else next time.

How many miles have you got on your Hankooks now? Have you had any ice to try em out on yet? Are there enough miles to notice any wear patterns?

I probably have 8 - 10k on them. They're wearing very well. Ice.... is ice. They didn't seem bad, but honestly I go around it if possible. Compacted snow with an icy surface... *click* 4wd and go. No problems. So in my limited ice-driving experience, they did well. 24" of powder didn't faze the grip at all.... until I hammered it!!! }>

I was never a fan of Goodyear tires but I'm really likeing the design of the Duratrac. My next set of tires will probably be the Duratrac. Should be a pretty smooth tire on the road with the center tread design it has and I like the siping and the open tread blocks. Currently I'm running 285/75R16 D Cooper S/T and I like the tread but it is a little rough and has quite a bit of road noise, plus the overall quality of the Coopers I have now has been poor. The 285s will fit perfect and will grip better in all situations than the stockers. For the diesel I would go with E rated tires though because of the extra weight up front. Another good A/T tire is the BFG A/T KO, performs well all around and is still very quiet.

http://www.tirerack.com/images/tires..._owl_ci2_l.jpg

I finally got rid of the Conti Craps the truck came with and bought 4 General Grabber AT/2's..

I don't have much mileage on them, but so far they have worked great in snow/wet conditions..

I was even able to plow light snow in 2 wheel drive using them.. The Conti's would be sliding all over the place..

My son has a pair on his girlfriends jeep and they have had no problems.. They have had them a couple years..

The other benefit is they are reasonably priced..
The 4 I bought for my F350 CC Diesel cost me $941 installed..

Tire rack has them for $140 per tire..

Also I noticed that the 285/75R16 size is a load range D..

I would stick with the 265/75R16's as they are load range E..

http://www.tirerack.com/images/tires..._at2_ci2_l.jpg

Another Washingtonian! I'm over in Spokane. I just put a set of Bridgestone Fuzion XTI's on my rig in a 325/65/18 size. They've only been on a few weeks but I'm happy with them. I switched from a set of M/T's because I dont do that much offroading and i wanted a tire that would last longer. I'm sure you'll get lots of suggestions but ESPECIALLY if you are going to be towing you NEED to stick with an "E" rated tire for the extra sidewall strength to prevent swaying. But I'm happy with the XTI's they're a nice balance between MT's and a light AT. Plenty of lug room to clear out mud but enough of the AT style to run good on the snow and ice that we get out here.

-Torsten

I recently bought BF Goodrich Commercial T/A Traction tires for my 00 F250 4X4.
I don't have to use 4 WD climbing my steep gravel road in NC mountains anymore. The traction is awsome. Check them out at Tirerack.com and read the reviews.

Howard

Thanks everyone. I had the BFG's on my wifes Excursion and the wear was awesome but not much else was impressive with them. I switched to the michelins M/S2 and so far they have been perfect. I would get them for my F-250 but they look way to plain for my truck.

Dan Jordan - i have the AT's but not impressed with the wear and winter traction.

Papadelogan - I am considering the Hankooks as well, i need to find out if the 285's come in E rating. How are they on the wear and for towing?

dkf - i had coopers on my 95 diesel f250 and they wore out way to fast but otherwise a great tire. I am sticking with the E rating and i was told the wrangler duratrac does have an E rating in the 285's ( i hope he is right)

Donjamer - The generals are a good choice as well. thanks for the suggestion - have you towed anything with them yet?

Thor80 - Hello washingtonian! i make a trip to spokane every year during the hot summers. I love it over there. Your tires are bigger than mine and i am sure they would be difficult to tow with, but i will look into them at the smaller size. i had never heard of the Fuzions until now. Thanks

HMS - thanks for the suggestion, i will look into it.

Thanks and if anyone has any more suggestions, please post. It will be a week or two before i get the tires.

Here is the tire - I see it says Bridgestone on the website, but they go under the fuzion name
TheFuzionZone.Com

thanks, i looked at the web site but they don't show a 285/75R16 - i have to go to the 315's and that is to big for what i want. Thanks for the web site though!

I haven't towed anything yet, but I really don't tow anything heavy anyway..

I would think they are good at towing seeing they excel with many things.

They are not loud and are wearing great..

They rate high on many of the tire rack survey points..

Consumer Survey Results By Category&

I am running the Generals right now.

They seam to have a break in period after rotating where they have some tread squirm.

They do tow ok and get great traction in most conditions; however, I will be lucky to get 35,000miles out of them before they are bald.

80% of my driving is highway driving with 400lb of gear and a single passanger, with some "offroading" around and infront of construction sites. I tow my 6-7k horse trailer no more then 200 miles a weekend durring the summer and pack two sleds @ 1600-1800lb plus gear about the same distance durring the winter.

Plus pulling 2 or 3 10k loads of hay 40miles to home durring the summer.