Tire question

[Tiggrrr]

Ok, I know there have been a number of threads about tires. I'm interested in getting some opinions in the towing area for my situation.

I am still running the stock Goodyear tires on my '06 Titan CC (no off-road package, but 4x4 w/ big tow). While these tires are holding out well, they are CRAP in slick conditions (mud, snow). I can hardly climb my driveway when it's sloppy with mud without putting the truck into 4wd. Unfortunately, more aggressive tires aren't known to do well with towing. I will be towing a 1994 24' Wilderness camp trailer that weighs in at about 7k lbs. loaded. I would like to find some tires that offer as close to the best of both worlds (traction in mud / snow, AND towing stability).

What have other people on this board found that have worked well for them in both situations? I will likely be getting new tires later this year and would like to go in armed with some good information.

Goodyear made a tire a few years ago that I used on a Jeep that I loved. It was the Workhorse Extra Grip, and they said it was originally developed for the forest service trucks to handle all of the different terrain they have to go through. Unfortunately I seriously doubt if they make that tire in a size that will fit the Titan's monstrous wheels.

[HRTKD]

I have the BFG Rugged Trail tires and they aren't horrible for towing but they aren't as strong as I would like them to be. They can get sloppy towing through the mountains.

I'm considering going the the Toyo Open Country A/T LT tire (LT285/70R17 121S D/8 in the document).

[HudsonValleyTitan]

Originally Posted by Tiggrrr

Ok, I know there have been a number of threads about tires. I'm interested in getting some opinions in the towing area for my situation.

I am still running the stock Goodyear tires on my '06 Titan CC (no off-road package, but 4x4 w/ big tow). While these tires are holding out well, they are CRAP in slick conditions (mud, snow). I can hardly climb my driveway when it's sloppy with mud without putting the truck into 4wd. Unfortunately, more aggressive tires aren't known to do well with towing. I will be towing a 1994 24' Wilderness camp trailer that weighs in at about 7k lbs. loaded. I would like to find some tires that offer as close to the best of both worlds (traction in mud / snow, AND towing stability).

What have other people on this board found that have worked well for them in both situations? I will likely be getting new tires later this year and would like to go in armed with some good information.

Goodyear made a tire a few years ago that I used on a Jeep that I loved. It was the Workhorse Extra Grip, and they said it was originally developed for the forest service trucks to handle all of the different terrain they have to go through. Unfortunately I seriously doubt if they make that tire in a size that will fit the Titan's monstrous wheels.

Take a look at Bridgestones REVOs or their All Terrane KOs. Probably the two best and most popular tires for our trucks.

[Carbeaux]

I'll second what HVT says. I just got Revos a couple of weeks ago and have already towed with them once. I tow a 27' 6500 - 7k travel trailer. It was horribly windy the first day I towed, so I can't say how well they did that day. It was just a white knuckle day. Coming back though they were great. Much better sidewall than the SRA tires.

[geelo1]

I installed Toyo "Open Country M/T's" LT 295/70R17.
The max load is listed at 3,970lbs. How do I figure this weight? Is it the weight of the truck? Truck & trailer? Truck plus tongue weight?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[HudsonValleyTitan]

Originally Posted by geelo1

I installed Toyo "Open Country M/T's" LT 295/70R17.
The max load is listed at 3,970lbs. How do I figure this weight? Is it the weight of the truck? Truck & trailer? Truck plus tongue weight?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Multiply 3970 by 4 which is 15880. Well within the GCVW of the truck. The only weight the trailer adds to the truck is the tongue weight. So that 15880 is the full weight of the truck with cargo and people plus the tongue weight of the trailer. You'll go over the trucks GVW before you have to worry about the tires. You're fine.

[Pops]

I'm pretty sure that the Tire Max Load Rating is a max weight placed on a single tire. If your max load rating is 3,970 then that means you have 7,940 truck rear + tongue weight that can be distributed evenly but you won't want to push it that close to the limit because of sway so I'd keep it closer to 3,000 truck rear + tongue weight. Keep in mind that your rear tires are only holding the trailer's tongue up, not the entire trailer.

Quite a few Armada owners tow with the Revos and love them. The Toyo Open Country and Nitto Terra Grappler should also do well and their max load ratings are close to the Revo's.

[Megw3788]

Not sure about the Revo's, but if you're going through any kind of mud stay away from the BFG ATs, they absolutely do not clean out at all in mud. The Terra Grap's and the Toyo ATs are a much better choice if you have to go through any mud. I'm not sure how sloppy this mud is that you say you have to go through, but you may even want to consider one of the less agressive MTs such as the Cooper Discoverer STTs or the Toyo MTs. They're just as quiet as ATs, they ride just as well as any 10 ply AT I've ever owned, and they last 40k+ miles. I know I've towed 25k+ lbs with my dad's superduty on 35"x12.50" STTs and they did awesome.

[Tiggrrr]

The Revo looks like a decent tire for towing, at least looking at the photos, specs, and reviews online. However, looking at the tread pattern I wonder how well it would clean out any mud. The stock tires on this truck are just slick! They don't grab any mud, but what they do grab sticks in the tire.

I'm probably looking for the impossible here: a tire that tows well, has a long life for commute driving, and handles the mud and snow here in Utah well (grips then cleans out).

I may just have to go with the Revos as they fit most of my needs well, and just avoid the sticky stuff as much as possible.

[Pops]

In all honesty, I have heard nothing but positive about the Revo in person and on these forums. Many people have posted that they exceed their expectations and do better than they look like they would. I can vouch for the TerrGrapps in that everything said good on here about them is true so I'd have to believe they're right about the Revo too. Meg really likes those Cooper STT's too and I have an Uncle who will vouch for them as well because he has them on his Ram and spends quite a bit of time in the mud because he's a farmer.

[Tiggrrr]

Originally Posted by Pops

In all honesty, I have heard nothing but positive about the Revo in person and on these forums. Many people have posted that they exceed their expectations and do better than they look like they would. I can vouch for the TerrGrapps in that everything said good on here about them is true so I'd have to believe they're right about the Revo too. Meg really likes those Cooper STT's too and I have an Uncle who will vouch for them as well because he has them on his Ram and spends quite a bit of time in the mud because he's a farmer.

I may have to try the Revos, then, and hope they get the grip I'm looking for.

Thanks!

[Pops]

I think they're worth at least checking out. Regardless of what you decide to get, please let us know what you think of the ones you get.