Help me pick the new rubber for my 2005 Tundra!!

Which tire would you choose?

  • Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac

    Votes: 7 25.9%
  • Cooper ST Maxx

    Votes: 20 74.1%

  • Total voters
    27

rruff

Explorer
That was actually the thread that got me turned onto the ST Maxx. As you mention, the weight is pretty high with those tires though. My Tundra already gets abysmal fuel economy. Did you find much of a loss with the heavy tires?

It's not the weight! Forget about weight completely. It's the stiff casing and treads. The same thing that makes it a tough offroad tire makes it suck fuel. If you need the toughness offroad and mud traction, then fine... else it is not your best bet.

IMO most ATs are placebo tires. You need enough voids to clear mud else you might as well be on street tread. They aren't doing anything for you on gravel, dirt, or sand. If they have a more durable casing, then that's going to cause a harsher ride and suck fuel. No free lunch.

For your stated use (road and a little gravel, no mud) you'd be better off with street oriented tread for sure. Low load P tires will give you the best ride and fuel mileage.
 

OutOfBounds

Adventurer
hmm, lots to think about. Now you guys have me even more undecided! LOL.

The gravel I do drive turns into a sticky soup as soon as it rains, so the mud clearing ability of the larger lugs would prove helpful. I'm going to swing into the local tire shop this week and see what else they have and what they've installed most on similar vehicles.
 

SnoViking

Adventurer
Depending on your needs; Check out the General Grabber AT2. It's a nice compromise between an AT and streetable tire. I just put a set on and I'm very happy so far.
 

vicali

Adventurer
My Father-in-Law is out of Fairview, he loves his Goodyear Territorys year round on his Sierra- his farm rig is a Suzuki with bfg t/a and they both do really well on the range roads summer and winter.. lots of Duratracs in the patch.. probably the most common up there.
 

Kiriesh

Adventurer
Well I'll throw in my option, I recently got a set of 265/75R16 Falken Wildpeak AT3's for my tacoma. They have mediocre reviews in the past but most the reviews I found in the past few years were much happier. So far I'm happy, they're great on road compared to my old rugged fails and so far have proven great in snow.
 

jpachard

Adventurer
I too drive mostly on pavement and drive fire roads and back roads.... Have worn out a pair of ST Maxx... I did not like the extra noise.... so next set will be Toyo AT2..... don't have any info on them.... just did not like the extra noise of the Maxx

I found the Toyo AT/2 just as noisy if not worse than the Cooper S/T Maxx when it wore a bit. Every vehicle is different though. YMMV
 

rruff

Explorer
I found the Toyo AT/2 just as noisy if not worse than the Cooper S/T Maxx when it wore a bit. Every vehicle is different though. YMMV

It is common practice for manufacturers of AT tires to alter the tread compound with depth, and to design the tires to be quieter and perform better when new than worn. It makes new owners very happy (rave reviews) and encourages them to buy new tires often. If the tire you are interested in has been out a few years, it's good to focus on high mileage reviews. I don't know if the same thing applies to regular passenger tires, but it may.
 

Smooth B

New member
06 Tundra DC here. Had Toyo A/Ts C-rated 265/75/16 for just about 50K w/ regular 5k rotations. Was very satisfied and was gonna replace with same until priced them out. Local exclusive reseller wanted >$1100 for 4 mounted, etc... On basis of the Cooper AT/3 reviews here, I priced those and also moved to E-rated (just before road trip and some Moab off-road) and got installed for $800. Happy to save $300 and now w/ over 7k miles on Coopers, very happy. Many ski trips in snow this winter but also solid/quiet on highway and plenty of tire for White Rim, Chicken Point in Moab.

Good luck.
 

OutOfBounds

Adventurer
All right, I've been doing some more reading and this thread has also really helped out.

I'm still leaning toward the ST Maxx, but now I'm also considering the Cooper AT/3, General Grabber AT2 and the Nitto Terra Grappler.

I haven't had a chance to get into the local tire shop yet, so I'll be making time to do that this week. They close by 530 and are not open on weekends. What is this...the 1950's??? Sheesh. LOL. Oh well, I'll either bump off work a bit early or find another shop but I haven't been too impressed with the local Kal Tire or Fountain Tire shops so I wanted to give the independent a try.
 

Clutch

<---Pass
Kumho AT51's.

Bought a set for my Tacoma, liked them so much, ordered a another set for my Trooper last night form Tire Rack.

I give them a 10 in snow, fricken ahhhhhhsum!

http://www.kumhousa.com/tire/category/truck-suv/2DAD4945-E708-43A2-ADF1-0A43551871B2


178_WebPhotoAdditional1.png
 

OutOfBounds

Adventurer
I got into the tire shop today and had a look at a few different ones and chatted with the guys there. I decided to go with the Cooper ST Maxx in 265/70/R17 and step up from 16" wheels to 17". I chose the Ion Alloy 186 style wheels. I figure with this tires, wheels and the Bilstein 5100 level I plan to do, the truck will look good and be able to do everything I need.

They had to order in the wheels, so I haven't got them yet but I'll post pics when I do. For now, here's a mock up what the truck should look like with the wheels. You'll have to imaging the Maxx tires. LOL

RimTyme-iConfigurator-White-TOYOTA-TUNDRA-BASE-2005-Ion-Alloy-Wheels-186-Black-Machined_73891718_424598665.png
 

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