What is your personal preference for aggressive looking AT all season AND winter tires?
I will be upgrading the stock tires on my Sahara Unlimited, but we are downsizing to 17" wheels, so they will remain close to stock (255/75/R17) until the NEXT set of tires, when the lift is likely to happen.
So far it's a bit of a toss up between KO2's and wrangler duratecs (which I think I prefer the looks of). As for winter tires (we get about 5 months of heavy snow) I'm leaning towards Toyos GSI5, but I would like some opinions on what other people use.
Out of those two I would pick KO2s. I had them on my 16 and they awesome. Ice they weren’t so great. I have Falken Wildpeak AT3 on my 18 JLU and I love them. Good on ice, and great on everything else. A little louder than. The KO2S but worth it.
Everything I’ve read on Duratrac is good. Only that they are soft and wear out quicker.. but that usually makes a better snow and wet weather tire.
Check out 255/80 17s too. That’s what I have and no lift needed.
Duratracs don’t wear out fast IMO. Buddy had 70k on his before he bought new. I have had a few sets but only had the vehicles for a short time. No problems with them at all.
I should mention that I live in Northern BC, where we get about 5 months of snow. And a LOT of snow, at that.
Sorry. I can't edit my OP.
I've been reading that the KO2's are good in the winter, but in what KIND of winter? I'm a bit concerned about this as they're not a dedicated winter tire. I often have to go on unplowed roads to get to where I want to go (usually for snowshoeing or winter hiking), and we do get a lot of snow here. Sometimes as much as a foot in one day.
The KO2 rides better on pavement and has a stronger sidewall for sure. IMO they're equal in mud/dirt. The Duratracs are substantially better than the KO2s in snowy/slushy conditions. The Duratracs are amazing in snow and might fool you for a dedicated winter tire they perform so well. For your use the Duratracs are the way to go.
But they’re still an all season, right? It sounds like the Duratecs would be better if I were to use them all year long, but I’m pretty set on having an all season AND a winter tire. So it looks like the K02 is the one for for me for summer/mud use, but what’s a good winter tire?
I currently use Toyo GSI5 for the winter. I like them a lot, but I was hoping for more opinions on availability and popularity for Jeeps.
A True winter tire has a compound that works in subzero temps.
A standard AT does not have a compound that works in subzero temps.
Being you are in BC and probably see subzero temps for what a few days for 2-3 weeks, I see the same in Maine.
Is a dedicated winter tire worth those few days where you see subzero, thats up to you.
It's already snowed (and melted) here, but the real snow starts in mid November and doesn't fully melt until late April, or even May. Where I go hiking, I've seen snow in June.
In the off seasons (Sept/Oct, and April/May) is it very common to have sub zero temps, especially in the mornings and at night. For a few weeks now, we've been waking up to -6 or 7 C in the mornings (and maybe +4 or 5 during the day).
The average temps during Dec-Mar almost never raise above -5, and we can have weeks at a time of -25 temps. Average daytime temps I would say are somewhere between -9 and -15, and nighttime temps being closer to -20.
We get snow, but we also get ice. I need a dedicated winter tire. If there aren't any recommendations for one then I will likely stick to my trusted GSi5's.
Both the KO2 and Duratrac are snow rated tires. I think you will be impressed with both. The Duratrac being softer will perform better I. Snow and ice.
If you want a dedicated snow tire you’ll need two sets of tires.
Plus the Duratracs have provisions for adding metal studs. (There are little holes in the tread.. See image below)
Tungsten tipped studs enhance traction on ice.. But, they aren't legal everywhere because they cause damage to roads. And, in places where they are legal, they are only allowed to be used in the winter. This means you have to have them off in the summer.
Get the Duratrac! So I can live vicariously through you. I’ll be honest the Falken is a better winter tire than the KO2. So go with the Duratrac if you really want winter performance in an AT tire. KO2s are amazing in wet weather but wasn’t “good enough” for ice conditions for my liking. Especially when I found a tire that performs better.
As for the All Season tires, I think I've pretty much decided (based on the above comments) on the KO2. The Duratecs DO sound better for an all YEAR tire, but that is not what I need. Thanks, everyone!
I have a set of DuraTracs on my pickup. They did three years in Upstate NY in the snowbelt off of Lake Ontario (average 5 to 8 feet a year of snow) They are very very good in the snow and they have far exceeded my expectation for tread wear. They are four years old with about 35K miles on them. Tread is still good.
Also, to flip my question, how are the DuraTracs in the summer on pavement and in mud? I won't be adding a lift kit to my Sahara for several years (until such a time when I need to replace the tires), so it would be REALLY nice to have one tire that functions well both on pavement/mud, and snow/ice.
Thank you everyone! We have decided on KO2's for all season tires, and we are still trying to find a good dedicated winter tire. As mentioned, we will be going with the Toyo GSi5 if no one has any other suggestions.
I never had a problem with the K02's in the winter. I also know how to drive in the snow and I'm not a baby about it. They're a bit shitty on ice and slush, but if you live in BC you should have learned how to drive in the winter. I live in western NY and we get plenty of winter weather. I hardly ever even go into 4WD.
The bizzacs are basically ice skates for cars, I've always said that.
I had a set on an old Mazda3 and that thing was awesome all winter.
I miss the shifts in that car, so butter smooth.
The 18 years I lived in North Pole Alaska I bought many brands of winter tires. With temperatures well into the minus 40 f . The Blizzark did very well on hard pack snow (ice) but did not wear well. Liked the Duratrac the best. Tried Green Diamond one winter. Never again to costly and did not last the winter.
I’ve got the hankook winter tires on the wife’s Infiniti for winter and anything over 40*F, they need to come off or start feathering really bad. Winter tires are made for winter only!
No studs. Didn’t like them for two reasons. In sub zero weather they tend to come out and you hear them pinging off the wheel wells. 2nd reason people think they can stop better. Not true the studs will make you slide (like ice skates) I felt the same way until I saw many vehicles slide through intersections with studs. IMHO the sipping helps more. But the best safety factor is between a persons ears. Slow down and think
For winters, I currently run Bridgestone Blizzak DMV2's in 265/70 on steelies on my JKU and previously ran Nokian Hakkapeliitta 8 SUV's (studded) on my FJ Cruiser. My summers on the FJC were K02's, which I also ran briefly in the winter the first year I had them. I have also run Duratrac's during the winter in a different part of the country before I moved here.
Around here, I prefer a dedicated winter tire, mainly for the mountain roads. It only took one icy, snow packed trip through the National Park passes to convince me. Before that, I had never had winter tires. Both the Bridgestone and Nokian's are great tires. When the time comes to replace mine again, I will likely go back to the studded Nokians for that extra peace of mind. Nokians are also available in studless if that's your preference.
For perspective, we are now required to run 'winter' capable tires from Oct 1 to April 30th in this part of BC. Winter capable includes snowflake and M+S rated tires, so a number of all terrains would be legal - at least in the sizes a manufacturer has tested and labelled. It's my personal preference to run dedicated winters as I feel they perform better in the winter conditions around here.
Thank you, everyone! We've decided on the Blizzaks for the dedicated winter tire, and KO2's for the three season tire.
If you love them or hate them, I'd love to hear why! (No need to continue with the "all seasons are good enough" debate. I'm more interested in the pros and cons these two specifically.)
Great choices. In the past I have avoided the KO’s due to popularity and not an aggressive enough look for me but obviously a very good tire. The blizzaks are the holy grail of non studded winter tires.
I’m looking forward to winter here with my new duratracs and will resurrect this thread come March when spring is closing in!
Great choices. In the past I have avoided the KO’s due to popularity and not an aggressive enough look for me but obviously a very good tire. The blizzaks are the holy grail of non studded winter tires.
Interesting that you avoided them due to popularity, as that's exactly why I've decided to give them a try. I agree that they're not quite aggressive enough looking for me as well, but I haven't been able to find a suitable replacement. My Jeep is going to be a modified daily driver for occasional offroading, so it's important to me that they do well on pavement, as well as off road (dirt and mud, mostly).
We considered Duratraks (I assume this is what you use?) but they appear like they would be better for the colder weather, and perhaps not be as nice for daily driving in the hot summer months. Would they not wear faster? Am I mistaken?
(Please excuse my questions. This is all new to me.)
Duratracs on my '15 JK have served me well for some nasty midwest winters.
Best ride I've ever had snow or ice has been my wife's 2019 Forester we bought last December and promptly had Hakkapeliittas put on for the winter. Just getting ready to put them back on in the next couple of weeks. That vehicle was amazing in bad conditions last winter.
For those of you running the Duratracs: are you having a difficult time keeping them balanced? I run Duratracs on my Power Wagon (weighing in at 8000 lbs), and Discount Tire has a dickens of a time balancing these things. Had them balanced today, so far so good, fingers crossed. Is shaking an issue on the lighter Jeeps with the Duratracs?
A note on wear: I replaced original Duratracs at 40,000 miles on the PW. There were at least another 10,000 miles in them, if not more.
I am on my second set and never had any issue at all with my 2015 JK.
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