well u just threw a huge wrench into my plans. is this true? even if i have 20" rims? because if so, i have to start shopping all over again. and is it true that LT tires will ruin the ride of your vehicle on a f150?

 

Heck, I'm running 33's with a 4" lift and love the look.

 

no one in south Tex knows anything about any tire in snow hahahah im from houston lol

 

How wide are those stock 20" wheels? I think 7.5" or 8" wide? Just check the manufactures recommendations on wheel width for the specific tire you're looking at. IMO, going over what they recommend by a little isn't going to cause huge issues. I'm running 285/70/17 (about 33") on my stock 17x7 wheels. I think my tires recommend at least an 8" wide wheel. Some people have ran 315/70/17 (about 35") on my same wheels with out issue.

I'm just saying try to stay close or with in reason of what the recommendations are so your tires last. And yes, LT tires will cause a stiff ride. But I wouldn't say it ruins the ride. Mine are LT's. To me, it rides like a truck should ride. I do a lot of towing and hauling, so having the stiffer side wall is good for me.

 

My 295s are recommended on a least a 8.5 and Im running them on a 7.5 inch rim. The stock 20s are 8 inches wide I believe so no worries there.
As ChrisT said, its not gonna rattle your teeth out but its not going to ride like a caddy either.
Besides with out a little roughness in ride, how can you tell when something is loose?

 

I am being forced to upgrade to a wider wheel to accommodate a 35x12.5 tire

 

i found these tires on treadepot.com. theyre unbelievably cheap. cooper zeon ltz 275-60-20 @ $166 per tire. the only thing i can think of why they are so cheap is because they arent LT tires. can someone else tell me why?

 

Got a link? I'm too lazy to search.

 

Links. http://www.treadepot.com/sizes/zltz.html
http://www.treadepot.com/shoppingcart.html

 

Hmm, I find it odd they don't list the load rating on that specific website you linked. I did some additional searching on this tire. The load rating is "XL" as per the Cooper tires website. I'm not familiar with that load rating, so I did some more searching on XL, which is defined as "Extra load". They have a higher PSI rating, so that's promising. http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete....jsp?techid=55

I dunno man, that is a great price and those are some really cool looking tires. I've always liked the look of that tread pattern, especially on a 20"+ wheel. I know there are quite a few members here running that tire. Maybe they'll chime in for you.

 

oh ok, thanks man

 

I've looked into the Cooper Zeon LTZ's as one of my possible options. They've been eliminated as a possibility after I found out they are only 4 ply. Currently, I run Toyo open Country AT's(10 ply). I use my truck for hauling, towing, and occassionally off road so I do not want a 4 ply tire. That seems way too much like a car tire to me. Just my opinion!!

 

I blew one of my original "Rugged Trails" on a gravel road way back when. When I pulled the tire off, I found the jaws of an 8" crescent wrench hanging out of the face of the tire. The rounded end of the handle punched right through!

Since then my '04 has worn Cooper Discoverer ST's, Nitto TG, and now BFG TA KO's. My truck sees a lot of highway miles (obviously) but also its fair share of off-road on western hunting trips in three different mountain states per year and then (unfortunately) 4-5 months of snow plowing. All three are great tires IMO, but my personal view is:

#1 - Cooper Discoverer ST - Best snow, gravel, and mud traction of the three. None of these tires are mud tires however. Longest wearing, but also the loudest of the three.

#2 - Nitto TG - Very nice tire, faster wearing, better wet/dry pavement traction, not "quite" as capable off-road as the Cooper. Still like 'em, and would have no issue buying again.

#3 - BFG AT KO - Even though I rate this tire as third, its still a very good tire. Its a good all around tire, but for MY use, it gives up a bit too much snow traction.

All three of these 10 ply tires are far, far superior to stock tires when you consider towing a trailer or going off road. That being said they are all still pretty decent if you have to drive a lot of highway miles as well and don't want to jump to an MT tire. If I had to buy a set tomorrow, I'd go Cooper Discoverer ST.

For the record, in 270k miles on my FX4, it's worn one pair of OEM Rugged Trails, two sets of Cooper Discoverer ST's, One set of Nitto Terra Grapplers, and now has BFG TKO's. Part of the reason was out of curiosity. I wanted to try a variety of tires for myself...just because. In the end, I think you'll be happy with any of these tires.

 

kraft, good to see that you've recognized that the OEM tires really don't work well, especially on 4WD trucks. I can't believe when I see a guy with an FX4 with a plow on the front and Pirelli's on the rims.

As everyone before me has said, it comes down to personal preference, but I will throw in my two cents. I'm on my fourth truck, which is my first 4WD. All of them have worn BFG A/Ts.

I always complain about the harsher than normal ride and the constant road noise from the tread pattern, but guaranteed when it comes time to replace them I can't bring myself to buy anything else. I love the look and the performance - we get our fair share of snow locally and I've never had to run weight in my truck, even my 2WDs. They last, too; I average about 120,000 kms with regular rotation. Best of all, I've never had a tire issue put me on the side or the road or need a tow in 20 years of driving.

Good luck with your decision, I'm sure you'll be happy with any of the tires suggested previously.

 

I really like the Firestone Destination A/T's. They are rated #1 on Tirerack and seem to have the best consumer ratings in all castigators on that site. They also cost a lot less.

I've put about 7k miles on mine and coming from stock Hankook A/S, these tires are awesome. I'm 2wd and have not had any issues on snow or ice. Even climbing steep ice covered driveways didn't seem to be an issue.

The ride is much better than stock and they are really just as quiet as an A/S.