tyre's how do I tread?

[tonytiger]

Currently on at2 general grabber... budget restrictions mean I can only have one set of tyres for the time being. When these at2 are shagged... are there any disadvantages to running off road tyres on the road? Im expecting a bit more noise. But how about wear and tear and grip etc

[ejparrott]

Noise yes, and the more aggresive tyres supposedly use more fuel. I can't say I noticed any difference between my old colway MT's and my current more AT tyres.

[Aragorn]

I'd imagine the biggest thing you'll notice is wet grip will be reduced. Stopping distance will increase, they'll lock up easier and your cornering speeds will drop. They'll also be noisier and you'll probably see an increase in fuel consumption.

Exactly how bad it is will depend on what tyres your coming from, and what your going to. Some MT's could potentially be better than some AT's, and conversely some MT's will be so bad they're terrifying on the road.

[Snagger]

Handling and braking will be significantly affected, especially in the wet or on ice. I don't think it's unrealistic to expect up to a 50% increase in wet braking distance with some MTs. This will also correlate to a reduced amount of grip on high speed bends, like large roundabouts, especially under braking or hard acceleration. It's simply due to having less rubber in contact with the tarmac or ice.

For the same reason, expect a significantly increased wear rate unless you get a much harder compound, which would make the wet/ice grip even worse. You can expect increased fuel consumption of about 10% because the knobbly tread deforms more while rolling, sapping energy from the transmission and creating internal friction within the tyre structure. This generates heat, which is the other reason that MTs have lower speed ratings than ATs, not just the grip available. You may also find that while most ATs are CE (EU) winter rated and certified (look for a snowflake in a mountain symbol), many MTs won't be. That's because MTs don't perform well on slippery roads, and while this has only practical and safety impact in the UK, most of continental Europe requires snow rated tyres for the winter months, even on foreign vehicles, so any foreign use would need to comply with their legislation.

In a nutshell, use MTs if you really need that muddy or wet grass off road performance, but otherwise use ATs, which are better on all road and most off road conditions in every respect.

[SteveT247]

Generally speaking it's as other have said, muds will be noisier, not handle quite as well, and wear faster. To a large extent though it's going to depend on what M/T you go for and how shagged your current tyres are as to how big the difference you will notice. The more extreme muds such as Special Tracks and the like, don't have the best reputation as road tyres and the difference between them and A/T's on the road would be very noticeable. On the other hand, less aggressive muds such as the KM2 are reputedly very good on the road and many people who run them say that they behave more like an A/T on the road (I've not used them myself so can't comment first hand).

Likewise, if your current tyres are well past their best you may not notice much difference. I recently swapped BFG A/T's (with 2 out of the 4 knackered) to Insa Turbo Dakars (the old BFG M/T pattern). The Insa's are noisier, but grip and breaking actually seem better, probably due in part to the Insa's being a softer compound and probably in part the BFG's being near the limit tread wise. Can't say I've noticed any difference in fuel consumption at all. Wear seems minimal with the Insa's at the moment but it's probably fair to say that they won't last as long as the A/T's they replaced.

HTH

[dillonsamben]

Heaven knows why I am on a moderator queue as I haven'tposted in yonks.

But back to the OP, I run my 90 on Cooper ATR's and although I am not at all pleased with the way they look I am gobsmacked as to how good they are when going across my farms fields and muddy tracks, they are also brilliant on the road and give brilliant braking and cornering performance wet or dry although slightly questionable in the snow.the result of the ATR's performance is that whereas I had been thinking of changing them for a more agressive tread, I am now left thinking why the hell would I want to waste my money.

[Snagger]

Airlocker's comments about the effects being relative, subject to the condition of the tyres you already have, are very good. As he points out, though, he suffers less grip loss from his MTs because of their soft compound. Unfortunately, the trade off will be increased wear. As a point of note, most remoulds have fairly soft compounds.

For what it's worth, I have had a wide selection of tyres over the years: Avon Ranger, Pirelli FS40, Pirelli Dakar, Goodyear HiMiler Xtra Grip, Hankook AT and BFGoodrich AT KOs. By far the best on and off road have been the BFGs. The FS40s ans Xtra Grips are very poor on wet roads, bordering on dangerous, and the MoD's G90s are reputedly the same. On a trip I did around the Alps, no-one had any grip troubles at all on the roads, dirt tracks, shale slopes or wooden bridges ad off road course obstacles on the BFG ATs; it was only the BFG MT shod vehicle that occasionally struggled. As I said, the MTs are good in mud and on wet grass, but on other loose surfaces, they're too aggressive and perform less well than ATs.

[western]

Heaven knows why I am on a moderator queue as I haven'tposted in yonks.

But back to the OP, I run my 90 on Cooper ATR's and although I am not at all pleased with the way they look I am gobsmacked as to how good they are when going across my farms fields and muddy tracks, they are also brilliant on the road and give brilliant braking and cornering performance wet or dry although slightly questionable in the snow.the result of the ATR's performance is that whereas I had been thinking of changing them for a more agressive tread, I am now left thinking why the hell would I want to waste my money.

because you have less than the required number of post to be removed from Mod approval.

[tonytiger]

Cheers guys.... might try and find a decent AT tyres. Got general grabber at2 they do th job at the min. I got enoigh tread to last me was jist thinking about when I have to renew

[Snagger]

AT2 is a good tyre, and there's not a lot between it and the BFG AT KO. I'd recommend either.

[V8CAMEL]

i found that on muds the fuel consumption on the 110 went down mostiy i suspect to not being able to drive it as fast and as hard into corners

oh the 110 has a TVR 4.6 v8 in it

[tonytiger]

What is the biggest at tyre available anyway?

[Frax]

Not sure but I run 35" BF AT's but the best bet in my opinion are 32" which will fit with little to no mods and the speedo reads more accurate with 32" - well my one did when I had them on.

I did fit BF muds which were 35" for a while but the noise was pretty bad and road holding was also a bit scary in the wet or ice, changed back after 4 month at great expense.

As far as I remember I paid almost £1000 for a set of 4 35" BF AT's so be sure want you want or need before you buy.

I will say that I have run BF's for years and find the AT to be a great tire for most conditions and they last for ever.

I lot of tire places don't stock BF (well round here they dont ) I did ask the one I got my tires from (they ordered them for me) why and the boy said the same - they last far to long and would cut down there turn over,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

[SteveT247]

What is the biggest at tyre available anyway?

Unless there's a very good reason I wouldn't go to big. Not only will your speedo be out but you may over gear it too (depending what engine you have).

[tonytiger]

Disco 200tdi in a defender 110... im runnin bf 32" as it stands loadsa life leftnin them just curious tbh