All Terrians:
AT (All Terrain) tires area combination tire designed for on road and offroad use. They are less aggressive off road, but what they give up in aggressiveness they gain in on road handling. This is the tire for you if your primary concern is Highway performance and still want the ability to go offroad. Some choose AT style tires who expect to encounter snow or lots of rain. They provide better traction for these conditions than standard radial tires and may be enough of a reason to decide on AT's.
All-Terrain tires are engineered for solid on-road performance with added grip for dirt, snow, and wet surfaces, making them an appealing choice for occasional light-duty off-pavement excursions.
General advantages:
1) Tend to wear longer
2) Quiet on road
3) Better ride (not as bumpy)
4) Good traction in snow and rain (vs better in MT??)
General Disadvantages:
1) Not as good as an MT in snow or mud (Not sure of diff in rain)
2) less offroad traction than an MT
3) ???
Tires in this catagory:
1) BFG AT KO's - From vendor web site
Damn Tires Last for ever - cary
Hants input to the FAQ
BFG AT KO 285/75R16
1997 LX450 OME 2.5" Medium
Considerations for Purchase:
- Purchased while still stock height (rotted Michelins made it easy to go to 33's immediately)
- Fit in stock spare location (no rear bumper until Phase III of "The Plan")
- On-road friendly (not loud/bumpy) and off-road capable (only significant weakness is mud -- and IH8MUD )
- Local Discount Tire (in San Diego) couldn't sipe (I was also considering BFG MT's)
- Great water/snow/ice traction and directional stability (we were planning to move to Colorado)
Performance:
The tires are great onroad and (aired down to about 18psi) very capable offroad. When I air them up to 45psi and drive at freeway speeds, I notice a slight vibration that I attribute to the relatively open tread (compared to street-tires). I now run them at 38/40 psi on-road, and have no issues. I've had them in snow, on icy roads, soft sand, slickrock and granite -- in all cases, I've been very happy with them. No chunking or sidewall damage so far. There's a rim-protection-lip that works great to minimize damage to the wheel (rock-rash).
Recommend:
Yes
Elmariachi's input to the FAQ:
I am on my 7th FJ-80. I have run Good Year AT 285s, Bridgestone AT 285s, Dunlop AT 285s, Yokohama MT 315s and BFG AT and MT 285s and AT 315s. I am running an OME J-lift with BFG 285/75r16 ATs on both the truck and M416 trailer.
Considerations For Purchase
My truck sees a lot of highway use but occasional rocks and cactus in hilly Texas terrain. I need a tire that is tough on and offroad, yields long life, good looks and readily available.
Performance
They are very tough in the rocks, clear well enough in the mud and aren't too noisy until they get near the end of life. I wasn't impressed with them in the snow, but I don't have much snow experience. They are readily available through numerous tire stores and they wear extremely well if you keep them balanced. I have had several BFG ATs that were out of round when mounted new, so you have to be on-hand at the balancing machine and look for a slight "hop" in the tire. That hop, combined with a tire needing excess weight (2.5 ounces or more) and I ususally ask for a different tire.
Recommendations
I ran 315s on my supercharged truck and thought they were great. But I think they otherwise knock the stock performance down too far in my opinion to be worth running with stock gears and power. The 285 BFGs fit the stock wheel (as well as the spare area underneath), don't negatively affect performance or economy too much and yield excellent articulation on 2.5-3" lifted trucks. Its now the only tire I will run.
2) Yokahama Geolander AT- From Vendor website
Maddbaggins input to the FAQ:
Yokohama Geolander AT 285/75 r16 on black steel rims
Considerations
At the time I purchased it was a toss-up between BFG AT's and these. I went with these because the manager at Discount (a family friend) has them and recomended.
Performance
I have very little road noise that I can hear over my exhaust
I get excellent traction in the dry rocks and dirt of Southern AZ and have very little trouble with wet surfaces either. I run 40psi street and about 16-18psi offroad.
I wheel on a lot of nasty rocks down here and have lost a few chunks of rubber here and there. I have about 16k miles on them.
They are only a 2-ply sidewall however as compared with the BFG's 3-ply.
Overall I am happy with them and would recomend them.
Alia176 input to the FAQ:
Yokohama Geolander At II+ tires 315 75 16 (34.7")
1996 FZJ80 850J/863 Lift
Considerations for Purchase:
The purpose of these tires were to get me to the trail head in peace and quiet with excellent hwy manners. Trail head from my house is a min 1,000 miles (Chicago). They have to handle snow/ice/slick rock and little mud; basically, Jack of all trades but master of none sort of thing.
Performance:
These are excellent tires and wear nicely on the 80. I do rotate the tires religously and keep the front end aligned. I have about 30,000 miles on them and they're wearing great (currently at 14/32" out of 19/32"). Hwy noise is very minimal and traction for off roading is superb. I don't play in deep mud but have run trails in AZ,UT and CO. Just did the Crown King trail in AZ and noticed minor chunking all over. This trail has sharp rocks on it but I didn't have a flat tire and that was a large concern of mine due to the thinner sidewall. Traction in Moab is superb, even when wet. The attached pictures are of the tires doing a short climb while being wet.
Normal air pressure is 34/38 and I bump them up to about 38/42 when heavily laden. Depending on the trail, the air pressure can be anywhere from 18-25 psi.
Recommend:
Yes but do keep in mind:
- max load at 35 psi and 2535 pounds (may not be enough for some folks)
- nice side lugs for light muddy trails but not for super deep, gooey stuff
- center lugs great for wet traction and quiet operation
- load range C so watch the airing down on the trail and sharp rocks!
- good value for the money.
Note: Yokohama AT+II is being replaced by a new tire called the A/T-S (picture below).
3) Bridgetsone Revo- From a Vendor Web Site
Mars input to the FAQ
Bridgestone Dueler Revo A/T 285/75/R16 (33 inch tires)
1993 80 - stock
Considerations for Purchase:
My truck spends a lot of time on the freeway getting me where I need to go, so road handling characteristics played in big part in my purchase. Very important was also the need for a tire that could handle deep snow and heavy rains, on both pavement and offroad. Stock suspension for the time being, with a 2.5" lift planned, so a big enough tire to not look goofy with the lift was considered.
Performance:
Very capable tire all around. My experience is limited to light, road oriented tires, and a set of BFG A/T's, so I don't have a ton to compare it to. The BFG A/T was my second choice when I was shopping, and the Revo won it over for me because of its high reviews in wet conditions. The Revos seem to shed mud, and don't get packed with snow nearly as easily as BFG A/T's, which was a primary concern of mine. Excellent onroad tire, and the sidewalls feel stiff enough for anything I've thrown at them.
Recommend:
Yes
4) Nitto Terra Grapplers - From Vendors web site
Threads discussing Nitto Terra Grapplers:
Alia176 asking for opinions
Hayes write up on his install
Shortbus review
5) Goodyear Wrangler ATS - From Vendors Web Site
Reviews from e-opinions - Could not find anyone running them here with a search
6) Dunlop Rover RVXT - From Vendors web Site
7) Dunlop Rover RT - From Vendors web site
Discussion thread on Dunlop AT
8)
Nokian Vatiiva-
This a tire that is a split between a A/S and A/T. Nokian is a Finnish manufacture that is well known for their snow tires. The Vatiiva is their SUV tire and is supposed to have the RMA Severe Snow rating soon. From the information I found, everyone that has run them, loves them. They are available in sizes up to 315/75/16 for those that want a less agressive road tire in a large size
9) Toyo Open Country AT -
From Vendor web site
I am told lots of folks in the Lone Star Club run these tires.