GY Wrangler DuraTrac vs. Nitto TG

[maybe_a_80...]

I don't have any experience with the DuraTracs, but I've had great experience with the TerraGrapplers in snow--found them to be without question far better than "Severe Snow Service" BFG ATs. Since then I've not been too keen on the snowflake rating.

Hayes - couldn't agree with you more about the BFG A/T - it's not an admirable performing snow tire on road. It's probably great in somewhat softer snow...but the rubber is too hard on the tire for cold temps and there's no siping to create lots of biting edges...perhaps one of the most over rated tires out there for snow use. My current 80 came with BFG A/Ts and the truck was downright sketchy on I70 between Silverplume and Silverthorne in icey conditions this spring. The BFG is not rated for Severe Snow Service - it's only M+S rated, which means one does not have to chain up with the BFG A/T most of the time, but it's not the same as Severe Snow Service rated tires.

The Duratrac has the official Severe Snow Service rating - the Mountain/Snowflake symbol box.The TerraGrappler as far as I know also does not have the Mountain/Snowflake symbol - only the M+S rating.

The Duratrac is the newest and most advanced tire in this category. It's based off the Silent Armor, which has re-defined what an aggressively treaded on-road
truck tire can accomplish in terms of ride quality and traction in challenging road conditions.

 

[Hayes]

Could have sworn the BFG A/T (used to) had the snowflake.

 

[maybe_a_80...]

Could have sworn the BFG A/T (used to) had the snowflake.

edit - some sizes do have the snowflake, others do not.

265/75R16 and 285/75/R16, do not have the snowflake.

my bad.

 

[Hayes]

Our mutual experiences and similar experiences of others make me skeptical of the snowflake.

 

[Hayes]

...which is why I personally look for first-hand accounts of a tire's performance under the conditions in question, rather than certifications or ratings. Although the snowflake rating system is theoretically an objective test of the tire's snow performance, I would speculate that the testing may be TOO controlled to be a reliable predictor of a tire's performance. Crappy snowflake-rated BFG AT and the widely-praised, non-snowflake-rated TerraGrapplers as cases in point.

The DuraTracs LOOK like they'd be great, and reviews so far seem to suggest that as well.

 

[96r50]

edit - some sizes do have the snowflake, others do not.

265/75R16 and 285/75/R16, do not have the snowflake.

my bad.

To clarify a bit more, 285/75R16 load range D BFG ATs do have the mountain snowflake symbol, whereas load range E in that size does not.

 

[rhyary]

The discussion took a turn into which tire is better. This is good, but my OP was concern with the diff in noise level between the Duratrac and the TG. Since I know the TG, I was wondering if the Duratrac are the same noise level or more.

Wonder if anyone had first hand experience with both tires. With windows closed and radio off, going 70mph, do you hear the tires or the engine. The noise level of the TG at 70mph is not louder then the engine+wind noise, IIRC. Can I expect the same from the Duratracs?

 

[SHREDwagon]

Dude - Duratracs are quiet at highway speeds. With the windows down at 65, not an issue. If you want, I can give you the decibels with my iPhone. But again, I have a 1hd-t. Nothing like a MT, that's for sure.

I usually spend 100 days a season in the backcountry in winter. It took alot of time for me to decide on tires. I'm still happy with my choice. I run 285's, which are narrower than your 315's. Probably be a bit quieter and better in snow due to contact patch. But, ANY tire you stud is going to get louder. We get chinooks up here in the Rockies, so temps can go from -30C to +5C in 5 hours. Than freeze again. I didn't stud mine as they're to damn loud on pavement. But, driving through 2' of fresh on top of ice, no problem w/ center diff lockeopeNope that helps.

 

[rhyary]

I have no intention of putting studs on the tires. Not sure how this is related to my OP.

If I open my windows, play my stereo loud and have my son screeming at me for icecream, I don't hear the MT/R as well, so might as well stay with the MT/R

In addition, dude, I loved the MT/R off-road and I will be happy to spend 100 days with them in the back-country. However going to the country-club with the MT/R generate excessive noise that makes my DD ride unpleasant.

Finaly, nothing like MT off road. On road MT is not as good as AT.

LOL

Rami

 

[Hayes]

rhyary,

Back on track to your original question, are you concerned about the E load rating on the Duratracs? I don't know how this could affect noise, but it certainly could affect the ride.

For comparison, the 315/75R16 MTR Kevlars that we're both running are D tires with a max load rating of 3195 lbs @ 50psi, while the same size DuraTrac is an E with a load of 3860 lbs @65 psi. I don't know about you, but I feel like my MTRs are pretty dang burly, even on my heavy truck. Do you think the E DuraTracs might be a little stiff?

I'm interested in hearing the feedback on this from folks running the DuraTracs. Do they feel stiff? How well do they flex off road? Back before I bought my MTRs, I had seen the DuraTrac and was interested--but I decided against them because of the E rating.

Thoughts?

 

[Nay]

rhyary,

Back on track to your original question, are you concerned about the E load rating on the Duratracs? I don't know how this could affect noise, but it certainly could affect the ride.

For comparison, the 315/75R16 MTR Kevlars that we're both running are D tires with a max load rating of 3195 lbs @ 50psi, while the same size DuraTrac is an E with a load of 3860 lbs @65 psi. I don't know about you, but I feel like my MTRs are pretty dang burly, even on my heavy truck. Do you think the E DuraTracs might be a little stiff?

I'm interested in hearing the feedback on this from folks running the DuraTracs. Do they feel stiff? How well do they flex off road? Back before I bought my MTRs, I had seen the DuraTrac and was interested--but I decided against them because of the E rating.

Thoughts?

You won't notice any difference between a D & E load rated tire at the same PSI. I've actually been adding some air to my E's - I think some hard usage offroad at 10 PSI has loosened 'em up a bit

Said differently, if you have driven a Load Range D BFG AT at around 40 PSI, that is as bad as you should ever expect any tire to run

 

[Nay]

I'm told the sound reduction is because of the way the shoulders are designed, if you look close at the pic every other lug is set back with a rounded profile. Could be BS but it made sense to me.

That's a big reason why Trxus are quiet. I have no idea why more tire companies haven't figured this out.

 

[george_tlc]

I have 285 sized Duratracs - E rating. Unless you're some kind of gay wimp, they are just fine from a ride perspective (typically run them around 38psi) and road noise at speed is a non-issue. My wife daily drives our 80 and she has no issues with them either.

I'm pleased with their performance and happy I bought them. Excellent in heavy rain (downpour) at speed and they've done fine in sand and dirt trails etc and a couple of offroad winter snow runs.

cheers,
george.

 

[Corbet]

Rami,

I just ordered a set of Duratrac's to replace my TG's but they will not go on until winter and with studs. So I may not be able to give you the info you want. But did you order tires yet? Sears has a good price on the Duratrac's right now by the way.

 

[rhyary]

Hayes, I am not concerned about E or D ratings. I am only trying to solve the noise problem. I have no other issue running the MT/R Kev. I like them for anything I do. That said, I did not run them in the NE winter yet so my opinion may change.

Corbat, I did not get another set yet. I need to see how the MTR are doing in the winter. Most of my activities involved long drives (motorcycle track days, off-road trips, property visits) are in the summer. If the MTR are usable in the winter, the noise issue will take back seat on my 2 mile commute.

Will you be running the Duratracs without studs for a test? That will be a good comparison with the TG. But with studs it will not apply to my situation.

Rami

 

[Corbet]

Will you be running the Duratracs without studs for a test? That will be a good comparison with the TG. But with studs it will not apply to my situation.

Rami

Sorry mine will get studs. I need them for where I live.

 

[simps80]

rhyary,

Do you think the E DuraTracs might be a little stiff?

I'm interested in hearing the feedback on this from folks running the DuraTracs. Do they feel stiff? How well do they flex off road? Back before I bought my MTRs, I had seen the DuraTrac and was interested--but I decided against them because of the E rating.

Thoughts?

I have 285/75/16 duratracs on my 80. They are as quiet as the mesa a/p stock replacment non-offroad tires I was running before. I was really really surprised how quiet they are.

They 'give' quite a bit off road, in fact I typically air down way less than before only to around 25psi, any more than that and it feels a little soft in my opinion. I got in some mud the other week and the traction was really good. I have no complaints so far .

dunno, I bought them so i guess my opinion may be put in the jaded-due-to-purchase category, but I really like these tires and am looking forward to the snow to see what they're like this winter.

 

[Nay]

There is no magic here. Big lugs will always get noisier - it is a straight tradeoff of performance to other tire qualities. The Duratrac outer lugs are nothing new and there is not a computer design in the world that is going to account for rounding and chunking in terms of noise control over time.

Ask somebody who has 20K miles on their Duratracs and 20 or 30 offroad trips similar to the kind you take how they are doing in the noise department. It isn't that hard to make a new MT quiet (Interco did it years ago), but is very difficult to keep it that way if you use them hard on and offroad.

I sell my tires after 3 years usually at about 60% tread life. That provides the ability to run aggressive soft compound tires without suffering too much degradation in overall rubber compound or performance in any area. It is also expensive, but that's life with one set of tires vs. two.

If you want long treadlife and low noise, you pretty much have to stick to a good AT like the TG. There aren't enough miles on Duratracs to suggest they will stay AT quiet over time, and nothing about the outer lug design that implies it would even be possible.

 

[rhyary]

So you guys have forced me to find answers to my own question. But your input has been important.

Since I agree with Nay, I decided that two sets of tires is necessary for me. No matter what tires I get, if I am going to air it down to 15psi and bash it on the rocks, it will be less suitable for the road and will get noisy. This in combination with the MTR not having any sipping for the winter almost forced the decision.

So yesterday, I got four Duratracs from the same place that I bought the MTR in April. The guy was happy to see me .

The MTR are good enough for a wheeling trip and coming back, I'll take noisy there.

The Duratrac will be for my DD use and going to my property which is off-road trails but not sever enough to bother with switching tires. I typically air down to 25 there mainly for comfort.

Now to the main question, are they quieter. The answer is yes after 30 miles. So time will tell once I get 1000 or 2000 miles on them. The are not quite, but the noise is low frequency like the fan of the air condition. It is about even with the engine noise and the wind noise. You can hear the tires!. It is lower than the 4.88 diff noise and lower frequency than the diffs.

The other question is: Are the Duratrac better off road than Nitto TG. This will be answered quickly. When went off the road on my property trails, the Nitto very quickly span around and the LX450 was going no where. The MTR had no problem going through the trails. I have a specific spot that if the Duratrac can move the truck forward, like the MTR can, than they are better than TG. For me! YMMV.

I really hope this helps someone make their own decision.

 

[Corbet]

Now that I've got a few thousand miles on my Duratrac's I thought I'd post up again. I'm very impressed with the winter performance. Mine are studded for the record and 315/75r16 in size. Compared to my old Nitto TG's the noise is equal with the windows up. Windows down I hear the studs. Comfort is great. Drove them to SLC and back over the weekend in some moderate snow. They did great at speed. My subdivision is now snow-packed for the winter. I have good brake control and lateral stability on steep grades.

My only complaint is that the sidewalls seemed very thin when flexing them before mounting. I don't think I'd want to wheel these on a heavy 80 too much in the rocks. I never will as they are my snow tires. But for those thinking about year round use keep it in mind.

All in all, I'd buy them again in a heartbeat for my intended use.