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[Limedust]

Come this fall, I will need new tires for my truck. It originally came with Goodyear Wranglers (31" x 10.5", R15), and at 54,000 miles I replaced them with the same thing. I've gotten another 50,000 out of these tires so far, and I'll need to replace them before winter to stay safe.

I'm happy with the wear I've gotten out of the Wranglers, but they are LOUD AS FUCK when driving at highway speeds. I never really paid much attention before because I usually just blast the radio, but now that I do a lot more driving with my girlfriend it's become quite evident. I don't do much off-roading anymore, so I'm not concerned with having an off-road style tire as replacement. My main concerns for new tires are tread wear, handling on wet and icy conditions, and noise. They don't have to look pretty either.

If anyone has had good experience with a particular brand that fits those requirements, I'd appreciate any suggestions. I know several manufacturers list their own ratings for noise, wear, and handling, but I'm more apt to follow others experiences.

 

[Lucky Forward]

I have a '99 Dodge Dakota that came with Goodyear Wranglers. I got 65,000 miles out of them, but I was never happy with the rain and snow performance. Based on my brother's recommendation (he's driven pick-ups for over twenty years) I replaced them with Cooper HT tires last fall. The truck handles great now, I feel much more confident driving it in the rain, and the Coopers handle the snow just fine, provided that (as always) I weight the bed down with concrete blocks and some firewood.

I never noticed much road noise with the old Wranglers (they must have been a different model from yours), but the Cooper HT's have a hum to them whenever I turn the wheel to any degree. Straight ahead at highway speed, they are fine. I've gotten used to this, and I'm willing to trade it off for the superior traction and handling they provide. Cooper also makes an AT tire with a more aggressive tread for off-road driving.

You might have more luck getting advice if you go to a truck forum and do a search on tires. Here's one for starters, I'm sure there are others for Ford and Chevy as well:

http://www.dodgedakotas.com/board.htm

 

[Limedust]

Lucky Forward:

I drive a 2000 Dodge Dakota (Sport, 2-door Club Cab, 4x4, 4.7L, auto). I have been looking at Coopers, as I used to drive an '85 GMC Jimmy (4x4, with the anemic 2.8L V6) that I put Coopers on (even the same size at 31" x 10.5", R15). They do handle very well and those are my backup should I not find a better option.

Good forum suggestion, and I've used the archives on dodgedakotas.com for some background information on an A/C blower problem I fixed last year. It turned out that the front dashboard ground strap came loose which would cause the blower fan to intermittently cut on and off. Easy to fix when I finally figured it out.

 

[Drinky Crow]

I need some better tires for my Ranger -- the stock ones are slippery and suck all kinds of ass in WA rain, plus they just ain't equipped for logging roads. I have the 4.0L V6 4x4 XLT -- any recommendations?

 

[Limedust]

Doug: How are you liking your new truck (aside from the tires)? Sounds like you went for a bigger engine and 4WD over what you initially spec'd out.

If this thread dies a quick death again, then I'll try to dig it up and post my findings and choice when it actually comes time to buy the replacements.

 

[Drinky Crow]

Ain't bad. I was intending to try and save a few extra bucks by not getting features I didn't need, but when I got to the lot, I decided I wanted the better performance given that I'd hafta tow my dad's boat plus I'd rather sacrifice a little gas mileage to get some perky acceleration in traffic.

Outside of the ostentatious grill (and of course the crappy resell value, but since I intend to keep the truck if only just for gardening/hauling needs it ain't an issue), it's a nice little ride. Really quick. Needs better tires, though, and I'd like some decent running boards for it. I know, I know, I shoulda bought a Tacoma, but since I get a nice discount on Ford products through a plan at work, I just went the route that saved me $5K instead.

 

[Limedust]

WISE FWUM YAW GWAVE!

Okay, I said I’d post my decision, and here are the finalists. All of them received excellent user feedback from everything I’ve read. Not surprisingly, the Goodyear Wranglers that I’m replacing got universally panned. Shipping is way too expensive for me to order online, but www.tiresavings.com seems to stock a lot of variety, and I’ve used it as a good basis for what to expect to pay locally. All comments and criticisms are accepted, so FUCKING POST!

Tire size: 31” x 10.5” with 15” rim

Cooper Discoverer A/T
http://www.coopertire.com/us/en/ProductDetails.asp?ProdType=LtTruck&id=21&title=Light+Truck+Tires

The Cooper website is useless outside of having tire sizes and good pictures of everything, but outside reviews are all good. This is more of an all-terrain tire compared to what I was originally targeting, but I like it anyways, and it looks like it would really help out when the annual ice/snow storm hits. Tiresavings.com sells it for $88.

Cooper Discoverer H/T
http://www.coopertire.com/us/en/ProductDetails.asp?ProdType=LtTruck&id=22&title=Light+Truck+Tires

This one leans more to the all-season type tire that would suit the highway driving and commuting I do, with a little less off-road ability that the A/T. Looks like a good do-everything replacement. Tiresavings.com has them for $99.

Yokohama Geolandar H/T-S (Standard Fitment G051)
http://www.yokohamatire.com/TireIntro.asp?TireID=18

The Yokohama site link has a ton of information, which I like, and covers every concern and question I have. Every user rating I find seems to rate this as one of the best. Tiresavings.com shows $83 a pop.