M/Ts in snow?

RatLabGuy

RatLabGuy

You look like a monkey and smell like one too
Joined
May 18, 2005
Location
Churchville, MD
I have a buddy that swears M/T tires would be terrible in the snow. Is this true? I don't have any reason to expect so, but have zippo experience here.

... am starting to think of what my next tires will be...
 
Any specific M/T, or M/T tires in general, compared, to.... say, a Blizzak?

I'd give the nod to a less-aggressive tire until you start talking deep, deep stuff. Then a tire with large lugs and big, easy-cleaning voids will show its strength.

A TSL, BFG MT, Goodyear MT, etc... will be considerably more squirrelly when the roads are barely covered. You get a little snow/slush/ice mix on the ground, and the big lugs can't displace the mix to get down to bare pavement, nor do they have enough biting edges to grab the slippery stuff where it sits.
 
Snow? fine. wet snow/ice? hang on! The big chunky blocks and lack of siping aren't as good as your typical A/T..
 
Get em siped and it will make a world of difference. I got my MT's siped last year just before I spent 2 weeks up in WI last Feb. I am glad I did.
 
In the deep stuff MT's will help ya get going but in ANY winter precipitation stopping is a whole 'nother ballgame. The same is true of any 4wd vehicle, vs 2wd; you may have 2 more wheels pulling/ pushing you, but just as many tires braking and gripping in corners. And with MT's you have less rubber contacting the road due to the large tread voids.
 
Like everyone else said, an AT will be better for light to moderate snow on the road. When it gets deeper, the MT will be better. Siping will definitely help. And yeah, y'all don't get snow down there! You get even less snow that we do in Morganton. Nice thing about Morganton is we don't have to deal with the snow very often, but we can head up 181 or 321 and be playing in it in a few minutes!
 
Joel said:
Get em siped and it will make a world of difference. I got my MT's siped last year just before I spent 2 weeks up in WI last Feb. I am glad I did.
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I agree. I ran the Interco trXus mt's and they were great in the snow and ice with their siping from the factory. The BFG mt's I have on there now are not nearly as stable in the same type of conditions. If we had more regular snows around here, I'd consider getting them siped at a shop.
 
I give another nod to the TRuxs MT's. I ran them on my old Ram 1500. I actually drove better than my wifes XJ with AT's in the big ice storm a few years back. Usually the Jeep feel more secure(lower CG, AT tires?) in the snow than the truck, but in the ice it was the other way around.
 
BUCKETOBOLTS said:
I give another nod to the TRuxs MT's. I ran them on my old Ram 1500. I actually drove better than my wifes XJ with AT's in the big ice storm a few years back. Usually the Jeep feel more secure(lower CG, AT tires?) in the snow than the truck, but in the ice it was the other way around.
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:Rockon: Here's the proof...
awww.supermotors.org_getfile_103945_fullsize_DSCN0165.JPG
 
Well,okay then, there it is. MTs not so good for bad weather aroundhere.
Now, how about rain?
Basically I am thinking ahead about what would be nice to move/upgrade to. My current tires (31" Durango ATs) are pretty much shot, worn funky by PO etc.
Since I honestly don't take the truck off-road that much (hoping that will change!), want something that will be reasonable on-road but still as agressive as possible. Not my DD but still used frequently (weekends etc).
 
Expect some hydroplaning especially if you travel any rutted interstates where water doesn't drain. Once again, siping fixed that problem for me and hasn't been an issue since. It was especially noticeable on I40 where Bus. 40 and I40 split out by Hanes Mall. Winston folks will know what I am talking about.
 
Here's the deal. Mud tires have big lugs and that means big rubber blocks that touch the ground. ATs have a more detailed tread pattern and therefore smaller lugs. In packed snow/slush/rain ATs do better because they can fit in the tread. MTs on the other hand will have a hard time pushing the slush out of the way so that they can get traction on the ground. They have a hard time pushing that slush because the lugs are so large.

However, in fluffy snow and mud they do well because instead of high speed hydroplaning on the highway you're more focused on clearing the gunk out of the tires.

I hope that makes sense but the general concept of pushing rain/slush into all the little grooves vs. cleaning out mud should help you figure out which tire does well in each situation.
 
RatLabGuy said:
Well,okay then, there it is. MTs not so good for bad weather aroundhere.
Now, how about rain?
Basically I am thinking ahead about what would be nice to move/upgrade to. My current tires (31" Durango ATs) are pretty much shot, worn funky by PO etc.
Since I honestly don't take the truck off-road that much (hoping that will change!), want something that will be reasonable on-road but still as agressive as possible. Not my DD but still used frequently (weekends etc).
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thats why i got Super Swampers' RADIAL SSR's instead of TSL's... they are just like TSL's except with Siping in them and i CANT slide anymore unless i floor it around a corner or peel out, even in the rain. they are very agressive but really are a good road tire. they are not the BEST in the mud but they still perform. No one else will agree with me but i think they perform better than my old IROKS. Plus they look real good. mine are 37x12.50 so im sure the sizes your looking for will be even better on road than these
 
i disagree that 4wheel drive doesn't help you stop any better than a 2 wheel drive. if you're talking about using only brakes than true, but in 4 low you have an advantage with engine braking because all 4 wheels will be slowing you down equally. with brakes you will have to lock up the front before you get enough pressure on the pedal to get much braking in the rear. there are many times i've been going down hill in the snow in 4 high and the brakes were'nt effective, but putting into 4 low and use engine braking allowed me to slow down and stay in control.
 
faTJeeper said:
i disagree that 4wheel drive doesn't help you stop any better than a 2 wheel drive. if you're talking about using only brakes than true, but in 4 low you have an advantage with engine braking because all 4 wheels will be slowing you down equally. with brakes you will have to lock up the front before you get enough pressure on the pedal to get much braking in the rear. there are many times i've been going down hill in the snow in 4 high and the brakes were'nt effective, but putting into 4 low and use engine braking allowed me to slow down and stay in control.
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How fast are you going when you throw it into 4Lo?
 
BFG AT
 
For road travel BFG ATs all the way, even in deep snow. The sipes help displace the water but when in the snow it gets pushed in the sipes and then its that is momentarily frozen to the ground as you drive. This is why you can actually have better traction on a hard packed snow covered road.

Be careful engine braking in the snow ice, the best thing is keep a steady pace and maintain momentum on the hills and avoid spinning.
 
i've never had any issues driving in snow or ice, my point is that people always say that 4 wheel drive only helps to get you moving in the snow/ice but doesn't help you slow down any, and i'm saying that's bs.
 
faTJeeper said:
i've never had any issues driving in snow or ice, my point is that people always say that 4 wheel drive only helps to get you moving in the snow/ice but doesn't help you slow down any, and i'm saying that's bs.
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I still want to know how fast you are going when you say you are throwing it into 4lo from 4hi. My TJ and all the other TJ's I have seen don't like going into 4lo unless at a complete stop.
 
I don't even go into 4H unless I come to a compete stop, even though the factory manual says it's safe to do so at 60 mph or less.....
 
rbo1577186 said:
I don't even go into 4H unless I come to a compete stop, even though the factory manual says it's safe to do so at 60 mph or less.....
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I used to do this in my '90 Cherokee all the time, never had any problems w/ it. Of course I was a lot more young, stupid and careless back then.
On that topic, anybody know if you can do this w/ the 80s Toy trucks (moving engagement)? Sicne I've had it I've always stopped first, but that was mostly 'cause I also had to get ou tand lock the hubs too...

Re: tires, sounds like BFG ATs might be a better pic for me since I really do on-road alot more than off. I was just shooting for M/Ts b/c of assumption they were alot better offroad... good assumption?
 
^^^^
I honestly can't remember about the '80s 'yotas. My first vehicle was an '88 Toy 4x4 pickup. I know I used to shift OUT of 4H while in motion, but as speeds less than 15mph or so. I never did it at higher speeds.
 
Somebody shut me up if I'm wrong, but I thought the shifting while in movement had to do with locking hubs. If you have locking hubs DO NOT shift while moving. Without locking hubs the front axles/r+p/driveshaft is already spinning.
 
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