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New Tyres

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mjw1999

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Feb 28, 2011
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Ok i'm looking for a set of 4 new tyres. On looks and quality alone i would just buy a set of BF Goodrich AT, but there is more to my decision than that, mainly Fuel Economy is no1. I know from experience with my hilux mk6 that BFG's will reduce mpg by 10-15% compared with oem's. My driving is all most all road and i tow a caravan regularly. Does anyone have any thoughts on a suitable tyre. Here are a few i have looked at.

General grabber (New) AT These seem more road friendly than the old AT2's.
Cooper Discover ATR
Stick with Grandtrecks?

Any other suggestions?

Thanks in advance.
 
Hi mjw,

I think you know the answer, well the only proper answer is the BFG A/T.
Run then at 38psi.

Because they ate a more substantial construction than the other tyres, they seem to thrive on higher pressures.
I am not sure I agree with the negative fuel economy.
You probably know the side walls on the BFG A/T is 50% thicker than the others, and probably 100% thicker than the Dunlops.

Any way, up to you.
Just my 2p.

G.
 
My experience on the "old" Grabber AT2's running at 36 psi is no drop in fuel economy against the Dunflops. Tough construction (not 100% sure if similar to BFG) and almost identical tread pattern for about 1/3rd cheaper.

I did have an inner side wall puncture whilst driving in chalky/flinty ruts in Wiltshire but would imagine the same fate would happen with the BFG.

Tyres are an emotive and personal choice but just adding an addition 2p to the thread.
 
I seem to remeber the BFG A/T has a third side wall ply, giving it an advantage over the normal 2 ply side walls.

This effectivly gives it 50% more strength, resistance to cuts etc.
I feel the additional side wall ply also resists a lot of the roll when cornering.

G.
 
When i got my cruiser six months ago i automatically thought BFG's as there is no doubt they are the best looking and best constructed 4x4 tyre out there. they transformed the look of my hilux when fitted.
However i am concernedabout:-
1 the rising fuel cost and i think the BFG's do take about 10% of your mpg from experience.
2 Will the 70 profile of bfg's effect my insurance
3 Also i Know that the BFG AT KO will have to be phased out very soon, just like the GG AT2's for the new Euro standards coming in at the end of the year. They are starting to drop off sites like black circles. So i'd be worried about replacing them if one gets damaged as i would be on the lookout for a set of 4 tyres again. At least with the new GG AT's i would have a little backup being a new design.

Thanks
 
Hi mjw,

see my thread in the tyre section - I just went through the same dilemma for my 120 LC5 petrol and ended up choosing the new GG ATs, primarily due to promised better road noise and economy. It was a close call against the BFG's though and you'd probably be very happy with either.
 
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I'll probably be shot down all sorts of ways for this but here goes.
I recently bought 4 new Dunlops (as OEM spec) for mine. Most of my driving is on tarmac and I like to be able to stop on a wet off cambered road mid corner.
The big tough blocks of rubber on the GG or BFG just dont perform as well on tarmac.
The dunlops were grand in the snow ( albeit they were pretty new at the time), the only time I thought I might get stuck was when I ran out of ground clearance (2 foot deep snow, no wheel tracks to follow), I was genuinely amazed how well they coped in the snow. I dont do severe mud or jagged rocks but I do tow off road reasonably often and have yet to get it stuck.
I think the dunlops are an under rated tyre and not half as bad as many make them out to be. If you need a tough tyre with an off-road bias then the GG or BFG is for you but if you're mainly on tarmac, value fuel economy a bit more and perhaps drive a bit quicker than you should occasionaly then the dunlop or equivalent is a safer bet.
I dont buy tyres because they look nice, they are purely functional in my books. Every tyre is a compromise to some degree, weight up what you need from a tyre and then see what suits best.

just my tuppence worth, no doubt others will differ.
 
Well i've done a little digging.
Bfg's
A Great looking Tyre but.
very thin on the ground. Phoned a few dealers today and all are struggling to get hold of them. I mentioned my concerns to one dealer and so he phoned the supplier to get a little info and it seems the BFG AT KO will have to be changed to comply with new Euro legislation very soon. My worry is buying a set of 4 and then damaging one in a year or two with no replacment available. also phoned the insurance and guess what? they will want more money per year! Finally the cost for a supplier who could get for monday was £672 all in fitted.

GG AT's
New tyre (replacement for the AT2), improvements for road use, economy and road noise. Should be around for a good 5 or 6 years so no problem to replace. Readily available next day. good reviews so far and good feedback from my local dealer (i know he is not biased toward GG because he recommended the bfg 18 months ago for my hilux over GG) and finally the price £493 fitted all in and free tracking too.

on looks alone BFG is the winner for my heart and if they were like for like price wise i would say yes. But my head are saying the GG's are a no brainer.

Freddie, do you have any better pics of the grabbers, maybe a nice big shot of them on the alloys with a bit of tyre shine? How much did you manage to get your set of 4 for?
 
Hi Mjw,

just this photo - not cleaned up yet - waste of time where I live anyway...

April11054.jpg


Paid £480 for 4 fully fitted, balanced inc vat etc, plus £30 for mobile fitting.

Put on standard 265/65 R17 so no diff on insurance...
 
Tommo did a brilliant post about the differences between AT2 and BFG which explained the whole 2 vs 3 ply sidewall thing as well.
 
I know that there will be an obvious answer to this query but can I ask why, when a tyre is the the same size as the OEM tyre, the pressure needs to be changed from what the manufacturer recommends? What would be the result of running a General Grabber AT on 29psi? If the tyre is run at a higher pressure how will this affect wear on the tread? I'm curious to know as I will have to think about replacement tyres sooner or later.
 
29 is a bit low? I normally have them at 35 (for some reason, they at 37 when I checked them this morning)
When I had a slow puncture on two of them, they would run down to 16/17 over a couple days. I did not notice this at first but fuel consumption would increase badly with them going low.
35 seems a happy spot.
 
I run the dunlops at 38. I did this because they are going bald around the edges from under inflation, There was about 5mm left in the middle when i got the cruiser so i over inflated to try and average out the wear. Get great fuel economy! :thumbup:
 
Thanks for that info Crispin. The only reason I mentioned 29psi is that it is what Toyota recommend for the original equipment tyres. If 35psi works better in practice then that is the way to go.
 
mjw1999 said:
I run the dunlops at 38. I did this because they are going bald around the edges from under inflation, There was about 5mm left in the middle when i got the cruiser so i over inflated to try and average out the wear. Get great fuel economy! :thumbup:
Click to expand...
All 120s I've seen with the dunlops on eat up the shoulders. Mine chewed up some new ones pretty quickly and they were always at 36psi. A few others I've seen have done the same. Tony's also did IIRC.
 
Yeah mine did the same to the Dunflops. Same is happening to the GG AT2's. Thinking about it it the same on my car too.... I think there is a moral in there somewhere... oh yes that's it, if the traction control is not working when going around a traffic circle then you are not trying hard enough :shock: ;)
 
Just been having a look through my holiday photos and this picture is giving me second thoughts about goodrich.
d48c9c96.jpg

Graham. Do the BFG rub or touch anywhere on a standard no lift cruiser.
 
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