Hi all! I will be in the market for sone new tires real soon and need some opinions/thoughts. I do not think that I can get "The perfect tire" but I will list what I want in a tire. My JKU is my DD but I do want to wheel with it. I plan on going with 315/75r16s or 35/12.50r15(more limiting, but less expensive, i have 3.73 gears and dont really want to change that if possible)

MUSTs - Excellent traction in rain, decent in snow, off-road worthy for rocks, sand, water, some mud (currently in FL, moving to TN next year), and #1 must = safe for my 2 & 4 yr olds

Would LIKE - beefy sidewalls, lowest weight possible, to pay less than $300/tire (know this wont always be possible)

Don't care about - street noise, how they balance (Im not doing this myself)

Any input on anything would be appreciated.

 

Assuming you have the 3.8L you will probably want to re-gear if you are going to 35s. I just went to 35s on my Rubicon (4.10s/Auto) and it is slow, tuff to maintain 75 on the freeway even on flat roads, but I do live in Colorado. 35s have been on for 2 weeks, I thought it would be livable, and it is but its not enjoyable. I just set up an appointment today for 5.13s. I know Florida is pretty flat and at sea level for the most part so maybe you will have better results. If it is hilly where you are moving to in Tenn. you might want to think about gears, or consider it in a year when you move.

Also I went to a 15 inch wheel when I went to 35s. It was cheaper doing 15inch wheels and tires than doing 17inch 35s, plus spacers on stock wheels. I did 99 dollar Alloy wheels from Discount Tire (Level 8 Tracker) you would save even more doing soft 8 steel wheels. Just food for thought, there are pro's and con's to both larger and smaller wheels obviously.

Goodyear Duratrac sounds like a good tire for you if it is a daily driver and you want good wet/snow traction and something to take offroad of course.

I am also a fan of the Cooper ST Maxx I had them on my Liberty and they were great in the snow and off road and ran good on the street. I am running goodyear MT/Rs on the JK but I just wanted off road performance. They have not been loud and seem to ride very nice on the road.

Good luck!

 

Yea, im thinking the 315s, being slightly smaller would be better for my gears. Thanks, any tire opinions?

 

I gave you a couple recommendtions

 

If you're looking at the Duratrac's then consider the Kelly TSR's and Fierce Attitude's.


In all reality- there are already a TON of tire threads and if you can't find the info you're looking for then ask a more specific question. You'll get a ton of recommendations for the mtr, km2, duratrac, and trail grappler.....surprise, surprise. I just summed up the next 25 responses in a single line.

I'm against the grain- I went with claws and really enjoyed them. You may find that the guard dog retreads serve your purpose better. I would dare say you'll be hard pressed to find a new tire that isn't "safe". The folks who make tires are using playdough and duct tape to put these things together.

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I currently run 35s with 3.21 gears. It is a dog on starts but it is livable. I really don't think it is all that bad. Saying that, I will be regearing in the future, but not for on-road reasons.

I have 15' wheels with km2s. Must say that I really like them. Can't speak to the other tires because I haven't run them but the km2s are not a bad tire and will do what you are asking.

 

Wow, I think I was half asleep thanks for the input thanks to everyone else as well.

 

The guard dog retreads are interesting. Anyone run these? Anyone know about their sidewalls?

 

Many people run them with great reviews. From my understanding of recent discussions on them- you call them and specify which sidewall you want but they are all made to minimum safe standards. Most of their guard dogs seem to use the bfg all terrain carcass.

Also (since safety is paramount) I've not heard of a blowout on them though they are retreads. Issues on semi's with retreads aren't typically issues for us (overloading, low pressure at freeway speeds, multiple retreading beyond recommended, etc)

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I was heavily swaying toward coopers or mtrs but the weight is crazy (20 lbs more each tire). The retreads look like the have great grip.