Winter Tires or Vehicle Handling Differences?

2021 SR5P
Hi. My eyes are crossed trying to figure out the best tires for "me", on here.

Short story: I have not enjoyed driving my new 4r this winter due to sliding on snow and ice.
What tires would be best for:
winter; non-winter long distance gravel mountain roads; everyday paved and freeway use?
Quiet or smooth ride not important.
Thanks
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Long story:

Request:
I would appreciate your more experienced thoughts on my tire choice or what I believe I am experiencing.

Driving: I am not a new driver and have lived with harsh winter driving conditions in both Wyoming and Idaho mountains. I also understand very well that 4wd does not make up for sensible driving - I am not a speed demon nor a stupid driver.

Issue:
Bought a new 2021 4r last fall and replaced the factory Dunlop Grandtek AT20s with highly recommended (4+) BF All Terrain T/A K02 (285/70r/17- lift installed)
I am extremely disappointed and have not enjoyed driving my new 4r over the winter.

We have experienced a variety of winter conditions from wet, black ice, slush, snow/ice, ice and light snowpack this winter. I have not driven in or over any real mountains yet.

It feels to me that I am sliding (excessively sometimes) at some point on each of those conditions...even basic wet roads. I also spent time driving around with or without 4wd to feel the differences.

Background:
I am comparing my driving new 4r experience with the truck I replaced it with. I drove a 2007 F-150 Super Crew since 2009. I have always had very good tires on my vehicles but have had to ask for advice since now buying myself (post divorce). The last tires "I", put on them were from Les Schawb Back Country MT LT 265/70R/17.

Concern/whine/frustration: I feel like my F-150 handles better in the type of winter conditions I have experienced this last winter than my 4r has been.

other tidbits:
Have realized that I really did not know the questions to ask about these BF A/T tires for the 4r.
I do know I explained my use and what I was running on my F-150, but not so sure the recommended tires are what I really need.
I do not care about noise or smoother ride; I am used to driving a truck I bought my Back Country F-150 tires for driving on long distance gravel roads and mountain driving a few times a year; otherwise, normal town and freeway driving.

I feel like my 4r is kinda floaty on the road ... is that from the suspension system being different than what I am used to? - I still feel it or just not used to it yet?

Would the suspension(?) or the lift cause traction differences in the tires?

Thank you,
kat

 

For winter driving you can't beat a dedicated winter tire. I use a Bridgestone Blizzak on my Subaru in winter in N Idaho. I have about 10 miles of round trip dirt roads to and from the highway. These roads become pure sheet ice and the Blizzaks handle them pretty well. My normal all season tires on the Subaru are horrible on this stuff. It's a night and day difference. I'm going to get a set of these Blizzaks for the 4R that I just got and put them on another set of wheels for winter use:

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Bridgestone&tireModel=Blizzak+DM-V2&partnum=67R7DMV2&vehicleSearch=true&fromCompare1=yes&autoMake=Toyota&autoYear=2022&autoModel=4Runner&autoModClar=TRD Off-Road

You should look for a set of OEM 4R wheels which have the correct offset so you don't have to worry about rubbing with 265/70R17 tires. I got a set on Ebay.

 

If you can, get another set of rims and a set of dedicated snow tires that you can swap out between seasons. Blizzaks are the most well known option. My wife has Micheline X-Ice on her Outback and it's absolutely unstoppable now, I highly recommend them

 

I run two sets of wheels. Summers are Toyo AT3 with 3pkmsf just in case and winters set are Michelin latitude xi2 which go on start of November thru end of March typically. Depends on season of course as temperatures vary year to year.

Dedicated winter tires beat any other A/S and AT severe winter rated tire in stopping distance because of the compound. I would not venture with them off road though as they aren't as armored being typically P rated. My Michelin's are quiet and the gas mileage is great compared to my ATs. They also have a 50K mile warranty and run great as an A/S tire with temps below 50F.

 

With my experience with 4Runner -

Different tires provide different advantages. Eg BFG KO2 perform extreamly well on rocks, deep snow and most trail condition over my Falken Wildpeaks and Goodyear Wrangler Duratracs. Mud and Ice has lesser performance -



Goodyear Wrangler Duratracs are great on snow and ice. As you can see it grabs snow better than Falken Wildpeaks resulting better grip. But Goodyear Wrangler Duratracs does not have better grip on general trail use like BFG KO2. Falken Wildpeaks are value for money. They are cheap and generally do good work but not good as BFG KO2 on trails or not good as Goodyear Wrangler Duratracs on snow and ice.





My suggestion is , since you picked BFG KO2 enjoy your performance on trails and and don't expect it to perform i winter on ice like a dedicated winter tire. Me personally here in Denver CO winter tire does not work unless I change tires in my garage even with in the week because of the high temperature fluctuation. Eg last weekend it was 70F and Monday is was snowy as above pic shows. And again this weekend it will be mid 60s. I winter tires should be used 45F below.

Edit -

Forgot most important thing. Most tire shops put 40psi atleast for me when I put new tires on my 4runner and when I come home I put it back around 34psi which is my preference.

Also want to point that there are some I meet while wheeling here in CO who run M/Ts which provide far better traction offroad than A/T tires and they run the same in winter and be extra careful, keep more gap between vehicle and drive safe.

 

I would agree with some of the comments here: Get a dedicated winter tire, such as a Bridgestone Blizzak DMV2 (that is what I put on my truck immediately during this past winter when I purchased it).

It is totally worth it. The compounds are designed to operate at low temps. They are free in some sense (ie, the miles you put on them are miles you are taking off your summer tires). The increased safety and handling is worth it.

Then get a nice summer tire, I just bought some Cooper Discoverer AT3 LTs. Good road worthiness and fine offroad performance. Notice I went with the LTs, not the 4S. If you compare the tires the 4S version is very similar but it has more sipings, which means more treadwear and road noise (maybe?) on asphalt. Also the 4S appears to have more tread blocks (similar but smaller than the LT). Mostly I want road comfort and I have had the Cooper Discoverer ATP IIs before and I like them a lot.

I ran the TA/KO2s before. When they were new they were ok, but when worn down they were very noisy and the snow performance sucks.

Oh also, I would not mess with studded snow tires. Studs really only improve performance on sheer ice, unless that is what you are driving on all the time studs are not worth it in my opinion. They are noisy and they wear out and damage your favorite smooth asphalt roads.