Tire choice - what to do!?

It’s between the usual two suspects - Falken AT/4W or Open Country III. Going on a limited (like it matters), 265/70/17 - 115T.

My driving is on pavement, will be a year round tire and I’m located in Canada - Eastern Canada so we can get a fair bit of snow at times. Which tire will affect performance the least and be the best?

What’s the winner here as the pricing currently for both of these tires is with rebates etc is only $50 more for the Toyo’s.

 

They both rate pretty high from what I've seen on this forum. I personally have the Falken AT/4W, but would go with the one that weighs the least.

 

I dunno what "what's do do" means but I'll 2nd the opinion of getting the lightest tire if have to have an AT tire for on road driving.

If I was exclusively pavement however, I would skip the offroady tires all together and get an 'on road' AT like the Michelin LTX Trail.

To answer your question directly, I liked my Falkens, I like my Mickey Thompsons more, but I had the AT3/W's. Haven't run Toyo's since the original Open Country so not sure of the advancements since then.

 

There ya go, title fixed. Good old auto correct and predictive text input.

Ya the Michelins are the bees knees when it comes to longevity etc but I prefer the off road AT look more.

 

I thought it might be a Canadian phrase I was missing out on haha.

Yep I get the look angle, then yeah the lightest tire you can find with the look you want. That way you'll keep decent road manners and milage. Really though, all of the current generation AT tires make dang fine road tires. Seems the weight is the only thing holding some back.

 

LOL, I'm going in the morning to have the Michelins mounted...
I'm rarely off-pavement so the Michelins will work best for me.

Good luck with your choice. Post pics when mounted.

 

So their both a SL load range, but the Toyo is 7lbs/tire less.. these values are from Tirerack which I feel is a pretty trustworthy place

 

Yep I use Tirerack's specs page even when I don't usually buy from them. They seem to be the only website that consistently posts (correct) tire weights.

And yeah, seven pounds ain't peanuts!

 

Baja Boss AT.
I have the Falken AT4W but they are a very heavy tire and the wet performance isn’t as good as it’s predecessor.

Biggest upside of the AT4W is the beefy sidewall on the E load options. That and the tread life is fantastic compared to my old Nittos.

Still, I’ll be switching to the Mickey Tompson Baja Boss on the next set.

 

I would go with the Toyos personally. The Falkens have a more aggressive sidewall. But, they're heavier and they have a tendency to wear faster from what I've seen.

 

Falken WPs all the way, but also look into Falken Rubitreks if your mostly street

 

Sure, if you don't mind heavy ass tires that wear quickly.

 

I would buy whatever is cheapest. That being said….i have had several sets of BFG KO2's, and most recently Toyo AT3’s. This experience has been across multiple Tacomas, Tundras, Silverados, and most recently two 4R’s. The Toyos OC AT3’s are by far my favorite of the three in severe snow and ice. I have no experience with the Falkens but I have heard several first hand complaints over their road noise

 

Rubitreks in 285/70/17 are only 50 lbs. 265s are 46

Ive always gotten 55-60k out of my tires before replacement.

 

if youre not rotating regularly and keeping up on alignment, thats going to cause road noise. Maybe the Falken AT4 are bad compared to the old line, but never had any issues on my 3 4rnrs.

 

Another vote for Mickey Thompson Baja Boss AT. Were easy to balance, are quiet, and are great in rain & snow.

 

Sorry, I should have specified that I was referring to the Wildpeaks. I hear mixed things about their tread-wear, but mostly bad. And, the weight is a put-off to me.

 

I’m currently running BFG KO2’s, (285/70/r17) they will need replacing soon as the tread is wearing down and taking chunks out of them on the rocks has left them looking torn up. There are a lot of opinions on different tires, I am not wedded to any one brand. One 4x4 shop locally recommends the Falken WP’s. They seem to be quite heavy compared to other tires. There is a Les Schwab near me that pushes Toyo’s. I personally prefer to purchase American made products when they are made well. Too bad we can’t seem to make a long lasting quality body on frame off-road vehicle like our beloved 4R. My question is width of the tire, what are you running? I saw what appeared to be a thought out video on YT university ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wAJAOxh8LE )
Made by a man claiming to be an Engineer, yes I know anyone can claim to be anything on YT. But it has me doing more research on what I should put on my 4R. My 4R is just over the GVRW so any weight cuts, done correctly are always going to be seriously considered.
What are your thoughts on this issue?
Thanks in advance.
Rich

 

Tinkerer's videos are generally super thorough and very well put together. He's one of the only Youtubers that I actually pay any attention to.

Skinnies are pretty popular in my group. I haven't heard anyone complain, or say they wish they'd gone wider.

I'm on 285's and 295's (separate sets), and I'm happy with them for my use. But, I have been considering trying a skinny sometime just for a comparison.

 

Skinnies look funny to me on a 4Runner. They don't look like the right size for the vehicle, IMO.

They do offer some benefits offroad but I don't think enough to warrant making the change, at least for myself.

As far as weight savings with skinnies......I think that's also negligible for the most part. You have to go with E-load on a skinny whereas you can get a lighter SL rated 285.

If you really want to get into the weeds, 285/70/17 are technically "skinnies" to begin with as they are 1" skinnier than a traditional 33", but they do look more proportional with the 4Runners stance.

 

agreed, 285’s!!!