Which Tires for occasional mud?
 

I have an '06 Ram 2500 diesel Quad Cab and want to get new tires for it. It has Goodyear Wrangler A/T tires now (265/70R17). They still have plenty of tread on them and they handle great on the road, but can't handle even a little mud. Granted I live in Virginia and the mud here is pretty wicked (red clay), but having a big ass truck that has trouble getting off a wet lawn is just plain embarrassing. No serious off roading, and 99% of my driving is on paved roads, but I do drive it around the farm etc (if it's not stuck in the mud). Thinking about a better AT tire, like the BF Goodrich, but I'm afraid it wouldn't be much of an improvement. I also looked a the BFG MT KM2's, but worry about their street performance. The Toyo Open Country MT's seem to be a good balance. Aggressive mud shucking treads and siping for slippery pavement. Any thoughts on these or any other tires? AT or MT? Anything else I should do to improve traction (ie sandbag the bed)? I don't want to sacrifice street performance, but I also don't want to have to stay away from mud.

I have gotten pretty good mileage out of my Hancooks, off road very good, not too noisy on the road , hold the weight good {not to much sidewall flex} when towing. Going to get another set.

Yup Hankook ATM's I love mine and sell tons of them.

Bridgestone Revo II is another option...great snow tire as well...

Toyo just came out with a new AT that is called the Toyo AT 2. From what I have read they are better the the first AT they had with more of a sidewall tread for added traction and they are now a 10 ply like the MT's. I have the MT's on my truck right now and the old reason I went with those if for the 10 ply. When they wear out I will go with the AT 2. Also these tires have a 60K mile warranty.

You could always go with the tried and true BFG A/T TA KO

Or could look into the Goodyear wrangler duratrack.. Oct heard nuthin but good things about these tires, they perform n snow and mud.. they're mainly a at for work trucks

Sounds like you guys think a good AT is the way to go for me. I was kinda hoping somebody would tell me how great the Toyo MT's were on the road. They look sweet and I kinda want to check them out. I guess I wouldn't be the first person to get mud tires mostly for looks. Would I notice a significant difference in handling between the AT and the MT on the road? This isn't a daily driver btw.

I never liked the old AT's. The Mt's are decent tires, but the price hurts. I would like to try the new AT 2's.

Nitto Terra Grapplers are quiet, smooth ride, work well in pretty much everything.

I currently have Nitto terra grapplers right now i like mine

WHATEVER YOU DO, DO NOT GET BF GOODRICH ... im not sure which style they are but they are nothing but ROCK THROWERS! Shittiest tires ive ever had... I cant believe they'd make a tire with closed pockets like that. Any name brand tire is good so long as its a Mud "Radial" Meaning it does have grip in offroad situations but still quiet enough while driving down the road that it doesnt sound like a road train. Ive yet to buy an over size set of tires mud radial but do plan on it for this truck. Id go straight mud tires for the looks but they do have an irratating hum not that I could hear it over my subwoofer and straight pipe exhaust but some people do prefer a radial which is quiet but mud radial for those who want something semi quiet and still good in the mud... just throwin that out there. Try to stay away from the newer brands especially if you dont know much about them or dont have friends that could give you input because every tire is gonna handle differently and wear differently in certain situations.

Do you get any snow/ice? Mud tires tend to SUCK on slippery roads...

For that little amount of offroad a would say cooper discoverer AT 3's i had a set of those stock size and they rarely let me down. I went with Nitto trail grapplers (MT) they perform very well on the highway, not that loud for a big ass mud tire. Really Really good offroad, never left me stuck anywhere. Only problem is the lack of grip on a wet road. they spin like nothing, and the rear end slides out of i i take a corner and hit the lines in the road in the rain

i have nitto trails on my 06 actually on my second set of them and they are great very little road noise and last pretty well on pavement i live in fairbanks alaska and even on ice without siping they are ok my buddy has toyo open country mt and they are the feel the exact same as the nittos andother good set is the goodyear wrangles they do really well up here also those are the 3 brands i would go with and just depends on what you can get cheaper

Actually just installed a set of the Open Country MTs on a Jeep today. They replaced a set that the guy already had on there. He said he loved them FWIW.

I swear by BFG AT's have had them on every diesel I have owned. Just put the KM2's on my ford and now I have a shredded fender from a belt separation. Everyone I have talked to has had similar problems with them. So my dodge is rolling on AT's. Pro Comp has got some nice looking tires as well

Well, I do get some snow and ice and obviously rain, so I don't want anything that's going to be dangerous on the road in those conditions. I thought the Toyo MT's would be ok on slick pavement since they have some good siping. Maybe not enough though. How about the Mickey Thompson Baja ATZ? Not quite as aggressive as a true mud tire but more so than a traditional AT. They bill it as a hybrid between an AT and an MT. Looks good. Has more siping than the Toyo MT. Also looks like it has bigger gaps than the BFG AT, for example, so it should be better in the mud. Any experience with the Mickey Bajas?

I have worn Toyo MT's on my truck right now, and they are ok. There is maybe 30% left in em. On ice, you have to be in 4x, but as far as rain and light snow I cam bomb 2wd.

I'd rock em brand new if they were not so pricey.

toyo open country

Personally I would stay away from Terra Grapplers. I had them on my half ton ford and they weren't good in the snow which was an issue for me in Pennsylvania winters. We had heavy clay were I lived there and I quickly found out Terra Grapplers couldn't throw that clay to clear the treads to save their life. I would look into coopers or another true mud terrain tire.

The Goodyear Dura Trac's are excellent tires all around. It's the only rubber my truck gets, same for a half dozen of my buddies with diesels.

So far I really like my Pro Comp Extreme All Terrains

got the duratracks and love them. spent lots of time off road in the mnts in mud and snow

I have nitto trail grapplers on my 03. Hold up weight of truck with minimul wear and just as good when I towed my 5th wheel camper and enclosed car trailer. They'll tear through the mud with no issues. Gret tires in my opinion.

BFG KO's hold up pretty well

Im on my 2nd set of 35 12.50 BFG KM2s and have had no problems... I will admit I do drive my '11 1500 Outdoorsman when its icy though, the traction control makes it a lot better than the 05.