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Tires, Your Most Essential Truck Accessory
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By Debbie Pettitt
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There you are, driving along the highway in your 4X4 when youglance off to the side only to see an oh-so-inviting muddylogging trail. "Can't pass this one up", you say to yourself, asyou tug on the steering wheel and head off to 4-wheeler'sheaven. Next thing you know, you're using your cell phone (if itworks out in no-man's land) to call a tow truck. What happened?In the excitement of the moment, did you forget you still hadhighway tires on your truck? Oops!
Most light trucks come equipped with All Purpose tires, whichare fine for everyday driving. But if you're an offroadenthusiast, you'll want to take the time to find the tire that'sperfect for your offroad adventures. And there are plenty ofoptions.
ALL-SEASON (All-Purpose) TIRES. These tires are adequate fordriving in all four seasons. Most carry an M/S designation(Mud/Snow) but are really meant only for light snow. They don'thave the proper rubber compound for cold weather, nor the opentread block pattern for the traction provided by a snow tire.
ALL-TERRAIN TIRES. These tires are a compromise for those whouse their truck for general daily driving with only occasionaloff-road use. Surprisingly, they are designed with added gripfor "all terrain", dirt, sand, wet surfaces, light snow andlight mud. But they are also good for general highway use andare relatively quiet on pavement. If you're going to be drivingin heavy snow or thick mud, however, you need to move on to atire designed with that purpose in mind.
SNOW TIRES. If you drive in light snow sporadically, you don'tnecessarily need snow tires--all-season tires should do thetrick. But if you live in a severe-weather climate (or do a lotof driving in heavy snow), snow tires are for you. Snow tireshave an open tread block pattern for better traction and shouldbe narrower. More importantly, they are manufactured with arubber compound that is more flexible in cold weather. Thecolder the climate, the less suitable your all-season tirebecomes.
STUDDED SNOW TIRES. These are for icy winter conditions. Theyare "studded" (have metal posts embedded in them), allowing forup to 40% better traction in hard-packed snow and ice than anall-season tire. The downside, however, is the increased noiselevel as well as the fact that traction is decreased on dry andwet surfaces. Beyond that, due to the fact that they tend to"chew up" the pavement, many regions have either banned them alltogether or restricted their use to certain months of the year.WINTER TIRES. Winter tires provide better traction in snowy andicy conditions. Their tread patterns and tread compounds arespecifically designed for winter conditions. These tires performbetter not only in snow, but also in slush and rain. And they'regenerally quieter than the snow tire. Look for thesnowflake/mountain symbol which means they are certified to havemet specific snow traction requirements.
MUD TIRES. If you're mudbogging, you need wide tires with largelugs. The lugs should have deep voids in between to expel themud, allowing for better traction at each rotation. These tires,however, are generally loud on the highway, although you mayfind some exceptions. Mud tires are also good for rock climbing,sand and unpacked snow but do not perform well in icy conditionsor in rain.
Two additional points to keep in mind ... don't try to cutcorners by changing out only two tires. All four tires, whetherthey are snow tires or mud tires, should be the same. Two justwon't do. And while the above list does not include anyparticular brand recommendations, the quickest, most reliableway to choose a good tire brand is to talk to other offroadentusiasts and find out what they're using in your area.
So there you have it. Tires are the most important truckaccessory. Always make sure you have the right tires for theright job and you'll never have to embarrass yourself by callinga friend to come tow you out of an ugly mess.
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