Help..Geo's vx Nitto's?

[drdavidr4u]

Help!!!
I'm in need of tires (tyre's) and have read everyones posts on tires.
For my 2001 18" stock wheels I've narrowed it down to

Nitto Terra Grapplers 285 60 18
or
Geolandres HTS GOh2's in either 285 60 18m or 265

How are these in snow?

All feedback welcome an aopreciated!



Thanks

[mrtew]

My Nittos are pretty good. Not as good as BFG AllTerrain TA's but I feel pretty safe and unstoppable.

[drdavidr4u]

Stupid question.....why didnt you get the "BFG AllTerrain TA's"????

[kpaske]

I've got the Nitto Terra Grapplers - they're a nice cross between on-road capabilities and an aggressive tread for off-road use. I've been running them for over two years (nearly always on-road) and they show little signs of wear.

I'm guessing they are also cheaper than the BFG's.

[dog]

4 265/60HR-18 Yokohama Geolandar H/T-S G052 In Stock $113.00 $452.00

I put these on earlier this year. A little wider and taller than stock. They look good. Quiet and nice grip at highway speeds. I still haven't had enough snow to test them out. But I do know they work well at -5. I'm anxious to test them in snow and see if the wider tire creates a problem. I will post when the snow comes.

[coachreed]

Not that I've gotten to drive my VX a bunch in the last year, but during the snows that I drove mine with the Nitto's Terra Grapplers, I was VERY pleased with their performance... I was comfortable and confident doing 70 mph down the snow covered highway that had people driving like scared little biotches... I stopped to help a few people in the deep snow and was able to just pull back out into the stuff that had them stranded without problem. They also perform very nicely off-road (dirt, mud, and over rocky terrain). Of course, even though my Terra Grapplers are nearly new, I plan to treat my VX to a nice pair of Mud Grapplers as soon as she hits the road after her heart transplant. When that time comes, I plan to offer them up at a DEEPLY discounted price... could be a while though.

Good luck with your tire shopping and choice.

Coach... I mean Randy (I often forget who I really am) ;)
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[mrtew]

Originally posted by drdavidr4u
Stupid question.....why didnt you get the "BFG AllTerrain TA's"????


Well, the main reason is because they don't make them for our 18 inch wheels! At least one person here has them on black 16"s though and they look fantastic. I'm sure if they made them in our size half the people here would get them because they are the best truck tire ever made! IMHO

[t2p]

I also like BFG All Terrain TA's ....... they really worked well for me in deep snow. I was able to get through heavy deep snow while others were getting stuck. Unfortunately, I still needed to help them dig out ..........
.
I'm not familiar with the Nitto or Geo - but I do like the looks of the Nitto. Most people give them high marks.
.
I went the 'other route' with the tires on my VX. I have 255-55 all season ('semi performance') type tires on it. They compliment the characteristics (handling) of the VX well.
.
Someday, I may get another set of wheels and then will install something more aggressive and more suited to snow for use during the winter months.

[Hanalei]

I recently bought Geo G052's on www.tirerack.com for $135/ea., 255/55/18. The ride quiet and comfortably. My other reason for getting them was for their excellent snow rating. Also, they look nice on the VX.

[drdavidr4u]

Coachreed,
What size are your Nitto's Terra Grapplers? Are they stock wheels? Is your truck lifted?
Thanks for the help,
Dave

[mrtew]

Pretty much everyone gets the Nittos in 285/60/18 which is the largest that will fit on the stock wheels without lifting the truck. They ususally require you to trim the corner off the inside of the front bumper to keep them from rubbing, but it only takes 30 seconds with a pocket knife and it totally undetectable. Check out pictures of the Yokos and the Nittos in my gallery. The Nittos are the ones that look like truck tires and the Yokos are teh ones that look like sportscar tires.

[t2p]

Some/many will recommend against a wide tire for snow use ...... because of the 'supposed' tendency to 'snowplow' ......
.
having said that, I have never had an issue with poor performance from a wide tire in snow - not one with sufficient tread ........

[drdavidr4u]

Thank you everyone for the great input!


"I have never had an issue with poor performance from a wide tire in snow - not one with sufficient tread ........"

T2p...I was wondering about this since I dont want to have 2 sets of tires!
What is the widest with good tread you have run successfullly in snow?


DOES ANYONE ELSE HAVE INPUT AND EXPERIENCE OF THEIR OWN RUNNING GOOD TREAD 265 OR 285'S IN THE SNOW?

BITE OR SLIDE?

THANKS!

[autox-racer]

I have the nitto grapplers..285's.. and they do pretty good in the snow considering they are not a snow tire. They have a wide foot print and big tread blocks which are not ideal for snow.

we just got 10 inches of snow last week and I went out and played a little as I did last year also. I stopped several times in the deep powder and was able to take off without spinning the wheels.

If you drive A LOT in snow then you should get a snow tire as they have excellent traction because they have very soft rubber and a lot of sipping(slits) for bite. Detroit gets snow many times each winter and I feel the nittos are fine for my use. It would be nice to have snow tires when I drive on the highway up north for snowboarding trips but the nittos are good enough because I don't want 2 sets of tires either.

[t2p]

dd4u:
.
ran 10.50's mostly ........
.
also ran 265's .......... I believe a 265 is around 11 inches ..........
.
Both worked very well.
.

[webdog]

The best snow tires I have tried are studless Michelin Alpin 4x4. Mine are 265/70/16. See my gallery (Snow tread). They work great in deep snow and on ice. The tread is about 8.5 inches wide.:D

[Chopper]

Just put huge Nitto ?Grapplers? and Weld wheels on an H2. The MOST weight required to balance any wheel was .5 oz.! One balanced out of the box!! Never in 30 years have seen anything like it. These were HUGE tires. The manager at the Goodyear shop came out to check. Nitto.... hmmmm....They got my attention.

[Cobrajet]

Last winter I ran new 285-55-18 Pirelli Scorpion Zeros. They sucked in the snow. I'm embarrased to say that I had to be pulled out of a ditch after a wheel lockup and slide down a hill. I swore I wouldn't let that happen again. I just got Blizzak DM-Z3 265-60-18 mounted on the stock rims. No snow yet, but I will post my review after a couple days of winter weather commuting.

[TechnoPope]

Three weeks ago I installed the H/T-S GO52 265/60/18 on the stock rims. This last week provided a good test of their snow capability as I drove around central and northern Ohio. Since they seem to lean toward street performance, I was surprised when they performed much better than I expected in the cold precip. In both low and high gearing, they were able to consistently clear the snow and provide solid traction. However, maybe due to their width, they slid a bit in tight corners on snow and wandered/plowed a bit in heavy slush. I was also concerned that the extra width would increase hydroplaning. Before the cold weather hit, they easily cut through some long deep puddles on the road. My dry road and highway experience was very similar to Dog's description above and in the other Geolander thread. With spirited cornering on dry pavement, they seem to have a slightly softer feel when compared to the OEM tires. I added a few more pounds of air to stiffen them up. As I expected, the handling did change as they tend to jump around more in road ruts than the more narrow stock tires. So far, these are one of the best multi purpose tires that I have owned. The wide tire and tread design look great on the VX.

Just for fun, I took my other VX out into the snow with its Kumho Ecsta shoes. I had so little control it was scary. That one will stay parked until I get some good winter tires. I look forward to hearing how the Blizzak tires perform.

[TechnoPope]

Cobrajet,
How have your Blizzaks been performing?

[mbeach]

The best snow tires I have tried are studless Michelin Alpin 4x4. Mine are 265/70/16. See my gallery (Snow tread). They work great in deep snow and on ice. The tread is about 8.5 inches wide.:D

I have the 255/55 r18 version of these tires. Excellent snow grip, but one tire is literally falling apart (chunking). All 4 will be gone soon. I bought the vehicle used, so I don't know what the previous owner subjected the tires to, but 3 look just fine and one looks like big dogs have been chewing on it...

Has anyone here taken a set of aggressive off-road/mud tires and had the treadblocks siped for snow use? I've advocated this process on other boards and was wondering if it had caught on here. In Alaska I ran 10" Mud Terrains during the winter -after siping the treads they were awesome (this was on a heavy F250). I've also siped all-season tires to get some winter facility out of them rather than toss them into the trash (small AWD car) -the results were well worth the time/effort.

TechnoPope -I think that I've seen you around town (by Nationwide last week) a few times. I'd like to meet up and take a look at your gas door -mine isn't seating correctly and I need a good one to look at. Oh, I live in Grandview too.

[MachineVX]

When I had my BMW, the Blizzaks outperformed the Michelin Alpines I had by quite a bit.

I desperately need to replace the stock tires and am looking for something with a road bias. Think the Geolanders 052 are how I'm gonna go. People with them, how are they for handling in the dry?

[TechnoPope]

mbeach
I sent you a PM with my numbers.

[mbeach]

<Hijack on>
Got it and responded, thanks again!
<Hijack off>

[johnny]

I have the Nitto's also and I'mm looking forward to the weekends' snow. What tire pressure are most using on the 285-60-18's Nitto's.

[ISCE]

I am running my grapplers at 38, it should be a good weekend for us to give them a good run in the snow. I've had them in light and deep mud as well as on dry dirt and they did great. I've been very happy with them and they appear to be wearing well.

[shoota77]

I got the Geo's GO52's on last week...I am very impressed with the performance across the board. Great dry traction, in light snow, etc. We're supposed to get quite the storm in boston tomorrow so i'll let you know how they handle in that...