Well I got about 50k out of my BFG TA/KO's and they are getting pretty worn...especially since I have not rotated them in a while and the front are pretty bad. With the coming winter it's time for new tires.

I drive about 15-20k a year (down a bit because I am moving closer to work) and I am an occasional off roader. I go out once a month or so on some local stuff with friends...I also just love to explore and find where things go. Also as a Surveyor I find myslef in the woods and on muddy construction sites quite often. I've been pretty happy with the BFG's but I have been thinking about stepping it up to GY MTR's, the BFG's just suck in sticky stuff.

So I my questions concern the MTR's. How much worse gas milage should I expect? How much louder are they? Do they last as long? And finally, I have heard that they have very good road manners and are almost like AT's except that they will perform better in mud. Any truth to this?

Thanks
Tom

I should also mention that I have 31" tires and a 1.5" budget boost. By the time these tires wear I am hoping to have the truck paid off and I will be in my house (building sucks) so I can finish off the 3" lift.

And I'm gonna add one more question in...I've been considering going up to 32's as well. I know they can fit with a bit more trimming (no big deal) but would I be killing myself even more with gas milage?

Thanks
Tom

Well, agressive tires like the MT/R do take a bit off the mpg...and, MTR's are really rock tires that are better in the mud than the AT's, but not as good in the mud as MT's.



The difference between 31's and 32's is not that big a deal as to gearing, except for the extra trimming, its easy enough.

The AT ko's last a long time, and the larger, the longer they last, as they make fewer rpm/mile, etc.

The MT\R's are a bit softer, and wear a bit faster, but most people seem to get about 40-50 K out of them...but I have 75 K on my AT ko's right now.



They are a bit noisier than AT's, but not noisy for an aggressive tire.

If you are mostly doing mud, the Cooper STT's are sweet, and wear well too, for example. The BFG MT's also hold up pretty well, in the 50k range...and both are better in mud, but worse on rocks, than the MT/R.

Food for thought.

Thanks!

Tom

I went from 31" AT's to 32" MTR's and saw mileage drop a full 2mpg. They also wear considerably faster....In Arizona, the rocks kill tires before the tread is gone, so I can't attest to how many hwy miles you'll get out of them, but I wouldn't expect anything beyond 35-40k, uless you run tires down to bald.

How much trimming you do depends on the rim you run. If you stay with stock rims, you'll probably get by without much. If you go with any more offset, plan on doing significant trimming to the front fender and pinch seam. Mine also rubbed at the top of the rear fenders as well and had to be trimmed there too. This is with a suspension lift and 15x8 rims with 4.5" backspacing.

Going from a BFG AT in 32x10.5 to an MT/R in 32.11.5 didn't really make that much difference in gas milage for me. They are louder, but not too loud either.

One thing that I did notice was that the tuck wandes a bit more with the MT/Rs as I expected, since the MT/R is a more agressive tire than the AT KO, thus road manners might not be as good.

i love my mtrs, besides whats already been stated, i dont really have much else to say. never heard of a tire causing more wander on the road tho. mine dont, atleast not until the front sway bar bushing were destroyed. handling has always been great for me. i have 40,000 on mine now and expect about anouth 10 to 15, the tread on all of them is 9/32nds as of right now. i rotate my tires every oil change tho and have also flipped them from white wall to black halfway thru their life span to even out the cone-ing casued by running wider tires and turning.

if you are doing 15-20,000 per yr (so do i) i woulndt recomm buying mtr's unless your prepared to buy new tires every 2 1/2 years. i have often contemplated running 2 sets of tires, one for wheelin and 1 for street.
im halfway thru buying my second set right now. they are not cheap.

The MTR is a fantastic tire - but it sounds like it is not the tire for you.... they wear out fast and they aren't great in the mud (where they shine is on the rocks).

I'd look into BFG MTs or some other "mud" MT.

ETA: For the most part, MT stands for Mud Terrain - but on the the goodyear MT/R it stands for Maximum Traction / Rocks - if that helps clear things up

I'm currently running 35x12.5-15 MT/R's and I love them. Great traction and nice ride on the street.
They are definitely louder than an A/T tire, but a lot quieter than any swamper or aggressive M/T tire.
I hope I get anywhere near 35k miles out of them. They are really expensive to replace.
Even more expensive if you are running a 16" or 17" rim.