Toyo: Open Country A/T Not impressed.

[Newf Limo]

Toyo Open Country A/T 265/75/16 load range E



I have to say, out of the past 12 years that I have been getting reccomendations here on the TDR, this is the only one that missed the mark. I could say that these tires are the worst ones I have had, but that isn't quite true, but close, and isn't really informative. So, I will try to explain...



Road Noise: There is an awful drone at 65 MPH plus. Granted, I have a new set of centrimatics, so I haven't been able to prove that it is all just the tires. If I put the truck in neutral and coast, the drone does not go away.



Traction: Damp grass, out in the pasture... I actually got stuck for the first time since I have owned this truck, even though it has been places that are stupid to go. My neighbor came over to help pull the truck up the minimal grade. I had an empty dump trailer attached to the truck (a small one) so, utilizing my 4310 John Deere tractor we would quite easily pull the truck up the little hill. The first question he asked when he looked the situation over... "What the heck are you stuck on, I'm not sure I get it?!?"



I couldn't go backwards, as I was filling a big hole with dirt. My old BFG's had been there plenty of times in actual bad conditions, and never got stuck, or came close.



Snow Traction: Truly awful. I have driven through blizzards and ice storms and never felt a lack of confidence with the BFG's and even the original Michelin LTX. I feel I have to really keep after the Toyos.



Side wall strength: Around these parts, the roads are often narrow, windy and lined by thick woods. It is not uncommon to have a vehicle, round the bend in front of you, taking his half of the road 'out the middle'. Maximizing your space by moving to the edge of the road and leaving your right side tires half on and half off of the pavement is usually just enough to keep you from swapping paint with the oncomming vehicle.



That has never been a problem with the BFG TA KO's. With the Toyo's, any time I get near the edge of the asphalt, it is like I just get yanked off the road! It is abrupt, annoying and dangerous. I have experimented with various tire pressures. It is a little better at rock hard full PSI, but not enough to justify the hard ride. Even my larger BFG's aired down a bit didn't do this.



These tires wander a bit, but my truck is older, and though it has good ball joints, I am sure there is a little loosness to it. I did notice the difference right after having the old, bald, BFG's removed and the new Toyo's put on, so you cannot blame the truck for everything. The steering didn't become unusually loose in that 2 hour span.



Conclusion: Since I have plans of pulling a 4 horse trailer (when my lotto number finally hits, or the economy improves) I decided to down size my tires from the 285/75/16 BFG TA KO "E" tires to the 265/75/16 Toyo Open Country AT "E". I figured the lower profile would give me more lateral stability (anti-sway), especially when pulling a Gooseneck horse trailer. I have no doubt that that will not be the case.



In short, there is no way I could afford to drop another grand for new tires right now. If I could, I would dump these tires and return to the BFG's. I have been a little un-happy with tread wear life of the BFG, but every other aspect of the tires were remarkable. My only real fear with these Toyo's is that the tread wear will be so good that I will be stuck with them forever. Honestly, I hope they suck there as well.



This has been my experience, your mileage may vary.



Hope this helps anyone looking at tires. It may be a different opinion than what is typical, but it is an opinion none the less.



Good Luck



Dennis

 

[04blackcherry]

Good real world stuff. I have watched this site as many people have talked favorably about the Toyos and it kinda sounds like the tire of choice for a lot of people. I can only go by what a couple of friends use on their trucks and that is the BFG AT KO. The one friend drives logging roads every day. All his Cummins Dodges get BFG's. I have the 315's on my '04. The only thing I have issue with is having to take them to the tire store to have them rotated, because by then they need to be rebalanced. It could be just the tire size that causes that. I also feel very secure on top of the BFG's and absolutely swear by them on my Ford Rangers. My 315's are "D" rated but have high load ratings. For a long bed quad cab, I take corners without braking that I can't do with the Rangers. I don't believe the BFG's are going to win a longevity contest but I have been satisfied with them. In my area they are a better value , pricewise, than the Toyos. It is a free country. This is one of those topics that gets a little personal sometimes and would be better discussed over open hoods admiring diesel engines and drinking a cold beverage.

 

[Newf Limo]

You know Rob, you're right. I've grabbed a cold beverage, and my laptop and am writing this from the fender of my truck. It's true, this is sooo much better! Damn! Is that a power steering leak??? ROB!!!

 

[Jeff Knight]

I have BFG's on my truck and the wifes expedition. From my experience these have to be the worse tire I have ever owned. My wife feels the same about hers. We won't be putting BFG on any of our vehicles again... Jeff

 

[04blackcherry]

Jeff. Please educate us. I think we would like to know why you feel that way about BFG's and what tires you do like. I believe constructive discussion about a subject is the beauty of the TDR. Agree to disagree is a good thing.

 

[SHovis]

I have had good luck with the Toyo AT in 285/70/17 in everything except longevity. Really good in the snow, really good on wet pavement, good on dirt and gravel (don't see a lot of mud). But, at 25k miles they are at the wear bars. I am replacing them with Bridgestone Dueler Revo 2's, which I've had good performance from in the past.



Steve

 

[AH64ID]

Very interesting results, quite the opposite of what I experianced with my toyo's, on several different rigs. My biggest issue with the toyo's was the super short treadlife relative to cost.

 

[Regcabguy]

Interesting impression. I got 36,000K of trouble free life out of my 285-75-17 Toyo AT's. No vibes,flats and nearly silent on the road. The load capacity is way over the BFG's which I had awful luck with on my old truck. I can't speak for the mud and snow abilities as 10" of annual rain and a mild climate here doesn't call for it.

 

[Superglide]

I'm puzzled as to why most trucks running Toyo O/C A/T 285/75-17 aren't getting the mileage out of them. My first set I managed to achieve 50,000 miles. I'm on my second set now with just over 31,000 miles and no problems. What pressures are you running? I run 55 front and 50 rear unloaded (which is most of the time).

 

[AH64ID]

I'm puzzled as to why most trucks running Toyo O/C A/T 285/75-17 aren't getting the mileage out of them. My first set I managed to achieve 50,000 miles. I'm on my second set now with just over 31,000 miles and no problems. What pressures are you running? I run 55 front and 50 rear unloaded (which is most of the time).

Do you ever tow or leave the pavement?

 

[subodh]

i had procomp m/t they was pretty good offroad but onroad what a noice. .

now i have cooper a/t abit less noice but alot less traction ofroad!

on all nissan we have owned and all friends nissan pickups they have used bfg a/t with good results

 

[Newf Limo]

With the BFGs, on packed snow roads, I have always been able to gear down in 4WD quite agressively and it was like using the brakes on asphalt. I had to do that in an emergency once to keep from hitting a moose. I started with the brakes but gut squirrly immediately, so I bailed on that and just started dropping gears, and it didn't even wiggle. No matter what I do with the Toyos on packed snow, I have to be careful. And get into a little slushy, salty stuff and look out! These tires leave me on the defensive constantly in winter conditions. Just not an enjoyable ride, and I commute through the country, 70 miles per day. (or night).



I had bought a set of Yokohama Geolandars a few years back, from the Tire Warehouse. By the time I got home with them, I called and made an appointment to have them removed the next day. They were really bad! Could not stay in my lane. I went back to the BFG's.



Funny how we have such varied experiences. With the amount of snow and Ice we get here, I won't gamble on Toyo again.

 

[Newf Limo]

AH64ID,



We share some of the same trompin grounds, or used to anyway. You aren't that far from Mountain Home. It ruined me as a kid. I can't stand the closed in feel of New England because the open country of Southern Idaho is much more what feels like home. I miss it tremendously.

 

[Newf Limo]

Has anyone tried the Mastercraft Courser AT/2?



I put those on my wife's 01 Dakota and am pretty impressed. Being that her truck is so much lighter (and an automatic) she has always had the less stable truck for winter driving. Now with the Mastercraft, hers is better. That and 100lbs of sand bags in the bed. I don't know how well the E-range tire would hold up to the weight of the Big Cummins Ram, but the traction and ride have been as good as the BFG's had been, if not a little better. We had the Geolandars on her truck this last time, and while they were fine in the summer, they were horrendous in the winter! As in really bad!



I had a set of Cooper Discoverer A/Ts on the Ram and they lasted about 22,000 miles, so that would be the one thing that would worry me about the Mastercraft on my Ram. I got them at Dealer cost so it wasn't that big of a loss, but they were a pretty poor tire for longevity.

 

[Newf Limo]

Has anyone tried the Mastercraft Courser AT/2?



I put those on my wife's 01 Dakota and am pretty impressed. Being that her truck is so much lighter (and an automatic) she has always had the less stable truck for winter driving. Now with the Mastercraft, hers is better. That and 100lbs of sand bags in the bed. I don't know how well the E-range tire would hold up to the weight of the Big Cummins Ram, but the traction and ride have been as good as the BFG's had been, if not a little better. We had the Geolandars on her truck this last time, and while they were fine in the summer, they were horrendous in the winter! As in really bad!



I had a set of Cooper Discoverer A/Ts on the Ram and they lasted about 22,000 miles, so that would be the one thing that would worry me about the Mastercraft on my Ram. I got them at Dealer cost so it wasn't that big of a loss, but they were a pretty poor tire for longevity.

 

[Newf Limo]

Has anyone tried the Mastercraft Courser AT/2?



I put those on my wife's 01 Dakota and am pretty impressed. Being that her truck is so much lighter (and an automatic) she has always had the less stable truck for winter driving. Now with the Mastercraft, hers is better. That and 100lbs of sand bags in the bed. I don't know how well the E-range tire would hold up to the weight of the Big Cummins Ram, but the traction and ride have been as good as the BFG's had been, if not a little better. We had the Geolandars on her truck this last time, and while they were fine in the summer, they were horrendous in the winter! As in really bad!



I had a set of Cooper Discoverer A/Ts on the Ram and they lasted about 22,000 miles, so that would be the one thing that would worry me about the Mastercraft on my Ram. I got them at Dealer cost so it wasn't that big of a loss, but they were a pretty poor tire for longevity.

 

[AClayton]

I had to locate HD load range E tires last year for my truck after purchasing a large Toyhauler. I had the Revo's and the dealer said that REVO 2 makes an E-rated tire in my range. I needed /wanted the highest rated tire for my stock wheels... ... . 3990 at 80psi. They are a year old now and have held up nicely despite being loaded heavy all the time. I have always worn the rear tires faster than the front due to the weight I carry. Unloaded, I run at 45 on the back ... ... . air up to 80 to pull my 40' Toyhauler. Even with that pin weight, the tires barely bulge and I feel very stable on the highways. As far as inclement weather traction, the old REVO's did very well due to the tread being deeper. My guess is that a heavy towing tire should not have deep treads that will allow wandering... ..... the REVO 2's only have about a 5/16th's tread cut and they don't do as well off-road but they are a super towing tire.



Alan

 

[Jeff Knight]

Rob, My experience with BFG's is the mileage I've got on them. Somewhere around 32000 and they won't go much further. Pulling out in the rain isn't fun either. The original michlins were very good as were the bridgestone revos. I'm looking at a set of Firestone Destination AT's. They are rated pretty good on tire rack. I'm running 285/75/16E's on my truck... Jeff

 

[esibcy]

Jeff,I had the Firestone Destination A/T's in 305"s (33") on my 02' Cummins. They were a great set of tires,and "E" rated too,which I feel is important for our trucks. I dont think you can go wrong with them!

 

[ENafziger]

Just wondering... have you actually had many people recommend the Toyo A/Ts?

From my experience, and what I've read from many others, is that the Toyo A/Ts are not a great tire. The Toyo M/T, however, has left me impressed in every situation. I've encountered many people who read good reviews of the M/T tire; then, when they go to buy tires, they opt for the A/T because they don't think their particular use merits a "mud" tire.

For whatever reason, the A/T version is not even in the same class as the M/T, as far as I'm concerned. That being said, I recently took a trip to Alaska running the Toyo A/T 285/75 tires. Through 10,000 miles grossing over 20,300 lbs, I never had any problem out of the tires at all... other than tread life! That trip alone cost me about 14/32 of tread!!! I sold the tires when I got back, and will never buy them again.

I'm on my third set of M/T Toyos, and will likely never buy anything else. I have never been stuck, and have never had a flat in 100,000 miles that have included more offroad than most trucks will EVER see. I've broken through 8" of solid ice, been through a blizzard, through mud, water, muck, sand, silt, hardpack, grass, clay, etc. I've overloaded the tires, even with their 4,000 lb rating per tire. I've had the truck airborne more times than I can count. I've pulled heavy at over 25k pounds, and had the truck set at ~600 hp the majority of the time. And yet, I have gotten 45k - 50k miles out of the tires!!!

I'm sorry about your experience, but I can't help but wonder if it would've been different had you gone with the Toyo M/T.

--Eric