All Terrain Tyre Comparisons

For a while I was thinking that I needed stiffer sidewall tyres to improve the handling especially as I was experiencing a small undampend bounce from the tyres. As a consequence I drove a selection ok 2 different Jimny's with lt tyres one bfg all terrain and the other was on grabbers. Not for me. The tyres totally ruined the sensation of finesse from the steering and to my mind didn't do anything good for the ride quality. Yes obviously the tyres lack of flex made the handling seem more controlled but I didn't really like that. One of the cars had a helical diff in the back axle that was an awesome awesome awesome thing and is on the list for mine. But genuinely you can feel the additional weight and for me that is not a good thing. Oh and I fixed my bounce by lowering the rear tyres down to 23 psi like the fronts. Amazing transformation.

Aaarh….makes sense. Thanks

I wonder if anyone else will contribute their experience?

There is a huge wiki article on (almost) everything regarding vehicle tyres on this web site.

There are a couple of points to make and some misconceptions to correct:


1.
Asymmetric tread patterns pose no restrictions whatsoever when rotating tyres+wheels on a vehicle (only when mounting tyres onto the wheels).
Tyres with (uni)directional tread patterns do.
Asymmetric tread patterns are generally a great optimisation principle and I hope to see more such AT and MT tyre models in the future, as they are currently a rarity.

2.
"LT" (light truck) tyre designation is a moot marketing / industrial jargon term. It may or may not indicate a different tyre construction or weight carrying rating.
An LT tyre may be designed for much heavier loads than regular tyres and as such may be waaay to stiff for a very light vehicle like a Jimny (unless you regularly transport stuff like gold bullions in yours). It's a similar story as with "C" (cargo / commercial tyres). I drove a Jimny on some Hankook cargo tyres with weight rating of 108 for about 2000 km and I cured my kidney stones.
The point: When buying any tyre, and especially if it is an LT or a C tyre, check its rated weight load rating.
Jimnys 3 use 96-97 if I am correct.

3.
Toyo claims that Open Country AT Plus has asymmetric tread pattern but I don't see anything asymmetric after looking at them thoroughly. Can someone verify with Toyo what is asymmetric there? Perhaps the material composition itself?

4.
When buying an AT tyre, I would recommend buying an all season one. There are several manufacturers who make them. All season goes well with All terrain.

Thanks Bosanek. Useful points - I shall pay close attention to the load rating of any ATs I am considering.

Have just read the wiki - excellent!

Must apologise, I am still finding my way round the site and hadn't realised it was there.

Sounds as if you wrote it/had a hand in it - great job.

Lots of good info here and particularly within the wiki. Info for Gen 4 a bit sparse but this is to be expected given how new the car is. I have edited the wiki to include tyre pressures for Gen 4.

I am looking to replace the original 195/80/15 Bridgestone Dueller HT's with AT tyres. Considering the Cooper AT3 sports at the same size or BF Goodrich KA 02 AT 215/75/15. Seen lots of photos of the BF Goodrich tyres on new Gen 4 Jimny but would really like some feedback on what effect it has on MPG and handling etc. Do you notice a difference in the feel of the car. Definitely like the look of the larger BF Goodrich tyres and I believe they are excellent tyres and will last a long tme but do not want to adversely effect the ride. The 195/80/15 Coopers, on paper at least, are as fuel efficient and better in wet and noise than the original Bridgestone tyres. So would get the more aggressive look but no ill effects.

However still like the look of the BF Goodrich tyres. Anyone with 1st hand knowledge? Appreciate your comments