The Duratracs will give you way better snow traction than those Michelins, its not even close. I've had two sets of Duratracs before on a 2002 Sierra and 2016 Silverado. Living in Buffalo, NY I see my share of snow, loved their snow traction, never got stuck with them. After two sets though I've switched to BFG KO2s. They have better tread life plus quieter and smoother than the Duratracs were. They aren't quite as good in deep snow, but very very close.

 

The Michelin LTX tires will last longer, be quieter on the road and will perform well for an all-season tire.
The Duratracs are a much more aggressive tire with a larger tread pattern and they have some aggressive “shoulders” on the sidewalls. The larger tread makes them very noisy in the summer.
I have the Duratracs in my truck and they are absolutely insane in deep snow (which is where they excel). We got absolutely pounded with a snowstorm (here in interior Alaska) last Christmas and the plows could not keep up. The roads were covered with about 24” of snow (for days) and I had my truck out on the roads and would not see another soul. They are truly the best snow tire I’ve ever had.
As for ice, they do grip pretty well (with a 4-wheel drive truck) but they certainly won’t be the best ice tire you can get. They have a very soft tread compound, which does help grip the ice, but also contributes to a shorter tire life. I don’t know what you mean by “winter driving” (i.e. more snow or ice) but if you get a lot of snow in your area, then you won’t be disappointed with the Duratracs, especially if you’re towing a trailer. They dominate the deep snow and provide all kinds of bite, where other tires simply lose traction and spin out.

 

I’m impressed that you have it down to two options! 😂 I found that choosing tires for my truck was about as deep a wormhole as choosing my new sled this year. LOL

 

Goodyear Wrangler Dura Tracs.

Don~

 

Look at Goodyear "UltraTerrain" tires. They have been a super good tire for my last 2 trucks (3/4 GMC). Awesome snow rating, quiet ride and a year round tire.
Just as aggressive looking as the Duratrac's and are great in snow and ice in Northern Michigan where I live. Sold at discount tire exclusively I believe.

I would be willing to believe that "DuraTrac" and "UltraTerrain" tires are the same tire but one is built for Discount Tire Corp. and has a different tread pattern.

 

I use Tirerack.com to review tires before I buy as they even sometimes test the tires on Ice Rinks!

Michelin are usually the highest rated and I’ve been surprised that Goodyears dont usually have the temp and traction rating that the Michelins have.

For towing sleds though…..I would STRONGLY recommend Blizzak winter tires (yes you have to have another set of tires for summer, BUT both last twice as long so I justify it). Blizzaks fight through the slush like nothing else out there, and the compound grips ice better than anything else on the market (the Michelin XI-ICE are good too, but the Blizzaks have a taller tread, which I like for driving through blizzards to go ride lol).

 

Blizzaks are amazing in the snow and ice. I bought a new F150 2 years ago and proceeded to buy a second set of rims with the blizzaks mounted on them from Tire Rack. Really the rims weren't that expensive and I like them better than the stock 20" Ford rims. You have to downsize at least a couple rim sizes for winter tires, TireRack website does it for you. I just swap them out myself every spring and fall and don't have to take them to tire store to have them mounted/dismounted. Like mentioned before your tires last twice as long because you're running 2 sets. You wanna wait till temps are below 50's to run the Blizzaks because they are soft compound, that's why they do so well on ice.

 

My concern was not so much deep snow but just slippery conditions pulling a snowmobile trailer in northern Wisconsin and the Yoop.

 

If ice is your main concern, there is probably a better all around tire than the Duratrac. If you have to pull through slush or deep snow through, they are very hard to beat though.
As mentioned before, the Blizzaks are popular up here for ice, but they aren’t year round tires, unless you want to wear them out prematurely in the summer. Therein lies the trouble with tires: no 1 tire will do it all so it’s about choosing what you will encounter most and what tire will serve that purpose best.
If you’re not facing much deep snow (like we do in Alaska and Canada) then the Duratracs may not be the best choice for you.
Here are a few other A/T tires that are popular here in Alaska and that I looked at hard:

1.Copper Discoverer AT3 XLT
2. BF Goodrich KO2 A/T (fairly aggressive snow tire like the Duratrac)

In summary:

• Blizzaks are great for icy winter driving, but you’ll need some good summer tires still.
• Duratracs are absolutely amazing in deep snow and slush but loud in the summer and not the top ice tire, even though I run mine year round.
• Cooper AT3 XLT will go a decent all around tire. Won’t need changed over, like the Blizzaks, while still providing you with good winter traction and summer off-road performance and they are a very heavy-ply tire for towing and puncture resistance.
• The Michelin is by far the tamest option and will do good in summer and light snow but I wouldn’t want to try and pull a trailer in any kind of snow conditions with them. Mind you, I haven’t run them specifically but they aren’t built for deeper snow.

 

Love my 265/75 16” DuraTracs on 2500 HD, but swapping out soon for dedicated winter Bridgestone Blizzak W965 LT in 235/85 16”. The old school W965 are way better on snow and ice and I’ve found them excellent pulling a trailer, especially running the Coqahalla or other nasty roads. I use DuraTracs spring and fall, quiet highway Michelin’s for towing mid summer, W965s in winter. I’ve used multiple sets of each on Suburbans and pickups. DuraTracs my all time favourite tire, though they get noisy the more they wear. blitz68, I haven’t used the exact Michelin’s you mentioned, but they should get better gas mileage than the Goodyear’s if that’s a consideration.

 

Another option is Micky Thompson baja atz or the baja boss tires. One of the best tires for snow and pretty darn hard to get stuck or slide with. Last winter we went up I70 during a chain warning with a 28ft enclosed all the way to Grand Lake Co. (M/S tires allow you to not run chains per Co law) had no issues with my 2500 Dodge during some crazy deep snow on some of the some switchbacks going into steamboat.

 

I used the Wrangler Duratracs on my shop plow truck, 1994 Dodge Ram 3500 Dually. It's unstoppable and only a bit of howl on the highway. The tires are 12 years old this year and have done about 65k of horrific service and are just now looking like they need replaced. They'll last forever on your light duty Chebby.

 

I've run studded duratracs on my 3/4 ton Dodge for a couple of seasons. They're really pretty good at everything, IMHO.

For a pure highway snow tire, I've not driven anything better than my Nokian Hakkepelitta LT2s or whatever. They're unreal. I'm a bit of a tire junkie, and studs are legal here - no idea on non-studded, blizzak, probably, for pure ice/snow performance, but those things melt in the dry. All of my opinions are 'stud centric," except the bfg allterrain ta k02 - those are pretty good, too, but a bare rubber tire on ice feels like, well, a bare rubber tire on ice to me, beyond blizzaks. I've not used blizzaks on my truck, but I've had several sets on cars, and yeah, they're good.

The LTX m/s2 is also a really good tire - I used to use those in the summer. One fall/early winter, there was a storm, and I wound up heading up the hill on the LTXs. Huh! I was pretty impressed, actually. They're really not bad at all. Huh!

then I was going sideways.

spontaneous, zero warning, snowpacked highway (I70, westbound, at copper, the big right hander just past the bridge, for my CO friends), just typical winter conditions.

The truck just let go. It was bizarre. I've never felt anything like it. My winter tires - Duratracs, some Less Schwab Wintercat? I think, I forget, it was a les shweeb house brand studded load range e thing, they were good, I've had some studded Winterforces - firestone, I think, Nokians and probably one other set I can't remember - NONE of them did that crap, ever. I remembered - Cooper MS2, studded thing - I'm fairly certain the lessschwab house brand tire is really a rebadged cooper.

I've also not driven non-snow tires in snow all that many times. Still, though - I've never felt a tire that seemed so good, then snapped into "huh, I'm going sideways." I've driven Continental DWS' in snow on a rear drive sportscar, it is a pseudo snow - all season with snow in mind, but not a priority - those felt sketchy all the time, they never felt planted. They worked, but they'd not give you a false sense of security like the ltx did. It worked out, I caught it, got it slowing, put it in 4wd and got snows mounted the next day. never again.

Anyway. That's probably all irrelevant if you can't run studs. If I could not, I'd use a Nokian or Blizzak - but I have a tire problem.

.02c!


Iain

 

This topic is similar to asking people what ski's they prefer haha, there's always strong opinions, and each ski/tire will have it's trade offs.
I've worked in/ran an automotive shop for the last 10+ years here in VT, we constantly field this question of all season/terrain tires vs dedicated summer and winter setup. The best choice safety and traction wise is a good winter tire set and a summer set, however there are good tires that will get the job done year round.

As far as winter tires go, the Blizzak DMV2 is a great all around winter tire more tailored to hardpack/icey conditions. The Arctic Claw WXI is a decent choice as well and is usually cheaper, I can't remember off the top of my head if they have LT/10ply options though. Hakkapeliitta LT3 is the top dog aggressive snow tire around here, but they don't last as long as competitors. Current favorite would be the Hankook Ipike RW11 and I have a set of those for my F350. Past favorite was the Mastercraft Courser MSR but they discontinued them, they were killers for the price point.

If you're set on one tire to do it all, I'd look into the Nitto Exo Grappler. It's a good looking all terrain, relatively quiet, AND it's "three peak" snow rated. The Duratrac is 3 peak rated as well and does a good job all around, but I haven't seen them last as long as other members here are claiming. The BFG KO2's are awesome for the first winter if you put them on in the fall, after they're run a summer the compound hardens and they're not nearly as good the second year; at least that's what I experienced when I ran them in 2018/2019 with my LBZ. Pretty much any all terrain/all season jobbie will do decent in heavier snow and early storm conditions, where they'll suffer is in the packed down icier situations when they simply don't have enough siping to translate to grip.

As stated a few other times in the thread, a lot of the more aggressive all terrains will have decent forward/rearward traction, but the lateral grip and stability in snow conditions is what they really lack.

I see some people recommending the Cooper stuff, I can't speak for their current products, but we stopped carrying the brand in 2018ish because they would not balance properly. We used to strictly run coopers on our fleet account (over 40 GM trucks/vans) but when every tire one year suddenly started needed ridiculous amounts of weight and would always shake on the rear of the trucks, we moved on to Nokians for the fleet account. Since running the Hakka LT3's on all the fleet vehicles we haven't fielded a single stuck truck/van call in the last several years.

 

Since running the Hakka LT3's on all the fleet vehicles we haven't fielded a single stuck truck/van call in the last several years.

this does not surprise me; I was pretty shocked at how good they are.

You speak the truth, though, they wear fast. I think mine are at the "60%" level, per the markings on the center rib, and they're notably not as good as they were.

I've got a set of 1/4 worn studded duratracs I'm going to put on this winter, then buy another set of lt3s next season.

I'm not sure anyone has mentioned it, likely, but IME, duratracs are not durable. They're not AWFUL, but not what I'd call "long lasting."

Some of my coopers needed anchors to balance, most were ok, ish. I'd probably buy them again if the price were right, but the lt3 is not much more, if any, so, no cooper for me.

The only load range E tire I've had fail outright was a Kumho. I like Kumhos for cheap street tires on cars, and their race tires are pretty good, but I'll never buy another E tire from them. I'm probably overreacting and bitter, but damn, that sucked - it got a bulge on the sidewall that scraped the fender on each revolution. It did hold air until I changed it, I guess that's good?

Where in VT?

 

I have been running the Michelin LTX on my F250 for 3 winters. I pull a 20' enclosed trailer on mountain roads with an 8 percent grade in Utah. The roads are plowed but can have 6" of snow when the plows cannot keep up. I have never had any traction problems in 4 wheel drive going up or down the mountain in these conditions with the LTX tires. No need to switch them out in the summer. They are nice and quiet and work great in the summer rain.

If you are not on plowed roads, then yes, a more aggressive tire is needed. But, for plowed roads with some snow on them, I am very happy with the LTX tires. They have about 40K miles on them and they still have 30-40K of tread left.

 

I have been running the Michelin LTX on my F250 for 3 winters. I pull a 20' enclosed trailer on mountain roads with an 8 percent grade in Utah. The roads are plowed but can have 6" of snow when the plows cannot keep up. I have never had any traction problems in 4 wheel drive going up or down the mountain in these conditions with the LTX tires. No need to switch them out in the summer. They are nice and quiet and work great in the summer rain.

If you are not on plowed roads, then yes, a more aggressive tire is needed. But, for plowed roads with some snow on them, I am very happy with the LTX tires. They have about 40K miles on them and they still have 30-40K of tread left.

that was my feeling about them, too...until they went on strike.

I'm not surprised they work for you, though, at all.

 

Thank you everyone for the feedback.

I am still confused as ever on this and hate to spend spend 1200+ and find it was a mistake.

From the feedback on here it sounds like either option is a good one.

DuraTrac 50k tire and good on slippery roads, can be noisy on dry pavement.
LXT 70k tire and good on slippery roads, the perfect summer tire.

The dilemma.

 

Also, if you do go with the Duratracs, you should consider taking them to a tire shop and have them siped. This will provide even more traction and grip on icy roads and rain while still giving you a very aggressive snow tire.
As you’ve stated, the LXT is a good tire that will work great in the summer, in light snow and will last longer.
I do love my Duratracs though when the snow starts falling!

 

...

 

Put these on my 2010 Ram 1500 this May. Put a few thousand miles on them.. Awesome!!!

BFG is a division/name of Michelin!

 

Buy the Michelins if you want a smooth tire and are concerned about noise.
Buy the Duratrac's or BFG KO2's if you want to go places in snow.
I personally run the BFG KO2's all year. I put a new set on every November and do roughly 65,000 kms a year driving.

 

I run the Cooper AT3 XLTs year round and love them. Quiet, good wear, and do awesome in the snow for me.

 

Like MunsonAuto referred to, lateral stability is important on slick roads. I can do donuts on snowcovered parking lot all day with my DuraTracs but not with the dedicated winter Bridgestone W965s, they just won’t swing sideways. This makes a big difference when trailering on the icy conditions I face all winter, and also when riding empty on hardpacked highway or cambered forest service road.
I put winters on one of my open trailers and use it when the roads are really bad, eliminates the swing on corners, though I limit the load.
One thing’s for sure, almost every tire now is a lot better than the worn out boots I ran 30 years ago on a two wheel drive!
The good judgment you’ve shown by asking for advice will also do you well on winter roads, all the best!

 

Like MunsonAuto referred to, lateral stability is important on slick roads. I can do donuts on snowcovered parking lot all day with my DuraTracs but not with the dedicated winter Bridgestone W965s, they just won’t swing sideways. This makes a big difference when trailering on the icy conditions I face all winter, and also when riding empty on hardpacked highway or cambered forest service road.
I put winters on one of my open trailers and use it when the roads are really bad, eliminates the swing on corners, though I limit the load.
One thing’s for sure, almost every tire now is a lot better than the worn out boots I ran 30 years ago on a two wheel drive!
The good judgment you’ve shown by asking for advice will also do you well on winter roads, all the best!

So, winter #3 and my Bridgestone W965 Blizzaks aren’t as good as new in -15C or lower. I’ve been running empty, need some weight to up performance.

Son in law’s new Blizzaks are really good, I haven’t tried this tire yet but impressed so far. Both tires are 10 ply on 2500 HDs, we’ll see if his sidewalls are as tough as the W965s.

photos were taken at about -16C, the snow sticking to the tire is a good thing.

 

I use the LTX's for cross country towing for work and play in snow and slush and just keep a set of chains for and in case the going gets rough and deep, or icy. Hard to beat the Michelins for reliability in long haul towing. I probably have averaged 30k-40k miles towing each year for the past 15 years or so, all with 16' or 20' enclosed trailers, or equipment trailers with 2-4 ton loads.

As a side note..... I have also found that a lot of heavy towing in my Ram 2500 diesel will eat up the rear tires fast due to the constant high torque on the rear tires. I bet I won't get more than 25k miles out of the current rear set! And the rear wear is dang touchy about air pressures anymore. I have to run 80-85 psi all year to get the wear even on the rear tires. The prior generations of LTX's were not all that touchy about pressure. (Been running them for towing for almost 40 years now...)

 

Just to stir the pot a bit...I just got new winters for my tow rig. It actually came stock with Duratrac's, and I'm getting rid of them to replace them with....

...VikingContact 7s. Ice-X and Blizzaks were also considered, and I considered the LTX M/S as my summers. In the end, the LTX (and Duratracs) were jack of all, masters of none...sort of. The LTX is really good at 3 season stuff, but they aren't amazing at any summer specific stuff. Since I wanted dedicated winter tires, they lost out to some Pirelli Scorpion AS+3 (which, by the way, are exceptional summer touring / highway tires).

Duratracs are not as good at fuel economy or ride as the LTX, but they're way better for dealing with snow and slush, and I debated keeping them as my winters. But like the OP, but that's just almost never what I experience in the winter...hard pack and ice are my concern 99% of the time. For that, a dedicated winter tire is the only option in my books.

The plot thickens though, because in my last car I decided to try "Nordic" tires, which are basically winter tires on steroids - Hakkepeliitas in that case - and the experience was life changing. They are so much better than regular winter tires. Nordic tires are, in my experience, powered by black magic that makes them a notable step up over regular winters.

So, why the vikingcontacts? Well, continental makes "WinterContact" tires, which are their "winter tires". Ice-X and Blizzaks are generally regarded as the best winter tires for trucks, and don't get me wrong, they're damn good. But I wanted a "nordic" tire. This narrowed it down to VikingContacts and Nokians, and in all of the reviews I read - and there were a lot - the viking contacts just narrowly edged out as being the single best (unstudded) nordic tire money can buy. So, I bought them.

 

You are correct….All-season tires are a “jack of all trades, master of none”. Frankly I had bought a used truck about 10 years ago that the dealer just put on new tires/Mastercraft brand. The first snowstorm, they were terrible (they were fine in the rain, just awful in slush or snow).

I bought Blizzaks, and since Ive always run either Blizzaks or x-ICE in the winter on all of our vehicles. But now the “Nordics” are intriguing me lol…..

 

i needed tires before last season i went with firestone destination xt, no issues so far...

 

2022/23 Tire Reviews Studless Winter Tire Test - Tire Reviews And Ratings

2022/23 Tire Reviews Studless Winter Tire Test

www.tire-reviews.com

 

Another vote for Cooper Discoverer AT3-XLT, great tires


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Studded Hankook I Pike have taken me through some bad stuff towing. Ran the BFGs for a while, but when it got real cold it was like riding on 4 hockey puck, slip and slide.

 

Yep, learned the same thing: the old Mud Terrains were like that.

 

Very much looking forward to my new General Grabber ATX in the snow.

 

These tires perform really good in the snow. I have a set on separate rims on my wife's expedition. This will be the 3rd winter with them.

I just put a set of Falken Wildpeaks on my f350. They are 3 peak rated. Buddies that run them say they are great

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