Finally have my 2023 MY P400 w/ air suspension in getting the rear calipers swapped, so I can put my Tuffant 18" Kimberleys on. Now... I need to figure out the tire thing. I'll be keeping my 20's, and have dedicated snows for winter here in Wisconsin, and also have the stock GY Wrangler Adventures for that set of wheels. I'm looking for good on-road behavior, especially in wet conditions, because I make road trips out West (UT, AZ, CA) and before I do any off roading, there will be a long-haul of highway first. Won't be doing any hardcore rock-crawling or 'thrill seeking' off roading at all. I am simply looking to get into locations for landscape photography. Think deep, rutty sand (White Pocket in AZ), rocky trails (Bristlecone Pines in White Mts, or Death Valley back roads in CA- with lots of washboarding and sharp rocks), or fording creeks (Cathedral Valley in UT)... with some occasional snow when in mountains. Looking at 265-70R18 or 275-65R18's. Looking at the SLs, with load index of 116 (2756 lbs). I won't be towing anything... ever.

My only point of reference right now are the stock Goodyear Wrangler Adventures, which are perfectly fine for noise and handling, on-road. I'd like to stay close to that type of handling and road noise, while picking up better durability and capability for off-roading out West. IME, biggest hazards when driving (aside from snow storm) has been wet conditions (hydroplaning), so that is important too. I've narrowed down to the Falken Wild Peak at3w's or possibly Rubitreks.

Any advice on other tires I should consider that would get me best of both worlds: on road and moderate off-roading?

Thanks in advance.

 

I've always had good experience on other vehicles with BFG All Terrain KO2s. They would be top of my list if I were shopping now, but Falken Wildpeaks would also be a consideration.

 

Good call on keeping the 20"s for winters. 18" rims on my P400 have been a game changer. Best mod I've done. Much more fun to be had with them.

I put 265/70 R18 KO2s on my Tuffants and they are no good on hard pack snow. Took my Blizzaks off days prior to us getting a fantastic weekend of snow this past weekend in the mountains. Always works that way. First time all winter I've felt myself sliding.

They've been great on the trail and in deep snow and look pretty decent too I reckon.

 

Thank you, Gavin. You were a big help when I was trying to navigate through the whole caliper swap fiasco. I looked at the KO2's but ruled them out over the wet grip on highways. Aside from snow, the most dangerous situations I've been in have been hydroplaning or lack of lateral wet grip... That appears to be one of the weaknesses of those K02's...

 

No worries Chris. Yes. I've heard that they're not as good as other options in the wet.

Falken Wildpeaks seem to tick that box more robustly. 275/65 R18 is an oft used 32" size. 265/70 R18 32.6" is also an option on those. Loads of folks swear by the Falkens.

 

Very happy with my stock size (255) Cooper Discoverer RT (Rugged Trek) on OEM steelies. And my use case is EXACTLY like yours. (And I think you mean Castle Valley, Utah, no? Fisher Towers, Onion Creek?) I live in Atlanta and go to SW Colorado and/or SE Utah every year for 2-3 weeks. Did it in a Wranger 2-door softtop for 5 years till I just couldn’t take it anymore, hence the Defender. For the exact reason you mentioned — lotta highway between me and Poison Spider Mesa.

I’ve only been once so far on the Discoverers, to the San Juans for 2 weeks last August. The road noise is slightly greater than the stock Goodyears, but far from annoying. The performance in the “nothing but sharp 4” diameter rocks” old mining roads around Ouray and Telluride was perfect. No complaints. When I got back home I put the 20s back on, then went to 18s for most of the winter. We don’t get any weather in Atlanta but I just loved the look and wanted to feel manly for awhile. Just swapped the 20s back on before a trip to the beach, and I’ll probably leave them till my next trip out west.

 

Thanks, NoGaBiker.. No- there is a section within the Vermillion Cliffs area known as "White Pocket" that is notorious for getting vehicles stuck in sand. Those RT's look nice, but probably a bit more road noise than I am willing to endure. Their Discoverer AT3 4S looks like it might fit the bill, though. So far, I am still leaning towards the Falkens, though... Pretty universally recognized as the top 2 or 3 out there that blend good highway manners with capable off roading chops. Thx again.

 

On-road snow/rain driving behavior has been great with the Falken AT3W, little to no slippage, these are 275/55/20s in Seattle/WA.

 

Falken AT3W only appear to be available in SL rating for the 255/70 R18 fitment. Not sure I'd want to take the chance with going down a grade.

According to TireRack the Nitto Ridge Grappler is available in XL rating and the KO2 with a D rating in the factory size

 

I am not interested in losing highway handling by putting much heavier tires on than needed. I've spoken to the folks at Tuffant (where I got my Kimberleys) and was advised that as long as the load rating is equal or greater than that of the stock GY Wrangler Adventures, I am good. I won't be towing, and not hauling anything heavy, nor will I be doing any rock crawling or anything 'hardcore' with it. The AT3W's in the sizes I am considering have SL's w/ load index of 116 (2756 lbs) for the 265-70R18 or 275-65R18's. Best I can tell, the stock OEM wheels come with GY Wrangler Adventures that have load index of 114 (2601 lbs).