Aggressive Mud Tyres....

[Taylor]

This months 4x4 debate is about aggressive mud tyres. Necessary or not for green laning? Do they cause damage to the lanes? Lets face it, the vehicles we use are perfectly capable of driving most of the lanes with standard road tyres or possibly AT's. Some would argue that if you need mud tyres on a green lane you probably shouldn't be on it... but what do you think..............

[ellebarto]

I believe the issue is all about the driving style and not the tyres. There's a guy I lane with who swears by AT's and while I drive over terrain with hardly a wheel spin he will scrabble and struggle, disrupting the surface of the lane.

If you take your time and use the MT's to tackle obstacles correctly and proficiently first time, it has to be better than making 2 or 3 attempts.

Obviously if your just going to tear down a lane with MT's on without any care, then they will do more damage!

[lonewolf]

For 'green laning' I personally think they're not necessary. One could argue that they do more damage due to the aggressive tread design. This leads to TRO's on the few BOATs we have access to, and they are few when you take into account of the amount of open countryside we have here in the North East of England. Aggressive Mud Tyres should be for trials and such like competitions or pay and play areas. There are more than enough threats to our pastime without supplying the detractors with more ammunition.

[Martin]

My truck is the family car/daily driver so MT's aren't an option/nessacerry due to type lanes I'm likely to drive.

I was advised when joining the forum to get some AT tyres and I have to admit I'm glad I did, there not absolutely necessary but do provide better traction & give me added peace of mind.

Suppose I don't really have an opinion use of MT tyres - I know plenty of members who run them, but as with everyone I've met with NEL they all drive responsibly & don't cause any damage.

[gordonm]

can we clarify, are we talking about all mud terrains? such as cooper stt, bf goodridge MTs etc or stuff like special tracks?

[warrender]

There are hundreds of lanes that can be driven in a completely standard 4x4. So why do we lift, add snorkels, add guards, winches etc..... its to give us the best chance in the 'what if....' scenario - MT's are just another part of that however on many trails there will be limited benefit. As with the other mods they allow us to tackle something a bit more challenging and we all like a challenge (its why we do this - lets take our cars where normal cars can't go).

I don't think they're essential for green laning but if your going to be in the middle of nowhere then I would say you should give yourself the best chance. I would also say though, in an equal vehicle a good driver on AT's will get further than a bad driver with MT's.

In terms of causing damage I think that's just as much a question of driver skill/etiquette and axle clearance. Which is worse.... an AT spinning lots and ripping smaller lumps out per spin or a MT spinning less but but taking more per spin..... sounds about even to me. Clearly if you have the IQ of a plastic cup holder and just stick your foot to the floor and spin with MT's your going to cause a lot of damage. Point is, using MT's you shouldn't need to do that because you already have more grip....its about driver skill.

All of this should also follow an assessment of the trail, if its in a bad way leave it. If you have limited diff clearance and there are deep ruts either straddle them or use another lane otherwise your going to beach it on its axles, end up spinning and tear it up regardless of tyre choice.

I'll always use MT's. MT's FTW haha

[Nick]

Insa turbo special tracks are aggressive mud tyres, the likes of STT's are more of a A/T tyre but with a self cleaning tread were as AT2's aren't self cleaning. In my opinion its all down to the driving styles & the types of green lanes you prefer to do, there are some you can literally do with 100% motorway tyres & there are some that require off road tyres & those between it comes down to personal preference. On my 90 I used Kuhmo venture M/T's (the old style tread) similar to bf Goodridge's etc. I only ever got stuck once due to driver error & I went everywhere Insa turbo's did. However if given the choice ill put Insa turbos on the Jimny solely because I think they do less damage griping into to the surface than A/T's or some light M/T's do when trying to climb or getting out of a rut.

A while ago I pointed this out on one of Gordonm's vids were I think it was Seadog drove straight up using Special tracks & due to the conditions & AT2's on gordons disco, it span the surface up.

Aggressive muds wins the debate for me.....

[Nick]

Oct 1, 2013 9:53:10 GMT warrender said:

I would also say though, in an equal vehicle a good driver on AT's will get further than a bad driver with MT's.

However a good driver with MT's will or should get much further than a good driver with AT's

just saying

[Gaz]

Think all the nessasary points have been covered now .....:/

[warrender]

Totally agree Nick

[gordonm]

Oct 1, 2013 10:40:42 GMT Gaz said:

Think all the nessasary points have been covered now .....:/

not really lol as all we have discussed is muddy grassy terrain. how about shingle rocky loose gravel? there is no case for muds on that and a decent AT should be fine. maybe MTs cause more damage on loose gravely surfaces!
of course i have no real idea! lol im just trying to spark conversation! after all thats why the debate thread was started

[Nick]

& it only took 7 posts we could delete some posts & just say AT's are pointless in heavy thick mud

[lonewolf]

Heh, heh......Perhaps the bottom line is that you cannot cart around different tyre combos (ok you could but it's not practical) to be used as and when terrain conditions change, so I think the general rule should be try and take care of the lane whatever you're using and as Warrender said previously 'if its in a bad way leave it'.............nuff said.

[Slim]

Difficult one. When the wheels are turning you can't tell the difference visually, so from the point of view of a bystander they would see the ATs spinning in the mud, and the MTs just drive through. Regardless of who did the most damage, I know who would get the blame.

Sent from my HTC One X using proboards

[deej]

Oct 1, 2013 8:24:24 GMT ellebarto said:

I believe the issue is all about the driving style and not the tyres. There's a guy I lane with who swears by AT's and while I drive over terrain with hardly a wheel spin he will scrabble and struggle, disrupting the surface of the lane.

If you take your time and use the MT's to tackle obstacles correctly and proficiently first time, it has to be better than making 2 or 3 attempts.

Obviously if your just going to tear down a lane with MT's on without any care, then they will do more damage!

Couldn't agree more