New tires

[LC250MD]

Ok my 2026 LC came with 20 inch wheels and the Geolander tires. My use case for the car is both my daily driver and weekend towing the boat and/or doing east coast US overlanding. Not really interested in the “adventure course” type off-roading, more cool destinations So far other than looking lame the Geolanders work great even on muddy hilly trails with bumps and ruts I suspect they will suck in the snow though and we do some upper NE trips and winter driving where that may be worth upgrading.

But most of what I find are the endless “tire upgrade” posts to crazy aggressive tires and rims which I suspect is 80% cosmetic/coolness and 20% actual use My tire upgrade objectives:
⁠1. Maintain smooth quiet on highway
2. ⁠Maintain mileage as much as possible
3. ⁠Better snow/offroad
4. ⁠Look cooler (distant 4th place)

Anyone have opinions? For example Bridgestone Dueler AT Ascent seems closest to my above list. I don’t want to go KO3 etc. way more than I need and violates the list above

 

[omgponies]

Looking cool is subjective - what looks cool to me might look lame to you, etc.

I just went from the 20" wheels with the Dunlops that came on them (they were actually totally fine for me, even in the winter, except they start day 1 with less tread depth than most, and they cost more to replace - so they were an obvious no for me when needing new ones) to Continental TerrainContact AT2. They are totally smooth/quiet on the highway (although above 70mph they vibrate more than the Dunlops did - not that they are bad, just "more"). They have knocked down my mileage - anything that is going to have more aggressive tread will. And they are better snow/offroad, but I don't do much offroading (fire and service roads every week, but that is like a few miles and I drive 2.5hours there and back on local and highway roads).
I also switched to the Tacoma 18" TRD because they were more on sale than usual, and 18" you have way more options than at 20". (that said, the AT2s are available on the 20" as well)

The better you get at #3, the worse #2 will be, and usually #1 too.
(I don't tow, so SL was fine for me - since you tow, you might want the higher ratings forcing you into worst #2)

I'm less than 1k miles into this new set, so cannot say long term what they will be - but so far I love them and am very impressed.

 

[Calokie]

Pirelli Scorpion XTM
Side walls look aggressive and "cool"
Lug pattern is not as aggressive as most AT
Reviews have great on road manners and quiet
Not sure about snow/Mud but all other terrain seems to fair above average
Im still on my stock Michelin XTL enjoying my MPG

 

[MaddMatt]

I don't know if they come in a 20" with an SL rating, but soon I'll be switching to the General Grabber ATX - I had them on my Xterra and found them to be quiet, even after 10k miles, great in the snow and I think they look "cool". I know in the 275/70/18 you can get them in an SL, so you skip some of the rough ride and weight penalty of the E, but I don't know if that's possible in a 20....

 

[MSINAL]

Pirelli Scorpion XTM
Side walls look aggressive and "cool"
Lug pattern is not as aggressive as most AT
Reviews have great on road manners and quiet
Not sure about snow/Mud but all other terrain seems to fair above average
Im still on my stock Michelin XTL enjoying my MPG

I like the look and promise of this tire, however there are several reports of major issues. Terrible grip in the wet with EV version and balancing problems.
I want to support Pirelli due to their motorsport involvement, but just not enough reviews yet of this tire to feel confident in selecting it. It would be an expensive mistake if they turn out to be problematic after the trial ends.
Plus, even with the trial period, I think you have to replace them with pirelli tires, and they don't have much to choose from in an all terrain.

 

[Matteblack]

Toyo Open Country AT3

Great balance for offroad and on road performance. Fairly aggressive side wall. Performs amazing on wet pavement. IMO they look cool too.

 

[Corbet]

I don’t shop the category of tire you’re describing as I run dedicated snow tires and dedicated trail tires seasonally. But after 7 years of working in the car business and commuting over vail pass in various demo cars on countless different tires for most of that I’ve got a pretty good handle on what I like in a tire.

Looking at Discount Tire these two stand out to me checking all 4 of your boxes.

Both have significant siping for winter performance. If you take “4. Look cooler” off the list then my choice would swing hard to a standard HWY tire. Look cool and MPG are total opposites. Pretty much anything you put on that looks cooler will come with a drop in MPG. I’m certain Toyota’s choice in OEM tire was done to max out MPG and minimize cost. Super light tires with no emphasis on traction or lifespan. The Michelin’s that came on mine were garbage.

 

[42-77]

Toyo Open Country AT/III 285/70/R17
Method 703 17s +35
No modifications needed.
1. Didn't notice a difference
2. Lost about 1-1.5 mpg but I removed the air dams at the same time (for looks, not required for tire fitment)
3. Yes
4. I think it looks amazing, just a bit more poke over stock

 

[Kevin]

I'm in a similar situation here in Minnesota. 90% highway miles, snow for 4 months of the year, boat towing, and occasional light off roading. I will second the comment above, you want all-season tires that match what you are doing with most of your miles

The Michelin Defender LTX MS/2, which will meet your first three requirements very well would be my first choice. I have those on my 1958 model here in Minnesota, I can't recommend them enough. Before buying a LC, I had these on my Durango and they performed great even in the winter to 85K miles. Your fourth requirement of looking "cool", they will look as boring as every other all-season tire. All-terrain tires certainly look cooler, but will hit your first three requirements pretty hard. Snow performance on these tires is also very good, not dedicated winter tire good, but very good. I would consider getting 5 new tires and replacing your spare as well, then do 5-tire rotations with the spare included. You can realistically get 100K miles on those tires going that route.

The other reasonable option would be to just keep the Geolanders for a year or two before replacing them. They are decent highway tires, but are fair at best in the snow. I drove them for a winter here in Minnesota before replacing them. They do slide around somewhat, but you aren't going to skid off the road the first time you see a couple inches of snow.

Congrats on your LC! I absolutely love mine.

 

[Matthew@LC250Mods]

Nitto Terra Grappler G3 is what you want IMO. The Toyos are my all time favorite A/T but it's a little more aggressive than what you're likely looking for. The Nitto balances like a dream, rides better than most highway tires, is snow rated, and is significantly more capable off-road than the OEM tire. It also has a 70,000 mile treadwear warranty.

 

[SnakeMagnet]

My use case is similar to yours. I live in Oregon, so wet and snow traction matters most to me. I also wanted to keep tire weight as low as possible. I agonized over new tires, and it came down to Toyo Open Country AT/III versus Continental Terrain Contact A/T2s. I have had good experiences with Continental tires on other vehicles, so I went with Terrain Contact A/T2s. Since I got them, I have driven about 500 miles on paved mountain roads, 250 miles on dirt forest roads, and 500 miles around town. The LC handles much better and mileage doesn't seem to have taken much of a hit. So far so good.

 

[GR8Santini]

Your requirements-
⁠1. Maintain smooth quiet on highway
2. ⁠Maintain mileage as much as possible
3. ⁠Better snow/offroad
4. ⁠Look cooler (distant 4th place)

Suggest 265/60R20 or 275/60R20. In your requirements steer clear of E-rated load tire. Between 2 sizes one looks a wee bit better than the other. 32.5 versus 33”. Hardly notice difference on speedo.

Michelin LTX A/T2 is your leader if MPG focus, but may not be as good in snow. Get the version Sam’s, Discount, etc. sell, & not OE versions that come new on trucks - different tire. In 275/60R20 they weigh 44.5# & provider good low tire resistance, but they’re not true AT tires in the sense compared to Toyo, Nitto, BFG, Falken.

Falken A/T4W Wildpeaks in 275/60R20 are what I chose. Blown away how good they are. Awesome in wet handling & braking, which was my #1 requirement - as lots of these A/T tires can give wet traction up quick. In 115SL load they weigh 50#. Look fantastic, low noise, grip great. Daily driver for my wife doing 50-100 miles daily & she really likes them.

 

[BKLC]

Falken Rubitrek 265/70/18. its their more-street oriented A/T tire to exactly fit your use case

 

[ultane]

⁠1. Maintain smooth quiet on highway
2. ⁠Maintain mileage as much as possible
3. ⁠Better snow/offroad
4. ⁠Look cooler (distant 4th place)

Anyone have opinions? For example Bridgestone Dueler AT Ascent seems closest to my above list. I don’t want to go KO3 etc. way more than I need and violates the list above

I finally gave my OEM Michelins away to another inmate, and bought Bridgestone Dueler AT Ascents (3PMSF). They are only a few pounds heavier than the OEM Michelins, so I was hopeful for good fuel economy, and they have the ‘I’m in the cool club’ look to them, instead of the soccer mom look.

I started out at 33 PSI with the new Duelers, and was sorely disappointed in the fuel economy. (As previously reported many times, I’ve gotten over 30 mpg on many 200 plus mile trips on the OEM Michelins at 33 psi).

On the Duelers, I tried several pressures, 33, 34, 35, 36 PSI, but still not impressed with the fuel economy numbers.. taking a 3 to 4 mpg hit. Incidentally, at those pressures they road AWESOME!! I settled into the notion that even though they weren’t as heavy as other AT tires, I was just going To have to pay the 3-4 mpg hit on fuel economy to be in the ‘cool kids’ AT tire club.

Then I saw a YouTube video about how to determine proper inflation pressures from reading the side wall and doing simple math. I never did this with the OEM Michelins, but wish I had.



I did the math, said what the heck, and bumped the inflation pressures up to 40 PSI (cold inflation) a couple of weeks ago, and already have returned 30+ mpg on an interstate/2 lane highway trip that I had made many times in the past with the OEM Michelins and gotten the same numbers.

Running 40 PSI cold, the tire pressures rise to 42 PSI (TPMS numbers on the dash) within ten miles of driving. I haven’t done the chalk test yet, but will do so, soon. Granted the ride quality at 40 PSI (cold inflation) is not as ‘squishy’ as 33 to 36 PSI, but it is acceptable. Soon I will try 39 and 38 PSI.

OVERALL, I am very happy with the Duelers, even though technically, I don’t need anything this ‘aggressive’. But at least, I am in the cool kids camp now..

Even though these Duelers are 3PMSF rated, I also have a set of 5 Michelin Ice tires on 5 OEM 18” Toyota wheels just in case Western NC gets dumped on.

 

[omgponies]

I really appreciate that early in that video, he explains to us that 1 in 5 have it right, and in turn that means 4 in 5 are doing it wrong.