New Duratrac RT Tires
 

Thanks to Bob I will be getting the new Duratrac RT tires this weekend :sHa_shakeshout:
As these are brand new to the market, Bob asked me to keep him updated as to real world performance, so I will use this thread as such.
If anybody else has these tires or will be putting some on let's hear your stories.
Note they will be on a 2015 Chev Silverado 1500 4x4 with 275/65/R18.
Thx again Bob
Cheers
WDF

I put a set of 285/75R16 on a 2006 Chev 2500 diesel before. Great tires. Were surprisingly quiet for how big and bulky they were. I think you will enjoy.

What’s the difference with the RT?

Looks like from a quick look, no stud holes.

I would assume as well the rubber would be a bit of a different compound to be a bit harder, as they are not studdable, so like a dedicated mud tire.

I think you're mistaken... He's talking about the new DURATRAC R/T, not the regular (old) Duratracs.

They look almost identical, but no stud holes - more sipes - and different compound IIRC.

https://www.goodyear.com/en_US/tires...-rt/24913.html

:)

https://i.ibb.co/pX8sFbT/Screenshot-...853-Chrome.jpg

Yes, so the RT has new compounding, more siping and no stud holes as well as new sidewall styling. The new compounding and extra siping is proclaimed to be quite an improvement in winter traction but again it is so new that I have zero feedback as of yet from real world clients.

What’s the cost for four all in?? Like balanced and mounted?

Thanks for clarifying. I’m hopeful they have made a marked improvement in performance.

Sizes are just starting to trickle in. Message me exactly what you are looking for size wise, ply rating etc and I will see if they are available. I don't publicly discuss pricing on the open forum but AO member certainly do get discounts...

Ok sounds good thx

With the smaller lugs and a bit more sipes is my hope. I really like them except for the real hard compacted snow or ice.
Will let y'all know once I get them.
WDF

Yeah, I was trying to find some info on these, but they seem to be hitting the ground a little too late for me.

I did install a new set of 295/65/18 Duratracs, and even they seem to have much better winter traction than my last set? not sure if it's just me, or the compounds may have changed. I guess I'll be able to tell by how long they last, hopefully a while at the price of a set :sign0161:.

I have a 2021 3500 chevy LTZ 4 x 4 with a duramax and it came from the factory with Michelin LTX AT2 tires LT275/70R - 18, I've got close to 70K on them and they are down to 5/32 so going to have to be changed soon, I'm not impressed with them in snow or mud to be honest but they sure are quiet on the highway.

My last duramax I ran a set of duratracs ok in the snow and mud but terrible wear 55K and they were shot and not real quiet on the pavement so they are out, A buddy of mine has a set of Rovelo Ridgetrak AT on his truck and really likes them, the guy at the the tire shop here said he has sold a lot of them and has a customer that runs them on his fleet trucks in the patch, say's he's been getting good feedback on them. Anyone out there run them ??? good bad ????

SIL runs BF Goodridge T/A KO2 on his truck and really likes them, say's they are quiet on the highway and good in the snow and mud.

I don't tow a lot maybe 10% and not really heavy, 24' cargo trailer 8,000# max and maybe 10% gravel the rest is highway miles.

I keep meaning to see which ones I got last spring.
They "growl" from day one.
Thought my transmition or diff was going.
Just put my winter (studded) tires on & no "growl" .
I'll try & get info off them today....

The Rovelo is a rebadged Sailun Terramax AT. I have sold thousands of them. Bang for the buck they are excellent, but they are still an econo tire.

I have found that they weather crack relatively quickly. Traction is quite good though. They are about 30% cheaper than the name brand, and they wear out about 30% faster, which makes them a solid option for a truck which you may not own forever.

I sell many of mine to a fleet of RV and truck camper rentals. They swear by them.

Great thanks for this review, the price I was quoted was actually only about 10% cheaper than the BFG TKO2 not sure I'm interested in them if they wear faster as I normally keep my trucks 10 years or so and run about 30K per year

Same opinion here on the LTX but mine were 20 on a 2012 f 350 and current 2017. Good road tire and quiet. I only got around 45k but I have a 3000 pound pin weight in the truck hauling a big toyhauler on trips from Cape Breton and California back to Calgary so I can not complain. I went with Toyo AT3 as they are great AT and quiet as much as a AT can me. My winter Blizzacks went on yesterday.

Any updates on the duratrac RT performance in snow/ice and mud?

Don’t know about traction, but they seem to be horrible in rock and gravel.
We run them at the mine, and since they change, I’ve never changed to many flat tires. Granted it is spring, and we use some me big material, but it’s a lot.
Almost all the flats are rock punctured in the tread face, never had this issue before with the older duratracs.

Strange… Exactly the opposite feedback I have been getting. With the additions of the Kevlar Belting and triple ply sidewalls everyone I have in industry running them has said they have not been having any issues since switching. Go figure that one out…

Any feedback on the road noise also?

Very much quieter... I can say this with authority as I am running them myself. I will qualify that though by saying I am using standard loads on a half ton. Heavy duty tires are always prone to more road feedback because of the heavier duty casing structure, but tread sound has been fantastic. I don't even realize I am driving on an AT tire!

Over all the clients I have has using these since launch last year, which is quite a lot now, and I have not had even a single comment about being loud.

Also to note, I went through the last month of winter fun we had and drove back and forth to Southern BC over the passes and had no issues. I can't say they were quite as good as my studded Conti XTRM winters of course, but I always felt more than well enough in control with just a bit of careful driving.

Very good to hear. Have been a longtime fan of Duratracs so nice to know the new model is even better than the old ones. Th old ones were great in mud, deep snow, wet pavement and fairly good on ice. The E rated I run have a noticeable hum but it never really bothered me. Having these be even quieter is a good thing as long as they dig in mud and snow as good as the old ones.

Yeah I ran the previous generation for a good 5 or 6 years year round and I can say so far the new ones were noticeably better in the winter crap we got this past late winter. The tread pattern has tightened up slightly compared to the old ones, which is a definite factor in the improved sound quality, but they have increased the sipe density which is a factor in the improved traction. I have yet to give them an offroad test personally but I do have a lot of Oil & Gas clients along with hunters and "off the beaten path" types running them and so far all reports are solid.

No long term feedback though of course being so new to the market so time will tell how they fair long term.

Yeah, some of the issue is definitely site specific. But the increase in flats was definitely noticeable over the previous model. Although, I did see a lot less sidewalls cut, and the amount of tires ruined from run flat damage was less as well. The casings are definitely improved and tougher.

Are your trucks in a lot of shale? I am wondering if the increased sipe density is grabbing pointier stones in the tread?

Tires
 

Our mine trucks are in blasted rock, if they see road crush, it’s 1 1/2”. Their life span in the pit is measured in weeks, maybe months. They do not last long in these condition, no matter what brand.

I purchased these tires in a LT version, my initial thought at first driving made me think i was driving a boat. I dropped the pressure 10PSI in the front and 30Psi in the rear and it improved, plus i think that tires needed some driving to stiffen the side wall.

Honestly I think that is more a case of getting used to characteristics of a specific tire rather than them actually stiffening the sidewall itself (other than playing with air pressure of course).

This said, people often forget that a tire wears gradually in the reality of time. When a tire is brand new and the tread is very deep, it is natural to feel more flex (or sway or as you described "being on a boat" etc) as the taller tread blocks will squirm more under load, but as they slowly wear over time they don't feel the transition to them becoming less forgiving and more stable, so by the time it is time for new tires they might notice a dramatic difference between the old and new tires, especially when going to something with a very deep lug and higher sipe density.

Think of it to the extreme where they shave down race tires to a minimal tread depth, or run slicks instead of having any tread in the dry. That gives a tire the absolutely most stability when pushed to the extreme (along with a larger contact patch on the slicks). Even though it may not be as dramatic with street tires, it still is a very real effect.

While the rubber in the tread can harden with age, sideways usually get softer from flexing, not harder.