Home Forums Gear Hunting Trucks and Four-Wheel Drives At what tread depth do tires become "unsafe"?

I originally liked the Hankooks I had on my Dodge 2500 before the current Goodyears. The Hankooks seemed to wear fine until about 10,000 or so. Then the sidewalls started to go, handling vanished, and off road traction was nil. My current Goodyears have more than 40,000 on them with at least another 10,000 to go. I'll swap them outdoor the more aggressive Goodyears I always put on before my later elk seasons and run until about mid-April.

I second the Big O opinion. Worst tires I've ever had on a vehicle.

Lots of my guide/outfitter buds use and love a wide variety of tires. Everybody has their favorites.

If you're getting close to needing new tires, consider going to a narrower one. The stock size on my pickup is 265x70x17. I'm running 245x75x17. They have the same diameter and load capacity but are a bit narrower in the tread.

Narrower tires handle better in rocks and on rough roads, they have better traction in snow, and they give you more room under the front fenders for chains.

Yep. Narrow tires have a skinner contact patch which equates to more vehicle pounds per inch. Stated another way, the tires have more ability to dig in for traction.

4/32 and I'm normally done with them.

Before...........

Driving an 81 shortbed Chevy 4x2 and running on a freeway about 45mph, light rain, down under an overpass and hit some choppy asphalt, rear swings wide left, over-correct and swing wide right, lock up all four just before hitting the left guardrail head on, smile and think "I am still alive" seconds before getting t-boned by a 80's LTD going about 35 mph. Girlfriend's aunt knocked the passenger glass out of the door.

or..........

Running about 60 down a state highway in a 78 Toyota 4x2, heavy rain, hit a bump and back end swings wide left, over-correct, wide right, two more times and go into the bar ditch, back end clips a phone pole and come to rest in 4' of water, girlfriend pissed.

Both incidents over 20 years ago, 5-10 mph slower may have prevented the loss of traction but I replace tires sooner rather than later now.

Minneapolis used to ticket each tire $25 if it was under a certain amount of remaining tread. It might be more now.

I've run them until you could see 3 different colors of rubber and run a set of old TSL Thornbergs until they started throwing the lugs off going down the road.