Mud Tires for Trucks: Everything You Need To Know

If your goal is to have the toughest, most survivable, most aggressive off-road tire, then generally the bias-ply mud tire will trump the radial. Bias-ply tires generally have thicker sidewalls and tougher treads than radial alternatives, but at the expense of flat-spotting when parked for any period of time—sometimes even overnight, or after just a few hours. You'll be greeted with a thump-thump-thump until the tires heat up enough to make the flat spots go away. Also, bias tires can sometimes be more squirmy on the street and can exhibit negative handling characteristics like wobbling or wander. Radial tires have better on-road manners and don't usually exhibit signs of flat-spotting, but they do have some drawbacks as well. It's hard to find a good mud-terrain tire in sizes larger than a 40-inch diameter. There is a smattering of 42s, but if very large tires are what you're after, in the 44-54-inch size, you'll be looking primarily for a bias tire.

We find that, on the whole, the radial mud tires have fewer on-road drawbacks while giving up very little to the bias-ply mud tires in the dirt. Conversely, many times we're shocked by how poorly some bias-ply mud tires behave on road for only moderate increases in strength off-road. That said, if we were shopping for a tire the use of which was primarily for off-road, we wouldn't hesitate to prioritize a bias mud tire. If we were shopping for a tire on a truck that would frequently be driven on the street, and if the only size we found that worked was in a bias carcass, we'd happily choose the bias tire for that as well, but we'd be prepared for some potential quirks in terms of manners and handling.Mud Tires for Trucks