We’re about to let you in on an unfair advantage. After years of running our four-wheel-drive diesel trucks around on the same tires during all four seasons, we’ve finally discovered the beauty of snow tires. We’re not talking about all-terrain tires that are rated for use in mud and snow (often labeled with an M+S logo), we’re talking about true purpose-built snow tires that should be installed right before the season’s first snowfall and removed after the spring thaw.
| 1104dp goodyear Tire Ultra Grip Ice Wrt dodge And Snow Plow
Snow tire technology has been around for decades, but it’s typically been reserved for use on two-wheel-drive passenger cars that have needed all the help they could get on snow- and ice-covered roads. Goodyear has changed all that by offering its Ultra Grip Ice WRT tire in fitments for diesel trucks. How much better are they than regular tires in the snow? you ask. The difference is like night and day.
Hooked To The Plow Truck
We fit four of Goodyear’s Ultra Grip Ice WRT tires on a Dodge snowplow truck based in Massachusetts so we could test the tires in the worst conditions possible. Before adding the Ultra Grips, we’d been relying on the original Michelin LTX A/S tires (with 45,000 miles on them) that came on the truck. In hindsight, we should have purchased a set of used Dodge wheels to mount the Goodyears on. That would have ultimately made swapping them back and forth in the winter and spring much easier. But with a nor’easter in the forecast, we had our local Goodyear tire dealer mount them on the truck’s original 17-inch aluminum wheels.
Street
As we rolled out of the tire shop, we felt and listened for any difference we could discern from the Goodyear Ultra Grip Ice WRTs on the dry roads. They seemed to soften the ride a tad compared to the Michelins, and while they weren’t really any louder, we were able to hear them gripping the pavement more. The Ultra Grip’s sound was akin to the desirable noise a new pair of high-tops makes on a basketball court. It’s not that there was any squeaking coming from the Goodyears, it’s just that we felt like we could hear the reassuring sound of traction.
Strategic Advantage
The very first test for the tires came in the form of a 14-inch blizzard that hit overnight. The plow was already on the truck, so all we had to do was shift into four-wheel drive and start pushing snow. With the weight of the Cummins and the 8-foot Fisher XBlade snowplow hanging over the front axle, we’ve come to expect limited rear tire traction whenever the plow is off the groundnot so with the Ultra Grip Ice WRTs. We began joking that we could probably plow as well with the Goodyears in two-wheel drive, as we did with the Michelin all-season tires in four-wheel drive.
The extra traction made the truck feel better in every way. We couldn’t get over how much difference having the correct tire for the job made. It’s not that we couldn’t slip or spin a tire under any condition, it’s that we felt a new level of confidence that allowed us to focus more of our attention on the plowing, and less on worrying about sliding all over the road. We’ll never want to plow with an all-season tire again.
Goodyear Ultra Grip Ice WRT Specs:
Tire Type: Radial
Tire Size: LT265/70R17
Overall Diameter: 31.7 inches
Tread Construction: 2-ply polyester + 2-ply steel + 2-ply nylon
Sidewall Construction: 2-ply polyester
Tread Depth: 16/32 inch
Overall Width: 10.7 inches
Approved Rim Width: 7 to 8 inches
Maximum Load (tire): 3,195 pounds
Maximum psi: 80 psi
Load Range: E
Tire Weight: 49 pounds
Dodge Wheel Specs:
Wheel Size: 17x8 inches
Bolt Pattern: 8-on-6-inch
