What Makes A Good 4×4 Tyre?

If you are an avid off roader, you might wonder what makes a good 4×4 tyre. For starters, a good off road tyre should provide exceptional traction on various surfaces. Tyre tread block shapes and groove characteristics affect tyre noise pattern and traction characteristics. Basically, wide and straight grooves will have low noise levels as well as excellent water removal. The more lateral groves will usually increase the traction of the tyre. Sipes are the small grooves cut across a larger tread, and this is what you should look out for when you are buying tyres.

Resistance to tread wear

A good four wheel drive tyre will also have excellent resistance to tread wear. Tread wear rates are affected by many factors. There are some factors that the driver can control while others are beyond the control of the driver. The road surface and climatic conditions are factors that a driver cannot control. Others are the vehicle design and the tyre itself. Pressure distribution grooves in the tyre will help to promote even wear and tear resistance.
The way you drive affects how long your tyre is going to last. High speed operation or cornering, hard acceleration and harsh braking can dramatically reduce the life of your tyre.

What makes a good 4×4 tyre?

The tyre should be tenacious and also dependable. A tenacious tyre is one that is made of durable rubber. To ensure that your tyre is going to be dependable, the first thing that you need to do is to decide what your main use is going to be. If your SUV is to be used in construction, the tyre should be rugged and can withstand different pressures or weight. A deeper tread is required if you mostly drive off road. This will make the tyre safe to use in snow and mud.

What driving conditions are you expecting?

If you are looking for tyres that you are going to be using on the highways, tyres known as street treads are what you should go for. If the vehicle is going to be driven on muddy, rocky and snowy conditions, you can go for mud treads. The good thing is that these tyres can be utilized equally well while driving on the city streets as well as on rough terrains. Knowing the conditions that you are going to routinely drive your vehicle will determine the tread that you should buy.
If you would like better traction and a less bumpy ride, you should choose radial tyres. You can also find four-wheel drive diagonal tyres, but the ride is not very smooth and you are going to need regular shock replacements.

The importance of choosing the right size of tyre

Choose the right tyre size for your vehicle by choosing standard tyres. Look at your owner’s manual to find out the size requirements for the tyres that you should have on the vehicle. You will usually find that the size requirements are based on class, which is light, medium or heavy. If you don’t have the owner’s manual, you can check the inside of the front driver’s door where this information is listed. However, you can choose over-sized tyres if you would like to have additional ground clearance.

Resisting the hardest shocks on uneven surfaces

The tyre should also resist the hardest shocks on uneven surfaces. The tyre can have stylish and aggressive tread pattern for on-road or off-road driving, offering reassuring grip in a wide range of situations. The tyre could also have a robust carcass with a reinforced sidewall in order to maintain the stability of the pattern and enhance lateral grip. This provides increased traction as well as braking efficiency.
A tyre that has curved central grooves will have a stronger grip on any irregular surface. This also provides self-cleaning action that removes stones and mud, giving continuous traction in all off-road situations.

High resistance to aquaplaning

Having high resistance to all aquaplaning situations is another mark of a good four-wheel drive tyre. Aquaplaning occurs when a layer of water builds between the wheels of a vehicle and the road surface, leading to a loss of traction that prevents the vehicle from responding to control inputs. To choose a good tyre that can resist aquaplaning, it should have unidirectional V-shaped tread.
This increases the ability to channel water from between the tyre’s footprint and the road. To further ensure that your tyres can resist aquaplaning, ensure that you have proper tyre pressure. Narrow and unworn tyres will also ensure that your tyres can prevent aquaplaning.

Low rolling noise

Another thing that can guide you in choosing the best tyre is to choose one that has low rolling noise, ensuring increased passenger comfort. The good thing about such a tyre is that it also provides superb fuel saving capability, energy efficiency as well as good braking distance even during wet weather. A good 4×4 tyre will reduce rolling resistance by up to 30 per cent, enabling you to use 6 per cent less fuel every year.

Improve road handling

A good tyre should improve road handling on wet or dry conditions. This will give you the confidence to push your car to its limits. Central tread bands can also be further reinforced in order to produce faster steering responsiveness and directional stability. This ensures that you can be able to control your vehicle at a high speed and when cornering. Your safety on the road is therefore going to be enhanced.

Think long-term value

Last but not least, a good four-wheel drive tyre is going to cost you the least amount of money. To get your perfect tyres at the best price, you need to divide their cost by their expected mileage. For instance, a $90-tyre that can last 35,000 miles is better value for money compared to a $50 that can only last 20,000 miles. This means that the selling price is not necessarily the most important thing to consider when you are shopping for tyres.
The seller should also provide you with a warranty. Some tyre manufacturers have been in the industry for over a century. That means that you can get a genuine warranty if you buy your tyres from an authorized dealer.
Joseph Hardings is a British expat living in Melbourne, Australia.