Guide to choosing the right tire for your SUV

 

If the tire is a compromise among a lot of factors in a 100% asphalt passenger car, wet and dry grip, rolling noise, durability, aesthetics, imagine the commitments for an off-road vehicle. In addition to all the factors mentioned above, we must include all types of surfaces away from asphalt, stones, dirt, mud, snow, gravel. If you would like to learn more, please visit: centennial dirt commander mt review

 

We must start from the basis that the ideal tire, perfect for all types of use, does not exist. And it will not be because the manufacturers have not tried it. For some time we have coined the concept "all-terrain", AT, to define the multipurpose and multipurpose off-road tire par excellence. But even within the AT tires, subdivisions have also appeared. Tires AT 40% road, AT 40% field. What to choose?

 

Practically all SUVs and, with much more logic, SUVs are equipped with virtually road tires as standard (minimum 80% asphalt). These tires offer the best comfort, grip, and fuel consumption on pavement and are the ones that the vehicle manufacturer has developed in its development. In some cars, even the tire supplier has developed specific types for this particular model. These tires are usually sufficient for excursions on simple tracks and paths, especially when dry and on slightly aggressive surfaces.

 

Only in the case of intensive off-road use do we recommend the use of authentic off-road tires, usually called MT (from English mud terrain), generally designed for 80% off-road use. These tires offer a much higher profile and feature pronounced and separate lugs to evacuate mud better. They are much noisier rolling on the road, slightly increase fuel consumption, and offer limited grip on wet asphalt. In exchange, far from the pavement, they provide significant advantages in terms of grip –especially in mud–, traction and resistance to cuts and punctures.


 

Normative

All off-road tires, including asphalt tires, are marked with the letters M + S on their sidewall (English initials "mud and snow"). EU Regulation 458/2011 introduces the concept of "professional" off-road tires, which will be marked on its side with the letters "POR" (professional off-road). The ITV Revision Manual allows, as an exception, the use of off-road tires with a speed code lower than that indicated in the vehicle's technical data sheet, provided that it is at least Q (? 160 km / h). The use of tires not measured in the technical data sheet (± 3% tolerance) is a reform that must be legalized in ITV.

 

The pressures, the key

Let's choose the type we want, don't forget to adjust the tire pressure according to the running surface. As a general rule, for asphalt and hard courts, we can maintain the forces recommended by the manufacturer, being able to drop a couple of tenths (or up to 1 kg in the event of a traffic jam) when dealing with muddy or snowy roads. Or go up a couple of tenths in case of full load. Exclusively for circulation on beautiful sand dunes, we recommend deflating the tires up to 1 kg / cm2 without forgetting to inflate again as soon as we leave the sand.


TT choice

The best of both worlds: having two complete sets (tire + rim) of wheels. A few rims with mixed road tires for summer and all use in the original size of the car and another set of rims with larger diameter MT tires (at least one more number, for example from profile 65 to 70 or 75) for TT routes.