Best tyres for an Escudo??? Opinions please

[Weemsy]

im looking at buying a new set of tyres for my scud, ive bought used tyres before but im going to go for new this time.

ive got a list of tyres ive kind of narrowed down to, but i would appreciate your input, as its not a cheap deal as im sure everyone is aware

the ones ive thought of are.....Scorpions, Maxxis Bighorn, Gt radial adventuro, Federal couragia. they will be 31's.

things like silverstone are a bit out of my price range, thats why im keen on the Couragia's. anyone ran these on vits/scuds?? mine is a 1992 5 door auto.

cheers
weemsy

[lneil]

Hi Weemsy

I run 31 x 10.5 Adventuros on the manual scud and they work really well. Nice open pattern with good bite. They haven't worn yet so I don't know how they'll go when the tread gets low.

Only problems I've had is numerous punctures, but a couple of those were tube-related (crap inside the tyre).

[gimmemud]

ice kayak on here runs scorpians on his vitara with difflock/s and they seem to go pretty well.

[icekayak]

Yeh the Scoprions seem to go well... They are much better than the previous tyres i had, as I found before there was no way I could climb out of a rut, whereas with decent lugs on the side makes them climb a lot better...

Depends on what type of driving you do, and how big you actually want the tyres (ie real tyre size & width) vs how much lift you got.... To go from 30" hankooks to 31" scorpions i had to cut and weld the firewall to push it back, cut the guards, do even more of a suspension lift, cut the guards etc etc... Was it worth it? Who knows but i had already committed to the tyres before i had tried them on the vitara.

Another factor is the weight/sidewall of the tyre and if the vitara is heavy enough to make it bag out to get the increased ground surface area. I can't remember what brand but someone on their 413 could run their tyres at a couple of psi with minimal bagging just cos it was soo light...

Having said that big al in an almost identical vitara went basically everywhere I could with a set of 700x15 SAT's. Having said that i've got a set of 31" mudzillas here in good nick if you were looking for some of them (may be a bit wide though)

[UBZ]

Pirelli Scorpion's are what I'm going to run on my 413 .
They have the same tread pattern as the BFG .(which I like and has worked well for me.)
But only a 2 ply sidewall ,meaning they will bag well on a light weight Zuk.And they are relativity cheap.

[loppee]

I run pirelli scorpion muds 31s on my escudo with 3in suspension lift and 2in body with a rear diff lock, a mate has the same set up but runs maxxis big horns 31s, both sets of tyres go very well we are both happy with our tyres.

[Big-AL]

simex, nuff said

haha, like icekayak said, the S.A.T.'s were awesome i would recommend them to anyone!

[PuddleJumper]

To go from 30" hankooks to 31" scorpions i had to cut and weld the firewall to push it back, cut the guards, do even more of a suspension lift, cut the guards etc etc...

Got any pics of the cutting and welding? I'll be doing the same to mine to get some 31" Silverstones under it.

Thanks

[mroffroader]

30x9.5 federal couragia's definetly no other

[Weemsy]

i just sold a full set of 15' SAT's and white spoke to rims to an ORE member. they were bloody brilliant for the bit of off road i did with them on, just noisy on the road i thought.

wish i'd kept them now or at least kept the rims

hey mr.o how do you find the federals in different conditions??? road handling/noise, hard terrain, deep mud etc etc???

im keen on the federals as i can get them at a good price from a mate, but was beginning to think twice with everyone saying go for the scorpions. just priced up scorpions this weekend though i can get silverstones for not much more than that bugger

cheers
weemsy

[icekayak]

Got any pics of the cutting and welding? I'll be doing the same to mine to get some 31" Silverstones under it.
Thanks

Dont think i every did... Don't want to hijack this thread though...
From memory there was a seem that ran up the side and I cut a slot up just in front of it with the angle grinder, and along the floor pan, than hammered it in a little, and then backwards so the front section was pushed next to the old section and inline with the seem, and I ended up with a nice flange that I could weld along. No idea on the legality of it for WOF's...

Also cut the sills off and welded RHS in at the same time... as it was getting to the point i couldn't open my doors the sills were that bent... theres a few more pics of it here and a link to another writeup: http://www.offroadexpress.co.nz/Forums/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=8476&hilit=+sills Once again it was the best option i could come up with to fix the problem but i don't know about wof's


You can see in this photo the RHS sills, The virtual lift (if you look at the petrol filler i took it up to the corner of that) and you can see the distance from the front of the door to the guard to give you an idea of how much i opened that up... there is also a small bumpstop spacer on the rear so there is no rubbing on that tyre...

[Jafa]

39.5 x 13.5 Iroks, the only way! may need some guard cutting

[Weemsy]

well................

i was thinking of 44's, but if you think i should keep it small then i will

[Heath]

I guess those on here with the couragias(sp?) may not have had them long enough or dont run them onroad so cant give an accurate picture of their wear etc. I am looking at them for my trials toy and so far the only one that comes close is the silverstone, but I am still not 100% convinced either way. Maybe a 4wd mag would do a comparison (HINT - Editors take note) on several of the cheaper tyres avaliable, but I guess the problem of longevity would still not be apparent until after several months of onroad driving.

Still all the time I spend dithering means more money in the bank and more time to enlarge the guards etc.

[UBZ]

39.5 x 13.5 Iroks, the only way! may need some guard cutting

Just a little guard cutting

[Heath]

39.5 x 13.5 Iroks, the only way! may need some guard cutting

Just a little guard cutting

I wonder if they needed to sit in the back seat as the fire wall must be near the front of the front seats. Be great for midgets I guess, apart from them getting in and out though.

[Big-AL]

do you think this would need to be certified?

[PuddleJumper]

Thanks for the info on the gaurd cutting technique Icekayak

[amateur]

im in the same boat as weemsy im buying a new set of tyres and i was planning on 31" mudstar's a mates got sum on his hilux and they go really well and their cheap but i dont know whether its worth all the hassle of trying to fit the 31's or to just go with 30's

luke

[Weemsy]

depends on what work you have done, or are planning to do.

ive got a 3.5" (roughly) suspension lift and the back tyres (30's) keep peeling the rear arches out going over any bump offroad.

ive got a bodylift to do yet, cut the front & rear arches and relocate the front a-arm mounts to bring the front wheels forwards.

i might keep 30's though now, to give as much articulation as possible.

not sure yet, keep changing my mind

[amateur]

ill be using it to go up thompsons track and that sort of thing im just wondering that it i go with the 30's i wont be able to have any chance getting thru places like that when other trucks with 35's have ripped the track up and have left huge ruts.

[lneil]

ill be using it to go up thompsons track and that sort of thing im just wondering that it i go with the 30's i wont be able to have any chance getting thru places like that when other trucks with 35's have ripped the track up and have left huge ruts.

If you can't get through with 30's, because of 35" rutting, you won't get through with 31's anyway. There are always going to be conditions that exceed your tyres, no matter what size you have, that's the fun and challenge of 4WD'ing.

I like the 31's, but in reality would probably have found very little off-road performance improvement over the 30's. I think that like many people, I just enjoy pushing the truck build a little further all the time. It's silly, I know, but I also just like the nuggety look of the larger tyres. The extra 1/2 inch rear diff clearance has been noticable on tracks that I use regularly, but it only means that now I get stuck in slightly deeper, harder places instead. All good fun!

[amateur]

i suppose if i get a set of 30's ill wanna go bigger as all my mates say so im gonna try put in the hard yards now and fit the 31's. they look a bit more tough as well

[spanky]

i run 30 inch on std 5.5 inch wide jimny rims and get no rub, mate has 31 adventuros on his with same springs as mine on std vitara rims and it rubed on thr front seam which got hammered flat and now it is sweet. if you run narrow rims they rub less , come off the bead less aswell, i run mine about 15psi with no tubes and havr done for years with no problems, the 31s cost him 175 each fitted and seem to work well but no comprtition for my welded diffs
vaughan

[amateur]

thanks for that. can you get wofs with the spring set up you have? i priced up some mudstar tires which have worked quite well on my mates hilux and i can get 31's for $195 fitted

[Heath]

Would the mud stars bag enough with a light weight vehicle?

[Genie4x4]

im looking at buying a new set of tyres for my scud, ive bought used tyres before but im going to go for new this time.

ive got a list of tyres ive kind of narrowed down to, but i would appreciate your input, as its not a cheap deal as im sure everyone is aware

the ones ive thought of are.....Scorpions, Maxxis Bighorn, Gt radial adventuro, Federal couragia. they will be 31's.

things like silverstone are a bit out of my price range, thats why im keen on the Couragia's. anyone ran these on vits/scuds?? mine is a 1992 5 door auto.

cheers
weemsy

I have had both maxxis buckshots and fedima extreme retreads both have worked extremely well but the fedima seemed to be a cut above the rest when it comes to being on an x-90 on and off road, hard wearing, not noisy and a retread with a strong wall (example of fedimas http://www.kingoffroad.co.uk/ortyres.html ) Buckshots are well proven for lasting on and off road so go with what will last and perform

[wopass]

ill be using it to go up thompsons track and that sort of thing im just wondering that it i go with the 30's i wont be able to have any chance getting thru places like that when other trucks with 35's have ripped the track up and have left huge ruts.

A Zook on 30's has about the same clearance as a cruiser on 35's mate, and the added ability to navigate around the ruts so you shouldnt worry about that.

[Weemsy]

who sells fedima tyres in nz?? them ones that look like moto-x tyres look the dogs the trekker looks familiar too!!!

i would be keen if theres a dealer in NZ

[Genie4x4]

the guys from invercargill who import the maxxis etc, its a copy of the yokohama