Whether you’re navigating deep snow, icy roads, or facing other challenges of winter, the right set of snow boots—more commonly known as winter tires—makes all the difference. In our mission to help you conquer the cold, we’ve uncovered the top contenders for the best winter truck tires of 2024.
When it comes to winter driving, all-season tires, all-terrain tires, or even mud tires pale in comparison to the specialized power of modern winter tires. While other tire types may serve you well in various conditions, the winter tire—also known as a snow tire—truly shines when the weather turns cold.
In this guide, we’ll navigate through the key features, characteristics, and considerations that define the best winter truck tires. Whether you’re looking for next-level traction on deep snow, dependable stopping power on wet roads, or the confidence to tackle the most treacherous winter conditions, our review of top winter tire contenders will help you make the right decision.
Ready to see which ones are in the running for the best winter tires for your truck in 2024? Keep on reading.
Our Criteria for Judging the Best Snow Tires for Trucks
Tread pattern
The purpose of snow tires is to offer superior traction on deep snow and ice-covered roads. Tread patterns are designed with specific features, such as deep grooves, sipes, and biting edges that work together to grip slippery surfaces. This allows your truck, light truck, or SUV to maintain control, accelerate, and brake effectively.
In addition to snow and ice, a winter tire also needs to contend with slush and standing water. A well-designed directional tread pattern channels these elements away from the tire’s contact patch. This prevents hydroplaning, assuring that your tires maintain contact with the road to further enhance traction.
Snow and ice traction
Specialized winter tires are designed with features like deep treads, sipes, and advanced rubber compounds tailored to excel in deep snow and icy conditions.
We assessed the winter tires on this list on their ability to deliver exceptional traction when navigating winter driving, ensuring drivers can confidently handle slippery roads.
Versatility
As winter weather conditions can range from mild frost to heavy snowfall, we know that not all drivers require a winter tire suitable for the most extreme environments.
Some drivers may benefit from an all-purpose winter tire that offers balanced performance on both snowy and dry roads. Others may want a high-performance winter tire that’s durable enough to withstand heavy mud.
Three Peak Mountain Snowflake
One of the key factors we looked for is the Three Peak Mountain Snowflake (3PMSF) symbol on winter tires. This symbol is a reliable indicator that the snow tires have undergone rigorous testing and have proven their ability to perform well in severe winter conditions, including snowy and icy roads.
Opting for snow tires with a 3PMSF certification ensures you’re making a safe choice for your truck or SUV during the winter season, as they’re specifically designed to handle freezing temperatures and challenging winter terrains.
Rubber compound
In freezing temperatures, the standard rubber compound used in tires tends to harden, reducing a tire’s ability to grip the road. Snow tires, on the other hand, are engineered with a specialized rubber compound that remains flexible even in freezing conditions.
Choosing Between Studless and Studded Snow Tires
Studless tires
Studded tires
Conditions
Studless snow tires are ideal when you’re facing a variety of winter driving conditions with a little bit of everything—snow, slush, rain, and ice.
Studded tires are the top choice when you’re tackling extreme cold and the iciest of winter roads.
Comfort
Studless snow tires offer a quieter, more comfortable ride on your daily commutes, errand runs, or long-distance winter road trips.
Studded snow tires can produce noticeable noise on dry roads as the metal studs make contact with the pavement.
Traction
While studless snow tires provide good ice and snow traction compared to all-season tires, they may not match the ice grip of studded snow tires.
Studded snow tires shine when you need added traction for accelerating, braking, and steering on treacherously icy roads.
Our Burt Brothers Review: The Best Winter Tires for Trucks
✅ Best dedicated snow tire: Bridgestone Blizzak DM-V2
✅ Most comfortable snow tire: Michelin X-Ice Snow SUV
✅ Most versatile snow tire: Goodyear Wrangler DuraTrac
✅ Best all-terrain tires: Falken Wildpeak A/T3W
✅ Best snow tire for mud: BFGoodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM3
Bridgestone Blizzak DM-V2
What we liked
What you need to be aware of
✅ Excellent traction on snow and ice
❌ Shorter tread life on dry pavement makes them less than ideal for warm weather driving
✅ Impressive ice grip and braking performance
❌ Higher rolling resistance
✅ Responsive handling in winter conditions
Bridgestone, a name synonymous with tire excellence, offers the Blizzak DM-V2 snow tires to tackle the harshest winter conditions. Winter driving often demands superior traction on snow-covered roads, and this winter tire rises to the challenge.
The Blizzak DM-V2’s directional tread pattern, featuring multi-dimensional sipes and biting edges, gives these tires outstanding traction on snowy and icy surfaces. But these snow tires aren’t limited to excelling only in snowy conditions.
Remarkably, they also maintain commendable performance on dry roads. The secret lies in their specialized rubber compound, which remains pliable even in the coldest temperatures, ensuring consistent grip on dry road surfaces. While they may not match the sharpness of all-season tires when it comes to handling, they still provide a comfortable and controlled ride.
While the Blizzak DM-V2 snow tires excel in winter performance, there are some trade-offs. The softer winter-oriented compound in this snow tire, while fantastic for cold traction, may wear out quicker on warm, dry pavement. In addition, these snow tires exhibit marginally higher rolling resistance, decreasing their fuel efficiency compared to their all-season counterparts.
✅ Reliable performance in various winter road conditions
❌ Not suitable for year-round use
✅ Outstanding comfort and low noise levels
✅ Impressive performance on snow and ice
The Michelin X-Ice Snow tire truly stands out in the world of winter tires. When it comes to handling snowy and icy conditions, they are top-tier performers known for their outstanding safety and reliability.
What sets them apart? The Michelin X-Ice Snow tire features an advanced tread pattern with thousands of biting edges that provide excellent grip on snow and ice. Whether you’re driving through a snowstorm or carefully navigating icy patches, you’ll feel in control and avoid nerve-wracking skids.
Thanks to their specialized rubber compound and innovative braking technology, these snow tires excel at reducing stopping distances, even on icy slopes. But it’s not just about safety—these winter tires also offer a quiet and comfortable ride.
The Goodyear Wrangler DuraTrac snow tires feature a unique hybrid tread pattern, with closely spaced tread blocks in the center and wider-spaced lugs on the edges. This allows them to self-clean while gripping snow and remain quieter than we expected. However, they tend to produce more road noise compared to some other snow tires due to the open tread pattern on the outer edges.
When the weather gets tough, the DuraTrac is the best winter tire for off-road use. These tires blur the lines between mud-terrain and all-terrain, achieving an exceptional balance between off-road capability and on-road comfort. Plus, many of their sizes come ready for studs, enhancing their grip on icy surfaces.
The most significant downside is the price tag. Whether they’re worth it depends on your specific driving needs. If you frequently find yourself navigating snowy roads, we highly recommend these winter tires. But, if you prioritize a quieter ride on dry roads or only occasionally drive in the snow, you might want to explore other options.
Falken’s commitment to engineering excellence shines through in their Wildpeak A/T3W winter tires. With their precise engineering and purpose-built design, Falken has managed to hit the bullseye when it comes to delivering a solid snow tire that excels on both paved roads and rugged trails.
On the road, the A/T3W offers a secure grip thanks to its tailor-made rubber compound that caters to various vehicle weight classes. When the pavement gives way to the wilderness, this tire truly comes alive. Its aggressive tread and the added safeguard of offset shoulder blocks provide adequate traction to conquer challenging terrains.
This winter tire truly excels on snow-covered roads, ice, and frozen pavement, outperforming many of its competitors. However, the Falken A/T3W does have one downside—its abilities on muddy terrain.
The same attributes that make it comfortable on pavement can cause it to accumulate mud and compromise traction. If you regularly drive through mud, you may want to consider a more rugged mud tire.
✅ Rugged mud and winter tires that can handle extreme conditions
❌ Less grip on packed snow
✅ Outstanding durability
In the world of rugged off-road winter tires, BFGoodrich is a renowned name in the industry. One of their standout tire models is the Mud-Terrain T/A KM3. The BFGoodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM3’s debut was highly anticipated. This new iteration builds on the success of its predecessor, the KM2, which first appeared in 2007.
The KM3 represents the pinnacle of off-road performance, boasting extreme toughness, exceptional traction, and proven reliability. One of its defining features is its CoreGard Max technology, which reinforces the tire’s sidewall, making it incredibly resilient. This enhancement is a game-changer, ensuring the tire can withstand harsh off-road conditions with ease.
When it comes to navigating through mud and loose soil, the terrain-attack tread pattern of the KM3 truly shines. Its massive tread blocks are strategically designed to provide exceptional grip, regardless of the angle of approach. But the KM3 doesn’t stop at mud and loose soil; it also excels on rocks and slick surfaces.
Although its abilities on packed snow and ice aren’t as robust as that of some of its competitors, if you’re powering through mud, tackling rocks, or navigating tough trails, the KM3 will be your trusted companion during off-road adventures.
Get Superior-Quality Winter Tires for Trucks at Burt Brothers
Whether you’re on the lookout for mud-terrain tires, winter tires, or summer tires, we offer a wide range of tires for your light truck, SUV, sports car, and more. At Burt Brothers, we understand that your vehicle’s performance and safety depend on the quality of your tires, especially in challenging winter conditions.
When it comes to winter tires for your truck, we’ve got you covered. Our selection includes top-notch car tires for winter that meet our stringent criteria, including Three Peak Mountain Snowflake (3PMSF) certification, excellent snow traction, softer rubber, and reliability in snowy and icy conditions. Whichever tires you choose, remember—you should always ensure your vehicle is equipped with four winter tires.
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