Tire question....

[Didz]

I am planning a trip, either in November or December, to Turkey. I will be setting off from my warm little Island of Bahrain through Kuwait, picking up my significant other, Iraq and on to Turkey.

The weather in out region is pleasant during those months so the Yokohama Geolanders I have on my 20 inch Black Rhinos do the job perfectly. However once I get to the north of Iraq and into Turkey things will change. As I go further north it will get much colder and wet. The closer I get to Trabzon, Turkey the higher the chance of us seeing snowfall and possibly icy roads. I don't want to have to change tires there and ditch my Yoko's. If I change tires it will be here before I set off.

My question is, since we don't get ANY snow out here, for the guys that travel long distance in the US and see the sudden weather changes. What tire would you recommend and why?

The only time I have driven in snow was on a frozen lake in the artic circle during Porsches Camp 4S event (pic attached) when I was an automotive journalist and they were studded tires.

 

[LaxDfns15]

Are they the Geolandar AT? Looks like those are 3 peak rated for snow so you should be good to go. Depending on snow/road conditions I'd suggest 4WD Hi or Auto 4WD if you have it. Unless the bed is really loaded down you don't have much weight over the rear tires so they spin a lot in snow/slick conditions.

 

[Ducky5]

I had Blizzacks on my STi when I lived up north. They did a fantastic job in the snow/ice for not having studs. Not sure if they make them for a truck and I don't have a lot of knowledge on the topic since I live down south now. I'd probably go with some kind of All Terrain if you didn't want to go with the whole dedicated snow tire package.

 

[Neil McCauley]

If your Yokohama's are the A/Ts that are ice/snow rated they should be alright. If they're not I love my BFG KO2s. Put ~25k miles/year on them and half is in ice/snow. A truck in the snow is totally different from a car though. Have to be careful about braking no matter what tires you have on. I wouldn't bother with a dedicated snow tire personally. They wear pretty quickly especially if used in non-winter climates.

 

[mikeru82]

For year-round use, you can't go wrong with pretty much any A/T tire with the three peak mountain snow flake rating (3PMSF). Unlike the M+S rating some tire makers use, the 3PMSF rating actually means the tires have been tested under specific conditions to meet the rating. The 3PMSF symbol looks like this...

 

[bigdodge]

I am planning a trip, either in November or December, to Turkey. I will be setting off from my warm little Island of Bahrain through Kuwait, picking up my significant other, Iraq and on to Turkey.

The weather in out region is pleasant during those months so the Yokohama Geolanders I have on my 20 inch Black Rhinos do the job perfectly. However once I get to the north of Iraq and into Turkey things will change. As I go further north it will get much colder and wet. The closer I get to Trabzon, Turkey the higher the chance of us seeing snowfall and possibly icy roads. I don't want to have to change tires there and ditch my Yoko's. If I change tires it will be here before I set off.

My question is, since we don't get ANY snow out here, for the guys that travel long distance in the US and see the sudden weather changes. What tire would you recommend and why?

The only time I have driven in snow was on a frozen lake in the artic circle during Porsches Camp 4S event (pic attached) when I was an automotive journalist and they were studded tires.

just remember no matter what you do the rear is lighter than the front.
my daughter who lives in Virgina puts sand bags in the bed of her truck in the winter and that really helps.

 

[GKIII]

I have nothing to contribute here, but man it's freaking wild to read about someone taking a road trip through Iraq after I spent literal years of my life there in less than desirable conditions...

 

[mikeru82]

just remember no matter what you do the rear is lighter than the front.
my daughter who lives in Virgina puts sand bags in the bed of her truck in the winter and that really helps.

I'm glad you brought that up because the OP didn't specify if he has 4WD or not. Adding weight in the bed of a truck is mainly going to benefit people who have 2WD, and I agree if that's the case. 4WD is a different story though. It's much less important if the OP has 4WD. While it doesn't hurt to add weight if you have 4WD, it doesn't really do a lot for you.

 

[CalvinC]

If you have the Geolander AT tire (the AT/S or G015 specifically) then that is about the best all-around all-weather tire one could have. Ran 5 sets of them on various trucks (including 1 2wd Silverado) through more than a decade of Colorado, US weather - my climate sees everything!