good tyres for dirt/mud/snow driving

[Stiffman]

So, I need new tyres, as my front ones are suffering from the painful outside edge wear that from what I tell is a common issue. It's certainly been an issue the time I've had the car, however i think the tyres I have on it are the quickest ones to wear down.

I'm a bit disappointing, as I was hoping not to have to put new tyres on it before I got a newer car. When I do replace the car I was looking at a Suzuki Grand Vitara for it's offroad capability, but that's not going to happen in the immediate future.

Anyway, with winter approaching, I was wondering if there are any good tyres that will be good on the road, but still have a bit of grip on muddy and potentially icy roads that I can put on my 2004 AWD verada?

My wife and I wouldn't mind doing some light exploring in the mountains around Canberra, hunting snow and what not. I know the AWD isn't an offroad vehicle, but I figure it's better than a lot of other vehicles for the task at hand, and it might allow us to decide if it's worth delving deeper into the offroad lifecycle.

My car has the stock 215/60/16 rims. If I wanted to pursue this, would there be more options if I changed rims? say went with a 15 inch with higher profile? I'm not exactly all over tyres and their sizing.

[leadfoot6]

I don't believe that 15" rims are a possibility on an AWD, which have larger diameter brakes than more basic FWD models.

The smaller wheels, standard fitment on the basic models with smallers discs/calipers, might not provide adequate clearance.

There are some reasonable options in 16" fitment.

The following have a reasonable reputation:

Yokohama Geolandar A/T-S G012 215/60R16 95H

https://www.bobjane.com.au/a/215-60r...60r16-95h/8899

There will be others.

The following link, from an overseas site, will give you some idea as to what is available and that will fit on your current wheels:

https://tyres.buycarparts.co.uk/suv/...res/215-60-r16

Make sure that whatever you decide upon, has at least the same speed & load rating as the tyres currently on your vehicle.

(these details are shown on the tyre placard stuck to the "B" pillar on the drivers side door opening)

You will almost certainly be buying these new, so this should not be a problem if purchased from an experienced tyre retailer.

It has been many, many years since I sold wheels and tyres as a job.

Get some advice from a Bob Jane store or similar.

[Stiffman]

Cool, thanks for the info. I'm glad I didn't try fitting 15 inch rims then!

I'm seeing the Geolanders pop up quite a bit online. I'll look into them.

[leadfoot6]

In late November last year I was returning to NSW after visiting the Mits-Fix workshop in Melbourne to have extensive work done on my TL AWD.

I was hoping to return via Bright and the Victorian/NSW snowfields and then on to Cooma & Canberra.

I had previously planned this route, but on the day of travel it was actually snowing in the high country.

My 94yo mother was with me on that trip as I wanted to allow her a rare holiday before her sight degrades further.

She was a bit apprehensive about visiting the high country during snow conditions even though I tried to reassure her that my car, being AWD, would handle the situation without chains.

The Rangers/tourist advisers gave me the thumbs up that the AWD Magna would be OK without chains, but I had difficulty convincing my mum so in the end we just went as far as Bright and did not venture any higher.

I would be interested in reading feedback as to how the AWD Magna handles snowy conditions when you get around to it.

I'm only 4 hours or so from the snow country, so I might venture there if the Magna will handle the conditions without chains.

[Stiffman]

In the end, I put standard tyres on it due to cost, as the tyres were urgent, and I was tossing up whether to keep the Verada, or to get something else anyway.
Since then I've bought myself a 07 Suzuki Grand Vitara for a bit more exploration.