If your priority is to find a tire that can surpass rocks, muds, sands, and other pavements, an all-terrain is an excellent choice.
A common feature among them is the large and staggered tread blocks with wide gaps, which help your car from having the proper footing on harsher road conditions without compromising highway driving comfort.
Two of the most reliable brands when it comes to all-terrain tires are Toyo and Nitto. Toyo’s Open Country AT2 and Nitto’s Terra Grappler G2 are drivers’ favorite picks.
What Is the Toyo Open Country AT2?
Toyo Tires is a known brand for heavy-duty tires. It established a name that many drivers trust because of its durable and sturdy products suitable for trucks and SUVs. The brand’s Open Country line is a successful tire series due to its excellent qualities that promise smooth, comfortable, and secure on-road and off-road driving.
In the all-terrain section, the Toyo Open Country AT2 is a well-recommended item for several users. It is a versatile all-terrain tire that ensures a safe, sound, and quiet ride on-road and reliable off-road performance with its aggressive tread design. The company’s ‘Xtreme’ sizes offer a deeper tread design that helps your car get a better grip and traction on tough road qualities.
It has a more rigid sidewall that can also help you survive in light to moderate snow. With its polygonal blocks and zigzag sipes, you can drive more confidently on wet surfaces because they prevent your truck from hydroplaning. The tire also comes with a wear-resistant tread compound that enhances its durability and increases tread life. Moreover, this variety has a treadwear warranty of up to 75,000 miles.
You will also notice several bars in between the blocks, which add to its unique-looking design. More than the looks, these bars also help improve the tire’s braking capacity and tread blocks’ stability. A Toyo tire is also incomplete without its tread’s stone-ejecting technology that avoids small stones from puncturing and damaging your wheels.
What Is the Nitto Terra Grappler G2?
Nitto Tires is another company that you can count on if you are looking for a tire hub that values affordability, variety, and wide selection. It specializes in high-performance track tires, including all-terrain, mud-terrain, and hybrid-terrain tires. Nitto and Toyo came from the same parent company. That is why you should not get confused why they use almost the same tire carcasses but with different designs.
Like the Open Country AT2, Nitto’s Terra Grappler G2 is an excellent all-terrain tire with consistent durability in on-road and off-road driving. You can use it if you need to commute to work, tow heavy-loaded equipment, or travel to a mountainous trail for an exciting adventure. It also has a 3-Peak Mountain Snowflake label indicating that it is excellent in all weather, even with moderate to heavy snow.
One thing that makes Terra Grappler G2 unique is the tire’s reinforced coupling joints that increases its rigidity. As a result, it performs better on challenging road conditions as its sidewall and treads’ grooves provide it with a reliable and sturdy footing. It also comes with full-depth sipes that maintain the car’s top-of-the-line handling capacity and its appearance as it wears over time.
More importantly, you will also enjoy the performance it provides on-road because of the computer-optimized technology that the brand used to reduce the tire’s noise. Its sidewalls also have an aggressive blade pattern that gives it a better biting edge and traction, especially on wet and icy surfaces. With up to 65,000 miles treadwear warranty, changing your car’s tire will only happen every four years.
What Are the Pros of Open Country AT2?
- Improved wear-resistance capacity
- Impressive off-road capacity
- Good size options
Toyo’s Open Country AT2 is an upgraded version of its previous Open Country tires. Apart from its new look, it also performs better than its predecessors. This section shall lay three things that make this tire a standout from other varieties and brands.
On top of its advantages is its improved wear-resistance capacity, which is 40% stronger and better than its brothers. This feature is all thanks to Toyo’s new tread compound, sipe design, and tie bars. As you learned earlier, the tire has bars between the grooves’ gaps that help your car have better braking, steering, and cornering performance. Thus, you can rely on it over dry and wet pavements.
Also, its off-road capacity is impressive due to the deeper treads that Toyo added to its design. If you are used to driving on extreme terrains, you know that deeper treads make life easier because they can run smoothly on deep mud and loose dirt. But unlike mud-terrain tires, the Open Country AT2 does not produce loud and distracting tread noises once you are back on-road. It can run smoothly and quietly that you and your passengers will enjoy.
Finally, you have a wide variety of options when it comes to sizes. It is available in P-metric and LT models and is available in XT sizes. You will also appreciate the longer treadwear warranty of Open Country AT2 because it can last to an average of three to four years. You can run longer distances without worrying if the tire will wear easily. However, it would still depend on how extreme the off-road quality is where you will always use the tires.
What Are the Pros of Nitto Terra Grappler G2?
- “E” Load Rating
- Great for reduced road noise
Nitto Terra Grappler G2 offers several advantages for your on-road and off-road driving. This tire is the answer to the Original Equipment (OE) tires’ weakness: the inability to surpass harsh road conditions. This one has a mud-terrain tire quality that will help you go over muddy, rocky, and sandy pathways without any problem. Its tread pattern and depth have a clawing ability that improves the tire’s traction on any surface type.
As most Terra Grappler G2 has an ‘E’ load rating, it also means that it is a reliable choice if you need to haul or tow a boat, truck, and other heavy equipment. It can evenly distribute the payload’s weight and does not slow down your car’s performance.
More than its off-road performance, balance is another word that best describes this Nitto tire because of its spectacular on-road features. Its computer-analyzed tread design is also meant to reduce road noises that mud-terrains and other all-terrain tires produce. Plus, its pattern also gives it the edge on wet and icy surfaces with its full-depth sipes.
Like the Open Country AT2, Grappler G2 has a wide selection of sizes from 17 inches to 24 inches. Thus, you will never run out of choices based on your needs in Nitto.
What Are the Main Differences Between Toyo Open Country AT2 and Nitto Terra Grappler G2?
Off-Road Performance
Winner: Toyo Open Country AT2
While the two promise excellent off-road performance, we find Toyo Open Country AT2 is the better option if you love going in a wild and extreme environment. Its treads are deeper than Nitto, and its sidewalls are more rigid and tougher. Thus, it has better traction on different road conditions. Plus, the bars on its pattern help your car have a more consistent steering and handling performance than the Terra Grappler G2.
On-Road Performance
Winner: Toyo Open Country AT2
It is also essential to assess which performs best on smooth highway pavements as an all-terrain tire. The Toyo Open Country AT2 still has the edge on this category as it produces lesser noise than the Terra Grappler G2. Nevertheless, the two are equal when it comes to comfort.
Wet and Icy Surface Performance
Winner: Nitto Terra Grappler G2
The two tires offer excellent abilities on wet and icy roads, but Terra Grappler G2 is our winner in this section. It is due to its 3-Peak Mountain Symbol, which indicates that it is a reliable tire for those living in arctic regions and experiences heavy and deep snow. Toyo’s tire can only go as far as moderate snow.
Price
Winner: Nitto Terra Grappler G2
If your priority is cost, then Nitto Terra Grappler G2 must be on top of your choices. It is less expensive than Toyo’s without compromising the quality. However, note that the Open County AT2 still performs better for on-road and off-road driving.
Use Toyo Open Country AT2 If:
- You prefer an all-terrain tire with a quieter on-road performance
- You prioritize a tire that has balanced off-road and on-road features
- You value quality over cost
Use Nitto Terra Grappler G2 If:
- You are living in arctic regions where winter is extreme
- You value cost over quality
- You wish to have an all-terrain tire that is good for hauling and towing
