[HoosierMud]

My son, who is a volunteer fireman and first responder/HAZMAT, drives my old XJ. The tires are Wrangler RT/S. A lot of people here have had negative things to say about the tires.

However, we were just hit with a 30+ inche lake effect snow storm in La Porte County, IN. Winds were steady at 30 MPH, with gust up to 50 MPH. Drifts of four to six feet were common.

My son did not have the luxury of sitting at home during the blizzard. He had to make it to the fire station to be on call for any emergencies. He told me that he had no trouble and had to 'blast' thru four and five foot drifts along U.S. Hwy 30 to get to the station, which is about 10 miles from our house. US Hwy 421 was closed by the authorities due to appx 100 semis sitting in a six mile streach due to slideoffs or trucks jackknifing. As an emergency responder, my son was able to weave his way thru the mess and reach his destination.

If they had the RT/S tires to fit the WJ, I would have bought them again. However, I went with Dunlop Rover Radial A/T tires. BTW, these are excellent tires in the snow.

http://www.jeeppatriot.com/forum/album.php?albumid=561

 

[tiptronic]

I dont live in your Country , but I'm going to give your son great praise for his driving skill & dedication to his chosen cause!! I hope that all the Emergency service personnel stay safe in the bad weather. ( yea we have more to come in UK )

 

[todde702]

Hoosier, that's impressive. And kudos to him for being a volunteer. I was a volunteer when I was younger and it's a great way to serve the local community. I was one of the folks that did not like the RT/S tires, but from my own and my brother's experience with them. Keep in mind that these were the OEM version of the tire from Ford and GMC. I know that the OEM's get "special" formulations of rubber vs. the retail counterparts so that may have everything to do with it. Or it could be both vehicles were pickup trucks and the RT/S's may respond better to a more even weight distribution. In any case, if they are working for you then keep using them. For me, it's kind of like hard liquor. Remember the first time you ever drank too much of it that you got really sick and hung over? To this day Gordon's Dry Gin makes me gag a little and I hate the stuff (and it's been 25 years!)

 

[HoosierMud]

My wife's 09 Liberty has the Wrangler ST tires. I don't like them. However, up to this point, I haven't gotten stuck, spun out, or hit a guard rail with them in rain, snow, or other inclement weather. Give me any all season SUV tire and I will put it on my Jeep and be able to get thru normal or, as in this case, a not so normal situation.

The Dunlop Rover Radials A/T tires I have on my WJ are just awesome tires. Again, though, I think driver experience is more important than the type of tires one drives on.

I think more so than car owners, drivers of pickups/SUVs need to find the tire that matches THEIR driving needs. Even though I dislike the Wrangler ST, a lot of others like the tire. However, when it comes time to put new rubber on the the Liberty, we will go with the Dunlop Rover AT tires. I would go with the Wrangler Silent Armor, but I can't justify the cost for mostly a daily driver.