3rd Gen Tundra in Snow?

Decent tires and a good driver will keep you out of trouble 99% if the time. The other 1% stay off the roads. 1st winter in MN with a 2023 2wd sr tundra I swapped the factory tires for snow flake rated Falken wildpeaks. The braking and handling were great. Some tire spinning taking off. Biggest snow of the year I didn’t get stuck but it was deep enough you had to keep momentum (1ft overnight). That was a day I would stay off the road normally. Ground clearance is good on these which will get you stuck the quickest in deep snow.

 

We may not “need” 4WD in snow, but it sure makes things more comfortable and less squirrelly.

With the stock Yokohama’s on my Limited, I struggled to get up a light snow covered slight incline in 2WD. I didn’t feel it spinning, yet wouldn’t go like it was cutting power (traction control?) then truck smelled like hot plastic/rubber after. Very strange. Hopefully new Cooper Discoverer Road and Tail work better!

 

I was born in Michigan and made it through those terrible winters with fwd cars. Had a 4wd later on but it wasn't necessary. Usually after snow fall the plow trucks would be on the roads already and ice trucks layed salt before. If anything I only used 4wd when going up to cabins where the paths aren't plowed.

 

I'm guilty of not having read through the entire thread, so if this has been discussed already, my apologies.

I think the truck does very well in 4HI in thick & slushy snow. I have the OR package, but I don't think in 4HI there is much of a difference between the OR trim and non-OR trim experience. The OR trim difference really comes into play in 4Lo situations.

My only beef with the truck in snow is the buildup. The sensors hate the slushy stuff that just sticks to the front end. I wish there was a way to dismiss the "Clean the sensors" warning message that pops up when this occurs. You can dismiss it for like 1 min and then it pops back up. Kind of annoying on a long drive. Other than that, it's great.

 

Changed my tires today just in time for winter here in Yukon Canada. I put in LT275/70/18 Toyo Open Country WLT1.

 

I just bought Nokian Outpost nAT, which is a load index of 115 so pretty much the exact same as the OEM tires ( not LT ) They have some road noise but my wife thinks its no worse than any other winter tire.....and that says something !!!

 

I use winters tires 5 months of the year so I mounted 18" Michelin Ice-X last year and the traction is great.

 

So Winnipeg got snow last night. Not blizzard level, but a few centimeters. Wet, sticky snow, and slick conditions.

the tundra on oem Michelin terrain whatever they’re called are horrible. As expected. Had to actually engage 4wd in a few spots. Traction control was in full swing.

as we speak I’m having Toyo gsi6LS winter tires on my oem tundra wheels.

im expecting a completely different experience. Will report back

 

Toyo GSI6 LS

This is the way

night and day difference from the oem Michelins. And I don’t even have weight yet in the back. Diamondback will add 125lbs. Add a few sandbags and bring on winter

 

ya havent lived if ya haven’t had a goog. BDI closed for the season. Dang

 

when winter arrives, I'm ready.

 

Definately have to feather it. Brings me back to learning how to drive on a rear wheel car.

 

I have the same wheels for my winters. I seriously contemplated studs. Toyo blends crushed walnut shells into their compound. Sounded convincing. So far so good.

 

how are you liking the Toyo’s? I just put mine on. Very impressed thus far. My diamondback will add some weight and make it even better.

 

Interesting as a friend runs the blizzak/x-ice, but has to replace every 2 years as once the soft rubber is gone they are not much good. I get 4 years with my studded tires before I replace. The studs are like my mig welder, gets used few times a year and those times they are worth platinum. The rest of the time, noisey tire eye candy.

Have run studded IPikes and General altimax artic for several years with good results. If the wallet was thick, I'd be on studded Hakkapeliitta's - best snow tire I have run.

 

blizakk compound is awesome just for the first half then it’s a so so winter tire. Too,bad they can’t make the whole compound awesome.

good analogy on studs. But the studless are getting better and better each year. All tires are a compromise.

 

Michelin LTX stock tires are horrible, but that being said, I did just fine all of last winter in Colorado. Will be getting new tires as soon as I verify the alignment is right (that’s a whole ‘nother story).

I have to say, winter driving is the main reason I insist on 4WD. I respectfully think you guys who insist driving in 2WD in the snow when you have 4WD available might be a few cards shy of a full deck. BTW the snow setting on the TRD OR package just makes it even better. These trucks do quite well in the snow. I am so looking forward to getting some good tires on! Bring on the snow!

 

none of us are insisting one has to drive in 2wd. I’m simply saying that with a bit of weight in the box, and a quality set of winter tires, with a skilled driver you will seldom need 4wd.
4wd is awesome for deep snow. 4wd can also be detrimental on icy roads (both axles the same speed).

and again, it’s always the 4wd trucks that are in the ditch. People forget that you also need 4 wheel turn, and 4 wheel stop. lol.

for all the gidgets and gadgets on new vehicles, accidents are not declining.

traction is king.

at the end of the day, drive to the road conditions no matter what driving conditions.

and above all just stay home if possible.

 

Fair enough pardner

 

Could always turn on ECO mode so you don’t have to feather it yourself; let the truck do it for you.

 

All I can say is that this has not been my experience. I recommend using the 4wd on your 4wd truck. Your 4wd truck is disadvantaged by it's high center of gravity and light rear end (which you can somewhat compensate for by adding weight).

Also not my experience. I suspect it has more to do with the driver than the vehicle.

I couldn't agree more: true winter tires rule. Where I live it's a lot of mixed-conditions through the winter (snow, ice, dry-pavement). That sticky rubber is spendy and short-lived, not to mention the hassle of switching/storing tires and wheels. Studs are also overkill in my world (but maybe not yours). I am back to running winter-rated ATs full-time, which is a happy medium. YMMV. PS: I have run both X-Ice and i-Pikes mentioned above and they are both excellent.

Solid advice here.

Be safe out there. Know your limits and how your vehicle/tires will respond to road conditions and how you drive. Plan ahead, slow down, and, yeah, use the 4wd.

 

Totally agree and unfortunately I had a harsh reminder of this last night.

I've always been a big proponent of snow tires and keep a second set of wheels/tires to make switching easier. Brought my truck home on December 30th of last year and had snow tires installed the very next day. 2wd was generally okay with the snow tires and I would use 4wd infrequently. Weather has been getting colder and I had an appointment to swap them on but I figured I'd be fine for a couple of weeks yet. I went out with an inch or two on the ground last night and needed 4wd a couple of times but switched back out of it once I got moving. At some point I determined I needed it again, but this time both 4HI and 4LO were iluminated in amber and I had a warning message on my screen informing me that pre-collision braking, VSC and Traction control were disabled. I figured I'd just restart the truck at my next stop but unfortunately I didn't make it that far...

Without traction control the tires spun free and in the heat of the moment I applied the brakes not thinking about the fact that ABS likely wasn't working. I never recovered once the rear end broke loose and I ended up sliding sideways into the post of a traffic signal. Thankfully I was the only one in the car and only received some bruising.

I didn't get under the car to take a close look at the frame but I'll be checking it out tomorrow morning. Any bets on whether or not it is going to be totaled?

 

I'm interested in where you bought those tires and their actual weight. I've been trying to decide on a set for myself. Any info would be much appreciated.

 

if i need studs in ND, its way to crappy to be out an about. and thats only happened 3 times in 15+ years without studs.

 

2 winters in my gen3 tundra & I love it....totally snow worthy...here comes winter #3

 

Glad you’re only bruised! No idea on it being totaled but from those pictures I sure wouldn’t be surprised. Just curious, why were you switching out of 4hi in those conditions?

 

Agreed. On the other hand, when it's so crappy out that we should stay at home, that means the line will be short at 5Guys, if they are open-

 

South central Alaskan here who drives on snow / ice for half the year. 100% echo what others have posted about how wildly superior true winter tires are compared to AT or AS tires in snow / ice conditions.

If driving a truck with traditional part time 4WD system, true winter tires (not 3 peak AT or AS tire) are a must.

Have driven Tacomas, 4R’s, and Tundras the last nearly 3 decades up here. In 90% of winter conditions, my trucks in 2wd with studded winter tires outperform my trucks in 4WD on whatever AT’s I was running (ATKO’s, KO2’s, Dueler Revos, Terra Grapplers, Cooper AT3’s, Cooper AT3 XLT’s, etc).

Currently running Toyo Observe G3 ice studded, and don’t have to switch in/out of 4x4 nearly as much as when running AT tires.

Studded winter tires for my Alaskan driving conditions ALMOST makes up for not having a 4Auto system…….. but not quite.
Also may be a function of my work truck (2020 Ram), and how in the winter on studded tires I leave it in 4A and never have to think about switching in true 4x4 unless I’m pushing / dragging through deep snow. So when I’m driving the Tundra, it makes switching in/out a more stark contrast.

 

Ouch. I feel sick for you.

 

I bought them from Kal Tire , which is a chain up here in Western Canada. Ride wise they are the same as OEM, Looks wise they look a ton better. Sound wise, I find them louder, my wife does not. We are about to leave on a 8 day roady in the truck so when I wind these up to 80 MPH for 5 hours, that will be the true sound test . I have yet to get them in the snow

https://www.kaltire.com/en/tires/outpost-nat/365694.html