All-Terrain Tires: Off-Road Capable, Smooth On-Road

They’re as cool and practical as a new pair of kicks…

In February 2017, Mike Imlay published a feature in SEMA Business News. In it, he stated “there’s a reason why the tire and wheel section remains one of the largest display areas of the annual SEMA Show in Las Vegas. For consumers, tires and wheels continue to be one of the first, best, and most basic ways to personalize” anything from a passenger or sports car to a light truck, SUV, or CUV. And if we’re going to throw around some impressive numbers, that last segment—SUVs and CUVs—captures a larger portion of the overall market than many think, including 30% of a 1.95-billion dollar performance tire aftermarket and 30% of a whopping 3.73 billion dollar off-road and plus-size tire market, according to the “2016 SEMA Market Report”. Those sales are heavily concentrated in online and brick-and-mortar auto parts chains, big-brand tire shops, and independent specialty stores.

A Progressive Approach

But let’s focus our attention on the construction and influence of this commonly-desired upgrade. “Of all the myriad parts and pieces offered by the vast automotive performance aftermarket, few can upgrade vehicle performance—indeed, even alter vehicle dynamics—as dramatically as a new set of tires,” said The SHOP Magazine writer John F. Katz. “In terms of riding comfort, tires are the first line of defense in road irregularities. And as an integral part of the vehicle’s steering system, they form the final link in the chain of components that connect the driver’s fingertips to the surfaces of the pavement,” he added. “How well they perform any of these functions is determined not only by the materials used, but by underlying construction, tread pattern, aspect ratio (that is, the ratio of sidewall height to tread width), and, of course, overall size and width,” continued Katz.

Current tire offerings are more progressive than ever before and just keep pushing the envelope, with intricate designs at the micro and even molecular level. One such advancement is the all-terrain segment, which has blossomed incredibly during the past decade. In one of his more recent editorials, Katz makes an important distinction between all-terrain and mud-terrain tires. “All-terrains are engineered for a wide variety of surfaces and maximum-aggression mud tires are specifically engineered for, well, mud. So, an all-terrain tire is going to be more useful for a broader range of conditions,” he said.

Getting a Piece of the Action

“And the all-terrain market has increased as consumers move away from dedicated off-road tires to more longer-lasting treads. Many drivers have figured out that you can have a mean looking tire that is also road efficient and still have fun on the trails,” added Michael Green of Pitbull Tires. “And the all-terrain segment is one of the largest in the replacement tire industry, with a couple million tires being sold across the industry per month. It’s easy to see why. As much as the mud-terrain segment has grown in recent years, the all-terrain segment has grown just as much, if not more, when looking at volume. The number of offerings from tire manufacturers has certainly increased over the years,” added Christopher Gomez of Toyo Tires.

A tire choice typically boils down to intended use. “As is the case with all tire and vehicle offerings, products offer certain performance characteristics designed for specific usage scenarios and as a result there will always be trade-offs in certain areas of performance. While a mud terrain tire, like Toyo’s Open Country M/T, gives you the most aggressive looking tire on the market along with superior performance in the most extreme of off-road conditions, it comes with a different road performance profile in areas like pattern noise and fuel economy. This is why the all-terrain segment of tires is the perfect balance of form
meeting function for a majority of vehicle owners,” concluded Gomez.

All-Terrain Tires: Dawn of a New Norm

“Consumers used to be forced into choosing one or another—a super aggressive mud terrain tire with great off-road performance but terrible fuel economy, road noise, and on-road manners or a street tire that was fairly quiet and fuel efficient, yet very poor off-road,” said Blake Bonser, Marketing Manager at Keystone. “Plus, with image being just about as important as drivability, these tires are a great option for people who want the look but don’t want the pitfalls of an aggressive tire. You see more and more mid- to full-size SUVs and even smaller offerings like Subarus hopping aboard the growing all-terrain trend,” continued Bonser.

“It seems to be the perfect blend of three key factors—off-road performance, on road drivability, and aggressive appearances. More and more, people are able to have a capable off-road performer and serviceable daily driver rolled into one vehicle,” he concluded. And one brand that’s been at the forefront of the all-terrain market is Mickey Thompson. “Many drivers have figured out that you can have a mean-looking tire that is also road efficient and still have fun on the trails,” he continued.

Built to Last

During the past 10 years, manufacturers have not only perfected the design and performance of all-terrain tires, but also increased the life cycle. Subsequently, “now the minimum expectation is around a 50,000-tread-ware warranty that can go upwards of 65,000 miles. Whether that’s a consumer preference or something the tire manufacturers decided was important and everyone followed suit— whatever the genesis of it was—the consumer now expects that,” said Eric Casey of Mickey Thompson. As for the all-terrain market, Mickey was out in front of the trend, and the market continues to be a driving force in their company sales.

Do we have your attention? Check back for Thursday’s post. We’re going to break down a few of the most influential tire brands and their current offerings!