4x4galore header image

Goodyear Wrangler MTR Tyres Still Going Well

April 25th, 2009 · No Comments

Goodyear Wrangler MTR Tyres Still Going Well

I have now completed a couple of more trips with the Wrangler MTR tyres up around the Walhalla area and I must say that I am still very impressed with the tyre.

For anyone who is familiar with the Walhalla area of Victoria will know that most of the difficult sections have quite a bit of rock and loose pebbly gravel on the surface.  There are a couple of very steep clay base tracks which are horrendous in the wet, but unfortunately with the drought in Victoria, it always seems to be dry up there.

Last trip we managed to do Pheasant Creek track which starts of with a steep descent to a little creek.  This was very interesting as it was around 9:00 am and we had had a little drizzle earlier.  As we were about to turn into the track we had to stop to allow a big Cruiser with 35″ tyres towing an older MQ shortie up this  steep clay section.

Anyway, I selected first low and started the descent.  The MTR’s gripped really well, in fact I would say almost as well as the BigHorns we ran previously.  It wasn’t long and we were climbing the other side, back to our rock base track.  This is where the MTR’s really shine, their compound really lends itself to climbing rock.  The grip is awesome.

The next really interesting track was a climb up Flats Track.  We started the climb up the old track which is very steep and completely covered in loose gravel.  One particular part where there is a chicken track, the Prado actually cam to a stop.  As I got closer to the chicken track I was procrastinating which way to go and at the last minute decided on the old hard section, but by this time I slowed too much in second low and stalled half way up in the most rutted section.

I must say, it was a bit of a challeng to get going again and climb out of the ruts.  I had to have three goes when finally with a lot of revs and wheel spinning the Prado finally extricated itself.

If that wsan’t enough fun, at the top of Flats Track there is another very steep section of old track with some great rock outcrops.  A couple of vehicles decided to take the new easier route but a few of us gave it a go.  The Prado made it along with a second Prado and a diff locked 80 series.  A Patrol with BigHorns gave it a go but decided to back off and take the easy way.

It was another great day and the Wrangler MTR’s are performing really well.  With all the wheel spinning I had done during the trip, I was a bit worried the tyres may have had a lot of cuts and chunks missing, but to there credit there was virtually no sign of any damage.

A great tyre.

See you out there!

Air Intake Water and engines do not mix very well, and when they do it almost always results in bent pistons, valves and crankshaft commonly called “hydro-locking”. If you think this sounds expensive you're right. The positioning of the air intake is critical to how well a vehicle can handle a crossing. For example certain Toyota models have their air intake directly behind the headlight, which is great to allow cold air into the engine but unfortunately is equally as great in directing water into the engine (An easy fix for this is to remove the plastic tubing from the air cleaner to the headlight when crossing water). NEVER attempt a water crossing where the water depth is above the air intake height. If you intend doing regular water crossings, its a good idea to fit a snorkel as it raises the air intake to your roof line. It doesn't mean you can use your 4x4 as a submarine!

Tags: General

0 responses so far ↓

  • There are no comments yet...Kick things off by filling out the form below.

You must log in to post a comment.