Whats a good tyre for africa

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ajbaldwin

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Hello people

I am looking into what tyres I will be taking to southern Africa with me

as It will be a fair amount of sand driving\gravel I am thinking of going with a AT

I am currently running on fairly new general grabber AT2 235/85 16 on steel rims. as I plan on talking out 2 spares It would be cheaper just to use these

anyone any advise\input on tyres
 
east or west coast route? West coast experienced some mud in the wrong seasons but still prob not enough to sway the decision.

Not used the AT2's, do a search and look to see how good they are at puncture protection etc. particularly the guys who live out in SA who regularly bush camp. You need strong sidewalls and protection against big thorns.

As above BFG AT's are rated highly 235/85 or 265/75 are both good sizes. keep them universal sizes so you can get new ones in Africa if required. Also worth taking will be a puncture repair kit. If your taking a Hi-Lift then maybe some tyre levers also. Learn how to use both prior to going obviously!

G
 
I have not been to Southern Africa myself, so the big thorns etc I can't comment on but I do have some experience of sand. On the Range Rover we have the Insa Turbo Mountains. Seems like a very good all-round tyre to us and hacked through the sand quite nicely - and well priced. I dare say the tread is aggressive enough that if you did come across mud it would not struggle. If you havn't done thick sand before, remember to lower the tyre pressure by quite a bit - makes such a huge difference. Makes the difference between coasting over the sand as opposed to cutting through and getting bogged down. Wasn't really a problem in the Series 2A because of it's light weight, but the Range Rover really struggled until pressures were lowered. Downside is that you are a lot more cautious of rocks.

TBH I don't think tyre choice will make that much difference though if just sand and gravel - I have seen Nissan Micras go through deep sand and gravel on road tyres for hundreds of miles without getting stuck. In the Landie we used an old set of Colway MTs which were a crap choice really but came with the car. Drifting about in the sand is fun anyway! Did quite a few thousand miles in sand (and mud, gravel etc) on Camac ATs and it's all pretty much the same! Knowing the tyres limitations is an aspect I guess.

On another note, most of the locals and army hacking across the Saharan regions we went through use Michelin XL so they have to be worth looking at. No doubt quite a few will be using them in South Africa and will probably be readily available over there.
 
Hello

Going to do a loop round southern africa. Not going to drive down I think it will be easier to ship out to namibia and pick it up there
 
if you going to drive on the general sand road in namibia and south arica then your general at will do fine,i had them on my vechiles out there and no problem,the roads that side are just a bit corrigated in places but other wise good.
as for doing sight seeing off the roads in namibia be very cafreful of the restricted areas as there is a no questions asked policy, however the colours of the sands will definately freak you out.the tourism is welcomed in both countries and you should be fine.
try also time your run with the "deasert run" and a whole bunch of nutters from sa do the journey over 2 weeks and its more a case of being there no matter what you drive.
in rsa the roads are particularly good even the sand roads you will be rattled though so ensure that all your spots are well secured and have as much of your stuff airtight.
a pleasent journey all round and plenty of landy garages to help you out in both countries.

so dont worry too much about what you got on just make sure of tread depth.

also cops in sa are easy to bribe and just ask "how much"

enjoy
 
I have BFG 235/75 in South Africa and will replace with the same when I get to Nairobi. It's the most common tire on LR's here and easy to get hold of. It's about £120 a tire which I have no idea if it's competitive in the U.K. but £45 cheaper than the Grabbers

3 days to go 'til I leave- scary
 
Really? I did 10,000km over Christmas mostly overroad/gravel and and didn't get a single puncture - maybe lucky?
 
You are talking ****e again Bob, Simex are ****e on road and BFG's go on for ages.

Set of AT's on our disco has done atleast 30k miles and there still **** loads of tread left on em.
 
Mseries3 said:
You are talking ****e again Bob, Simex are ****e on road and BFG's go on for ages.

Set of AT's on our disco has done atleast 30k miles and there still **** loads of tread left on em.
Click to expand...

yer but he thinks BFG is this fellow, parently he read it last week and he's having nitemares


TheBFG.jpg
 
what? and 6000miles out of a set of ET2 is good value cis it? they are an extremely soft compound designed for competiton use.

your talking out of your ****hole again BoB.

You can pick up 265/75 BF's for about £100 a corner here. Not looked recently, maybe less than that. Should be getting 60k plus out of a set of AT's.

G
 
Beast o Bodmin said:
If ya gunna use BFG then expect punctures so take some tubes.

use these.
Devon 4x4 Off Road - 33/11.50 R 16 Jungle Trekker : 33/11.50/16JT : Off Road Equipment from Devon 4x4
Click to expand...


mmm what a load of crap.

couple of things. As said simex are a night mare on road And driving to South Africa you are not going to drive though every mud hole you see. More will be dirt track. Like here in Aus.
I drove 26,000 miles on dirt tracks around Aus on BFG AT and did not have one punture and found them great and have them on both my trucks. I have had Simex extrme treckers 35, 10.50's ,don't get me wrong they are a great tyre for mud But belive me on an that sort of trip you don't go though that much mud that you need the **** road drivng conditons of Simex for the trip
 
Griffdowg said:
what? and 6000miles out of a set of ET2 is good value cis it? they are an extremely soft compound designed for competiton use.

your talking out of your ****hole again BoB.

You can pick up 265/75 BF's for about £100 a corner here. Not looked recently, maybe less than that. Should be getting 60k plus out of a set of AT's.

G
Click to expand...
ok then Griffywiffy if ya like I will give you £5 if the bfgs do not puncture.
WHEN the Bfgs puncture you pay me £5 each time...:D
Come on come on come on come on:D
 
I have a LR in South Africa and use Cooper tyres (the exact spec eludes me!) which are good. I have had more problems with sub-standard inner tubes. You can nearly always find some form of tyre repair facility in small towns/villages etc.together with very willing help but they tend not to have compressors capable of blowing up a tubeless tyre so I would recomend using tyres with inner tubes. If you do take a couple of spare inner tubes and air inflator (good quality). If you drive in sand you would be best off letting down the tyre pressures but of course after the sand you have blow them up again. cheers Arthur (ADHA2)
 
I would go along the lines that the BFG A/T would be the most puncture resistant tyre of all the A/T types and brands.
I have my BFG A/T on my vehicle (LC) for our trip down to Cape Town.
I have gone to the trouble and expense of a 6th new tyre and rim complete, should the need arise.
I have read many trip reports where vehicles with BFG A/T have left UK, and arrived in CPT without a single puncture.
Trouble is, BFG A/T is about the most expensive tyre (size pro rata) you can buy.
I must admit the General AT2 does look good.

'vette
 
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