Are you familiar with the world of rugged-terrain tires? Rugged-terrain (RT) tires are a new-ish category that can be thought of as splitting the difference between all-terrain (AT) and mud-terrain (MT) tires in terms of durability, performance, and design. Most RT tires are also designed for enhanced traction in winter conditions, with many RT tires having the 3 Peak Mountain Snowflake certification for severe winter service.

The RT/HD from Versatyre is a good example of what you can expect with an RT tire – it’s durable, capable, and delivers tenacious grip in off-road situations, but still offers the versatility and civilized, composed behavior of a good all-terrain tire. But there’s no need to just take us at our word on that. Let’s go in for a closer look at this product line review:

Features and Benefits

Here are some of the design features and innovations that make the Versatyre RT/HD a great value and a great performer in the arena of RT tires:

• Durable, damage-resistant casing stands up to rough treatment and resists cuts, punctures, and abrasions in challenging off-road conditions
• 10-ply rated for durability and enhanced load capacity
• Aggressive tread design with innovative “staircase grooves” that help protect the tread and casing against damage as well as deliver superior traction
• Good self-cleaning – easily ejects mud, stones, and debris, so there’s always a clear section of the tread to dig in as the wheel turns
• Reinforced sidewalls protect against cuts, punctures, impacts, scrapes
• Tread pitch is randomized and computer-tuned to neutralize certain frequencies and overtones, helping to keep road noise to a minimum
• Lugs at the shoulder extend down onto the sidewall for improved lateral traction
• Deep tread depth for long wear and aggressive traction
• A dense pattern of sipes helps to multiply the tread’s surface area and traction by adding hundreds of hair-thin slits that chew through snow, slush, standing water

Pros and Cons

PROS:

• Durable construction for difficult off-road conditions
• Traction is consistent in mud, loose dirt, snow, sand, gravel
• Surprisingly quiet on pavement

CONS:

• Not 3 Peak Mountain Snowflake rated for severe winter service
• No limited manufacturer’s tread wear coverage

SimpleTire’s view on Versatyre RT/HD tires

Are you familiar with SimpleScore? SimpleScore is the system that the SimpleTire team developed to give you a quick overview of a tire’s strengths and weaknesses. We look at the tire’s spec sheet, manufacturer’s info, customer reviews, and other data points, then we process that information down to a 1-10 numerical value for the categories of traction, handling, and longevity, as well as an overall average SimpleScore. For the Versatyre RT/HD the SimpleScore ratings are as follows:

Versatyre RT/HD:

• Traction: 7.5
• Handling: 8.2
• Longevity: 7.2
• Overall average SimpleScore: 7.6

It’s our experience that the Versatyre RT/HD is a tire that really delivers the best of both worlds for drivers of 4WD-equipped light trucks, Jeeps, and SUVs. It delivers the aggressive traction of an MT tire without the extra noise, cumbersome handling, and iffy road manners that often accompany MT designs.

On the highway, the RT/HD is surprisingly quiet and composed, with solid straight-line stability and ride quality that’s comfortable (if a little firm) even on broken and irregular pavement surfaces. Handling is predictable and accurate, if not exactly as nimble as what you might expect from a performance tire. The steering response is light and precise, a big improvement over many AT and MT designs.

The Versatyre RT/HD excels off the pavement with an unbeatable grip in deep mud, sand, gravel, loose dirt, and snow (despite not having the 3PMSF rating). Its heavy-duty tread formulation stands up to all kinds of rough terrain and demanding use, and its 10-ply rating would make it a good tire for commercial use. It’s tough enough to handle rough job sites, ranch roads, and oilfield lease roads, and it is easy to haul heavy loads or tow heavy trailers. Its reinforced construction and multi-ply sidewall mean that the Versatyre RT/HD is a good choice for aired-down performance over steep rocks and obstacles, with its lug tread and staircase grooves easily conforming the tire’s tread face over irregular surfaces as it claws its way over boulders, logs, stumps, and other challenges.

No, the Versatyre RT/HD doesn’t come with limited manufacturer’s tread life coverage, but many AT, RT, and MT tires don’t have a mileage warranty. This tire is designed for some of the worst and toughest use you can throw its way, and it’s more than capable of getting the job done.

Vehicles the Versatyre RT/HD is a replacement tire for

While the Versatyre RT/HD isn’t featured as OEM on any light trucks or SUVs, we think it would be a great replacement tire for vehicles such as these:

• RAM 1500/2500
• Ford F150/F250
• Chevrolet Silverado 1500/2500
• Chevrolet Tahoe
• Chevrolet Suburban
• GMC Yukon
• GMC Sierra 1500/2500
• Toyota Tundra
• Toyota Tacoma
• Toyota 4Runner
• Ford Explorer
• Ford Expedition
• Nissan Titan
• Nissan Armada
• Jeep Cherokee
• Jeep Grand Wagoneer
• Jeep Wrangler