Recommend 20" Tires for Towing

[Riviot]

I'm eyeing a couple travel trailers now with ~650lb tongue weight, mainly the Keystone Cougars 22MLSWE. My 115 load index tires ain't gonna cut it. What do y'all recommend? My priorities are:
-Don't explode under weight
-Good efficiency (relative to towing losses)
-Handle well in winter (I'll likely use the camper for ski trips)


I currently have 2 20" sets, AS and AT. I'm considering replacing my AS with:
-Michelin Defender LTX MS2 275/60R20 - $320 installed
-Goodyear Wrangler Territory AT 275/60R20 - $255 each installed
-Goodyear Wrangler Territory HT 275/60R20 - $247 each installed

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[mikehmb]

I ran the Michelins on my Gen1 T, and the efficiency was great, they were very quiet, and very comfortable. They're also great in the snow.

You'll have a little more beefiness to the Wranglers, if they're the ones that come as "all-season" on the newer 20" trucks, but they're really a road-biased AT. You'll gain functionality off-road for sure, but you'll lose a little bit of efficiency (they are better than the Pirellis, though).

 

[Zoul]

For towing I don't think you will like the goodyear AT, unless you go to the LT version. They have a soft sidewall and tend to break belts when raising pressure to compensate. Bridgstone dualers behave similarly for towing.

The goodyear ht would be better for towing. See if you can get the workhorse ht in the right size they seem to wear better. I do notice they tend to lose balance and start picking up nails around the 1year/10kmi mark. This is why the have the reputation of good(fora)year in fleets.

Michelins are a solid choice, albet expensive. They are designed more for the luxury sedan/SUV buyer so usually quiet and decent wearing, efficient, and hold balance well. There are more durable options cheaper though.

Other options:
Cooper discoverer ht. Good wearing and carry the load better, but can be rough riding and don't like deep(10"+) snow. Efficiency is decent on ice trucks I've worked with, oddly haven't seen anyone using them on evs.

Nitto recon or highway grappler. Similar to coopers, but better in deep snow. Caviot; they have to get hot to grip well, especially on wet pavement. Yokohoma offers the same tread pattern, but a softer less heat dependant compound.

I can post some others after I'm off work.

 

[CharonPDX]

I'm eyeing a couple travel trailers now with ~650lb tongue weight, mainly the Keystone Cougars 22MLSWE. My 115 load index tires ain't gonna cut it. What do y'all recommend? My priorities are:
-Don't explode under weight
-Good efficiency (relative to towing losses)
-Handle well in winter (I'll likely use the camper for ski trips)


I currently have 2 20" sets, AS and AT. I'm considering replacing my AS with:
-Michelin Defender LTX MS2 275/60R20 - $320 installed
-Goodyear Wrangler Territory AT 275/60R20 - $255 each installed
-Goodyear Wrangler Territory HT 275/60R20 - $247 each installed

I've been happy with my General Grabber HTS60s.

But as long as you're not overloading the vehicle's GWVR (counting tongue weight as "payload") 115 should be fine.

I have a Gen 1 R1T quad-large with 20" ATs, spare tire, underbody shield, tonneau, all the things that make it the "lowest payload capacity" R1T due to having so much weight already. Its payload is 1324 lbs. Yet it still has a tow rating of 11,000 pounds. With a tongue weight allowed of 750 pounds before you need a weight-distribution hitch.

It has a rear GAWR of 4960 lbs, front 4134, so even though it *HAS* more weight in the back, it also *ALLOWS* far more weight in the back. 115 load index has a good 500 pounds of leeway there, over the Rivian's *MAXIMUM* load.

So "don't explode under weight" shouldn't be a problem with any tire properly rated for Rivian. That said, I'd definitely make sure you get XL tires that can handle the higher pressures Rivian wants. A tire rated for 50 PSI when Rivian recommends 49 PSI doesn't leave much leeway.

 

[Zoul]

I was not quite sure on recommending the general grabbers, as I've only worked with them on lifted/heavy ice trucks. Efficiency was never a goal for those trucks. They tend to run heavier and ride rougher than most others, but are really good for towing stability. If it was a ram or chevy they would be my first recommendation, but I've never fitted or seen them on an EV. This goes for the whole line of general grabbers, they make good truck tires.

On the cheap side are milestar pategonia. Some shops have a hard time balancing them, but they seemed to stay balanced. Their ATs aren't great on wet pavement, but not death trap bad. Mine handled deep snow pretty good.

Another option you can look into for dedicated off-road/towing only use are recaps or remolds like treadwrights. Usually heavy and have very little give. Can take a ton of abuse though. Good ones are safe and they technically aren't illegal on passenger cars. I wouldn't tow past 12k lbs cgvwr and get paid for it, it's kinda a grey area and you could get some heat for it. An RV you will be ok. These are a greener option as they are recycled, if that matters to you. Do your own research and make sure you are comfortable with them though. Just wanted to bring up as an option since the rivians tend to go through tires so fast.

 

[B Digs]

I'm eyeing a couple travel trailers now with ~650lb tongue weight, mainly the Keystone Cougars 22MLSWE. My 115 load index tires ain't gonna cut it. What do y'all recommend? My priorities are:
-Don't explode under weight
-Good efficiency (relative to towing losses)
-Handle well in winter (I'll likely use the camper for ski trips)


I currently have 2 20" sets, AS and AT. I'm considering replacing my AS with:
-Michelin Defender LTX MS2 275/60R20 - $320 installed
-Goodyear Wrangler Territory AT 275/60R20 - $255 each installed
-Goodyear Wrangler Territory HT 275/60R20 - $247 each installed

You know my vote, haha! You’ve been talking about getting the Rivian specific Territory AT for a long time. You won’t be disappointed!

 

[B Digs]

For towing I don't think you will like the goodyear AT, unless you go to the LT version. They have a soft sidewall and tend to break belts when raising pressure to compensate. Bridgstone dualers behave similarly for towing.

The goodyear ht would be better for towing. See if you can get the workhorse ht in the right size they seem to wear better. I do notice they tend to lose balance and start picking up nails around the 1year/10kmi mark. This is why the have the reputation of good(fora)year in fleets.

Michelins are a solid choice, albet expensive. They are designed more for the luxury sedan/SUV buyer so usually quiet and decent wearing, efficient, and hold balance well. There are more durable options cheaper though.

Other options:
Cooper discoverer ht. Good wearing and carry the load better, but can be rough riding and don't like deep(10"+) snow. Efficiency is decent on ice trucks I've worked with, oddly haven't seen anyone using them on evs.

Nitto recon or highway grappler. Similar to coopers, but better in deep snow. Caviot; they have to get hot to grip well, especially on wet pavement. Yokohoma offers the same tread pattern, but a softer less heat dependant compound.

I can post some others after I'm off work.

Hi Zoul, I’m a Goodyear engineer that worked with Rivian to design the Goodyear Wrangler Territory AT specifically for the R1. It was designed to perform well in all conditions, including towing.

 

[greyboundary]

I tow with my Territory AT all the time. Tongue weight between 450 to 650. Works perfectly fine.

 

[SwampNut]

AI assistant says you're fine unless you're adding 3k of weight to the truck....

The 115 load index on a tire refers to its maximum weight capacity. Specifically, a 115 load index means each tire can support up to 2,679 lbs (1,215 kg) when properly inflated. This is typical for many light truck and SUV tires and is sufficient for most Rivian R1T setups, including towing trailers with tongue weights in the 450–650 lb range, as long as you don’t exceed the vehicle’s gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) and the tires are rated for the necessary pressures.
Key points:

• 115 load index = 2,679 lbs per tire
• Always match tire load index to your real-world maximum axle and payload needs
• For heavy towing, some prefer even higher load indexes for added safety margin, but 115 is generally adequate for Rivian-type trucks with typical trailering setups and load distribution.rivianforums

If you have specific axle loads or carry/tow at maximum vehicle ratings frequently, you might consider LT or XL-rated tires or check alternatives with load index 116 or higher for extra capacity.

1. https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/recommend-20-tires-for-towing.49394/

 

[Zoul]

Hi Zoul, I’m a Goodyear engineer that worked with Rivian to design the Goodyear Wrangler Territory AT specifically for the R1. It was designed to perform well in all conditions, including towing.

Looking back and re reading what I wrote I can see where it can be taken that I am badmouthing your product. That was not my intent, I was trying to portray that if towing is OP's focus he should go with the LT load rating. The territory AT are pretty good all around tires, they just aren't my first pick for heavy towing. Like others have said you can tow with them or even the stock tires perfectly safely. They do make for a pretty good snow tire on our delivery vans at work. Last a lot longer than "real" snows. Granted we might be lucky to get 7-8k miles out of any of our tires.

You can see the other tires I suggested have goods and bads listed as well. A lot of the tires that are better at towing are (likely) going to have range loss and a rougher ride. Some of them compromise on off-road and wet traction. When it comes to tires you can have "jack of all trades, master of none" or you can have tires designed to be good at just a couple things.

I don't sell or design tires. I've just had to mount and balance and diagnose a lot of them. I'm good with cars not people so maybe I misread OP. Maybe he would enjoy the softer ride of the territory AT(p rated) or the Michelins while having better traction characteristics than the stock perellis. I do need to remind myself we(rivian forum) are not the same type of people as the "I drive a real truck" crowd I usually get to deal with.

Ps: Also I had a correction to my first post it is Toyo tires that are the same tread different compound to nittos, not yokohoma. I really need to stop posting shit while on lunch at work, clearly I'm not awake enough to be doing that.

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