Highway and Touring Tires

Highway terrain tires are optimized for the job most trucks and SUVs actually do: covering pavement miles quietly, efficiently and predictably, often with a trailer behind them. The tread is a closed pattern with continuous circumferential ribs, which is what keeps them quiet and stable and gives them long even wear. Many highway tires deliver 60,000 to 80,000 miles.The ribbed design also matters for towing. Continuous ribs resist squirm under lateral load, which is what keeps a loaded trailer from feeling like it is steering the truck. If you tow regularly, look for an LT highway tire in load range E, and check the load index against your actual loaded axle weights rather than assuming the factory size is enough.Where highway tires give ground is loose surfaces. On gravel, wet grass, mud or unplowed snow, the closed tread simply cannot bite. If your truck sees those conditions more than occasionally, step up to an all-terrain and accept a little more noise.