What Are The Best UTV Tires?
What Are The Best UTV Tires? (2022 Buyer’s Guide)
Wondering which tires to buy for your Can-Am, Kawasaki, or STI Polaris SxS? Or maybe it says you’re a ‘RZR Guy’ on your Instagram. Either way, I got all you side-by-side enthusiasts covered.
The best UTV tires for you depends on how you drive. Different UTV tires have different tread designs.
When buying your next set of UTV tires, you need to check out all of your options. There are tons of different UTV tires in production, and every UTV driver has slightly different driving habits.
I’m a tire pro, and I’ve picked out some of the best UTV tires for your side-by-side. Scroll on down:
What Are The Best UTV Offroading Tires?
UTVs were built for all-terrain tires, and these are vehicles that will get you almost anywhere you need to go when properly set up. Offroading/all-terrain tires are designed for dirt and dryer conditions, and some have better designs for road driving compared to others. You’ll also notice that offroading tires have more independent tread blocks when compared to an all-season (car) tire that you’d find on a small sedan. What I’m saying is that UTV offroading tires are built to rip. Everybody drives their side-by-side differently. Here’s twelve of the best UTV offroading tires to help you get the right treads for how you rally. Check it out:
GBC Kanati Mongrel Radial Tire
I love the shape of these GBC Kanati Mongrel Radial Tires. Because of their well-poised shape, these give your UTV the feeling of a tiger maneuvering difficult terrain on all four paws. You can’t go wrong with a sturdy 10-ply tire design strong enough to kick sharp rocks to the side. GBC Kanati Mongrels have a super attractive tread design and sidewalls, and an ‘E’ speed rating for safe operation up to 43 MPH. These tires run anywhere from a buck fifty to three hundred a tire when bought off Amazon.
Maxxis Liberty
Maxxis Liberty tires are more of an all-terrain tire whereas the Maxxis Carnivores are more on the mudding side because their treads are spaced a bit further out.
These have an 8-ply light-truck design that’s a bit smoother on the road while still conquering dirt tracks and mountain tops.
I like the rubber compound of Maxxis tires because they always seem to have a durable yet soft feel to the touch.
Maxxis Big Horn Rear Tire
These Maxxis Bighorn tires are a desert all-terrain model with a pretty badass tread pattern if I do say so myself. With a 6-ply design, these Maxxis Bighorn tires are lightweight enough to float quite well on the sand while also gripping firmly to hard pack and rocky surfaces. If I was a rancher, I’d definitely mount these up on my Can-Am because the tread blocks are spread apart enough to help get you out of wet and muddy situations. These will go in the sand on flat surfaces, but I definitely recommend buying dedicated sand tires if you plan on going to the dunes.
Maxxis Big Horn Front Tire
Don’t forget the front tires! These have the same tread pattern as the Maxxis Bighorn Rear tires to give your UTV a nice and consistent feel when offroading.
I don’t recommend these for road driving because there’s too much spacing between the treads. They’ll be bumpy and wear out pretty fast on the pavement. Pick up two Maxxis Bighorn front tires and Maxxis Bighorn rear tires to upgrade your SxS journey.
Tusk Terrabite Kevlar
I always recommend the stock wheel for basically any powersports vehicle model, but these Tusk Terrabite Kevlar tires and rims are a fun swap-out. Hey, it doesn’t mean you’ve got to get rid of your stock wheels. Just have that second set to switch out to for different driving situations. These have extremely attractive tread patterns and sidewalls, and I love their pawprint all-terrain style independent tread blocks that still manage to maintain their circumferential flow for kicking out rain, mud, sand...whatever you gotta do. Don’t buy these for the sand, and drive conservatively on the roads at faster speeds to keep these treads wearing evenly.
Pro Armor Crawler
Pro Armor Crawlers are a popular Amazon pick with some beefy studs designed for rugged terrain. I love tires with those big individual tread blocks that spit out rocks and eat up bumps as fast as you tell them to. These are a bit heavier treads, so you should expect a slight loss in fuel economy and these also won’t perform well at high speeds—although they do still have a ‘Q’ speed rating for speeds of up to 100 MPH.
What Are The Best UTV Sand Tires?
Hitting the sand dunes with your friends and family is the bomb, but it’s even better when you have the right sand dune tires that don’t get stuck.
Here are your best tires for sand dunes options to make your camping trip memorable:
Pro Armor Dunes Tires
Dune junkies unite! These Pro Armor dunes tires for Polaris RZR are what you need to make it up the Little Sahara sand dunes.
Honestly, you can't go wrong with tires like these because they run just over a hundred bucks a tire and you'll notice a refreshing change in the dunes once you change out your all-terrain tires to these.
Sedona Cyclone Sand Paddle Tire
Check out these directional sand paddle tires by Sedona. These Sedona tires are ridiculously cheap, and you can also buy their matching rib sand tires for the front wheels that run great. Again, snatch these up off of Amazon for easily the lowest price.
Sedona Cyclone Rib Sand Tire
No more getting stuck at the beach! But seriously, here's the ribbed front tires to match your Sedona Cyclone sand paddle tires.
Sure, you can run just regular tires off-roading tires on the front with paddle tires on the back, but these ribbed sand tires work wonders in gaining control in the sand.
What Are The Best UTV Mudding Tires?
Getting down and dirty in the mud is always slippery and fun, but what’s not fun is losing control.
Mudding tires are the bomb for crushing it off-road, but they do tend to have a slightly softer tread compound, so you’ll want to take it easy on your mudding tires when driving on the road. Drive slow to avoid premature tread wear.
Here are some solid mud tires options to keep you in the loop:
BFGoodrich Mud-Terrain T/A KM3
Mud tires. It doesn’t get quite as good as BFGoodrich when cornering offroad. These tires have a distinct way of gripping to any surface. Buy these tires if you’re planning on road-tripping it down to Moab, the Baja, or anywhere up in the high mountains where the soil is wet. These are heavy tires so they'll wear down faster on the road.
Maxxis Carnivore
Maxxis Carnivore tires have 8-ply carcasses ready to accept whatever weight is necessary for your side by side. These are built to mimic light truck tires, but with the attractive and updated UTV shape Not DOT compliant These tires are great in softer conditions, so be ready to haul into that rainstorm with a vengeance when hunting or even just cruising in your SxS. Don’t forget to match the tread lugs and lug patterns to your specific UTV rims. Warning: Don’t buy these if you plan on doing a lot of road driving. These aren’t going to wear well because of their more ‘mudder’ design.
What To Look When Searching For The Best UTV Tires?
Don’t buy just any tires for your UTV. The variety is enough that you should dial in your tires with your driving style.
Do you whip it around your small town over potholes and mostly on the road? Then just buy a cheaper set of all-season tires. Want to hit the dunes? You’d better not take off without dedicated sand tires if you don’t want to look like an idiot. And for mountain trails, your choice is between all-terrain made more for dirt and mud-terrain tires—either will do the trick.
Size and Lug Pattern
Make sure to match the tire size that’s on the sidewall to the new tires you’re purchasing.
Durability
You should always do a bit of in-depth research on the durability of the tire you’re about to throw down on. Have others had good results? Talk to other people out and about on their SxS adventures and always be gathering input on what’s the best.
Tread life
Always check for mileage warranty to get a general idea of how long your UTV tires should last.
Puncture resistance
It might take a few tries between brands but stick to your favorite treads that have good rock-kicking shoulders and excellent durability. Rocks are brutal on tires, and that’s what separates the men from the boys in terms of tire quality.
Rebates/Deals
Check for rebates when replacing your tires. Remember that your old tires are still worth something even though their treads are warn down. Some companies like to recycle tires, so if you send them the old ones back, they’ll give you a discount after the fact.
Load rating(6-ply/8-ply/10-ply)
How much weight will your tires of choice support according to its load rating number? If you plan on loading on the whole family, construction materials, or a dead animal, then you want tires with a high ply rating.
Tread design
There are a few different tread styles to consider when buying tires for your side-by-side.
Aggressive tread is never a bad thing on a UTV, but if you drive on the road more than 10% of the time, you need to consider the fact that beefier treads wear down faster.
DOT Approved
Always check for DOT Approval from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Seeing the DOT printed on the sidewalls is a good filter between good and bad tires.
Speed Rating
Tires also have speed ratings that determine what their fastest safe speed is. Be sure to know the speed rating of your tires before you buy to avoid a dangerous situation.
Higher speed rating isn’t always the best, sometimes the rubber compound is softer and has better traction on slightly slower tires.
Radial construction is also a good thing to be aware of (the best UTV tires are radial).
Hype From Other SxS Owners
Good tires get good reputations. If you’re riding around on the dunes and you hear a friend ranting and raving about a good tire, it’s probably the truth.
Good tires perform noticeably better than cheap tires or models that don’t fit the driving scenario (i.e., using all-terrain tires in the sand dunes instead of sand-kicking paddle tires).
What Is The Best UTV Tires For Trail Riding?
All-terrain and hybrid tires are the best options for riding trails in your UTV. The best ATV/UTV tires have versatile treads that won’t wear out on the road and perform nicely in dirt.
What Are The Best UTV Tires For Rock Crawling?
Are you hitting the hard pack? I think the Pro Armor Crawlers are currently your best pick.
What Are The Best UTV Sand Tires?
The best ATV and UTV tires for the sand are paddle tires, as we say for dirt bikes. The future of sand tires is awesome, have you seen how they look on a UTV?
They’re totally badass, the rear wheels have thick paddles, and the front tires are channeled towards the center of the tread to create amazing steering in the sand.
How Long Do UTV Tires Last?
Each tire manufacturer typically has a warranty specific to the tire model. Some of them don’t. Always check for warranty information before buying.
What Are the Best UTV Tires For Pavement?
Hybrid tires or All-season tires. If you drive on the road at higher speeds regularly, you definitely want some good all-season grip or hybrid offroad technology to keep you riding smooth.
Other brands for the best UTV/ATC tires are Carlisle tires, ITP Mudlite, Motoclaw, etc.
What Is The Best All-Around UTV/ATV Tires?
Hybrids or All-terrain UTV tires are a good pick for all-around use. Don’t drive around on the street with your mud tires or your sand tires—you’ll just be chewing them up fast.
Final Thoughts For The Best UTV Tires
There you have it, I’ve given you some great options for buying solid UTV tires online. Have fun, and remember to be safe!
Buy, sell, and trade your UTV with other riders from all over the country. Sell your UTV for more by selling it to an individual instead of trading it into a dealership.
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