Nitto Ridge Grappler 35s - Feedback?

[Gamecock]

I’m thinking about putting Nitto Ridge Grapplers in place of my Sasquatch stock tires. I want a bit more aggressive tire and really don’t want to run C rated tires on the trail…they are just too weak in my experience.

For those who have made the switch, how is the rain performance and noise level compared to stock GYs?

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[MikeyFrog]

I have the closely related Terra Grappler and the road noise isn't much different than stock OBX tires. Mainly a difference on grooved concrete they use here. Seemed great in the freezing mist and rain we had a few days ago, no issues.

I'm sure there are lots who can add their opinion on the ridge grapplers as well.

 

[BigDaddySquatch]

I’m thinking about putting Nitto Ridge Grapplers in place of my Sasquatch stock tires. I want a bit more aggressive tire and really don’t want to run C rated tires on the trail…they are just too weak in my experience.

For those who have made the switch, how is the rain performance and noise level compared to stock GYs?

I am between Ridge Grapplers and KO2's. I'll be watching this thread for opinions.

 

[Rakkasan187]

I run the 37” Ridge Grapplers on my Ram 2500. In my opinion I think the ridge grapplers are one of the best tires on the market. No question I would pick the ridge grapplers over the BFGs all day long. The Toyo RTs are a great tire as well. I just picked up some 35x12.5-17 recon grapplers for my wife’s FE.

 

[Clearwater native]

I have the Ridge Grapplers on my Excursion and they are quiet; the ride is great, and they track a lot better than the Michelins I took off, so when I ordered my Bronco I was already planning on them down the road but after the rock throwing started, I decided to get them at 400 miles, I love the way they ride wet/dry on/off road and yes, they are quiet and track perfectly too, I had a choice of 315/75R17's or the 35X12.50/R17's that I choose and I am glad I went with the 35's because there is a size difference for sure and no more rocks.
On my jeep I have Fuel Gripper M/T 35X13.50/R20's (I know mall crawler look) they are loud, but I don't care because the exhaust and stereo are loud too, but they don't track nearly as well as the Nitto's and with my 40+ years of on/off road tire experience I am so glad I went with the Nitto Ridge Grapplers on my Bronco!

 

[jonesh242]

Just my 2 pennies - I've had KO2s and Ridge Grapplers on my Trailhawk recently. The BFG KO2s were very soft, wore quickly (toast at 25K) and made a ton of road noise. Ridge Grapplers seem to be a harder compound, roll quiet/smooth and seem to last a lot longer. Really happy with the Grapplers...they will be going on my Bronco 1st thing IF it ever shows up.

 

[Knownman]

I’ve got a bit of a different feeling about the Nitto Ridge Grapplers I have on my 2017 Ram 2500. I run 37’s x 12.5 x 17. At first they were quite, although not like a stock All weather but after I got past the half way mark they have become noticeably more noisy. If you don’t run with windows down it and have a fairly quite cabin it would be fine. But I’m thinking the Bronco doesn’t fit into either of those two categories so buyer beware. As for the second part of your question regarding traction in rain. I would say they are less than I had hoped for. Granted this truck is heavy as hell and yes it has 800 lb of torque but it’s not exactly fast. The last week we had a significant amount of rain and I felt a bit queasy with the handling and acceleration through the whole week. Again I have about 30K miles on them and they are half, exactly this amount , worn down.
one added thing I should note is that they are extremely heavy for their size. they are only outdone by their brother tire the Toyo.
ive not had the best luck with keeping them in balance either I’ve had them done at three different shops and each one has tried at least twice. They are okay around town in dry weather but in hot and dry not so great as they seem to develop an imbalance very time it gets near 90 degrees. That normally reveals itself as road noise and flutter on the highway especially when over 70 mph.
So I wouldn’t give them high ratings in any of these categories. But they are a harder compound which means they wear well. But the trade off is when you air them down they aren’t laying out as well as other tires with less of a highway tread pattern. They look tough as hell but they’re also expensive. They have okay off highway dirt road traction, but are weak in high speed rock road bite. I mean over 40 mph so not too high. They don’t steer well at this speed and tend to push. They have fairly good side bite on trails but the design to allow for good mileage, which doesn’t really work, isn’t conducive to good mud traction. I lost 3.5 mpg going with them from the 33’s and that’s on a diesel. And yes it’s recalculated for the larger size.
I would pass on them or at least try and test a pair out on somebody else’s rig. Maybe not a Bronco because of availability but I think it’s a necessity given the difference of opinions on the tires.

 

[Bonnie6G]

I’ve got a bit of a different feeling about the Nitto Ridge Grapplers I have on my 2017 Ram 2500. I run 37’s x 12.5 x 17. At first they were quite, although not like a stock All weather but after I got past the half way mark they have become noticeably more noisy. If you don’t run with windows down it and have a fairly quite cabin it would be fine. But I’m thinking the Bronco doesn’t fit into either of those two categories so buyer beware. As for the second part of your question regarding traction in rain. I would say they are less than I had hoped for. Granted this truck is heavy as hell and yes it has 800 lb of torque but it’s not exactly fast. The last week we had a significant amount of rain and I felt a bit queasy with the handling and acceleration through the whole week. Again I have about 30K miles on them and they are half, exactly this amount , worn down.
one added thing I should note is that they are extremely heavy for their size. they are only outdone by their brother tire the Toyo.
ive not had the best luck with keeping them in balance either I’ve had them done at three different shops and each one has tried at least twice. They are okay around town in dry weather but in hot and dry not so great as they seem to develop an imbalance very time it gets near 90 degrees. That normally reveals itself as road noise and flutter on the highway especially when over 70 mph.
So I wouldn’t give them high ratings in any of these categories. But they are a harder compound which means they wear well. But the trade off is when you air them down they aren’t laying out as well as other tires with less of a highway tread pattern. They look tough as hell but they’re also expensive. They have okay off highway dirt road traction, but are weak in high speed rock road bite. I mean over 40 mph so not too high. They don’t steer well at this speed and tend to push. They have fairly good side bite on trails but the design to allow for good mileage, which doesn’t really work, isn’t conducive to good mud traction. I lost 3.5 mpg going with them from the 33’s and that’s on a diesel. And yes it’s recalculated for the larger size.
I would pass on them or at least try and test a pair out on somebody else’s rig. Maybe not a Bronco because of availability but I think it’s a necessity given the difference of opinions on the tires.

Hmm, interesting take. Do you have a tire you’d recommend that would tick all those boxes? Personally, I’m looking for something that has some aggressive look to it, performs well Offroad, but performs great onroad and are relatively quiet. Having read a ton of reviews, I was thinking the ridge grapplers would be the winner.

 

[HBTFD]

I’m on my 2nd set on an F350 CC 4wd 6.7. Got 55k on my first set. Quiet and good in the mud. I don’t have the wet squirrelly issues others have commented on. When the GYs wear out on my BD Sasquatch that’s what I’m putting on as replacements.

 

[Tye]

curios how these are compared to micky thompson baja boss as im deciding between the two

 

[Knownman]

I think ridge grapplers are designed for heavy diesel trucks. They do an okay job on a 2500 and kind of work well on road and kind of off-road but they’re a hybrid. They don’t do either particularly well. They really kind of suck in the rain though. The stock Michelin Transforce HT I had on the Ram we’re really 34.5” tires measured out. They perform worlds better in the rain, get great fuel mileage, had plenty of grip off road on some fairly steep dry and rocky terrain that I would trail through out here. Think of the roads that side by sides usually use inbetween fire road switchbacks and that’s what I went up with my stock tires. Although aired down to 25 lbs. The Nittos wouldn’t do any better on the same trail. Maybe ride a bit softer because of the sidewalls being so much bigger. My stock rims are 20”.
When I get out of my Territory’s on the Bronco I’ll maybe look at the Cooper STT Pros again or those Patagonia’s. Might also consider the Nitto Terra Grappler which is probably more what you might want to look at. That or BF Goodrich KO3s.
at the end of the day if you want good traction it probably won’t come from a tire that gets really good mileage. That’s just physics. Sticky tires wear faster than hard slick ones.
maybe I just expect more from a tire than others on here. I expect them to perform and I use them hard.

 

[Gourik31]

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[Raptor911]

I have run Duratracs on my GEN1, GEN2 and now my GEN3 Raptor. 315/70/17 is D Rated and weighs 61 pounds. And they are very aggressive looking tires and rated for snow. BTW .. they are excellent in snow.

My only complaint would be they are louder than KO2s. My GEN2 and GEN3 comes from the factory with KO2s.

Ridge Grapplers in 315/70/17 are 9 pounds heavier per tire when compared to Duratracs.

I’m thinking about putting Nitto Ridge Grapplers in place of my Sasquatch stock tires. I want a bit more aggressive tire and really don’t want to run C rated tires on the trail…they are just too weak in my experience.

For those who have made the switch, how is the rain performance and noise level compared to stock GYs?

 

[Knownman]

Heres a video showing three different Nittos. I personally don't believe the performance ratings they show in the video. Maybe its due to having the tires for 2 years and they've just gotten too old or it could be the 5 I have are all bad? Who knows. But I can say without any doubt mine are loud and really weak in the rain plus they need to get rebalanced again. I think I'll just remove Nittos from my wish list.

 

[BroncoScott]

Well I just got Ridge Grapplers put on today so no experience in the rain yet. The noise isn't much at all. It's barely a noticeable difference from the stock Outer Banks tire. I went with the 285/75r18 as opposed to the 35" x 12.5". This gives me the same height without the poke since I have an Outer Banks with the smaller fender flare.

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