Mickey Thompson Baja Claw TTC - 285/75R16

[centralWAyota]

Decided to post because people seem to ask a lot of questions about them. Just got them today - Going to test them on Thursday night in the snow. Like them so far, a bit louder than my BFG A/Ts but that is to expected in a more aggressive tire. They are 285's. - 4WD Toyota Owner Magazine is doing a test on them as well. Its in the Volume 8 - issue #3 - May/June 2012 issue - pg. 38.

[ben90]

Nice looking tire.

Did you say snow?

where do you live!

[J88Logue]

Exactly what i was thinking! I'm in the NW and we don't even have snow!
Those are the tires i've been wanting to get and still plan to do so, it will be nice with a write up from 4wd magazine given not many people have ran them.

Originally Posted by ben90

Nice looking tire.

Did you say snow?

where do you live!

[centralWAyota]

So after some deliberation I decided that I would wait to try the tires on sand,dirt,light mud, street & snow before posting. Obviously their performance will vary depending on rig/driving style/pressure ect. These are my observations when compared to same size KM2s on an 80's something Samurai, Cooper STT's on a 1996 Reg. Cab Taco and Nitto Mud Grapplers on a 2005 D-Cab short bed Taco. All rigs have a rear locker and only the 2005 D-cab has a front locker. The D-Cab always had his front disengaged when we were making the comparisons. These are the opinions of 4 people including myself.

Sand (10 psi/16" wheel) - The tire performed satisfactorily. They lived up to my expectations and the performance was on par with the same size KM2/Cooper STT/Nitto Mud Grapplers in our group. They weren't any better or any worse than other M/T's in our group, at least noticeably.

Dirt (12 psi) - Again the tire performed satisfactorily. We did notice they seemed to do slightly better when the dirt started to go more loamy/sandy. Especially when compared to the STTs and possibly the Nitto's although that was an even split in opinions.

Light mud (15 psi - mud depth 2-24") - They performed excellent! On this trip it was just myself and the 96 reg cab. We both run 16" rim w/ 4" back space so we decided to swap treads! The Claws definitley had a traction advantage, especially when it got deeper. The stayed cleaner and we both came to the consensus that the Claws were superior when compared to the STT's and the guy driving the 96 had previously had Nitto Mud Grapplers and he said the Claws were better than he remembers the Nitto's being.

Street (30 psi) - Somewhat louder than the KM2 & STT but about the same as the Nitto. No complaints on the braking/wet pavement/acceleration performance. Noise isn't nearly as bad as aired down bogger/ltb/tsl tires. Not noticeably stiff, about the same as every other tire.

Snow - hard spring crust w/ soft underneath (7.5 psi) - They performed amazingly! Especially when compared to the nitto mud grappler. This could have been because the driver is really green but our group thinks the Nitto's maybe lacking in the snow. The Claws were considered to be the best in the snow although the STT & KM2 are so close it could go either way based on how the variables were aligned. They shined over the others when the truck would break through. No tread clogging was the surprise to everyone unless it was spinning in a hole.

Overall - I would most definitely buy them again! They performed as expected and are a huge jump in performance over my BFG A/T's. They are excellent on the street and do pretty well all around. I definitely recommend them! 2 of the 3 guys running with me are already going to buy a set the next time they need tires so that must mean they are not to shabby. Oh and did I mention they look freaking mean! They are unique and rare, at least around here so that is a big plus as well!


Disclaimer - I am not trying to say that the Claws are better than other tires but I am saying they are not worse so don't post about how this tire out performs that one and so on! These are just the general observations of 4 guys trying to have a good time! The only reason I wrote this is because I could not find diddly on them on any forum.

In reply to posts above - the mountains/foot hills around me have snow as late as May or even June some years.