Power of choice drives off-road pickup tire sales

AKRON — Americans love their pickup trucks, and they love personalization. These two factors have spurred a surge in light truck tire sales, even in the midst of economic uncertainty.

Tire makers are addressing this trend by producing larger tires that sport aggressive tread for off-highway, as well as on-highway, driving.

"The light truck tire market overall is very strong and continues to grow. It's growing right along with vehicle truck sales. They keep growing. People love their trucks and keep buying," Brad Robison, senior product manager at Bridgestone Americas Inc., said.

"In terms of the off-road enthusiast, you know trucks are their new toys or ways to kind of express what you want to do with your vehicle," he said.

"For a lot enthusiasts and hobbyists, that's where you're starting to get into replacing your OE tires with even bigger, taller tires, especially on trucks where you can see most of the tire. ... The enthusiast trend is kind of growing in that space, causing us to see these tires get bigger," Robison said.

"Currently, passenger tire sales have fallen in numbers, and we have seen a continuous increase of sales in SUV/LT tires. Following this trend, we predict a decrease of passenger tire sales over the next five to 10 years," said Rob Williams, senior vice president, North America sales, at Hankook Tire America Corp.

"We've been investing in this (light truck) category for awhile and will do so in the future," Bridgestone's Robison said, noting that about a third of its tire sales are all-terrain (AT), max-terrain (MT) and rugged-terrain (RT) tires, as well as on-highway light truck tires, comparable with the industry average.

Giti Tire USA, meanwhile, is more heavily into passenger and CUV sizing for OE and replacement passenger, light truck and light truck/commercial, according to David Shelton, director of industry relations at Giti Tire.

"We've expanded our LT/commercial over the past several years and continue to grow in LT and flotation sizes, AT, HT and continue to do so," he said, adding "We fit with the market, not the niche, sizing."

Inflation and economic concerns don't seem to dissuade hardcore off-roaders and pickup enthusiasts from outfitting their vehicles with all-terrain, rugged-terrain or mud-terrain tires.

"This is the one part of the market that's not a grudge purchase," Shelton said. "That's one of the reasons that it is growing. It's what the customer wants, when they want it, as opposed to when they have to have it."

Passenger tire customers usually replace tires only when they are worn out, he said, and it's a grudge purchase. Not so with light truck and off-road tires.

"When somebody comes in, and they want a light truck tire that's nice, gnarly and really aesthetic for them, or a set of wheels, and they're going to jack it up and stuff like that, that's disposable income. That's a want, not a need," he said.

"When there is disposable income, whatever that is, you're going to spend it where you want to spend it. … There's a lot of doubt out in the market right now," he said, adding, "Is there enough money out there to keep this rage going? I think there is."

Image and lifestyle choices are driving the trend, he said, adding, "I see the high-rim diameter and larger, not only rim diameter but also overall diameter, of the tires are still continuing to grow."

The pandemic, ironically, has had a positive impact on pickup truck and tire sales.

"What have we been like for the past two years? Holed up. Stark crazy. Want-to-get-away," Shelton said. "So you now have escapism to go with it. So whether it's lifestyle, escapism or the feelings of freedom, because that's what we're after. North America is unique around the globe because we, as Americans, feel that we want to have the freedom to go where we want to go, when we want to go, and I think you're going to find that in the off-roader. ...

"It all boils down to, 'I feel like getting away from all this urbanization, and I'm going to the hills or I'm going camping or I'm going fishing.' … People are looking for that freedom or that relief from being cooped up as they have been in the past few years. That's driving part of the market, too," Shelton said.

"So when the shutdown first began, people were really wanting to get outside. They wanted to keep doing things, find fun things to do. They wanted to do it in a safe, social distancing way," Robison said.

"It turns out camping, hiking, off-roading, going to parks, all those things are really, really safe from a COVID standpoint and turns out to be really fun. So we did see an uptick in general outdoor activities. ... So we did see an uptick, as an industry as a whole, for off-road-capable tires for sure. And we're seeing it continue."

He observed that vehicle manufacturers are offering off-roading packages to upgrade a vehicle with higher tire/rim sizes.

"You can get a 'trailer edition,' a 'camping edition,' all these type of things where a lot more new cars are coming with all-terrain products. So I think the general consumer trend, we'll call it 'adventure seeking,' I'm seeing evidence that it's going to continue to grow just based on a lot of factors of how people are behaving," Robison said.

"Rim sizes are getting bigger, and they're continuing to do so as trucks became less utilitarian and more consumer-focused. People are using big trucks to drive daily. They're using them as their primary vehicles. We're starting to see the rim sizes and a lot of creature comforts that come along with that in trucks," Robison said.

Noting that just 20 years ago 18-inch tires were a rarity, now, "I think 70% of new vehicles, new trucks, have 18- to 22-inch tires. So two decades is a long time, but in terms of some of the life cycles of these vehicle chassis and those type things, a really quick change in rim diameter overall with the truck," he said.

He said he expects this trend to continue with the volume of these larger tire sizes growing.

"Two of the biggest trends we see for the rim diameter of light trucks are based upon the size of the vehicle and consumer preference for a more stylish look," Williams said.

"The light truck accessory market is considered a hobby for many people, and this trend affects the appearance of vehicles. An outcome of this includes the diameter of the rim increasing. The size of vehicles is also continuing to grow, making it possible for car makers to provide a larger rim size as a base, or optional wheel," he said.

Today's pickup trucks provide performance and comfort, and their tires are offering snow handling, increased wear and touring performance.

"Trucks are kind of like the new performance cars and the new sedans out there," Robison said. "So (owners) are going to expect to have that same level of performance in the tires, and probably not as willing to make those compromises they had 10 to 20 years ago."

There is an increasing demand for tires greater than 20 inches in rim diameter. The size of the rim is expected to grow slightly as long as the vehicle's OEM continues to accommodate 20-inch wheels and tires, Williams said.

"People gravitate toward bigger rim sizes. You see it in cars, you see it in TVs," Robison said. "And then when trucks started becoming more mainstream, you saw them in there as well. As people, as car manufacturers, are trying to compete in the marketplace, and aesthetics are a big piece of that, the rim diameter is definitely a part of their design language.

"And whatever happens in OE just kind of transitions in the tire market, all the way down through. So that's for the OEM piece of it. Just people gravitating toward the aesthetic look," Robison said.

Shelton compared the trend for larger sizes to the analogy of the spinning roulette wheel: "Where it stops? Nobody knows!"

But limitations may come from regulatory requirements for rolling resistance, tire wear, abrasion, stability, etc. And there can be performance trade-offs.

"Larger rim diameters improve traction and high-speed stability. However, this may result in a decrease in overall ride quality," Hankook's Williams said.

"We are providing products designed with all of this in consideration and making great efforts to provide high performance while maintaining the foundation of the tire. Since the performance of tires is evolving in line with vehicle trends, consumers should be able to select tires according to their driving habits despite a change in rim diameter."

Bridgestone's Robison noted that as the rim sizes grow, the sidewalls get smaller, creating a harsher ride or stiff ride.

"Through the engineering process, there's definitely things engineers looked at size by size with construction materials to help offset that. But as trucks come with bigger rim sizes, suspensions also consider that," he said.

Giti's Shelton also noted that with bigger rim diameters come a change in the dynamics in steering, braking and load-carrying capacity. Engineers can compensate by keeping enough air cavity in the tire with cords and structure to carry the weight.

Off-road tires on pickups may rarely see a dirt road as some truck owners purchase off-road tires more for the look than for utilitarian purposes.

Hence, the rugged-terrain tire, a compromise between a max-traction and all-terrain tire, is a niche that is growing in popularity.

The rugged-terrain tire is an "absolute area for growth," Shelton said. "That's a mixture of being able to go from the AT to a more aggressive look and still maintain the comfort and noise and so forth.

"If you want to look like the rugged individualist, you can still keep making the sound going down the road and everyone can hear you. You can still listen to your favorite music playlist in the vehicle — and hear it — by going with the RT instead of the MT. I see that market growing very much over the next several years," Shelton said.

"We have seen a positive trend in rugged-terrain tires as there has been an increase in demand for aggressive appearances such as MT and off-road traction," Williams said.

"This market is still smaller than the traditional AT and MT markets, but dealers should stay on the lookout for continuous growth of this trend," Williams said, noting that these tire sales are growing right along with truck sales.

"They keep growing, people love their trucks and keep buying. ... The industry has seen over 3 million units of growth for the last five years. That's pretty big because you know, that's traditionally not one of the major segments in the tire industry," Williams said.

"If you're are an off-road enthusiast, you live in a really good time," Robison added.

"I think in general, people are wanting more aggressive-looking tires and more capable off-road tires, and I think, something more aggressive than an AT tire but not as much compromise on the road as a max-traction. So a little more quiet or more comfortable is an area where a lot of people would appreciate. ...

"We're gonna get more and more versions of that in the industry and more aggressive while still being able to hear the radio. Those type things are pretty appealing to a lot of people, so I expect that to grow for sure," Robison said.

In addition to off-road capabilities, AT and RT tires often come with all-weather features, a growing trend in the passenger tire market.

All-weather tires feature all-season capabilities with the 3-Peak Mountain Snowflake (3PMS) designation for winter driving.

Most all-terrain tires carry the 3PMS designation. However, for MT tires, there is not much consumer desire to have those certified for winter performance, Robison said.

"Trucks have found ways to give consumers a big truck that they want, but without the compromises that you used to have with trucks," he said. "So they are a lot smoother. They drive a lot more like cars and those consumers are going to expect the same thing out of their tires, meaning no compromise. So with that highway truck tires, you're gonna want, most important tire wear; quiet, comfortable ride; strong wet performance.

"But adding a 3-Peak Mountain Snowflake in that segment, getting that certified winter performance without compromising those other stuff, I think would delight a lot of consumers in that space for sure. So I can see that being a trend going forward."

Dealers can generate more tire sales with pickup truck owners by understanding what they're looking for and understand what they're asking for.

Someone new to the space might gravitate directly to the MT tire with the most aggressive look, because it looks awesome, Bridgestone's Robison said.

"But does the consumer know this is going to be quite a bit louder than your OE tire or that you're going to be adding some weight with this package or truck. So really just having those discussions with consumers to understand what product would best fit their needs. And really how to make those best recommendations for them."

He suggested tire dealers become involved with local off-roading events and clubs.

"So immerse yourself in that culture, and it'll help out a lot and go a long way to further understand what people are doing with these products," he said.

Giti's Shelton suggested dealers should determine a consumer's wants, needs and desires. Look at their vehicle — does it look like they have disposable income? Is this a grudge purchase or it is a want?

"Guide them into the right purchase to satisfy their wants, needs and desires and expectations, and maybe even aspirations," he said.

"The counter person has to be able to start reading the customer from the time they drive up and finish it with an interview before they get into offering them anything," Shelton said, noting that if the salesperson gets it right, he/she will end up with a satisfied customer and future sales.