Best A/T Tires Review: Scorpion All Terrain Plus, Nokian Outpost NAT, BFG KO3, Westlake SL369, Wrangler Duratrac RT, Wildpeak AT4, Recon Grappler

[djk]

I've been shopping for new tires for awhile and was interested in how the Pirelli Scorpion stacked up against some of the most tried and true tires.

Looks like tyre review just dropped their results on 8 tires

Tires tested:
Pirelli Scorpion XTM AT
Nokian Outpost nAT
BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO3
Goodyear Wrangler DuraTrac RT
Nitto Recon Grappler AT
Falken Wildpeak AT4W
Westlake SL369

Pirelli Scorpion AS Plus 3 (all-season r
eference)


Article

https://www.tyrereviews.com/Tyre-Tests/Best-All-Terrain-Tyres-2026-Test.htm


Video




AI summary:

This comprehensive review by Tyre Reviews spans a year of testing across Northern Europe (snow/ice), Central Europe (dry/wet), and Utah (off-road dirt handling). The test evaluates six of the newest, most aggressive all-terrain (AT) tires, one budget mild-AT tire, and a standard all-season tire as a reference point.

The test vehicle used is a Ford Ranger Raptor, mostly evaluated in rear-wheel-drive (RWD) mode to push the tires to their limits.

1. Dirt Handling & Off-Road Testing
Tested on a mix of rocky, smooth, and fluffy dirt surfaces in Utah.

• Pirelli Scorpion All Terrain Plus (XTM AT/AT80): The top performer alongside the Nokian. Easiest, most predictable drive with a well-balanced grip circle.
• Nokian Outpost NAT: Matched the Pirelli for the best subjective driving feel; excellent carcass compliance over bumps and great bite in loose fluff.
• BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO3: Highly impressive. Even though it's a stiff, heavy tire, its carcass was incredibly compliant in the ruts. It performs slightly better under straight-line braking and acceleration than it does while turning.
• Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac RT & Falken Wildpeak A/T4W: Both offered good mechanical grip, but their stiff carcasses caused them to struggle and bounce when hitting heavy ruts. The Falken suffered from noticeable understeer.
• Nitto Recon Grappler: Had decent straight-line braking grip, but very poor lateral (side-to-side) grip. The rear end would step out rapidly and unpredictably on throttle.
• Westlake SL369 (Budget/Mild AT): The most difficult tire on the dirt track. It had decent rubber compound grip on smooth sections, but its weak carcass provided zero stability through rough ruts.
• Pirelli Scorpion AS+ 3 (Reference All-Season): Performed surprisingly well on hard-packed dirt because its lighter weight and compliant carcass didn't have to account for extreme puncture resistance. However, it struggled to recover once sliding and would fail completely in deep mud.

2. Wet Performance & Braking
Wet handling was tested on a 2-minute lap. Wet braking and hydroplaning resistance were measured objectively.

• Pirelli Scorpion XTM AT: The absolute standout. It was an astonishing 5 seconds faster per lap than the Westlake and roughly 10 seconds faster than its premium rivals. It transformed the truck's dynamics, offering immense traction, crisp steering response, and top-tier wet braking.
• Westlake SL369: The surprise runner-up in the wet. Because its design is biased toward on-road driving (milder tread), it cleared water effectively and felt sharp on the brakes.
• Nokian Outpost NAT: The fastest of the remaining premium pack. It resisted terminal understeer and allowed the driver to rotate the truck smoothly using the throttle. It also won the hydroplaning resistance test.
• BFGoodrich KO3: Excelled at straight-line wet braking but heavily disliked cornering, exhibiting continuous, safe (but slow) understeer.
• Goodyear Duratrac RT: Felt "industrial" and required a lot of steering input. It had a wide recovery window but lacked structural sharpness.
• Falken A/T4W & Nitto Recon Grappler: Finished at the bottom. Both suffered from low grip, poor braking, and a "peaky" rear end that would suddenly snap into oversteer.

3. On-Road Comfort, Noise & NVH
Evaluated over a full day of driving across varying pavement types in Utah.

• Nokian Outpost NAT: The biggest surprise on the road. While it didn't strictly dominate one single area, it combined steering sharpness, low noise, and excellent ride damping perfectly, making it the host's top recommendation for a daily driver.
• BFGoodrich KO3: The most plush and comfortable tire. It rounded off harsh bumps beautifully. However, its steering in this specific size felt sluggish and unpredictable, causing a delayed "two-part turn" reaction between the front and rear axles.
• Pirelli Scorpion XTM AT: Possessed the sharpest, most stable steering and best shoulder stability (feeling like a sports tire), but rode slightly firmer and louder than the BFG.
• Goodyear Duratrac RT & Falken A/T4W: Both felt agricultural and a bit bouncy. The Falken was noticeably loud at highway speeds and suffered from poor damping over bumps.
• Westlake SL369: Noticeable drop-off in refinement. While total volume wasn't terribly high, it emitted an annoying high-pitched pitch reminiscent of a failing wheel bearing and held onto vibrations.
• Nitto Recon Grappler: The loudest tire on test. It produced a traditional, prominent all-terrain "hum" at speed that modern premium tires have largely engineered out.

4. Snow Performance
A brief overview ahead of a full upcoming winter test video.

• Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac RT: The objective king of the snow. It produced the fastest handling lap, best braking, and second-best traction.
• Pirelli Scorpion XTM AT & Nokian Outpost NAT: Right on the Goodyear's heels. The Pirelli had slightly better traction but slightly worse braking, while the Nokian was incredibly solid overall.
• BFGoodrich KO3: Very competitive and performed reliably in both 2WD and 4WD configurations.
• Falken A/T4W, Westlake, and Nitto: Considerably behind the pack. The Falken A/T4W was uniquely disappointing, with snow traction sitting 30% lower than the leaders. The host explicitly warns against using it in heavy winter climates.

Final Standings & Summary

Position	Tire Model	Key Strengths	Key Weaknesses	Final Verdict
1st Place	Pirelli Scorpion All Terrain Plus (XTM AT/AT80)	Dominant wet braking Fastest wet & dirt handling laps Top-tier snow traction Exceptionally sharp steering	Slightly firmer ride quality Slightly more road noise than the softest options	The Winner: Represents a generational leap for the AT category. Delivers sports-tire handling on pavement while dominating off-road and winter testing.
2nd Place	Nokian Outpost NAT	Best overall balance of manners Extremely low road noise Superb winter/snow grip High hydroplaning resistance	Slightly longer raw braking distances in dry pavement conditions	The Best All-Rounder: A masterfully engineered package with zero glaring flaws. Easily the top recommendation for an everyday daily driver.
3rd Place	BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO3	Unmatched plush ride comfort Excellent impact damping Stellar straight-line braking Great compliance in dirt ruts	Heavy understeer in wet corners Sluggish, delayed "two-part" steering response on-road	The Comfort King: Sturdy and premium over rough bumps, but sacrifices pavement handling agility and cornering speeds.
4th Place	Westlake SL369 (Budget)	Strong wet road braking Predictable on-road handling Very low retail entry price	Weak carcass struggles in ruts Poor winter snow traction Emits an annoying, high-pitched highway drone	The Wild Card: Road-biased design punches well above its weight class on wet/dry pavement, but falls short in severe off-road terrain or real winter weather.
5th Place	Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac RT	Undisputed king of pure snow Fastest snow handling & braking Tough, durable carcass in dirt	Mediocre wet pavement grip Unrefined "industrial" handling Noticeably bouncy ride quality	The Winter Warrior: A traditional, heavy-duty all-terrain tire built to survive harsh jobsites and deep winter conditions, sacrificing daily street refinement.[/TD>
6th Place	Falken Wildpeak A/T4W	Excellent dry braking metrics High tread life and wear resistance	Terrible snow traction (-30%) Heavy understeer in dirt Prone to sudden wet oversteer	The Disappointment: Sacrificed too much performance and winter traction in favor of longevity. A massive step down from the celebrated AT3W legacy.
7th Place	Nitto Recon Grappler	Decent straight-line mechanical braking on dry dirt tracks	Worst wet handling and braking Unpredictable, peaky breakaway Loud traditional highway hum	Last Place: A legacy 2021 platform that simply can no longer keep pace with modern rubber compounds and modern tread architecture.

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[4funner]

Looks like the pirelli scorpion xtm scores high. I was looking for that tire in 275/70 r18 sl load, but it is really difficult to search for. Pirelli claims it exists but I can't find it.

There is the "elect" version and the regular version and discount tire doesnt seem to know the difference between the two. The pirelli website is bad as well. People report the "elect" version, designed as a low rolling resistance at tire for heavy electric rivans is terrible in the wet and I definatly don't want to end up with those.

 

[BonRunner]

Interesting.

I just got the Falken Wildpeaks AT4W in 18". They have been great although it's E-load so very stiff & sacrificing minor amount of comfort but not too bad. Been excellent in wet, dirt, muds & trail terrain. I live in snowy Montana & will test them out when snow arrives in 5 months.

I got them from Discount Tires & they do have generous return/exchange policy if I were to switch to Pirelli scorpion XTM AT at no extra cost. I looked up their reviews & found a major complain about wet performance with hydroplane here.

 

[josiahg52]

Their earlier review of that Nokian Outpost nAT put it on my list.

Interesting.

I just got the Falken Wildpeaks AT4W in 18". They have been great although it's E-load so very stiff & sacrificing minor amount of comfort but not too bad. Been excellent in wet, dirt, muds & trail terrain. I live in snowy Montana & will test them out when snow arrives in 5 months.

I got them from Discount Tires & they do have generous return/exchange policy if I were to switch to Pirelli scorpion XTM AT at no extra cost. I looked up their reviews & found a major complain about wet performance with hydroplane here.

I, too, am interested in the Pirelli but am finding the same thing and it is very frustrating. It's not a problem getting a tire with those words on them, it's another thing knowing they're the exact version you wanted and no one else, including Pirelli, seems to know either.

 

[4funner]

Interesting.

I just got the Falken Wildpeaks AT4W in 18". They have been great although it's E-load so very stiff & sacrificing minor amount of comfort but not too bad. Been excellent in wet, dirt, muds & trail terrain. I live in snowy Montana & will test them out when snow arrives in 5 months.

I got them from Discount Tires & they do have generous return/exchange policy if I were to switch to Pirelli scorpion XTM AT at no extra cost. I looked up their reviews & found a major complain about wet performance with hydroplane here.

That hydroplaining issue is the "elect" version of this tire. It is not the same tire they tested in the OP article. "Elect" is meant for heavy electric vehicles and is low rolling resistance for efficiency and long life on a 7000lb rivian. Discount tire doesnt know the difference between the two tires. It's a bad branding approach from pirelli that customers dont know what tire they are buying lol.

 

[4Everest]

Looks like the pirelli scorpion xtm scores high. I was looking for that tire in 275/70 r18 sl load, but it is really difficult to search for. Pirelli claims it exists but I can't find it.

There is the "elect" version and the regular version and discount tire doesnt seem to know the difference between the two. The pirelli website is bad as well. People report the "elect" version, designed as a low rolling resistance at tire for heavy electric rivans is terrible in the wet and I definatly don't want to end up with those.

From Tire Rack's website, it looks like the "Elect" version is the SL load rated one (which is weird to me since it's for heavy electrics like Rivian/Hummer/etc.)

 

[Rotor-RPM]

I have been running the Nokians for 4 years on 2 different vehicles and they do rock! As a year round tire I love them. I just switched to a dedicated studded Nokians for the amount of ice we have to tackle, but for winters the nAT is awesome

 

[4funner]

From Tire Rack's website, it looks like the "Elect" version is the SL load rated one (which is weird to me since it's for heavy electrics like Rivian/Hummer/etc.)

Yep, that is all I have found. However pirelli website catalog claims they make a 275 70 r18 116 SL "non-elect" version as well.

 

[4Everest]

Yeah, that's interesting. I've been eyeing this tire and the Nokian ever since seeing that YT review yesterday. I'll give a shout here if I find more solid info.

 

[JLR]

From Tire Rack's website, it looks like the "Elect" version is the SL load rated one (which is weird to me since it's for heavy electrics like Rivian/Hummer/etc.)

I ended up ordering the 275/70R18 SL version from Discount Tire and had them installed. Only then did I notice they are the "Elect" version. I went back and forth on keeping them. I decided to take the entire 30 days refund period to try them out. I live in the Seattle area so we get rain... So far, I have been quite happy with them. The "Elect" version apparently has additional noise reduction over the standard one, and I can vouch that they are nearly silent on the highway, and I have only seen about a 1 mpg reduction over the OEM Falkens.

For wet weather, they seem to stop very well and don't slip at all when I am starting off on a pretty steep hill on a wet road. I can't provide any info on hydroplaning yet since we have not had enough heavy rain to test. However, I always thought hydroplaning was pretty much dependent on the tread design and speed of travel. As far as I know, the tread is identical for the "Elect" version as the gas version in the SL load rating.

The tire is stiffer than the OEM Falkens, but I was expecting that. It apparently has a sidewall designed to handle the torque and the weight of a Rivian, so it is beefed up and likely weighs a bit more than the gas version., but I have not been able to find weight info from Pirelli. Discount tire just showed the same weight for the SL and the LT, so not much help there.

Bottom line, I have now reached the 30 day return window end and have decided to keep them. I did do an OnX 4/10 route in the eastern WA desert and they did great. Planning on taking them on the White Rim Trail in Utah in September. So far I have a bit over 1000 miles on them.

BTW, once I noticed they were the "Elect" version at Discount Tire. I told them I was looking for the gas version not the "Elect" one, and they called Pirelli to order the gas version and were told it did not exist yet in the 275/70R18 size.

My experience so far for what it is worth....

 

[CO/ZA]

These Pirellis seem like a great option, and it's good to have more competition outside of the Falken / KO3 meta.

That being said, it's unfortunate we have little to choose for true 33" 275/70-18 OEM+ size in terms of C and D load rated tires.

Based on what I've read from other forums, it seems like the modern E loads of today are 'better' than yesteryear and compare actually favorably to their equivalent D and C loads.

I'm basing this on the Dueler A/T Ascents I have on, as I'm still getting 19.8mpg combined with E load 33" size, skid plates, and rock sliders.

18" in LT fitment seems relegated to the E load category as a whole, but it doesn't seem to be a bad thing?

I do appreciate the extra durability on rocky CO trails.

 

[4funner]

I ended up ordering the 275/70R18 SL version from Discount Tire and had them installed. Only then did I notice they are the "Elect" version. I went back and forth on keeping them. I decided to take the entire 30 days refund period to try them out. I live in the Seattle area so we get rain... So far, I have been quite happy with them. The "Elect" version apparently has additional noise reduction over the standard one, and I can vouch that they are nearly silent on the highway, and I have only seen about a 1 mpg reduction over the OEM Falkens.

For wet weather, they seem to stop very well and don't slip at all when I am starting off on a pretty steep hill on a wet road. I can't provide any info on hydroplaning yet since we have not had enough heavy rain to test. However, I always thought hydroplaning was pretty much dependent on the tread design and speed of travel. As far as I know, the tread is identical for the "Elect" version as the gas version in the SL load rating.

The tire is stiffer than the OEM Falkens, but I was expecting that. It apparently has a sidewall designed to handle the torque and the weight of a Rivian, so it is beefed up and likely weighs a bit more than the gas version., but I have not been able to find weight info from Pirelli. Discount tire just showed the same weight for the SL and the LT, so not much help there.

Bottom line, I have now reached the 30 day return window end and have decided to keep them. I did do an OnX 4/10 route in the eastern WA desert and they did great. Planning on taking them on the White Rim Trail in Utah in September. So far I have a bit over 1000 miles on them.

BTW, once I noticed they were the "Elect" version at Discount Tire. I told them I was looking for the gas version not the "Elect" one, and they called Pirelli to order the gas version and were told it did not exist yet in the 275/70R18 size.

My experience so far for what it is worth....

Thanks for the report on the tires! I just figure if pirelli makes versions for gas and electric, I would rather have the gas version.
I am not a tire expert, So I could be wrong about all this, but low rolling resistance, more durable tires for electric vehicles do have less grip. It is the trade off between soft and hard rubber.
If you have less grip you are more likely to hydroplane. Once the vehicle loses traction it will be more likely to float on a wet surface. I have a prius too, and anecdotal reports from many prius drivers say low rolling resistance tires are less confidence inspiring in the wet and hydroplane.

 

[Ross]

Nokian Outpost nAT 255/75 R17 has a diameter of 32" and weight of 41.9 lbs - $207 in Walmart
Nokian Outpost nAT 265/70 R17 has a diameter of 31.6" and weight of 40.8 lbs - $182 in Walmart

 

[Joey_Midnight]

I was waiting months for the xtm to drop in 285s, then i gave up and got G3s. The following week the xtm released my size hahaha.

 

[clk55r1d3h]

I was waiting months for the xtm to drop in 285s, then i gave up and got G3s. The following week the xtm released my size hahaha.

How are the g3s I’ve heard good things bout em. I’m really interested in them once my wheels get here, in sl load. Do you happen to have pics of it on the truck? It’s much cheaper than the Pirellis.

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