Product Test: General Grabber AT

Picking the right tyre for your vehicle isn’t the easiest thing to do; and the standard tyres that were fitted on my late model Hilux Legend 45 when it came out of the factory are not as robust as the AT indication on the sidewall suggests. On my first off-road trip in the Hilux, I was faced with a sidewall puncture – and then suffered a similar fate when we took on the Rust de Winter Toyota Jamboree, so I needed to decide on a new set of rubber.

There are many brands out there to choose from but the price tags can be very high. After some research, I decided on a set of General Grabber ATs, in the standard size of 265/65 R17; and boy, am I impressed.

Expect to pay between R2100 and R2300 per tyre, before all the balancing and alignment costs – certainly at the lower end of the price spectrum. I fitted the tyres on a nice set of Outrage rims from A-Line’s 4×4 Outback range. With the slight offset and a wider rim, the tyres looked much more aggressive on the Hilux. The road noise of the Grabbers was minimal, and the Hilux was stable even in the wet, giving me confidence to drive 120km/h on wet tar.

What really impressed me, however, was when we did the Lebombo 4×4 Eco Trail in the Kruger National Park. This five-day south-north traverse along almost the entire western border of the park, adjoining Mozambique, covers many kilometres of very rocky terrain. Some of the more pricey tyres fitted to the vehicles of our convoy had some sidewall damage, but, after 500km of rocky roads, my Grabbers came out just fine.

For me, another test was their performance in sand, and they didn’t disappoint. The 40km-long Sandridge road in the Savuti was done without any hassles and that was with my tyres deflated to only 1.5 bar.

I have now done almost 15 000km on the Grabbers, and I believe they should be okay for at least another 60 000km − keeping in mind that off-road driving eats up tyres quicker than tar driving. So, from my perspective, the General Grabber AT’s would be my choice again.