Rugged terrain, winter rated

Goodyear Wrangler DuraTrac RT Tires in Ottawa

The DuraTrac RT sits between an all-terrain and a mud-terrain — Goodyear calls it rugged terrain. It is the tire for a truck that works for a living and still has to get through an Ottawa winter and up a highway on Monday morning.

(613) 789-2128

GoodyearRugged terrain, winter rated

Is there a rebate on this tire right now?

We run the manufacturer programs on these tires as they open, and they change through the season. Current amounts and dates are always on our specials page.

See current offers

At a glance

Category	Rugged terrain (on- and off-road, light truck)
Severe snow rated	Yes — three-peak mountain snowflake
Tread reinforcement	DuPont Kevlar
Sidewall	Three-ply with Durawall compound
Sizes offered	42
Treadwear warranty	About 80,000 km (50,000 miles)
Introduced	2023
Fits	Pickups, SUVs and 4x4s

What the DuraTrac RT is

Goodyear introduced the Wrangler DuraTrac RT in 2023 as a rugged-terrain tire — a category that sits between the all-terrain most trucks wear and the mud-terrain that most trucks do not need. The tread is more open and the shoulder blocks are larger than an all-terrain’s, extending over the shoulder for grip in ruts and soft ground, but it is still a tire designed to be driven on the 417 every day.

The distinguishing feature is what is inside it. Goodyear builds DuPont Kevlar into the tire for tread-damage protection, and pairs it with a three-ply sidewall using their Durawall compound against punctures, abrasions and cuts. For a truck that spends time on job sites and gravel, that construction is doing more for you than tread pattern is.

Like the KO3, it carries a three-peak mountain snowflake rating, so it is a genuine severe-snow tire and not just an aggressive-looking all-season.

The technology, in plain terms

Goodyear’s published construction and features, and why each matters here.

DuPont Kevlar reinforcement

Kevlar is used for cut and puncture resistance in the tread area. The failure this is aimed at is not gradual wear — it is a piece of rebar or a sharp stone going through the tread on a site. On a work truck, one avoided flat pays for a lot of tire.

Three-ply Durawall sidewall

Three plies instead of the usual two, with a compound formulated against abrasion. Sidewalls have no steel belt behind them, so they are what curbs, rocks and site debris destroy. Extra plies also make the sidewall stiffer, which is what you want if you tow or load the box heavily.

Extended shoulder tread

The tread blocks wrap over the shoulder rather than stopping at the edge of the contact patch. That gives the tire something to bite with when it is in a rut, in deep snow, or crossing a soft edge — situations where the flat part of the tread has nothing useful to press against.

Severe snow rating with a rugged tread

The three-peak mountain snowflake means this tire passed a standardised snow traction test. That is unusual on a tread this open, and it is the reason a contractor in Ottawa can reasonably run one set year-round rather than owning two sets for a truck.

Cut-away comparison of a standard passenger tire sidewall and a reinforced light-truck sidewall, showing the additional ply layers, the unbelted flex zone, and the typical impact points where curbs and rocks cause sidewall damage. — Three plies instead of two. The sidewall is the unbelted part of a tire, which is why construction there matters more than tread depth for a work truck.

Is this the right tire for you?

The DuraTrac RT suits you if

You tow, or you load the truck box heavily, and you want a stiff, well-built sidewall.
Your truck sees job sites, gravel, or a cottage road that is not really a road.
You want one severe-snow-rated set for the whole year rather than swapping a truck twice a season.
You have lost tires to punctures before and want Kevlar in the tread.

Look at something else if

Your truck is a commuter that never leaves pavement — a highway-terrain tire will be quieter, last longer and use less fuel.
Noise bothers you. A rugged terrain tread is louder than an all-terrain, which is itself louder than a highway tire.
You need the outright best ice braking; a dedicated winter tire still beats any rugged terrain on glare ice.
Your size is not in the 42 offered — check before you plan around it.

Temperature axis from minus 30 to plus 30 degrees Celsius showing the intended operating band of summer, all-season, all-weather and winter tires, with the 7 degree changeover line marked and the eight tire lines Franco Garage runs rebate programs on plotted onto their category. — A severe-snow-rated rugged terrain tire covers a wider band than an all-season, which is what makes a single-set year is realistic for a truck.

Sizes, fitment and how we quote

We do not warehouse tires. We order in from our Ottawa distributors — usually the same or the next business day — and you get a full installed quote before we order anything. That quote includes mounting, balancing, valve stems or TPMS service kits, and old-tire disposal, so the number you see is the number you pay.

Bring the vehicle, or read the size off the placard in the driver’s door jamb, and we will confirm it against what your vehicle should be running. If your size is not made in this line we will tell you that rather than substituting something else quietly. More on what we do with the tires once they arrive is on our tire services page.

Every number on the sidewall, decoded. The placard in your door jamb is the authority — not what happens to be on the car now.

What this means for an Ottawa driver

The DuraTrac RT’s customer here is the truck that is genuinely working: trades running between downtown sites and supplier yards in the east end, landscapers and excavation crews on the rural fringe, and people towing a trailer up to cottage country on the weekend. That is a different duty cycle from a truck that commutes, and it wears tires differently — sidewall damage and punctures matter more than tread life.

Towing is the case where the three-ply sidewall changes how the truck feels. A stiffer sidewall reduces the sway you get from a loaded trailer on a crosswind stretch of the 416 or the 417 east of Orleans. It is also the reason inflation pressure matters more on a work truck than on a car: the door placard number assumes an unloaded vehicle, and a loaded one needs more.

A snowflake-rated tire satisfies Quebec’s December 1 to March 15 winter tire requirement — relevant if you work across the river in Gatineau.
Ontario insurers have been required since 2016 to offer a winter tire discount; a snowflake-rated tire generally qualifies. Confirm with your broker, it is not automatic.
Ottawa’s roughly eighty freeze-thaw cycles a year produce a spring pothole season across all 6,000 km of city road. Potholes load sidewalls, not tread.
If you tow, tell us the loaded weight. We will set pressures for the load rather than copying the door placard, and check that your load range is right for what you are pulling.

What installation includes here

Mounting and balancing

Every tire is balanced on the machine, not eyeballed. An unbalanced wheel shows up as a vibration at a specific speed and chews the tire unevenly.

Valve stems or TPMS kits

Rubber valve stems get replaced with the tire. TPMS sensors get new service kits — the seals and collars are consumables, not permanent parts.

Torqued to specification

Wheels go on with a torque wrench to your vehicle’s spec, not an impact gun. Over-torquing warps rotors; under-torquing loses wheels.

Pressures set properly

Set to the placard, or to the load if you tow. Cold-weather pressure drops are why the light comes on the first cold morning.

Old tire disposal

Included in the quote. Ontario tire stewardship fees are part of the number we give you, not a surprise at the counter.

Seasonal storage

Ask us — if you have nowhere to keep a second set, we can talk about what storage looks like.

Wrangler DuraTrac RT — questions we actually get asked

Straight answers, from the counter at Beech Street.

Rugged terrain sits between all-terrain and mud-terrain. Compared with an all-terrain the tread is more open, the shoulder blocks are bigger and wrap further over the edge, and the construction is usually heavier. You gain grip on loose and soft surfaces and durability under abuse; you give up some road noise, some fuel economy, and some tread life. The DuraTrac RT is unusual in holding a severe snow rating with that tread.

Yes, more than an all-terrain and considerably more than a highway tire. That is inherent to the open tread that gives it its capability. Goodyear has done work on the block sequencing to keep the noise from concentrating at one frequency, but if quiet is your priority this is the wrong category, not the wrong tire.

That is the main reason people buy them. The three-peak mountain snowflake rating is a real test result, so this is a legitimate winter tire for a truck. The caveat is the same one that applies to any all-terrain or rugged terrain: on glare ice, a dedicated studless winter tire still stops shorter. If your winter driving is plowed roads and job sites, one set is a reasonable call.

They are close competitors and both carry the snowflake. Broadly, the DuraTrac RT is the more aggressive, more open tread with Kevlar tread reinforcement and a three-ply sidewall; the KO3 is a slightly more road-biased all-terrain with a reformulated chip-and-tear resistant compound and full-depth locking sipes. If your truck spends more time off pavement, lean DuraTrac RT; if it spends more time on the highway, lean KO3. Both are about 80,000 km of published treadwear warranty.

It is offered in 42 sizes covering most common pickup and SUV fitments. If you are going up in size from stock, the questions are rubbing at full steering lock, speedometer error, and whether your load range still suits what you tow. Bring the truck and we will measure rather than guess.

We do not warehouse tires. We order in from our Ottawa distributors, usually the same or the next business day, and we quote the full installed price — mounting, balancing, valve stems or TPMS service kits and old-tire disposal — before we order anything.

What Ottawa Customers Say About Our Service

4.9/5 from 293 reviews

"I dropped my car off at Franco Garage around 11:15am (no appointment, they took me right away) and by 12:30pm they had already ordered my car battery AND installed it! The cost was amazing. They only charged me for the battery itself (under $200) and $15 for labour. Everywhere else I called prior to Franco Garage was quoting between $250-$432 for the battery alone and a high labour cost, not to mention long wait times. I will definitely bring my car back to Franco Garage!! What an incredible experience. The service was extremely fast and the guys working were honest, reliable and really personable!"

Natasha Ferrill

2 months ago

"Noticed I had a deflating tire and a 6AM trip to Montreal the next day. The guys were already fully booked for the day, but still squeezed me in for a quick fix. I didnt even have to wait anywere, they were done in under 15 minites. Both mechanics were very polite and even offered to walk i to the ahop and showed me exactly what was causing the leak in the tire. They knew I was in a rush, but still charged me a fair price. I couldn't be happier, they actually made my day :)"

Yehor Sanko