Even before its release on March 2018, General was facing a difficult time convincing off-roaders that upgrading to the Grabber A/TX was worth it. It wasn’t that the features of this tire were lackluster. On the contrary, the tire that it replaced – the hugely successful AT2 – had become so popular that there was a fear that the A/TX won’t be able to convince drivers to let go of its predecessor.
That didn’t happen. Drivers came round to buying this tire when they heard from those whom they trust that of the many improvements that this tire introduced to the design of the model it succeeded, the most important was the one in the tread pattern.
That changed the conversation. Doubters turned into believers. Off-roaders, even though they loved the AT2, were aware of the drawbacks in its tread pattern. When they came to know that the Grabber A/TX won’t only introduce its features but also improve those of the AT2, the former didn’t have to try too hard to grab its market share.
Have doubts that any tire could be this good? Then check out our detailed review of the General Grabber A/TX.
General Grabber A/TX Review: Features
Since it came on the heels of the General AT2, the Grabber A/TX had no choice but to carry on where its predecessor had left. Still, that doesn’t mean that its features are merely an upgrade to the AT2. This tire, as we are going to show you, has most of those features which its predecessor didn’t have.
Exclusive General Technologies
One of the best aspects of General tires is that they never come to the market alone. These models are always armed with patented technologies to let everyone know that they mean business. Luckily, the Grabber A/TX isn’t any different. Read on to find the technologies which you can expect to see in this tire.
- StabiliTread Technology: The purpose behind this technology was to create tires whose off-road grip was excellent. That’s exactly what the StabiliTread Technology was able to achieve. By increasing the footprint of the tire, it has increased the surface area of the A/TX which would come into contact with the road, thereby providing it with more grip.
- DuraGen Technology: Both of these technologies are there to improve General tires’ durability. While the former does that by increasing the tire’s footprint, this technology introduces cuts in the tread for the same. As a result, you’d feel the stability of the A/TX on off-road conditions.
- Comfort Balance Technology: As the name implies, this technology is meant to provide comfort to the passengers. It works its magic by introducing a cushioned layer on top of the tread and injecting angled-away grooves into the tire. As a result, it cuts down off-road vibrations and sounds to give you comfortable riding experience.
Off-road features
To make sure that the tire never loses traction at any point during the trek, General provided the Grabber A/TX with a plethora of off-road features, which make it a good pick for any driver whose daily routine includes Overlanding or off-roading.
- Five Row Tread Pattern: The five-row tread pattern of this tire includes wider spaces that are filled with traction notches. They allow the tire to provide additional grip in gravel, dirt, snow and other slippery surfaces. It also contains multi-angle traction edges that allow the tire to offer off-road grip in every direction.
- Alternating Shoulder Scoops: Move away from the tread pattern and in the direction of the sidewall, you’d notice multiple shoulder scoops. They serve two purposes: providing the tire with a large gripping area so that it could maintain its traction on rocks and protecting the sidewall from the brutalities of the off-road conditions.
- Fully Reinforced Body: Consisting of two-ply polyester casing, multiple ultra-high-strength steel belts and a pair of robust polyamide reinforcement piles, the fully reinforced body of the A/TX gives the best of both worlds. On the road, it offers high-speed stability. Away from the dry tarmac, you get off-road toughness and ride comfort because of it.
General Grabber A/TX Review: Test Drive
Even though it does have one or two features to attract the on-road driver population, the majority of the features of the Grabber A/TX prepare this tire for demanding off-road conditions. That’s exactly the impression we got after taking it out for a test drive.
Treadwear and Durability
As most of us already know, a businessman never makes claims which can come back to hurt their profit. Which is why, when General equipped the ATX with a treadwear warranty of up to 60,000 miles, most off-roaders immediately knew that this tire won’t go away too easily.
One of the reasons why it lasts longer than most of its competitors is the DuraGen Technology of this tire. By introducing cuts in the tread of the tire, this technology has enabled the A/TX to provide superior grip on rough surfaces, thereby increasing its durability.
And to reduce its treadwear, the StabiliTread technology plays its part. It increases the footprint of the tire to enlarge its surface area coming into contact with the road. That arrangement helps this tire achieve better grip, thereby justifying General’s bold decision to offer a 60,000 miles warranty on the A/TX.
Off-road performance
When taking this tire on hilly terrain, we were aware that almost all of its features join their efforts to make it one of the best off-road tires. What we weren’t of, however, was how excellently those features would make their presence felt during the ride.
Even when riding on bumpy roads, we had a smooth riding experience. Perhaps that’s because of the inner steel belts which reinforce tread patterns and absorb bumps on their own. Or maybe the Comfort Balance Technology, with its shock-absorbent upper layer, came to our comfort’s rescue.
Whatever the reason, our ride was as comfortable as it could get on the rocky roads on which we were traveling. Similar was the case with the tire’s traction; with alternating shoulder scoops providing more area for gripping, never for a moment did this tire showed any signs of slipping.
Wet Performance and Snow & Ice
The performance of this tire on wet roads painted the same story as with off-road grip and traction. To make sure that the tire grips the road at all times, its five-row tread pattern makes use of its additional notches to maintain maximum contact.
While it performed admirably on wet terrains, this tire reserved its best performance for snowy conditions. That’s mainly due to the small indents dotting the entire diameter of this tire. We inserted studs in the given space and got better traction on ice and snow.
Having said that, not all jurisdictions in the United States allow studded tires. Lawmakers fear that since they are pointy, studded tires accelerate road wear. Make sure your local laws allow studded tires before you follow our advice and insert studs to gain better traction in slippery conditions.
Noise and Comfort
Assuming you’re going to ride these tires away from dry tarmac for long periods of time, the only noises which might break the sleep of traveling passengers would be the breaking of twigs which the tires would trample under their feet along the way.
The reason why we’re saying that is because we have seen this tire’s Comfort Balance Technology in action. On paper, it says that it would reduce off-road vibrations. On the terrain, impressive, this technology fares even better.
By injecting angled-away groves into the tire and supplementing a shock-absorbent layer on top of it, this technology kills two birds with two stones. While the former design arrangement reduces vibrations and increases your comfort level, the latter keeps noises on the other side of your windows.
Dry Performance
In case you have been paying attention, by now you might have noticed that this tire’s main focus is on the off-road side of things. All of its difficult-to-pronounce technologies and hard-to-remember features look as if they have forgotten that there are any highways on this planet.
Having said that, this tire still gives excellent gripping for fast cornering and offers incredible stability when driving at high-speeds. Its breaking is very strong and offers good traction, especially if it is installed on a powerful vehicle.
Therefore, while the A/TX isn’t the best dry-tarmac tire by any stretch of the imagination, this tire can still offer something to drivers who don’t drive regularly on the highway.
Conclusion
One of the things we liked about the General Grabber A/TX is that it doesn’t try to do everything. True, it does offer a fairly impressive on-road performance. But the main focus of this tire is to attract those drivers who demand exceptional off-road stability, durability, and grip. If you think that description perfectly fits you, we see no reason why this tire shouldn’t be carrying the load of your vehicle.
Pros
- Three-Peak Mountain Snowflake for improved snow traction
- DuraGen Technology offers off-road durability
- Five Row Tread Pattern provides better off-road grip
Cons
- Doesn’t come with any maintenance indicators
I bought these from Tire Rack, and had them installed the next day. We got a
historic snow storm a few days later, and both the Interstate and Highway were
closed. I live 45-50 miles away from my work. I made it home no problem.
I LOVE these tires! Installed on a 2012 Nissan Titan crew cab Pro4X.
They are quiet on the road, and provide super traction. I am impressed.