Nitto Ridge Grappler VS General Grabber ATX

Both All-Terrain (A/T) tires pursue to give the best performance on both on and off roads. But still due to the higher void ratio of Ridge Grappler, its off-road performance is enhanced whereas ATX due to its lower void ratio performs exceptionally well on-roading.

The three-peak mountain snowflake (3PMSF) rating of ATX allows extra traction on icy roads compared to its counterpart.

Let’s get in. But first make sure you check out the Nitto Line Up. This would help things a lot.

Detailed Comparison: Nitto Ridge Grappler With General Grabber ATX

Ridge Grappler has an aggressive symmetrical tread pattern having wider grooves that allow limited contact between tread and road causing the tires to lose grip.

The lower contact patch also causes a longer braking distance and produces more noise while traveling on-road.

The wet traction of this tire is good due to the easy expulsion of water through the tread caused by wider grooves and numerous sipes.

The mud, sand, soft snow, and gravels can also be efficiently evacuated by the wider grooves.

The notched design of its shoulders helps in the passing of mud through them as there are higher voids between the shoulder studs.

The strong stone ejectors don’t allow stones and pebbles to get stuck inside the grooves.

The special alternating shoulder scoops design provides extra traction in rocky terrain making it a much better choice compared to other tires.

It has a strong built which utilizes robust compounds to provide extra protection against trail damage like cuts and chips and provides the necessary flexibility needed for traction in cold weather conditions.

It has wider grooves between treads that act like shocks and absorb most of the jerks and improve its stability over uneven and rough off-road terrain.

General Grabber ATX also has an aggressive symmetrical design that packs the treads closely with each other leaving very narrow voids.

The narrow voids allow a generous contact patch which is responsible for greater grip and shorter braking distance.

This compact design of tread also produces lower noise while traveling at high speed on-road.

There are fewer sipes engraved on the tread which in combination with narrow grooves are not sufficient to provide decent wet traction.

The narrow grooves also don’t allow efficient removal of mud, soft snow, and gravel through them but perform very well on icy roads.

It has an optimized sidewall design that features bold sidewalls with polyamide reinforcement plies that makes the built of the tire strong but not as strong as that of Ridge Grappler.

The narrow grooves however don’t provide a comfortable drive through rough or uneven terrain as they cannot effectively absorb the jerks.

On-road Traction Comparison

Ridge Grappler smaller tread blocks with massive voids between them result in lower contact with the ground causing it to lose grip during the on-road drive.

This increases the braking distance and decreases the stability of the vehicle during higher speeds.

Wide grooves along with numerous sipes pass the water quickly through the tire making its wet traction remarkable and avoiding hydroplaning.

The ATX of the General Grabber family, having closely packed grooves with smaller voids allow great grip with the road due to more contact area hence increasing its on-road traction.

However, the narrow grooves and fewer sipes are not that great when it comes to wet traction as they don’t allow water to easily move through the tire, causing hydroplaning.

Off-road Traction on Mud:

Ridge Grappler having wider grooves allow efficient evacuation of mud by throwing it backward as a result moving the tire forward.

The wide shoulder grooves act as icing on the cake by effectively allowing mud to pass through them, increasing its mud traction. It’s a more preferred tire to drive in muddy terrain.

ATX is not that great in mud traction due to its narrow grooves and unoptimized design of the shoulders having shallower grooves between its studs which further hinders its mud traction.

Narrow grooves don’t allow the sufficient evacuation of mud through tires causing its grooves to get stuffed with mud and making the tires slip in mud as there is no grip possible.

Off Road Snow Traction

The wider grooves of Ridge Grappler do come in handy for traction in soft snow terrain as the wide grooves easily evacuate the soft snow and maintain a firm grip.

However, wider grooves don’t allow good traction on icy roads as deep grooves are required for proper grab and grip on icy roads.

This tire doesn’t have a Three-Peak Mountain Snowflake (3PMSF) rating hence not allowing respectable traction on hard snow.

ATX on the other hand struggles in soft snow due to its inability to maintain a decent grip as narrow grooves can’t effectively bite through soft snow, they get stuffed and lose all the grip.

It can perform better on icy roads as narrow grooves and numerous deep sipes allow good grip and handling, but the hard snow performance is not satisfactory even with the Three-Peak Mountain Snowflake (3PMSF) rating.

Rock Terrain Traction

The strong-built and bold stone ejectors are required for good traction on rocky terrain since Ridge Grappler has both which put it ahead of its counterpart.

The wider grooves allow more grip on tricky angles of approach on rocks and propagate the tire confidently on rocks.

The strong built of shoulders allow better handling and its extensive design also protects sidewall from trail damage like cuts or chips.

The bold strong ejectors don’t allow stones to get stuck into grooves hence allowing better traction on rocky terrain making this tire one of the favorites in rocky terrain.

Ridge Grappler lacks in rock traction due to the absence of wider grooves, bold stone ejectors, and strong tread built.

This causes it to be vulnerable to trail damages which might occur during moving through rocks.

The narrow grooves don’t allow good grip and its shoulders are not strong enough to provide good handling.

The stone ejectors are not bold enough to prevent stones from getting stuck inside the grooves effectively.

These characteristics don’t add positively to the reputation of respective tires on rocky terrain.

Which tire is more Comfortable?

The higher void ratio of Ridge Grappler causes more air to get trapped inside its grooves, striking back and forth and producing noise.

This decreases the on-road comfort of the tires, while during off-road, the wider grooves act as a shock absorber and dampen the impacts during traveling on a rough, uneven terrain allowing a much smoother driving experience.

Since ATX has narrow voids which cause less air to get trapped inside them even when the vehicle is moving at a high speed.

This decreases the noise produced by the back and forth striking of air particles with the sidewalls of the tire making its on-road comfort great.

The narrow grooves, however, cannot withstand the jerks when the vehicle is traveling through challenging off-road terrain as the shock dampening ability of narrow grooves is not that great.

This in turn decreases its off-road comfort.

Durability and Treadwear Differences

As the Ridge Grappler has a lower contact area with the ground it requires a lower amount of energy to keep rolling the tire.

This decreases the rolling resistance of the tire and causes lower treadwear.

Its treads are built with an extra-tough compound which makes them resistant to chips and cuts.

It consists of a reinforced block foundation that allows high durability and due to better-built strength make these tires last up to 65,000 miles which are higher compared to its counterpart.

The higher contact between the tread and the surface leads to higher rolling resistance causing the greater force to be utilized keeping the tire in motion.

Excessive treadwear is caused due to higher rolling resistance which directly impacts the mileage of the tires.

The tire is made up of polyamide reinforcements plies but that’s not sufficient to effectively reduce its treadwear hence allowing lower mileage potential compared to its competitors.

Price Differences

The Ridge Grappler has better off-roading characteristics and comparatively more mileage due to better-built strength which is available in a lower price range compared to Grabber ATX, which is a little higher priced due to its better ice traction, Three peak mountain snowflake (3PMSF) rating, and remarkable on-road performance.

Consumers should buy these tires based on their needs and the application of tires.

Quick Summary

• Both the tires are All-Terrain (A/T)
• Ridge Grappler performs better off-road while ATX performs better on-road.
• Mud, rock, and soft snow traction of Ridge Grappler is better while ATX performs better on icy roads.
• ATX is more comfortable on-road while Ridge Grappler allows a much smoother journey through off-road terrains.
• Treadwear resistance and durability of Ridge Grappler is higher allowing greater mileage.
• There is a little difference between the prices of both, where ATX is higher priced.