One of the biggest names in off-road is Brian Deegan. From his motocross days to his time on the short-course, speed and off-road run through his blood. Teaming up with Mickey Thompson Tires and Wheels [1], Deegan helped expand his line of tires with the Deegan 38 all-terrain.
A tire in the dirt is the one thing that allows the vehicle to maintain traction and countless hours of fun. Finding the tire to suit your needs on and off-road is the important part.
As with any tire, looks aren’t everything. The tire also has to prove itself in the dirt, too. But before hitting the outdoors, we reached out to Mickey Thompson to find out more about the tire.
Between The Grooves
[2]
Tires nowadays start with a rendering and a concept, but we wanted to find out more about the new Deegan 38 all-terrain. “The Deegan 38 all-terrain appeals to young consumers trying out an all-terrain for the first time, as well as experienced drivers looking for great everyday performance,” Don Sneddon of Mickey Thompson Tires explained. “We decided to create this tire in the Deegan 38 line and promote it heavily to Brian’s base as an alternative to the Deegan mud tire. We added stylized Deegan fonts and sidewall treatment for a crisp “New-Gen” look.”
[3]
Brian Deegan has been involved with Mickey Thompson through the entire tire process. “The launch of the Deegan 38 mud tire a few years ago has been a tremendous success with Deegan fans,” Sneddon said. “To further expand on the line, we asked Brian what he would like to see in a milder all-terrain version of the mud tire.”
“He said if it has his name on it, nothing is going to be ‘mild,’” Sneddon continued. “It’s got to offer extreme performance and handling plus have excellent value for his fans. We listened and added silica to the compound, added a great mileage warranty, premium body cords, and unique styling elements that makes this one of Mickey Thompson’s best-looking tires.”
Off-road performance is important when selecting a tire for a vehicle, but most off-road tires spend less than half of their lives in the dirt. Having a tire that can perform well on and off the highway is just as important.
[4]
[5]
The tires featured an open-void tread design with Mickey Thompson's signature Sidebiter sidewall.
“The Deegan 38 all-terrain features an open-void tread pattern with siping to cover most on and off-road conditions,” Sneddon said. “The extra-tough, two-ply sidewall construction offers more protection, and a silica-reinforced compound improves wet handling and braking performance on-road. Also, while the cut and chip resistance off-road helps extend the treadwear. The buttress area features D-shaped Sidebiters that offer sidewall protection.”
[6]
[7]
The D-shaped Sidebitter sidewall wasn't the most aggressive all-terrain sidewall we had seen, but it was still there.
Of course, everything is better with a warranty, and these tires have one. LT sizes feature a 55,000-mile limited treadwear warranty, and all other sizes feature a 60,000-mile limited treadwear warranty,” Sneddon explained. “Best of all, the Mickey Thompson Deegan 38 tire is made right here in the USA.”
Best of all, the Deegan 38 tire is made right here in the USA! – Don Sneddon, Mickey Thompson
“Though not an official test, Brian was very pleased after taking them out for a beating,” Sneddon continued. “He tried them on his Ford Raptor, the family Jeep, and even threw them on daughter Hailie’s Pro Lite race truck for some laps around the track. We got thumbs up from Brian and the whole Deegan family. Brian won’t recommend anything to his friends until he is sure it’s a great product.”
Tire Testing
[8]
It was time to hit the dirt and see exactly what these tires could do. For our review, we would head to Wildomar OHV Area in Murrieta, California. The area would give us plenty of room to test, as well as plenty of on-road driving time. We put the Deegan 38 all-terrain tires on a 2014 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD.
On the way to the OHV area, we took a fire trail to test how the tires would do on a dirt road. The fire trail was nothing more than a hard compact dirt trail, but it gave us a good sense of how the tire would handle in the easy stuff.
[9]
[10]
A lot of the park was made up of hard-packed dirt, but even with the loose dirt on the surface, there was no issue maintaining traction.
The tires were not as quiet as we would have expected, but we knew that they wouldn’t be. “Because the Deegan 38 All-Terrain is engineered to perform both on and off-road, the user may notice slightly more noise as compared to the passenger and highway-terrain tires,” Sneddon said.
Wildomar OHV Area had plenty trails and a couple different terrains. With the California rain long gone, the trails were rutted and had patches of soft sand. The truck would lose traction a couple times. We had to back up a soft sandy hill, but it was nothing we couldn’t work around.
[11]
[12]
The trails at the park were narrow, especially for a full-size truck. The two times we had to back up a soft sandy hill, the tires barely slipped.
We asked the owner of the truck, Sean Cook, what he thought of the tires. He has certainly spent even more time with them than we have, so his opinion counts. “They have really good grip off-road better than I thought they would have,” Cook said. “On road, they’re a great tire performed better than I expected.”
Overall, the tire performed well in the different conditions we tested them in. We did not get into any deep sand or mud, but they performed well as a weekend warrior tire.
Final Thoughts
[13]
The tires performed as advertised, but we felt they would work best for someone looking for a more aggressive tire than their factory set. The Deegan 38 all-terrain is great for a vehicle that is going to see more time on the pavement than on the dirt.
In our application on a heavier truck, they had no issue maintaining traction in the dirt while providing us a comfortable ride on the pavement. This would be a great tire for a tow rig that pulls trailers, but sees off-road sections as well.
[14]
We gave the Deegan 38 all-terrain a two out of five on its appearance because we have seen some all-terrain tires with a more aggressive sidewall and tread pattern. With three out of five for its capability, the tire should make for a great weekend warrior tire.
The tire received a two out of five for road noise as it had little road noise, but more than other all-terrains. With two out of five for its off-road performance, the tire will perform in average conditions; without any extreme testing, we are unable to rate the tire any higher.
For more information on Mickey Thompson and its products be sure to check out its website. If you have any recommendations on tire sizes, let Mickey Thompson know, as its always looking to expand its lineup.
[15]