Review of
the Parnelli Jone Dirt Grip All-Terrain Tire
Balance is a good word for this tire. This tire
has what you might call a good balance of off-road
capabilities and on road effectiveness making it a true
"All Terrain" Tire. Named after Parnelli Jones who
raced Baja 30 years ago, the Dirt Grip use tread and
sidewall compounds that have special cooler-running
properties, which are of great benefit when run at lower
tire pressures. The tread design is different,
almost humorous with a bunch of PJ initials in the 2
center rows of lugs. The outer lugs use three
different lug patterns providing an alternating attack
from the edges. All of the lugs have a multitude of sipes
on the tread that will increase traction in all types of
terrain from rocks, to sand to snow to mud and on the
street. Those who use the Parnelli Jone Dirt Grip
say they work very well when aired down to the single
digits and grip very well on the rocks, wet rocks, steep
terrain - like glue, while the sidewalls flexes quite
conformably over the rocks, boulders and varying terrain.
In models using the 16 and 16.5 inch rims the Parnelli
Jone Dirt Grip uses a 10-ply rating on the sidewalls
creating a very tough barrier to sidewall punctures.
In sand these tires are great performers. With a
more milder aggressiveness to its tread design, the Dirt
Grips run sand in good form and propel and float rather
than dig. Lateral traction is high providing good
lateral stability. This is especially true of the
wider tread versions like the 14.4 section width.
In the mud the Dirt Grips rip through soupy mud better
than most All Terrain Tires. Mild tire spin and the
lug voids self-clean efficiently, aided in part by the
stepped lug design.
In the snow, wet or powder, the PJ Dirt Grips excel
finding traction as then dig and fling through the snow.
For street time, these radial tires are factory
balanced and checked for roundness before shipping. The
company says the average tire only takes around 5 ounces
to balance, which unfortunately is not the norm for great
performing offroad tires. Road noise is minimal,
better than average for an All Terrain.
Four wheeler magazine in a January 2002 did a comparison of
six off-road tires including the Pro Comp Xterrain, the
Goodyear Wrangler MT/R, the MT Radial Baja Claw, the BFG
Mud-Terrain T/A KM, and the Interco 37 inch Bogger and the PJ
dirt grips were rated very good in mud, rocks, street,
with an "excellent" in sand making it the highest over all
rating of the six tested in sand.
Sizes range from 31X10.50R15/C to 38X15.50R17/E.
See their vendors for size availability and additional
ratings.
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Manufacturers
description of this tire:
Designed with the look
that the off-road enthusiast wants. Dirt Grip's
distinctive tread and beefy lug design provide excellent
traction in all conditions while maintaining a smooth
quiet ride.
The tires were tested by Petersen's Four Wheel and
Off Road Magazine (May 2001 issue). They were
rated outstanding in all conditions. They proved a good
self-cleaning ability in mud, floated in the sand dunes,
gripped the rocks and boulders, and gripped in the snow
due to the aggressive shoulder blocks, deep siping, and
wide open voids.
The tire also performs very smoothly and quietly on the
highway for this type of tire due to the PJ tread design
which is similar to a rib highway tire.
Four Wheeler (January 2002 issue) also tested
the tires and rated them (on a scale of 1-5) 4 stars in
the mud, 4 stars in rocks, 5 stars in sand, and 4 stars in
the street.
For more reviews of Dirt Grip Tires see Bronco
Driver Magazine March 2004, 4 Wheel Drive and Sport
Utility Magazine January 2004, and JP Magazine
January 2004.
Manufacturer
Info:
Dirt
Gripz Inc.
330-873-9582
dirtgriptires.com
National Tire & Wheel
800-847-3287
www.natltire.com |
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User Reviews
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Below are reviews
submitted by people who have had experience with this tire.
Opinions below are not necessarily that of
Offroaders.com. If you'd like to submit a review
of your own, please use the form below to review this
tire. Please restrict your comments to only tires
you have had experience with.
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Mike |
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| Terrain where used: |
Mud,
Rocks, Wooded Trails, Sand, Snow |
| Street |
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| Sand |
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| Rock |
N/A |
| Mud |
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| Snow |
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| Wooded Trail |
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| Overall
Rating |
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| Comments: |
Tried them,
Love them in the snow. I
have tried BFG's for years
and Boggers, these Dirt
Grips are the only tire I
have seen bite the snow so
hard they pull the motor
down and I have to throttle
it to keep it going. The
other tires I have used just
spin when buried. These just
keep on biting. Don't know
how they will do on the
rocks but if they are
anything like the
performance in the snow then
I am a happy camper.
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Rob M. |
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| Terrain where used: |
Mud,
Rocks, Wooded Trails, Snow |
| Street |
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| Sand |
N/A |
| Rock |
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| Mud |
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| Snow |
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| Wooded Trail |
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| Overall
Rating |
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| Comments: |
The Parnelli Jones tires are the best I have had. I
have had them on rocks, 12" of snow, slick mud and nothing
has stopped them. Plus they are quiet on the road but I
have only put about 2000 miles on them. I highly
recommend them.
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Dan |
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| Terrain where used: |
Mud,
Rocks, Wooded Trails, Snow |
| Street |
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| Sand |
N/A |
| Rock |
N/A |
| Mud |
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| Snow |
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| Wooded Trail |
N/A |
| Overall
Rating |
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| Comments: |
| I am
running the Parnelli Jones Dirt Grip Radials load
rating "E" (10Ply) and love them, they look and handle
great, and aren't loud either, but pricey. They got good
review in the Jan issue of Four Wheeler as well. |
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Read More Reviews and
Post Your Own Review of this Tire |
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| Rating Key
- The star rating keys
are specific to the terrain being rated
in the review. To
the Top |
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Don't
even consider it if this is your
main terrain. This tire will not
perform well at all in this
terrain. |
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Its trying but not
doing too well. You'd be
better off choosing another for
this terrain.
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Average. Its
doing ok, not great but its
holding its own. A decent
choice if you're compromising.
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This tire does very
well in this terrain but its not
the best tire available however
still a very good
choice.
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This tire performs
exceptionally well in this
terrain. Among the best
suited for this terrain.
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Size Availability
- This is a one to three
thumbs up snapshot rating where one mean
poor selection, two means ok and
three means great. Check
with suppliers or manufacturers for actual
available sizes. While this
rating system is vague, we
couldn't possibly list all
available sizes with size selection
changing over time. Please
see manufacturer for list of sizes
in production.
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Money Bags - This
is an average cost scale based on
an averaged advertised cost of
this tire when compared to other
tires. One money bag
represents the tire is typically
one of the cheapest available
while 5 money bags indicates that
this tire is one of the most
expensive. Averages are
based on the tires reviewed.
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