TESTED: BRIDGESTONE DUELLER 697 A/T
GT STICKS A SET OF BRIDGESTONE DUELLERS BENEATH HIS TOURING TOYOTA.
FOR SEVEN years and 200,000km my 2005 Toyota Hilux V6 has been my daily driver, tow-rig and adventure truck. It’s taken me to Moreton Island, down the Darling, across The Simpson, around the High Country a few times, and it’s towed a race car to all corners of Australia.
I place a fair chunk of importance on tyres, and an all-terrain (A/T) tyre is the best choice for my driving habits. So when editor Matt said there was a set of Bridgestone Dueller A/T 697 tyres at 4X4 HQ, I didn’t need to be asked twice.
The Japanese-made Dueller 697 is the latest in a long line of respected off-road tyres from Bridgestone. Many new fourwheel drives are showroom-shod with Duellers, but these 697s are tougher and more durable – that’s not to knock the showroom Duellers, but to point out that the touring performance expectations of many of us are different.
The Duellers have 9mm tread depth over the tread-wear indicators. Tread depth isn’t the only indicator of tyre life (a hard-compound tyre with less tread depth may outlive a soft tyre with more depth), but monitoring the change in tread depth – and hence wear – is a good way to extend the ‘life’ of a tyre.
To get the best life and performance from my tyres, I always rotate them every 5000km – front to rear and side-for-side. Measuring tread depth every 10,000km, down to 50 per cent of the original tread depth, will provide an accurate indication of the 697’s expected life.
I run a 225/75 16LT size. My 2005