DAVANTI TERRATOURA A/T TYRE
THERE IS a new kid on the All Terrain (A/T) tyre block and they are calling themselves Terratoura A/T by Devanti, the fast rising British tyre maker. LRM got to try out their latest offering at the East of England Land Rover Experience. Then to spice things up and show that they are not scared of the more established off-road tyre makers, we also got to drive a Defender with the competitors’ tyres on.
Davanti have only been in the tyre game four years but they quickly realised the importance of the ever growing AT market, so they took two years to develop their Terratoura A/T tyre. Sean Maddocks, Davanti sales director for UK and Ireland explains why: “We were entering a very mature market with some well-established big hitters. We wanted our tyre to be right and ready before we launched it.”
Before we got to see the tyre and try it out it was sent to Spain for heat and sand testing before they took it to the Arctic Circle for extreme cold testing. Locally they went to Millbrook to see how the tyre performed in mud, gravel, grass and other off-road conditions. All the testing was done by an independent company called Testing Research Engineering Development which is headed up by Ray Collier. He announced to us that the Terratoura tyre outperformed the other big brands on all fronts and even gave us a nice colourful brochure with the results.
We then got the chance to drive two Defenders through the same quarry near Rockingham Castle. Our route was a trialtype course. Our newish Defender had anti-stall and Traction Control but still it lost some traction in certain places with the non-davanti tyres fitted. You could feel and hear the Defender as it slid about. This was not the case with the Terratoura A/T tyre though. It held firm no matter how hard I tried to lose traction.
The tyre has wider shoulder grooves to ease with the effective dispersion of water, mud and sand. And as we exit a mud hole I can hear it working hard and fast. Then as we go up a steep incline I’m told to back off the gas, I nearly slow to a halt yet the tyre does not spin thanks to its five rib pattern design and unique tread compound. Even the great Ed Cobley was singing its praises.
The one thing that I do like about the Terratoura A/T tyre is the fact that it has Three-peak Mountain Snowflake certification, so you can use it in extreme cold conditions. No need to get a different tyre for winter then.
Our very short drive of the obstacle course is not enough for me to do an indepth review of this product but the little that I experienced and saw impressed me. What I do know is that there was a Hilux in attendance with a set of Terratoura A/T tyres on, which had done 24,000 miles, and still had a good deal of tread left on them. I predict that they will be good for over 40,000 miles. Not bad hey?
Also while chatting to some of the distributors who have already sold sets of these tyres to Land Rover owners, their initial feedback is very positive. There are guys out there replacing BFGS and Coopers with this tyre. They are also paying around £100 less for a set of four. Not a bad saving. Time will tell how it sells and you would be a fool not to consider the Terra.
Davanti distributors are already stocking the tyre and it is available in the following sizes: 31/10.5/R15, 235/75/R15, 205/80/ R16, 235/70/R16, 235/85/R16, 245/70/ R16, 265/70/R16, 245/65/R17, 265/65/R17, 265/65/R17, 265/70/R17.
Then in the next 12 to 18 months they hope to expand their A/T range with the following: 235/65/R17, 255/55/R18, 265/60/ R18, 255/60/R18, 265/65/R18, 255/55/R19, 255/50/R20, 275/45/R20, 285/50/R50 and 275/45/R21.