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Last updated 7/17/2024 - Originally published 7/17/2024
Written by SimpleTire
With their roots in Japan, Falken and Toyo have been rolling out high-quality tires that deliver excellent value, performance, grip, durability, and longevity. Be it all-season, all-terrain, UHP, mud-terrain, or winter tires, you will surely find a tire in the list from these manufacturers. Both offer tires for compact cars, sedans, coupes, minivans, CUVs, SUVs, and light trucks. While their all-terrain tires have an immense following in North America, their highway tires do a great job of offering year-round performance. Let’s compare their Wildpeak H/T02 and Open Country H/T II to know which is a better option to choose.
Designed for Jeeps, SUVs, and light trucks, the Falken Wildpeak H/T02 and the Toyo Open Country H/T II are two popular tires that offer great grip, stability, control, traction, and durability on paved roads under heavy loads. The sturdy tires are offered with limited manufacturer tread life warranties for optimum value. So, which one is the tire to go for? Let us compare Falken Wildpeak H/T02 vs. Toyo Open Country A/T III tires based on our proprietary SimpleScore to know the answer.
Falken Wildpeak H/T02 tires
Introduced in 2018, the Falken Wildpeak H/T02 is a highway-terrain tire designed for light trucks. With rugged aesthetics, the Wildpeak H/T02 features a reinforced carcass and high-strength construction for bearing high torque, towing, and hauling applications. The advanced 4D Nano Design and 3D Canyon Sipe Technology allow the Falken to better handle dry, wet, and light snow braking and acceleration. All LT-metric sizes of the Wildpeak H/T02 are marked ‘HD’ affirming their heavy-duty construction. While rugged all-season durability makes it a king-of-construction work site, the silica-enriched rubber compound improves wet and wear performance. Three variable pitches of the optimized tread pattern ensure minimal sound, so you enjoy a quiet and comfortable ride quality. It is backed by an up to 50,000 mile limited manufacturer tread life warranty.
Boasting an overall SimpleScore of 8.5, the Wildpeak H/T02 offers enhanced durability, grip, traction, and year-round performance with responsive handling.
Toyo Open Country H/T II tires
Introduced in 2019, the Toyo Open Country H/T II features an appealing tread design with a dual sidewall design and outlined white/black sidewall lettering. Engineered for SUVs and pickup trucks, the wear-resistant rubber compound resists cuts, chips, snags, and tears for enhanced durability and a longer service life. While multi-wave sipes provide extra biting edges for enhanced grip, traction, and handling, the adaptive circumferential grooves and broad shoulder grooves clear water from the tread for enhanced wet and snow grip and avoid the risk of hydroplaning. The reinforced carcass and sturdy sidewall design boost its load-carrying and hauling capacity. It is backed by an up to 70,000 mile limited manufacturer tread life warranty.
With an 8.6 overall SimpleScore, the Toyo tire assures decent grip, traction, stability, load-carrying capacity, and all-around performance.
Falken Wildpeak H/T02 vs Toyo Open Country H/T II tires on traction
Traction refers to the grip of your tire on the surface. It becomes more important when buying tires for SUVs or pickup trucks.
Boasting an 8.3 traction score, the Falken Wildpeak H/T02 features four wide circumferential grooves that boost wet braking as it resists hydroplaning by removing water quickly from the tread. While the silica-enriched rubbed compound improves wet performance, the advanced 4D Nano design and 3D Canyon Sipe Technology promote strong grip and traction in dry, wet, and light snow.
Contrarily, the Toyo Open Country H/T II scores 8.4 in traction thanks to the adaptive circumferential grooves and expanding shoulder grooves that help maintain enhanced wet traction throughout the tire’s life. Also, the four wide circumferential grooves and multi-wave sipes provide extra biting edges to boost traction in different weather conditions.
With a slightly better score, the Toyo wins the traction battle.
ADVANTAGE: Toyo Open Country H/T II
Falken Wildpeak H/T02 vs Toyo Open Country H/T II tires on handling
Handling is directly related to the control and stability of a vehicle. So, a tire with a superior steering response will keep you in total control of your car.
The Falken Wildpeak H/T02 scores a modest 8.3 in handling too. Thanks to the rigid tread blocks with connecting bridges that maintain tread pattern rigidity in the contact patch, it delivers improved stability and handling for hauling and towing. The 3D Canyon Sipe Technology also boosts handling in wet and snowy conditions.
Scoring 8.5 in handling, the Open Country H/T II features a solid shoulder pattern that boosts control, steering response, and stability in different weather conditions. Lastly, multiple sipes within the tread aid in boosting handling on paved roads.
Although marginal, the Toyo Open Country H/T II pips the Falken Wildpeak H/T02 in the handling section.
ADVANTAGE: Toyo Open Country H/T II
Falken Wildpeak H/T02 vs Toyo Open Country H/T II tires on longevity
For a heavy-duty pickup truck or SUV, longevity is a crucial aspect, as it defines the strength of a tire to munch miles and survive changing temperatures.
The Falken Wildpeak H/T02 has a great longevity score of 9.1. It has 3D Canyon Sipe Technology that interlocks the shoulders for best wear under increased torque, and the silica-rich compound makes it very wear-resistant. It has a limited manufacturer tread life warranty that ranges from 50,000 to 75,000 miles and an HD badge for heavy-duty construction.
Leveling longevity scores with the Falken at 9.1, the Toyo Open Country H/T II has a wear-resistant tread compound for increased durability and tread life. Backed by a 50,000 to 70,000 mile limited manufacturer tread life warranty, the multi-wave sipes reduce irregular wear for a smooth ride.
While both score the same in longevity, the Wildpeak H/T02 offers a longer mileage warranty. Considering the scores, it’s a tie.
ADVANTAGE: Tie
When to use each
Highway tires, also referred to as all-season tires are designed for consistent performance in dry, wet, and light snow. With reinforced construction and sturdy carcass, they offer a longer service life and high durability for towing and hauling. The Falken Wildpeak H/T02 and the Toyo Open Country H/T II are capable highway-terrain tires that deliver great year-round performance. While they are the best for highway rounds, you can go for all-terrain tires if you travel more frequently on challenging terrains.
Those who want to transport heavy loads must select the Falken Wildpeak H/T02 for its HD construction. On the other hand, the Toyo tire has a slightly higher tread depth, leading to slightly better scores in handling and traction.
Which one should you choose?
To conclude, the Falken Wildpeak H/T02 and the Toyo Open Country H/T II are neck-and-neck in performance. However, based on their SimpleScores, the Toyo scores marginally higher in traction and handling than the Falken, while the scores are leveled in longevity. Let’s compare their prices to see which makes more sense for your SUV or light truck.
For the LT265/70R17 121/118S E size, the Falken costs $211 per tire, while four tires cost $844. Similarly, the Toyo costs $229 per tire, while four tires are priced at $916. The difference between them on four tires is $72.
Based on SimpleScore, you should consider the Falken Wildpeak H/T02 if you:
- Drive vehicles like the GMC Sierra 1500, Chevrolet Silverado 1500, and Nissan Titan XD.
- Want the more affordable tire option
- Prefer tires with a longer mileage warranty
You should go for the Toyo Open Country H/T II if you:
- Drive vehicles like the Ram 3500, Ford Escape, Toyota Tundra, and Mazda CX-5
- Want better traction
- Need enhanced control and handling
Still not sure which tire to buy? Fortunately, SimpleTire is here to help, and our helpful agents will be more than happy to assist you in selecting the right tire for your ride and budget.