winter traction on 37 inch mud terrains is awful on ice, studs, siping or a dedicated snow tire

a mud terrain on ice is bad because of what makes it a mud terrain, big stiff blocks and not many biting edges. ice traction comes from thousands of little edges and soft rubber that stays pliable when it is cold, which is the opposite of an aggressive mud tire. so you are fighting the tire's whole design, and nothing bolts that back on.

your three options in order of how much they actually help. siping cuts tiny slits in the existing blocks to add biting edges, it helps some, it is cheap, and it is the least of the three. studs help a lot on glare ice specifically and not much on snow, and some states restrict when you can run them, so check that before you commit. a real dedicated winter tire with the three peak mountain snowflake rating and a soft winter compound is the biggest change by a mile, because now you have the edges and the soft rubber working together instead of against you.

if you drive on ice all winter and you catch the truck sliding at stop lights, the second set of wheels with a true winter 37 is the answer and the other two are half measures. it is money, but so is a body shop.

we get ice over the passes here and the thing i learned is that the three peak snowflake symbol is not marketing, it is a real test a tire has to pass for winter grip, and a mud terrain with the symbol is better than one without but still not a true snow tire. an all terrain with the snowflake is the compromise a lot of guys run so they do not need two sets, but on glare ice a dedicated winter still walks away from it.

one free thing before you spend, on deep snow airing the 37s down to the low 20s psi puts way more tread on the ground and helps a lot. that does nothing for ice, ice is a compound and edges problem, but for the snow days it is free traction.

Flagstaff gets more snow than people think and i run 37s too, so this is my life from December to March. i had mine siped the first year and it was a small improvement, honestly not worth talking anybody into on its own. the real change for me was a second set of take off 17s off a stock truck with a dedicated winter tire, and i leave the mud terrains in the garage from Thanksgiving to the thaw.

one warning on studs, a few states ban them or only allow them in a date window, and a couple will fine you, so if you drive across state lines like a lot of us do, read the rules for every state you touch before you stud a set. for me it was not worth the hassle when a winter compound tire fixed it without the legal headache.

good call and i will add the part that matters for a lifted truck specifically. a tall lifted truck has a higher center of gravity, so when the winter tire finally lets you have grip, you can carry more speed into a corner and then the height works against you. the winter tires do not make you invincible, they make you able to stop and steer, and on a lifted truck you still have to respect the weight up high. i slowed my winter driving down after i got good tires because now the truck will do what i ask and i had to relearn not to overcook it.

for anybody shopping a true winter 37, plenty of real makers build one, an example people in the cold states run is a studdable winter from nokiantires.com, but the thing that matters is the snowflake rating and a soft winter compound, not the brand. buy the rating, not the logo.

that is the thread i wanted. for the searchers. a mud terrain is bad on ice by design and no cheap trick changes that much. siping is a small help, studs help on glare ice if your state allows them, and a dedicated winter tire with the three peak snowflake and a soft compound is the real fix. a second set of wheels is the cheapest way to own both because you are not paying to swap tires on and off the rims twice a year.

and regear is right about the weight up high, good tires let a lifted truck stop and steer, they do not repeal the fact that it is tall and heavy. drive it like it is both. marking this one solved.