Hello,
My first post, so thanks for having me!

I have the FL2 2015 TD4, have been doing some off-roading in Victoria Australia and am planning to drive it from the bottom to the top of Aus in August. I need to replace the original Conti's and have boiled it down to these two AT choices. I will predominantly drive/commute bitumen, but will regularly drive off-road as my family and I are avid campers. The south to North trip will be in mixed conditions (bitumen, first, mud, sand)
Can anyone tell me of their experience of the AT2- they appear to be a much more aggressive AT, are they easy to live with day to day?
Cheers for any input,
Fraser

Hi Fraser,
I would recommend you go for the less aggressive AT as the conditions in Australia are more likely to be soft sand and aggressive patterns just dig you in.
In fact unless you are planning on doing a "tuff mudda" expedition or encountering slippery wet grassy slopes then the std Conti's will be fine, just lower the PSI when soft sand driving and that's only in extremely soft sand situations. In a lot of situations the std road tyre is best for sand as you want a tyre to float over the surface, combine this with an elongated tyre footprint by lower Psi to about 12-15psi and its all you will need.
You'll get further by understanding how the Terrain Response System works rather than spending lots of money on new rubber. Better investment would be a compressor to allow you to pump tyres up once you have returned to normal road conditions.
There is also a member on here from Sydney who has done extensive touring of outback AU in his Fl2 and runs std road tyres, Conti's also.
In Australia we get a full size road tyre as a spare std, so if you really want to spend money then a 2nd spare and a good roof tray to carry this would be better money spent as your more likely to get multiple punctures in AU. MY15
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Last edited by Stuartc on 16th May 2017 4:42 am. Edited 3 times in total

We recently changed the Gg At's on my wife's Fl2 due to horrendous noise on tarmac , if you really want an AT tyre I'd try the Pirelli Scorpion Atr's which I have fitted to mine , they are in a different league to the Gg At's .

Mark 2009 FL2 TD4 SE (Sadly gone)
2007 FL2 TD4 GS (The wifes , gone after 8 great years)
2012 FL2 SD4 SPORT LE(Gone and missing it)
2015 DISCOVERY SPORT 2.2SD4 HSE (Now gone)
2014 Ford Bmax 1.0 ecoboost ( Gone but what next )
2014 Ford Focus 2.0tdci Zetec S (Gone,but what a car)
2020 Ford Fiesta ActiveX 1.0 Ecoboost
2024 Skoda Kodiaq 1.5 Tsi SEL

We had a few hundred km of dirt road with rain from Mutawintji NP to White Cliffs, (see red roads & photo of mud in wheel arch) https://www.freel2.com/forum/topic27606.html it was like driving on wet soap.

We only had the Conti cross contact on the car, slid off the road a handful of times. Even from standstill on the road the car slid down the camber, only once we hit the scrub we got grip to get back on the road.

We saw plenty of other tyre tracks suddenly going off the road & back on 20 metres further on which had much better tread than us!

If you have had some rain, just ask the petrol station or local shop if roads are closed. Also during the week the local Council office, staff are very helpful. Also ask if the Council have their own camping area.

Get a sixth wheel, every second car out there has an additional spare (insurance/peace of mind!)
And a tyre repair kit.
Top quality compressor.
Tow rope so someone can pull you out.

Stuartc wrote:

In Australia we get a full size road tyre as a spare std, so if you really want to spend money then a 2nd spare and a good roof tray to carry this would be better money spent as your more likely to get multiple punctures in AU.

As Stuartc said. Get a second spare.

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The most useful tool is a brush to dust off the back before you open. Also a small Raven 225mm squeegee to clean the windscreen. Do this first thing in the morning every day with the free water (condensation) which has soaked the bugs. The best 1 minute spent every day.

Click image to enlarge

Also useful are sun shields for all windows.

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 Procrastination, mankind's greatest labour saving device!

Acoustic insulation ARB TPMS 3xARB air compressors After cooler Air tank On-board OCD pressure air/water cleaning Additional 50L fuel Carpet in doors ABE 2x1kg Waeco 28L modified fridge Battery 4x26ah Solar 120w Victron MPPT 100/20 DC-DC 18amps 175amp jumper plug Awning 6x255/60R18

There is a new tyre now available called the AT3, the AT2 is obsolete, over here, the 3 looks like the original AT pattern.

I have just fitted AT3's to my wife's Freelander, I have the same tyre on my L322 Range Rove SC, I have found them to be quiet on tarmac, and pleased with my choice, I was looking for a little more bite rather than the std range of tyres. Hopefully won't get stuck!!

Thanks everyone, some awesome tips. I have found that the standard Conti's are really good off road as well. Have had them in some moderate conditions off road here in the High Country, lower pressure worked well. They are in need of a change over so I figure the extra strength of the side walls of the AT could be of benefit (cuts/punctures etc). I particularly agree with the advice re the 2nd spare- I would guess it will be hard to replace an 18 inch tyre in the outback. An Aussies out there who can advise?