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Maxxis Bravo AT 771 Review

Watch the 3-year ownership review on Youtube!


I've owned a set of Maxxis' Bravo AT771 tyres for 3 years now, so I thought I'd share my thoughts on them.

Firstly, I didn't buy these tyres after doing any research on them. Truth be told, I'd never even heard of Maxxis before buying these! But with the stipulation that I wanted a set of All Terrain tyres for my Forester in 215/65R16, and that I didn't want to pay over $1500 for them. I ended up paying $1000 fitted and balanced.

I took a punt on the 'Mackies' as I've started to call them, and I've got to be honest, I've been pretty happy with them.

Sure, they don't look as cool as other All Terrain models out there, but they've worn well and haven't given me any headaches in the 3 years I've had them.

The Good Stuff
The AT771s have proven to be a really good match for the Subaru in the sand, which is primarily where they've been used apart from highway touring style driving. 
I never got stuck because of the tyres, even when I was running them at a silly 38psi in the sand, and air'd down they are absolute monsters.
At times I've been a little worried about the sidewalls, as I've picked up a few scratches here and there, but they've proven to be resilient driving over shells, rocks, and driftwood on the beach.

On the road and they are pretty quiet by All Terrain standards in a 21 year old car. 

Grip is good, not exceptional, but you can drive pretty hard in the dry knowing they're not going to let go on you, and wear has been very good. New Zealand's roads are known to be terrible on tyre life with our coarse chip seal, so getting 45,000km out of the AT771s is more than I actually expected I'd get out of them.

The Bad
In the wet, they are average. Don't get me wrong, they're not terrible by any means, but I have spun the wheels on multiple occasions and had the car understeer into a skid on me on corners I have no issues with in the dry. Just something to watch out for.

The Okay
As an all Terrain tyre, they aren't the greatest in mud with limited self clearing attributes. But they've done me proud and I've only gotten stuck due to losing ground clearance and bellying out.
They've also done okay in the snow, but like in the wet you need to watch them for losing traction at times and drive to the conditions.

Overall
So would I use the Maxxis AT771s again? Probably.
I have liked them and haven't had any complaints at all, but I'd be interested in seeing if I can find an all terrain with a more aggressive tread pattern and better wet weather grip. Probably two mutually exclusive traits, but hey, some tyre manufacturers do some amazing stuff these days.

Maxxis Bravo AT 771 Quick Facts
Tyre Size:              215/65 R16
Tyre Price:             $1000, set of 4, fitted
Tyre life:                45000km and still counting
Tread depth left:    3mm

Pros
Great in the sand, pretty quiet on the road, good dry weather grip, pretty long life

Cons
Okay in the mud, not great wet weather grip (especially on boost)

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