TheSamba.com :: View topic - Looking for Actual Experience: Tires on the Dempster Highway

Thu Oct 02, 2025 6:48 am

Tuktoyaktuk is calling, and we must go.

I would like to hear from people who drove the Dempster and what they learned about tires. Everyone says carry 2 spares, but I would rather prevent flats.

For those who did the trip:

What worked and what failed (if anything)? I'm interested in tires, brands, models and sizes, ply ratings, tire pressures, tire age, etc. If you had a failure, how did it fail and was it repairable with a kit, or was it destroyed?

Please limit responses to "those that have been there." I have plenty of experience, driving just about everything just about everywhere (including a few places I shouldn't have gone. The Dempster is unique. Thanks.

Thu Oct 02, 2025 9:24 am

Haven't driven Dempster but have driven in a group (5 vehicles) the well prepared gravel hwy to Southend on Reindeer lake in Canada three times on which semis use armoured tires due to the sharp rock/slate road bed.

Have had a few flats in the group. A friend's could not be repaired but I'm not sure that was more to do with the tire's condition as it was older. All the others could be repaired.

All were in SUVs or light trucks (sorry, didn't own Vanagon then) with all seasons tires. I strongly suspect 'offroad' style tires with heavy treads would have fewer flats but no experience with them. It's what locals up there tend to use though.

Our first trip as rookies we had the most problems, learned from locals to let about 4-6 psi out of the tires and our rate of problems dropped.

All flats happened travelling faster than 60-80 kp (35-50 mph roughly) but travelling slowly really adds hours onto trips on those long northern roads. We settled on 80-90 kph (about 55 mph) as the best speed compromise between too slow and more problems.

Thu Oct 02, 2025 9:48 am

We went as far as Tombstone in August, which was only about 100km up the Dempster. We took it fairly slow but I think that section of the road is the best maintained section. One of the biggest reasons we didn’t go farther was that I was worried about my tires. I think a good set of All Terrains with one good spare would suffice, but two spares would give more piece of mind. There’s not a lot of services up there and any vehicle problems you’d be on your own.

Thu Oct 02, 2025 10:03 am

In general, I cannot recommend D-rated BFG KO2s enough.

Their extra two belts must have helped… but in over 11 years and about 130,000 miles of constant, full-time travel use, and over a thousand miles a year on roads notorious for flats, we’ve yet to have a single flat that didn’t involve a nail or screw on the road.

Thu Oct 02, 2025 10:24 am

specify the size rims you will be using because if you are going up with stock 14" rims, you'll have a very narrow tire selection and endless discussion of makes that aren't available in 14" is moot.

Thu Oct 02, 2025 11:13 am

Thought about the same thing… then realized there may be hundreds of other readers beyond just the one.

Thu Oct 02, 2025 11:59 am

I drove the Dempster in August 2016. I have a syncro Vanagon and I carried just 1 spare. We drove slowly and carefully and had no flat. The only problem we encountered was the ferry crossing at the Mackenzie River had washed out. So we had to detour though Dawson City to Chicken, Alaska and continue north on the Dalton Highway to the Arctic Circle.
I believe the Mackenzie river crossing may be closed now until the river freezes over solidly, but you might check that before leaving.
Good luck and have a great adventure!

Thu Oct 02, 2025 12:21 pm

Thanks for the thoughts!

Some additional info:
1) We aren't going north until summer. I see that it is snowing on the northern Desmpster already.
2) Current setup is 2WD, 15" rims with Nokian Hakkapelitta 215/65R15C 104/102R weight range with about 10,000 miles on them
3) We carry one newer 14" spare (fits in the stock carrier), an ARB tire repair kit, a ViAir compressor, and a big bicycle tire hand pump (actually faster and more reliable than the compressor).
4) Yes, we carry other supplies, parts, communications, etc , but I really want to keep the discussion focused on tires. Thanks!

Thu Oct 02, 2025 12:31 pm

Martin--In regard to running 4-6 psi lower than normal, what were your tire pressures? I usually run 42 front and 48 rear most of the time, except for sand, mud, or snow. You probably ran a bit lower than that?

Thu Oct 02, 2025 12:52 pm

kenoravsky wrote: Martin--In regard to running 4-6 psi lower than normal, what were your tire pressures? I usually run 42 front and 48 rear most of the time, except for sand, mud, or snow. You probably ran a bit lower than that?

At the time we were all in smaller SUVs and light trucks. I know my tires ran 32 psi at the time and I dropped them to 27-28. Everyone was in the same range.

I run 42/48 on my van also and, if I was heading up there, I would drop to 36/42 once on the gravel mostly because I worry those are still pretty high pressures making for a fairly 'stiff' tire. Maybe a little lower if the van behaved. Would help to have a compressor along.

Thu Oct 02, 2025 1:55 pm

kenoravsky wrote: Thanks for the thoughts!

Some additional info:
1) We aren't going north until summer. I see that it is snowing on the northern Desmpster already.
2) Current setup is 2WD, 15" rims with Nokian Hakkapelitta 215/65R15C 104/102R weight range with about 10,000 miles on them
3) We carry one newer 14" spare (fits in the stock carrier), an ARB tire repair kit, a ViAir compressor, and a big bicycle tire hand pump (actually faster and more reliable than the compressor).
4) Yes, we carry other supplies, parts, communications, etc , but I really want to keep the discussion focused on tires. Thanks!

We got away with a stock spare that didn’t match the other 4 for years till we didn’t. I have no experience with the road, but at a minimum your spare must match your other 4 if you intend to continue on with a spare at speed.

I have since gone back to stock on all 4 corners. I now have a spare I can rotate in to extend wear of the set. I also carry a portable compressor. We got caught out somewhere in the middle of the US on our way home. Air fills were rare and eventually the tire failed. The gods were on our side that day because it happened in front of a family owned tire business. The correct tire was days away, but they had a used tire and we were on our way.

Carry a portable compressor and get a matching spare. It sounds remote enough that a second spare makes sense.

Edit: I should add, I was attempting to get one more road trip out of my tires and didn’t. So it’s all on me.

Thu Oct 02, 2025 2:04 pm

MarkWard wrote: kenoravsky wrote: Thanks for the thoughts!

Some additional info:
1) We aren't going north until summer. I see that it is snowing on the northern Desmpster already.
2) Current setup is 2WD, 15" rims with Nokian Hakkapelitta 215/65R15C 104/102R weight range with about 10,000 miles on them
3) We carry one newer 14" spare (fits in the stock carrier), an ARB tire repair kit, a ViAir compressor, and a big bicycle tire hand pump (actually faster and more reliable than the compressor).
4) Yes, we carry other supplies, parts, communications, etc , but I really want to keep the discussion focused on tires. Thanks!

We got away with a stock spare that didn’t match the other 4 for years till we didn’t. I have no experience with the road, but at a minimum your spare must match your other 4 if you intend to continue on with a spare at speed.

I have since gone back to stock on all 4 corners. I now have a spare I can rotate in to extend wear of the set. I also carry a portable compressor. We got caught out somewhere in the middle of the US on our way home. Air fills were rare and eventually the tire failed. The gods were on our side that day because it happened in front of a family owned tire business. The correct tire was days away, but they had a used tire and we were on our way.

Carry a portable compressor and get a matching spare. It sounds remote enough that a second spare makes sense.

Edit: I should add, I was attempting to get one more road trip out of my tires and didn’t. So it’s all on me.

There are some solutions from various vendors to carrying an oversized spare should you need. Here’s one example. I believe there is a bit that also uses the same clamshell but allows a 15 to fit

https://smallcar.com/oversized-spare-tire-carrier/

Thu Oct 02, 2025 3:20 pm

E1: Funny: I just now realized that your reference to BFG KO2s meant BF Goodrich All-Terrain A/Ts! I have run these on my Toyota trucks for years, and the extra sidewall belts were the main reason. I never thought of putting them on the Vanagon. Is noise an issue on pavement? Also, is there a noticeable fuel economy cost?

Thu Oct 02, 2025 3:30 pm

Haha, sorry to not be clearer!

They’re a little noisy, but so is a Vanagon in general. Non-issue, don’t even notice it. They’ll indeed audibly let you know if there’s a balance or alignment issue, so maybe the extra noise is good.

With the D rating, they can take 65 lbs. of air. On pavement we run close to that, and would guess that extra air saves whatever gas that might be lost by deep lugs. The extra two belts add even more stiffness to the extra air, and they’re sure safer if indeed you get a flat — which is significantly less likely with their construction.

We had a cracked alloy two years ago, and the air loss was barely noticeable when looking at the tires — though the tire had 9 lbs. (!)

Tell you one thing, after living with such a better handling over 11 years now, I will never ever try anything else. The C-rated versions are fine overall I guess, and softer on dirt — but handle like your tires are going flat by comparison.

Over 12 years I’ve yet to see a single poster here trying the Ds. At some point I’ll stop talking about it, because old habits die hard and many people simply don’t listen. Driving is believing.

Thu Oct 02, 2025 4:01 pm

Been there done that summer of 2024. Our 1989 syncro rides on BF Goodrich All Terrain T/A LT 225-70-16 load range C shoes. We carry a single spare. They were fairly new when we drove up there. No flats & as I remember we aired down from 40 to about 30 lbs.

All in all I think the danger of flats up there is overrated. A much more common problem is the dust, assuming you have dry weather on your voyage (and if it's raining be very careful driving). We saw Sprinter and Dodge vans as well as trailers sweeping out their interiors and shaking bedding with CLOUDS of dust rising from them. Many people resort to sealing their doors with blue painters' tape in an attempt to keep the dust out. I'm proud to report the Westy had only a bit of dirt in the back where the hatch seal has a 1/2" gap.

Thu Oct 02, 2025 5:00 pm

kenoravsky wrote: Thanks for the thoughts!

Some additional info:
1) We aren't going north until summer. I see that it is snowing on the northern Desmpster already.
2) Current setup is 2WD, 15" rims with Nokian Hakkapelitta 215/65R15C 104/102R weight range with about 10,000 miles on them
3) We carry one newer 14" spare (fits in the stock carrier), an ARB tire repair kit, a ViAir compressor, and a big bicycle tire hand pump (actually faster and more reliable than the compressor).
4) Yes, we carry other supplies, parts, communications, etc , but I really want to keep the discussion focused on tires. Thanks!

I really like Nokians and have run them for many years. However, they did have some real production problems 2 years ago when they abandoned production in Russia. I am not very confident in Nokians manufactured around that time.

Thu Oct 02, 2025 6:04 pm

kenoravsky wrote: Tuktoyaktuk is calling, and we must go.

I would like to hear from people who drove the Dempster and what they learned about tires. Everyone says carry 2 spares, but I would rather prevent flats.

For those who did the trip:

What worked and what failed (if anything)? I'm interested in tires, brands, models and sizes, ply ratings, tire pressures, tire age, etc. If you had a failure, how did it fail and was it repairable with a kit, or was it destroyed?

Please limit responses to "those that have been there." I have plenty of experience, driving just about everything just about everywhere (including a few places I shouldn't have gone. The Dempster is unique. Thanks.

I've driven the Dempster to Inuvik one time (1993) and to the Arctic Circle at least a half dozen times. In '93, we also drove to Yellowknife. From Hay River, NWT, to Yellowknife, the road was very similar to the Dempster (paved now). On the return trip, we headed west near Hay River over and down to the Alaska Highway north of Ft. Nelson (all gravel). We also drove the Cassiar Highway (gravel) in '86 and several times since.

The first 7 trips to Alaska were in an '83 Tin-top Van with el cheapo tires ........I cannot remember the name. OE size for the model though (no flats).

We were back north in 2014 but never drove up the Dempster. However, we did drive the Top of the World Road over to Dawson City on the return trip. We were in the '84 Vanagon with the TDI engine. Both of those trips the Van had Uniroyal Tiger Paw tires, 215/75/15.

I've never had a flat tire on any of my Vanagons and I've had them in some bad places over the years.

Tuk has been on my bucket list since before the road was completed.

Expect to get fish-eyes in your windshield from flying gravel.

We turned back just south of Tombstone Provincial Park July, 1986 because the road got very bad (that was over 39 years ago).

Below at the Arctic Circle in July, 1993 ('83 with 2.0 Air-cool engine). See those cheap tires with white walls ??? :D

Below at the Arctic Circle in July, 2016 ('84 with TDI engine) We had another couple with us and all their stuff .... heavy load. We left the popup camper at Dawson City (I took the photo) Uniroyal Tiger Paws 215/75/15.

Below is that bucket list.

Fri Oct 03, 2025 12:58 am

A friend pulls farm equipment with many small wheels behind a tractor over sharp rock infested fields, having to repair at least one tyre at the end of the day. That was until he started using that green slime stuff, he has never had to repair one since.

Fri Oct 03, 2025 10:08 am

MarkWard wrote: kenoravsky wrote: Thanks for the thoughts!

Some additional info:
1) We aren't going north until summer. I see that it is snowing on the northern Desmpster already.
2) Current setup is 2WD, 15" rims with Nokian Hakkapelitta 215/65R15C 104/102R weight range with about 10,000 miles on them
3) We carry one newer 14" spare (fits in the stock carrier), an ARB tire repair kit, a ViAir compressor, and a big bicycle tire hand pump (actually faster and more reliable than the compressor).
4) Yes, we carry other supplies, parts, communications, etc , but I really want to keep the discussion focused on tires. Thanks!
The gods were on our side that day because it happened in front of a family owned tire business. WHAT LUCK- I, humbly, would never get that lucky... :lol: :lol: :lol:

Fri Oct 03, 2025 11:36 am

Me, neither…

My luck would have us break down across from a VW chop shop with everyone open carrying. :lol: