Bridgestone Dueler D697LT 70,000km Review
First published 7/05/2020
Last updated 30/05/2020
Tested on 2007 Dual Cab Manual Toyota Hilux 3L Turbo Diesel D4D
Tyre Size 31×10.5r15 light truck
Tyre Pressure: Front 45 psi, Rear 50 psi
I travelled 70,000km running Bridgestone D697 light truck tyres on my Toyota Hilux after which they were in need of replacement. This article covers my experience with the tyres. These are the first set of D697 Duelers I’ve used, but I did run Bridgestone D694 previously.
Terrain Travelled
My hilux is a dedicated touring vehicle. It is nearly always heavily loaded and does long highway distances on bitumen and plenty of off road work. The vehicle is almost never used as an unloaded shopping trolley or commuter. So I’d suggest these tyres have had a tougher than average life. Some of the journeys this set of tyres have tackled include:
- Great Central Road and David Carnegie Road
- Mereenie Loop Track and Palm Valley
- Tanami Track
- Bungle Bungles access track
- Parry Creek Road from Wyndham to Kununurra
- Cape Domett, Cambridge Gulf
- Gibb River Road
- Mitchell Falls and Port Warrender
- Kalumburu Road
- Cape Leveque Road
- Perth to Melbourne across the Nullarbor and back
- Tracks and camping spots around Tasmania
- Mundaring Power Line Track
- Lots of beach camping missions around Perth and south west WA
When not on long term touring trips, the hilux is mostly used for beach camping missions in south west WA.
Crossing a washout on the Mundaring powerline track.
A large portion of the distance travelled has been long outback tracks such as Great Central Road, Tanami Track and Gibb River Road. This means these tyres have endured many thousands of kilometers heavily loaded for long term living on rough badly corrugated dirt roads at reduced pressure.
These tyres have traversed thousands of kilometers of corrugated tracks.
Visual Inspection
In general the tread looks a little rough but not too bad given the life the tyres have had.
Front tyre of Bridgstone Dueler D697 after 70,000km. The tread blocks are a little shaggy in places but there’s no big chips, cuts or chunks.
Rear tyre of Bridgstone Dueler D697 after 70,000km
The bulk of the tread area looks ok but there’s some dodgy bits on some parts of the tyres. There’s some raised sort of pimple looking bumps in the tread. I wouldn’t call them eggs, they’re much smaller than typical eggs and there’s too many of them to be caused by isolated impact damage.
Pimple in tyre tread. The cause is unknown. A pimple like this will make noise and heat up.
Then there’s some blistering in the tyre tread. In some spots the blistering has become so bad that the outer tyre has began to separate from the inner cords.
Blistering of tyre tread bridgestone dueler D697
This looks like a cut but I think it’s caused by blistering getting so deep that it reaches the inner cords. I did not identify any cuts during visual inspections after long outback touring missions and offroad expeditions. This damage just appeared after nothing too eventful.
Another view of a deep blister. The cause is unknown.
There’s also areas of the sidewall where the outer layer of rubber is separating from the main carcass.
The white spots around the sidewall is where the outer rubber has come off.
Closeup of the white spots. Are they caused by stones and sticks scratching up the sidewalls when running reduced tyre pressure over long distances? Are they caused by high sidewall temperatures?
What do you think caused the pimples, blistering and sidewall damage? It could be high temperatures. Doing thousands of kilometers on a gravel track at reduced pressure at high load can cause too much heat to accumulate in the tyres. However I am very disciplined at keeping low speeds when tyre pressure is low, and I always touch and smell the tyres whenever I stop. The tyres never got extremely hot as far as I know. Could it simply be the sheer distances travelled at high load and reduced pressure? So much flexing, even at moderate temperatures, could eventually cause fatigue? If you’ve experienced anything like it let me know in the comments.
The tread also began wearing unevenly as the tyres reached the end of their life. Even though I run fairly high tyre pressure on the highway (high enough that my previous set of tyres wore slightly more in the center of the tread), and I regularly rotate the tyres, and I get wheel alignments done regularly, you will see in some images above that the outer edge was badly worn in places.
Maybe there’s no main cause to all these problems. Maybe the tyres were just too old, too worn and done too many outback kilometers at high load. Or maybe I did something wrong. Or maybe they’re just not as robust as some other brands.
Performance
These tyres gripped well on the road and especially in the wet. In wet conditions I can skid during braking and whilst corning more easily with the new set of tyres that replaced the dueler D697s (I’m trying out a different brand tyre now). Off road they’re good too. I never experienced any punctures or flat tyres. Their resistance to staking, cutting and chipping seems excellent. Their off road traction is as good as anything else I’ve tried. I never really used them in serious mud, but suspect they would be about as good as any tyre with a not so aggressive tread pattern.
When new the tyres were quiet. They did start to become noisy as they aged. At first it was just like any typical aged all-terrain noise, but got progressively worse. That’s not surprising given all the uneven bumps and blisters that were developing. In fact they got so noisy that they masked a bearing problem that was brewing in one of the back wheels. That bearing ended up failing quite nicely on the Nullarbor.
Wear
These tyres had done around 70,000km by the time they were replaced. As identified above the tyres started wearing unevenly towards the end of their life. At some places on the edges they were nearly bald, whilst in other areas in the middle they were probably about 1mm above the minimum tread depth indicators. If the tread wear was more even they maybe could have gone another few thousand kilometers. 70,000km isn’t too bad given the conditions these tyres have endured, but I don’t like all the problems that started appearing towards the end of their life.
Conclusion
I’m happy that these tyres grip well and never let me down during remote area travels. I’d give them another crack for sure. I don’t like the problems that appeared towards the end of their life. With that in mind, plus the fact that there’s so many good tyre options available, I’m going to try something else for the replacement set. I’ve decided to go with Nitto Dura Grappler Light Truck Highway Terrain tyres.
Yes Highway Terrain!
I’m not a serious outback traveller if I run highway terrain tyres am I?
I find it funny that people can seriously suggest something like “you need a set of strong mud terrain tyres for any serious outback work” as if the tread pattern says anything about the strength of the tyre construction. In fact I’d suggest that a lower void ratio is superior in nearly every way, even for offroading and outback touring. But that’s a whole new topic I’ll save for another time.
Here’s a look at the tread pattern on the Nitto Dura Grapplers. Photo taken on the access track to Twilight Cove, Nullarbor, WA.
See also:
Bridgestone Dueler D694 48,000km Review
Why No Diesel Performance Chip?
Emission Systems – Worth Tinkering?
Exhaust Pipes: Is Bigger Better?
Sprint Booster – Is It Worth It?
How to Improve Fuel Efficiency
How Often Should I Service My Car?
Diff Locker vs Traction Control
outbackjoe 
could those pimples be where an object has stuck in the tyre and then has prevented wear at that spot, creating a high spot? later falling out, especially on a bumpy ass road. just a thought because the one close up photo looks as if theres a small hole in the center of the bump
Hey Alexis yeah that’s possible. But usually a stone or something would get flung out pretty quick especially once you get on the highway. Wouldn’t usually stay there for enough thousands of km to cause a couple of mm of wear difference. Could be the reason really I dunno.
Hi Joe,
I have seen similar issues with Bridgestone tyres before with tread delamination and blistering etc. So I wouldn’t say its you or the conditions, more a problem with Bridgestones manufacturing process across a few designs.
70k km’s is a good run with the weight and conditions though, more than I would expect.
Interesting you have gone to HTs, I do different work (more off track and hard gravel) but have concluded that a 50/50 tread is optimum, definitely agree that full Mt’s wear very quickly via blocks chipping in hot rocky environments!
I’ve not yet tried a true RT tyre like Toyo makes, but would be interested to see results of a tyre like that specifically designed for Aussie conditions. Have tried the Toyo m55f built for mining, weak sidewall is an issue with this however. Horses for courses!
I do have some stats collected for a few different brands and a PowerPoint if you are interested, can share via email.
Chris
Hey dude so maybe bridgestones are susceptible to the blistering and stuff. I always thought all the decent japanese brands were about the same but maybe not. Yeah I’d love to see some stats I’ll shoot you an email.
I think vulnerability to tread block damage increases with bigger voids, across all tread patterns and brands and types. Just one of the many reasons why smaller voids are superior.
Good evening Joe,
I’m very interested to see the long term outcome of using HT tyres. Have you rtaken then out much/at all since you have had them fitted? Any weight difference between HT/AT LT? Im currently running Hankook Dynapro atm LT-RF10, and after 50000km they are still quiet, although after around Austrtalia, starting to show some wear/degradation.
Looking forwards to your update
Hey Frank
The Nitto Dura grapplers that I’m running now have done about 40,000km. A lot of that has been on bitumen, crossing the nullarbor twice. Have done some dirt tracks around Melbourne hinterland and Great Ocean Road. Plenty of beach work around Perth plus a trip to Fraser Island. Beach and sand and gravel roads they perform well, just like any all terrain tyre, I can’t tell the difference.
The only terrain they’ve done that’s particularly difficult on tyres would be twilight cove access track. Did that quite heavy with fuel and water and loaded up for long term travel. I haven’t done any long desert missions with them.
They’re quiet and good on fuel and seem to be wearing well. I need to get a bit more distance on them and maybe a few thousand kms through a dodgy desert track somewhere to get a better picture of how they’re doing.
I think they weigh about the same as any light truck tyre of same size but I dunno for sure. Don’t think tread pattern makes much difference but depends on the specific manufacturer on how they choose to construct their various tyres.
I’ll write an article on them some time in the future.
Joe
I’m currently running 265 66 17 tryres on my 120 prado, and have looked at the Nitto site, I also have a 2 inch lift, so not wanting to go 70 series tyres(13mm lift), in your opinion, would running 245 70 17(1.5mm difference) be the way to go?
Both on road and off road(90%on road- 5-10% off road, mostly touring)
Hey Frank yeah 245/70r17 should be good. What was the stock tyre size? I noticed on the nitto website the size selection has reduced and it says “while stocks last”. Looks like they’re discontinuing the dura grappler in Australia.
265/65/17 is original size.
Could there be a new model coming out in the future, hence the deletion of current stock.
I’ll keep an eye out.
The price difference between the 245/265 is $50 a tyre, which isn’t small change even for 4 tyres…
On the USA site there are more sizes available and it doesn’t say while stocks last. I reckon not many people buy them coz it’s not cool to have highway written on the tyre and Australian market is too small so they’re phasing them out.
Hi Joe
My current Fortuner has hwy tyres and I’m looking at getting ATs soon. I am confused wherever I need light truck construction or not, can you give some advice? I use the car for everything, driving to work, around town and the trips on weekends and holidays. Thanks.
Hey Kenny depends what you’re doing. If weekend trips means loaded only for small trips on mainly highway and maybe short well formed tracks to camp sites or a short cruise on the beach then passenger tyre with highway terrain might be best. If you’re doing heavily loaded long term travel with a lot of highway and some tough desert tracks with high risk of tyre damage and stuff then light truck with the least aggressive tread pattern you can find might be prudent. If you’re doing hard core offroading and lots of mud then light truck mud terrain might be nice but comes with serious compromise.
Light truck is never “needed”. Everything is a compromise. Light truck are heavier, give harsher ride and cost more. They may not handle sand as well as passenger tyres because they don’t flex as much. But they are stronger and can handle heavy loads better.
Thanks Joe, great info!
Good morning Joe,
How are the Nitto’s holding up?
Since this article,I have been looking at AT alternatives, and have come up with the Kuhmo HT51. It gets a very good rating on Tirerack.com and has the 3 peak severe snow rating, plus good tread depth (2mm less than the same size K02).
What are your thoughts on running non AT/LT tyres on a 4wd for all running (highway, beach, touring and anything up to and including GRR(not anytime soon)?
Hope this finds you safe and well,
Frank
Hey Frank Nittos are doing great but still haven’t taken them out on any long desert tracks at heavy load. In terms of tread pattern, smaller voids and more highway design is better in every way except mud. So for highway, beaches, offroad tracks and short camping missions at not too high a load then a passenger construction highway terrain is a good option. The problem comes when set up for long term living out of a heavily laden vehicle and doing thousand km long bush tracks. I’ve never used passenger construction tyres in such an application so can’t really comment on how they would go, but they won’t be as strong as light truck, they might end up failing. The nittos are light truck highway terrain which I think is a good combo. You could give Kuhmo HT51 a crack, it would be an interesting experiment, depends on your application and the possible risk.
I tend to travel light, and like most 4wds spend most of the time on the bitumen. Since we are state travel based(WA) the hardest would be Gibb River Rd, and that won’t be happening anytime soon. Got $2k left on the mortgage, then I’ll look into some deals for the HT51. Should be interesting
ha sweet 2k left on the mortgage! Keep that up, rat race sucks balls! Gibb river road is rough, I broke a leaf spring on it. If you travel light, go slow, reduce tyre pressure and drive carefully you’ll probably be fine.
Hello Joe, just wondering if all the tyres had this type of wear causing the second layer of carcase to be visable or if maybe it could have been the tyre that had the wheel bearing issue which could have caused un-even wear, assuming your alignment is in check and rear axle in good shape. I’ve been running the D697’s since 2013 and am on my second set but run 265/75R16LT and got 75k out of first set and am at 55k on second set but looks like ill get 75k again.
Hey Tim all the tyres had the same problems. I rotated those tyres a few times too. What sort of terrain and load you doing with yours?
Hey Joe, i dont spend a heap of time off road, go up the cape from Townsville a couple of times a year with the boat for fishing trips ect, obviously loaded up with all the gear you need for a comfortable week away. Apart from the odd job the car it pretty well empty and on bitumen the rest of the time. I run high pressure, minimum 44psi for everyday use, dirt roads 30psi. I rotate every 5k which my local Bridgestone do for me. Overall happy with the performance i get as i dont need anything overly aggressive.