TRED GT Recovery Tracks Review

What’s in the box

A pair of TRED GT recovery boards, each 1085 × 312 mm, in a blend of automotive-grade polypropylene and nylon. The top is covered in teeth of different shapes, the ends are marked “Shovel” and “Ramp” so you know which way round they go, and there are keyhole points for mounting pins. Two leashes with padded handles come in the pack.

Quick Specs

Build

The boards feel dense and rigid, but they flex enough to follow uneven ground under the weight of the car instead of cracking. TRED rates the material from 0 °C up to 55 °C, so they stay usable on a hot roof rack in summer. They’re Australian made and come with a lifetime warranty, which says a lot about how long TRED expects them to last.

In a recovery

The teeth come in different shapes and heights, so some of them bite into the tread whatever tyre you run, and the grip comes as soon as the wheel turns, even with worn mud tyres. The “Ramp” end slides under the tyre and the wheel climbs on; the “Shovel” end has a handle that makes it comfortable to dig out sand or mud in front of the tyres first.

TRED’s own trick is TRED-LINK: two boards clip together end to end into one long surface, to bridge a gap or cover a longer soft patch. And the two padded leashes make it easy to pull the boards back out once you’re through.

Carrying them

At 5.5 kg for the pair, they’re easy to lift onto the roof racks, and they nest tightly: stacked, the pair is only 84 mm thick. That means shorter mounting pins, so less sticks out from the car. They still take up a fair bit of roof space, though, and the Gunmetal Grey gets very hot in the sun, so grab them by the handles.

TRED GT or Maxtrax MK2?

The other Australian-made premium board we’ve tested is the Maxtrax MK2. The TRED GT is a little shorter, lighter and cheaper, while the Maxtrax is longer and the benchmark; both have a lifetime warranty.

	This oneTRED GT	Maxtrax MK2→
Leashes	Yes	Yes
Lifetime warranty	Yes	Yes
Width	312 mm	330 mm
Stacked	84 mm	85 mm
Length	1085 mm	1150 mm
Pair weight	5.5 kg	6.8 kg
Price paid	$229	$319
Our score	9.0	9.2

Conclusion: TRED GT Recovery Boards

The TRED GT is a premium recovery board that holds its own next to the Maxtrax: Australian made with a lifetime warranty, teeth that grip straight away, a low 84 mm stack and TRED-LINK to join boards end to end, at 5.5 kg a pair. The grey gets very hot in the sun and they take up roof space. We paid $229 for the pair, and for regular four-wheel driving they’re good value for boards this good. Our recovery tracks guide compares all five we’ve tested.