Auto: tires

Let'sgoflying!

Let'sgoflying!

Touchdown! Greaser!
Joined
Feb 23, 2005
Messages
20,326
Location
west Texas
Display Name
Display name:
Dave Taylor
I’m looking for more durable road rubber for my 2020 Tundra.
I bought Michelin Defenders LTX a few years ago and they are worn out at 26K mi.
[EDIT; I misread the data; I got 43K mi out of these. Still less than the warranted life but much better than originally reported]

The truck is always lightly loaded.
I almost never use 4WD.
99% of my driving is on straight, level, good pavement at 70mph.
I am super diligent about maintaining the proper pressures.
No alignment issues.

A lot of those miles were >100°F - I’m suspicious this is part of the problem.

I’d prefer not to end up with tires that sound like a tracked vehicle, but I’m willing to sacrifice some quiet, for longevity.
 
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Cooper Discoverer AT3 is what I've run on my F-150 and my Excursion. Pretty good A/T tire, not terribly expensive, usually got 50K out of a set. Granted that was on LT-rated tires, but I'd look at the treadwear rating on the P-series and see what it says. I've also run Nitto TerraGrapplers before and they were fine, but more expensive and didn't last quite as long as the Coopers.
 
I've had very good service from Coopers on several vehicles. They're on the cheaper end of the price spectrum as well. The last set I had on my '97 Chevy pickup went 50K, and they were pretty aggressive.

Dad's '01 Chevy had a set of Firestone Transforce on it when he bought it, and they went something ridiculous like 70K+. They were definitely an on-road tread. I believe they are aimed at the "hotshot" towing market, and they really do hold up. Expensive up front, but I suppose cheaper in the long run.
 
I’m a Cooper fan. Great tires, especially on ice and snow. My new Tacoma came with Toyo tires and a 6 year tire and wheel warranty and replacement policy. Get a flat? No patching. Toyota replaces the tire. Hit a curb and scratch a wheel? They replace it. Wear tires out? They replace them. Zero deductible. With that? I’ll use Toyo!
 
My tire shop says Bridgestone Dueller would be a good replacement; researching.
Send any opinions.
I wish Desser made retreads for my truck.
 
Been running Goodrich KO2's on the 3/4 ton diesel SuperDuty. They seem to last long enough that I run out of warranty on them. A little noisy on the highway, but the truck does get off into the dirt enough that strictly highway tires would be a problem.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
I’m looking for more durable road rubber for my 2020 Tundra.
I bought Michelin Defenders LTX a few years ago and they are worn out at 26K mi.

The truck is always lightly loaded.
I almost never use 4WD.
99% of my driving is on straight, level, good pavement at 70mph.
I am super diligent about maintaining the proper pressures.
No alignment issues.

A lot of those miles were >100°F - I’m suspicious this is part of the problem.

I’d prefer not to end up with tires that sound like a tracked vehicle, but I’m willing to sacrifice some quiet, for longevity.
Click to expand...
My '17 F150 came with Goodyear Wranglers. I ran them for 5 1/2 years and 80,000 miles (20,000 miles of that towing things at gross weight). I was plenty impressed with that and replaced them with the same thing. I run tires at whatever their max pressure is (not what the vehicle sticker says). I also rotate tires religiously, every 5K miles.
 
KO2's are good, long life decent traction. I worked at a shop that sold tires. They really liked and sold a lot of Hankook, good life and reasonably priced. Never had one come back for any tire related issue. I have KO2's on one truck and Hankook on another both are LT tires, pretty equal. Bridgestone is available at Costco if that matters. Discount tire is another good place to look.
 
jesse said:
My '17 F150 came with Goodyear Wranglers. I ran them for 5 1/2 years and 80,000 miles (20,000 miles of that towing things at gross weight). I was plenty impressed with that and replaced them with the same thing. I run tires at whatever their max pressure is (not what the vehicle sticker says). I also rotate tires religiously, every 5K miles.
Click to expand...
Steadfast or?

Wrangler Tires | Goodyear Tires

Goodyear Wrangler tires help deliver tough all-terrain traction for on & off-road performance. Buy online at Goodyear.com.
www.goodyear.com www.goodyear.com
 
jesse said:
My '17 F150 came with Goodyear Wranglers. I ran them for 5 1/2 years and 80,000 miles (20,000 miles of that towing things at gross weight). I was plenty impressed with that and replaced them with the same thing. I run tires at whatever their max pressure is (not what the vehicle sticker says). I also rotate tires religiously, every 5K miles.
Click to expand...
Good lord. Not sure how that helps with getting more life out of the tires, but I'm sure the center section gets worn down to the steel belts by the time you're through! If I ran my LT-rated at 80psi, I'd have no fillings left in my teeth after a 20-mile drive, lol.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
I’m looking for more durable road rubber for my 2020 Tundra.
I bought Michelin Defenders LTX a few years ago and they are worn out at 26K mi.

The truck is always lightly loaded.
I almost never use 4WD.
99% of my driving is on straight, level, good pavement at 70mph.
I am super diligent about maintaining the proper pressures.
No alignment issues.

A lot of those miles were >100°F - I’m suspicious this is part of the problem.

I’d prefer not to end up with tires that sound like a tracked vehicle, but I’m willing to sacrifice some quiet, for longevity.
Click to expand...
My defenders have around 40k miles and look almost new on my 2015 GMC Canyon. And I drive a lot of highway miles in Florida.
You sound like you probably pay attention to your alignment, but is that a good assumption? Out of balance or out of align will eat up good tires in a hurry.
 
SoonerAviator said:
Good lord. Not sure how that helps with getting more life out of the tires, but I'm sure the center section gets worn down to the steel belts by the time you're through! If I ran my LT-rated at 80psi, I'd have no fillings left in my teeth after a 20-mile drive, lol.
Click to expand...
I'll take a slightly bumpier ride to gain additional hydroplane protection ( hydroPlaneSpeed = 10.2 (√ tirePressure)). If you can't handle driving a 1/2 ton pickup with 80 PSI tires without loosing your fillings you need a better dentist. Seriously, the difference is negligible. If you want a smooth ride, you need to find a smooth road. If the road sucks the tire pressure isn't going to help.

My original Goodyear Wranglers were passenger tires (not LT) and thus had a max of 50 PSI, which is where I ran them for all the 80,000 miles. My "new" Goodyear Wranglers are the LT version and I do in fact run them at 80 PSI. They still look brand new with 20,000 miles of wear. I've experimented with 60 PSI and 80 PSI and don't notice a ride difference between them, so I run the 80.

If you mount up a LT tire on a truck that did not ship with LT then run the stock sticker tire pressure, you'll be under-pressure for the tires. A LT tire at a non-LT pressure typically has less weight bearing capability than a non-lt passenger tire.
 
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Let'sgoflying! said:
Steadfast or?

Wrangler Tires | Goodyear Tires

Goodyear Wrangler tires help deliver tough all-terrain traction for on & off-road performance. Buy online at Goodyear.com.
www.goodyear.com www.goodyear.com
Click to expand...
The truck came with Goodyear Wrangler Fortitude HT in 275/65R18, this was a passenger truck tire that gave me the 80K. When I replaced it, I went with Goodyear Wrangler LT all-terrain w/ kevlar. They probably won't last as long, but we'll see. The primary reason I went with the LT all-terrain version was to gain the "three-peak snow" certification.

For one reason or another, the passenger versions of the Wrangler do not come with the snow certification. The three-peak snow thing wasn't a big deal when I lived within a city in Nebraska but is worth paying attention to now that I live on top of a rural hill in Wisconsin.
 
jesse said:
I'll take a slightly bumpier ride to gain additional hydroplane protection ( hydroPlaneSpeed = 10.2 (√ tirePressure)). If you can't handle driving a 1/2 ton pickup with 80 PSI tires without loosing your fillings you need a better dentist. Seriously, the difference is negligible. If you want a smooth ride, you need to find a smooth rode. If the rode sucks the tire pressure isn't going to help.

My original Goodyear Wranglers were not LT and thus had a max of 50 PSI, which is where I ran them for all the 80,000 miles. My "new" Goodyear Wranglers are the LT version and I do in fact run them at 80 PSI. They still look brand new with 20,000 miles of wear. I've experimented with 60 PSI and 80 PSI and don't notice a ride difference between them, so I run the 80.

If you mount up a LT tire on a truck that did not ship with LT then run the stock sticker tire pressure, you'll be under-pressure for the tires. A LT tire at a non-LT pressure typically has less weight bearing capability than a non-lt passenger tire.
Click to expand...

There are load-pressure tables provided by the manufacturer for just that purpose. No reason to run a higher tire pressure than what covers your GVWR. I promise you will be able to tell the difference in a leaf-spring vehicle (like my Excursion) between 50psi and 65psi, or 80psi. While I'm sure having over-inflated tires helps with hydroplaning because you've effectively reduced the contact patch of the tire, it doesn't help with overall tire life because the center section will wear much faster than the outer edges.
 
I recant my first post in which I said I only got 26K out of Michelin Defenders - I was looking at a tire service mileage, not the install mileage. I got 43K out of them.

Also, in order to qualify for a warranty on treadlife, one must have a record of shop-provided rotations every 5K mi. I live 3 hours from the nearest Discount Tire so having a free rotation done by them is an issue. Finding someone locally is problematic too - either can't trust the quality, or they have no time to do rotations, or I can't get over their in a timely manner. Also the cost x 8 rotations if they last only 40K mi.
 
Got a floor jack and a couple of jack stands? Rotate them yourself, and it also lets you get an eyeball on stuff down there every 5k.
 
We had great luck with Yoko Geolandar G2 with the extreme winter rating on it. Took our Subaru 5 continents and 90Kmi to properly wear them out.

I hate how they spell "Geolandar" though, so only a 3 star recommendation. Still drives me nuts.
 
schmookeeg said:
We had great luck with Yoko Geolandar G2 with the extreme winter rating on it. Took our Subaru 5 continents and 90Kmi to properly wear them out.

I hate how they spell "Geolandar" though, so only a 3 star recommendation. Still drives me nuts.
Click to expand...

I had good luck with those tires as well, good all around AT tire for mostly highway use and they seem to last.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
I recant my first post in which I said I only got 26K out of Michelin Defenders - I was looking at a tire service mileage, not the install mileage. I got 43K out of them.

Also, in order to qualify for a warranty on treadlife, one must have a record of shop-provided rotations every 5K mi. I live 3 hours from the nearest Discount Tire so having a free rotation done by them is an issue. Finding someone locally is problematic too - either can't trust the quality, or they have no time to do rotations, or I can't get over their in a timely manner. Also the cost x 8 rotations if they last only 40K mi.
Click to expand...
I rotate them myself and don't worry about the warranty. I've never needed it (rotating extends the life). It's a task worth doing yourself, as it gives you a great opportunity to carefully inspect the tires & your brakes. I don't trust anyone when it comes to my brakes other than myself (shops always lie saying you need to replace well before you do).
 
I have had great luck with the Michelins and Pirellis over the years on both car and now two SUV's. I religiously rotate the tires every other oil change about 10k miles. I'm actually due for tires on my SUV (03 ML320 242k miles) so I am starting to price what's out there. My SUV is for hauling around town only, no long trips, that's what we bought the 2017 GLC 300 for. I cant believe we have had the GLC for five years, bought it used.
 
I have found that the better the traction, the faster they wear out. Hard rubber compounds last longer, but don’t grip as well. At least that’s what I have seen. I use retreads often, they wear out fairly quickly, but cost a whole lot less.
 
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