Stock tire replacment

[funnyman82]

Hi everyone!

I currently run goodyear fortera tripletred 245-65-17 on my qx4. I am looking to replace them either with the same tire or the Michelin cross terrain or something else. I was wondering what everyone else uses here or recommends.. Thx!

[esy]

what kind of driving do you do and do you expect to do?

the Michelin Cross Terrain is a street type tire. it was the quietest riding truck tire from Michelin, until the Michelin Latitude Tour came out. the Latitude does the same exact thing the Cross Terrain does, just does it a little better as far as ride quality and fuel efficiency.

if you're looking to tow, do light off-roading, camping, going to the snow, you might want to look into something that offers a little more versatility, yet will still give you a good ride. i only sell and install Michelin, BFG, and Bridgestone, so my knowledge, the classes i attend, and road tests that i get to do revolve only around those three (i have some familiarity with other brands on a limited basis, but it's dated since that was back when i was road racing a lot more).

anyways, a slightly more versatile tire would be something like the Michelin LTX MS2, BFG Long Trail Tour, or the Bridgestone Dueler HT 684 II. those are the main three in that class. if you're looking to do more with the truck, i'd suggest an AT tire, obviously. however, i would suggest upsizing to a 245/70/17, instead which will open up your AT options a little more.

in either situation, figure out what you plan to do with the truck, then figure out what you're willing to give up and compromise with as far as mileage, ride quality, etc. hope i can help you with this further.

[ltsnotme]

has anyone tried Falken High Country? are they any good?

[Wkz1gg0a]

I got Bfgoodrich Long trail i believe in the morning ill check em out and tell you. It saved my a** this winter not one slip and i drive sorry to say like a new kid with a civic. Held the road great no steering problems or road noise and still have over 95% thread left. If you want a more rugged look try the Yokomaha Geolander RTS or ATS

[funnyman82]

Thanks everyone for your responses. I dont really do any off-road or towing. Usually city and highway driving. As I live in Ontario Canada we get snow so something with good snow handling is a must. Treadwear, smooth/quiet, wet/dry/snow handling are important.

[qx4dude]

Get the Nitto Terra Grapplers. Just got them for my qx4 at the start of winter. AMAZING tire. Been awesome in every situation i have put them through. They are an A/T tire. Very quiet on highway and handle great. They were awesome in deep snow and ice too. Had huge snow drifts up to my mirrors this year by my house. Didnt even slow me down once. They got awesome reviews too. Payed around 1000 installed for mine. Took me 6 months before I decided what to get. You wont be dissapointed.

[K03sport]

I am running Nokian WR2 SUV in the stock 255/65/16. Great tire. Survied an OH winter. 50k mi (78km) tread warranty. Built in tread depth gauge in the center rib. The only downside is the limited number of Nokian dealers. I'm not say there aren't many, but unless you know where they are, you may not be able to find one when you leave your local area.

Another downside, tire prices went up at the begining of the year and now these tires are approaching US$200ea.

If I were to do it again, I would go with the BFG A/Ts, but they don't come in 255/65. I would have to choose either 245/70R16/D, 245/75R16/E or LT255/70R16/D . My 2nd choice would be the Mich Latitude Tour, however, the French Mfgr is proud of their tires, so I would try to wait for a sale of some kind.

Truth be told, it is what you can afford at the time. If money is no object, then your choices are endless. If money is tight, buy the best tire for your budget.

Personally, I will never go back to the Dueler H/Ts that came stock.

[esy]

for city/hwy driving, the Michelin Latitude Tour is the tire you'd want to look into over the Cross Terrain. the Cross Terrain is slowly being phased out, as the Latitude is its replacement. not to mention, the Latitude will also be less expensive than the Cross Terrain.

i wouldn't go with an AT tire, if i were you. some AT tires can offer a pretty decent ride, but they're simply more prone to cupping/feathering mostly because of their more aggressive tread blocks. doesn't always happen, but it can. it can happen on any tire, but an AT tire is just more prone to it.

personally, if you want the best of both worlds, a tire like the Michelin LTX MS2 or its sister tire the Michelin X Radial LT2 (sold at club shops like Costco, which is where i work) will better suit you. if your area calls for any kind of chain control and they're strict on it, you'll have to chain up either way. the Latitude isn't designed for "severe snow". if you wanted to have the severe snow rating, you'd want to look into an actual AT tire. you'll have more success there.

[chicoson]

best tire to date that i have had on my old 92 pathfinder and now my current 01 QX4 is the cooper M+S. i paid 600 installed at discount tire fo stock size 245 65 17. they are a great tire for snow as they are more of a winter tire but they are a M+S so they are mud and snow rated and i have driven them all year. they have very deep tread blocks and they dont look too aggressive on the QX4. having a QX4 I personaly didnt want a mega aggressive off road tire that looked gawdy on a luxury SUV. these tires fit the QX best with enough aggressiveness to get me thru ANYTING without using 4wd. they are a 6 ply tire and have good rolling resistance so they dont eat up mileage like most 10 ply tires do. the M+S have alot of sipes for icy roads too. the nokians that were mensioned above are also awesome but they are super expensive as with all nokians. great snow tire tho. nokians make the abosolute BEST snow tire period. i personaly reccomend the cooper M+S like i just bought. good luck with your tire search.

[Innovazn]

Running stock sized Michellin Cross Terrains on mine, picked them up last year and by god I love them compared to the TOYO Open Countries I had. in light - medium snow, kick it in AUTO and drive with safety in mind and youre solid.

[chicoson]

here's a link to info on the coopers. my friend who sold me these at discount tire said he has fleets of expiditers buy these and run them all year round.

http://www.coopertire.com/html/products ... coverer_ms

[esy]

FYI, every tire made is M+S rated. you'll be very hard pressed to find a tire that does NOT have that rating.

an M+S rating also does not mean that a tire is any better for the mud or snow. trust that if you have a M+S tire, and chain requirements are up, you will still need to chain up because the tire does not meet the RMA recommendations for severe snow weather.

[PathyConvert]

Hi all,

FIrst post, just joined the forum. Anyway, just thought I'd add my 2¢.

I'm driving a 2004 Pathy, a sweet low-mileage truck from my Mom-in-law. Got it from her last May and it still had the OEM Dunlop Grantrek piece of crap tires. Drove on those for the rest of the summer and fall until I picked up some dedicated winter tires.

In my opinion, folks living north of the southern States should all be using dedicated winter tires, especially up here in Canada where I live. Quebec has already made it mandatory, and I can only hope that Ontario follows in short order. "All season" (really no season) tires start to lose grip even on dry pavement at 7˚C (44.6˚F) and harden up like hockey pucks! Safety is number one for me and ever since starting to use winter tires about 10 years ago, I will never stop. Sure, buying another set of tires is expensive, but it only means you are running your tires for half a year at a time. That being said, there are a few "all weather" tires that have started to hit the market, but I'll still trust my life to dedicated winters. If it doesn't have the mountain/snowflake symbol on the sidewall, it's no good in Canadian or northern U.S. winters. I picked up a set of Toyo Open Country G02 Plus tires for winter and they are awesome! They are one of the top tree SUV winter tires according to the A.P.A. ( http://www.apa.ca/tire_wintertireratings_sport.asp ). They're the tires with the ground-up walnut shells in the rubber.

As for stock replacement tires; I'm about to get a set of Michelin LTX M/S2. I have done so much research that my brain hurts, but I figure these are the best all-round tires for my needs. 95% of my driving is highway/city driving with the other 5% only being rough gravel roads and a few cottage trails, but no serious off roading of rock crawling. I figured these tires would be the best since they are great on-road but still provide a little bit of soft-roading capability. The other tire I was looking at was the Toyo Open Country H/T. Gets good ratings but the Michelin is newer and their reputation is hard to beat. I'll post a few photos and my first impressions once I get them installed this Saturday (April 9).

Cheers!

[Buzzman]

More $0.02 worth (mostly from past experience):
Had Toyo tires on my Pathy when I bought it. OK when new, but didn't last, and got worse very quickly. Would not buy again.
Went with Goodyear Wrangler RT/S. Huge mistake. Absolute garbage. Wouldn't stay balanced, wore out quickly, and absolutely brutal on anything other than dry pavement. Zero wet road traction. Worse in snow.
I live in Ontario, and went with dedicated snow tires 4 years ago (mounted on el cheapo steel rims). Best thing I've ever done.
I absolutely have to buy new summer tires, and am leaning towards Michelins.
Thanks esy, for your input.
I'm waiting until I take a trip down south to buy them. Too expensive up here.
With the CND $$ at par, it will save me hundreds of $$ to buy in the U.S.
Cheers.

[esy]

the Michelin LTX MS2 is Michelin's most popular truck tire. great on road feel and comfort, solid traction in rain and snow, and has a great mileage warranty. i will commonly see the LTX MS (the previous model of this tire) lasting at least 80k as long as the tires are being rotated regularly, air is checked regularly, and no severe alignment/suspension issues. the most i've seen them last was about 7 years (you should be replacing tires appx every 5 years, FYI) and has about 120k or very close to it. excellent tire.

i have the Michelin X Radial LT2s, which is the sister tire to the MS2. it's just a club/Costco specific tire that Michelin makes for us. i drive mostly on road, some light dirt roads, camping, and Tahoe snow. handles just great.

a winter rated tire is always a great way to go. best types of tires to go with that will still get you mileage and won't force you to sacrifice too much on road comfort are some of the A/T tires. most of the BFG ATs are severe snow rated tires, as far as other AT tires, you'll just have to do that research when digging through them. personally, i would probably go with something like the BFG AT over an actual snow tire. typically, you'll get better mileage/life of the tire, better ride comfort, etc.

[chicoson]

not all tires are M+S rated. the tires on my focus are not M+S rated and the tires on my 240 are not M+S rated. now if your talking only all season then yes most of them are unless they are cheapo cheap no name tires. by M+S you can run them all year unlike a dedicated snow tire that will chunk apart or wear quickly in summer months due to the low temp rating. i want to say my cooper M+S are temp B. dedicated snows should not be used all year round. yes if they reccomend chains then yeah you will have to chain up. oddly enough my coppers are studable too however in michigan we are not allowed to run chains or studs. ive been thru countless tires on all my cars and for the money i found the cooper M+S were awesome all year and great in deep snow and ice. the only down side is they are a tad noisy but i just turn up my radio lol. they are not annoying loud but have a slight hum on fresh blacktop. i wont put a A/T on anything because i have had bad luck with them cupping and wearing horribly. i guess it all depends on how much you want to spend. i have found that ALOT of cheaper manufacturers make better tires than the big names. i wont buy goodyear,michelin,BFG,pirelli since i have had horrible luck and have never been impressed by them. michelin has the softest weakest sidewalls i have ever dismounted. i swear i could fart and the sidewall would collapse. cooper has never let me down yet.

[PathyConvert]

@ Buzzman; Good call on waiting to buy yours down south. With the dollar now at $1.04 US, you should find a good deal! I wish I had another reason to head down there. I'm kicking myself that I didn't buy mine when I went down to Detroit for the auto show in Feb. Grrrr! Stupid me.... It's funny how some people have great experiences with one brand of tire and another can have the total opposite. I had a set of Toyo Ultra800 on my old Subaru Outback a few years ago and LOVED them! They were a great touring tire that the previous owner had installed, and this is why Toyo got my attention. I hadn't really thought much about Toyo in the past. I chose my Toyo winter tires for my Pathy after doing lots of research. I needed a tire that was good on ice and in deep snow and that's why I didn't go with Michelin's xi, because they are great on ice but have too shallow and narrow a tread pattern for deep snow. Comes down to personal choice ultimately, so I decided to sacrifice a little on ice to gain on snow. I'll let you know how my summer Michelin's are when I get them.

@ esy; Do you work in the automotive/tire industry? Just asking because you have certain knowledge that only guys in the industry or enthusiasts would know. You're right about tires being replaced after 5 years. Rubber is pretty much toast at that point. I would argue that some folks could push it to 6 or maybe 7 years if the tire has low mileage and hasn't been parked outdoors too much. Especially if they run winter and are only using the tires in the warm months. The rubber would no doubt last another year or two. But, 5 years is a good reference point.

@ chicoson; I agree with your thought on AT's. I've always been worried about their tendency to cup and wear oddly. But I don't have any first-hand experience with them, so I could be mistaken. If and when I move out into the country, I may decide to give AT's a try since I'll be doing more rough roading then.

Cheers guys!

[chicoson]

yes if you move to the country then a A/T would be best and a snow tire for winter or even the coopers i mensioned since they are kind of a mix. one thing i noticed with A/Ts is that they usually have a rigid sidewall 8 ply or more and tend to have more rolling resistance plus the added weight of the tire makes them wear funny and lose balance alot. heavy tires are rugged and durrable but seem to cause more issues.i wont run anything over 8ply unless i am towing with a HD truck. also proper alignment with A/Ts is a must. i know my silverado got an alignment every 6 months to keep the tires from cupping. i guess it all depends. im just super happy with these cooper M+S tires. i had them before and they were great and i will continue to buy them from now on.

[esy]

what tires are you speaking of, chicoson, that aren't M+S rated?

i can tell you this much, there are few Michelin, BFG, or Bridgestone tires that are not M+S rated. not familiar with many other tires than the ones i deal with. take a closer look at your sidewall again. from all the different tires i've come across, there are few times that i've seen a tire that is not M+S rated. but hey, i could be wrong. i don't pay much attention to every single tire, anyways.

from my experience, AT tires wear best with slightly shorter rotation intervals. at the same time, 9 out of 10 people use incorrect inflation pressures which will also make the tire more susceptible to feathering/cupping. i've also never had problems with all the vehicles that i work on having balance issues simply because they're a higher ply-rated tire. if the balance is done right the first time, there will be minimal changes in the balance later on.

pathyconvert, yes, i've "officially" been in a Costco Tire Center for about 3 years. that's not including all the other wrench work and amateur auto-xing that i've done in the past too.

[esy]

take from RMA's bulletin on snow tire definition:

1. New tire treads shall have multiple pockets or slots in at least one tread edge that meet the following dimensional requirements based on mold dimensions:

a. Extend toward the tread center at least 1/2 inch from the footprint edge, measured perpendicularly to the tread centerline.
b. A minimum cross-sectional width of 1/16 inch.
c. Edges of pockets or slots at angles between 35 and 90 degrees from the direction of travel.

2. The new tire tread contact surface void area will be a minimum of 25 percent based on mold dimensions.

this essentially translates to the tire requiring a row of pretty big grooves that start from the edge of the tire and extends to the center of the tire. it also says that at least 25% of the tire's surface area must be grooves.

at the same time, M+S ratings are not regulated by the government. they are, but they aren't. just like traction, temp, and treadwear ratings, they mean very little to nothing. the UTQG ratings are specific to tire brands and nothing else. comparing a Michelin treadwear rating to a Bridgestone treadwear rating will do nothing but confuse you. a tire from Michelin may have a treadwear rating of 700 which may equate to an 80k mileage warranty, but Bridgestone may have an 80k mileage warranty as well on a similar tire, but its treadwear rating may be 500. the government requires these ratings to be put in place, but there are no restrictions on how the companies use the ratings.

even though a tire does not have the M+S rating on it, does not mean that it is not M+S rating. that's why you'll be hard pressed to find a tire that isn't rated as such. if the tire meets the above criteria, it is M+S rated. the only tires you'll find that are not truly M+S rated are track tires and the like. some street legal, track-style tires as well. but, for the most part, most tires are M+S rated.

[chicoson]

well all the tires i had that were all season were M+S rated but my performance tires on my dedicated track/drift 240 are not M+S rated or at least dont say it. the performance tires on my focus are the same. maybe they all are but from what i have seen not all are marked as you say.

[esy]

what i'm saying is the M+S rating is worthless.

i can show you a million performance tires that are M+S rated, so that doesn't really prove much. i could also show you some of the tires that i used to use on my old track 240 that are M+S rated, but it doesn't prove much. just because the tire brand didn't bother to put the marking on there doesn't mean that its actual design is not M+S rated. thus, proving that the M+S ratings on tires and the rest of the UTQG ratings are near useless to even use when comparing tires. that's all.

[PathyConvert]

Less than 24 hrs until me new tires! Weeeeeeeeeee!!

[esy]

hope you like the MS2s. great tire. love mine (the Costco version, anyways).

[PathyConvert]

Just going to wash the Pathy and clean up the inside. Will post a few shots in a couple of hours.

[PathyConvert]

Well, here they are! I've only driven them about 6km, but so far they are great! SO quiet compared to my winter tires and much quieter than my stock Dunlops tires. Photos aren't the greatest due to late afternoon lighting/shadows but it's the best I can do for now. I will update with more impressions once it rains etc...

[esy]

looks good. glad you're happy with them so far.

i see you have some tire shine on there already. be careful with what you use. the majority of tire shine products out will actually dry the tires up much quicker and cause cracking much faster.

[PathyConvert]

Yeah, I had a can of Simoniz Foaming Tire Care (http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/browse/4 ... ?locale=en) lying around , so I thought I'd put it on for the photos.

Thanks for the tip though. I'll stop using it and will do some research to see if there are any brands that don't hurt the tire. That being said, I rarely put the stuff on anyway.

Had the tires in the rain yesterday and they seem great. Didn't get and slipping or loss of traction in the corners. Ride is very quiet and comfy without being too soft.

[PathyConvert]

Hey esy. Got any thoughts on my last post about tire cleaner?

[esy]

sorry, didn't see it.

you mean, as far as recommendations? my recommendation is to just leave them alone. haha. seriously though, i'd just leave them alone. maybe some water and very mild soap will work just fine. the brown that begins to come out onto the tire is actually a good thing. it's not dirt, the tires aren't bad, or anything of that nature. it helps to keep the tire lubricated and prevent it from drying out.

you can try the michelin brand tire care. the reps that i've talked to say it's extremely safe for the tires, the ingredients and science behind it also makes sense to me.

you want to stay away from silicone-based products (which is pretty much everything at your local Autozone) because that will dry the tire quicker, to put it simply.