E-rated truck tires ??

[coobie]

I have a buddy that says if you have Michelins, you will never get a warranty claim out of them. He says its always your fault, not theirs. I have had a couple of sets of Coopers, both car tires and truck tires. I always thought they balances out crappy, they took a lot of weights and just always felt a little out of round.

All of my 43 plus years of driving I guess I have been lucky.Not one warranty claim on a tire.

 

[Gunny]

I've got Coopers on my 2500 right now, don't know the series and the truck is at the farm, so I can't check it now.

But, they've been great, I've had them on for three years now, not very many miles on them, but still a lot of tread, seems to be good for traction off road and they provide as good a ride on a 3/4 ton as the OE tires.

 

[sdef]

I have a 2015 RAM 2500 diesel crew cab 4x4 and the first mod I made was to change out the tires to Goodyear Wrangler Adventure Kevlar series at 342 miles. The Goodyear tire was rated well at Tire America and all other sites I viewed. Goodyear states this tire is designed for 60% on road and 40% off road, which I liked.

My experience is even with a light load in the bed, if the ground's surface is loose or a bit slippery at all, I get no traction if there is the slightest grade involved. It is not uncommon for me to have to put the truck in 4WD to get going in less than perfect circumstances with no load to light load. Plus the tires are hard to keep in balance. I should have went with one of my second choices of a BFG model. That said, the tires seem to be wearing well.

 

[Copperhead]

I have a set of the Michelin LTX/AT2 tires on my 2006 Ford F150 and they get around great in the Michigan winters.The reason I am looking at purchasing the Michelin defenders since they no longer make the AT2 series tires.

Well, Iowa winters not a lot different except not getting lake effect. The Michelins on my 2500 were sorely lacking in the ability to deal with wet heavy snow in my area, and were a poor excuse for an AT tire when the gravel roads were all muddied up during the spring thaws or after heavy rains. One thing for certain, the BFG's are much more sure footed on the gravel roads, and while the Michelins, even at 55 PSI, made the pickup ride feel like riding a buck board, the BFG's have dramatically improved the ride to where it feels more like a 1500 than a 2500HD. Winter and spring will deliver the final analysis. And they are moderately quiet on hard surface at highway speeds. No regrets.

Even if they don't last as long as the Michelin LTX AT2's, it is still worth the change due to handling on the gravel (a daily situation over several miles) and the ride quality in comparison. Cornering feels better also. And going up one size, from 265/70R18 to 275/70R18, brought the speedometer to dead on now. Was about 1 mph faster than actual.

In my situation, the Michelins did not have some stellar tire life anyway. They were at 50% when I took them off at 24890 miles. Regular gravel use takes its toll.

 

[Copperhead]

All of my 43 plus years of driving I guess I have been lucky.Not one warranty claim on a tire.

Only one for me, and that was on a commercial semi truck. None on personal vehicles.

 

[LD1]

Thanks for the replies.Leaning towards the Michelins at this time but going to make my final choice this weekend when I go to the local discount tire store.I like to see what the tire tread pattern looks like in person verses internet pictures.

Exactly how I like to buy tires. I like to see them in person.

Everyones needs in a tire are different. So what some others are suggesting may not be the best fit for you.

I dont pay any attention to the "handling and performance" reviews and ratings I see online. I can tell by looking at the tire and tread design if it is gonna be what I need. And my needs are on-highway....only off road when dry, and excellent winter traction since I plow snow commercially.

Two years ago I needed to replace the fronts on my truck. Got a killer deal on a pair of the LTX michellins.....same exact tread design you are looking at. They make a great snow/ice tire. Lots of sipes and biting edges. Last year I needed to replace the 4 rears, but didnt want to pay michellin prices. I still wanted a good tire though, and american made if possible. Well, I found the perfect tire. MAstercraft courser HXT. VERY similar tread design, and excellent in the winter. CooperMastercraft - Courser HXT

A good winter tire does not make a good off road tire. And a good offroad tire does NOT make a good winter tire. For off road, you want something blocky, with big open groves. For winter, you want as many biting edges as possible (sipes). And smaller blocks. There is no single tire that can do both as well as a dedicated tire. Kinda like the AG, R4, Turf arguments.

Our Michelin LTX on a van lasted 75,000 mi rear and 95,000 front. We replaced them with D load rated Michelin AT2 because the LTX is very poor in snow. We don't drive it that much in snow but at least want to move it in the parking lot! They aren't much louder on a highway.

If we are talking about the same tires here....I have had both AT2's and LTX's. The AT2's are only slightly better offroad. But the LTX's are a WAY better snow tire. And thats speaking with several hundred hours of plowing on each.

For clarity......the LTX that I feel is an excellent snow tire......Michelin LTX M/S2

And the AT2 that was just "ok" in the snow. Notice it is a blockier tread and not nearly the same level of siping. Michelin LTX A/T 2

 

[Snobdds]

I am going to be putting the new Toyo CT on before winter hits. It's a commercially rates all terrain with the snowflake rating. Toyo tested it in Canada for a few years and now they're making them available to the US market. Suppose to be on par with the duratrac but better wear and the Toyo tuffness..

 

[coobie]

Had 4 Michelin Defender LTX/MS installed this morning on the my 2016 Ram.They seem to ride better than the OEM firestones.Time will tell on how well they hold up.

 

[Copperhead]

I still think that the BFG's have an edge over the Michelin products. They are both from the same company as Michelin owns BFG. I think they leave the more dedicated AT products to the BFG side of things. The newer BFG AT KO2's are a far cry from the older BFG AT product line. I admit up front I am partial to the BFG AT's. I used them for 10 years in Alaska (the old original design) and never had any issues with off road and snow. Everything down into -50F and lower territory on up thru into the 90's in summer. The KO2 tread compound and other features put even the old BFG AT's to shame. They are that good.

 

[coobie]

I still think that the BFG's have an edge over the Michelin products. They are both from the same company as Michelin owns BFG. I think they leave the more dedicated AT products to the BFG side of things. The newer BFG AT KO2's are a far cry from the older BFG AT product line. I admit up front I am partial to the BFG AT's. I used them for 10 years in Alaska (the old original design) and never had any issues with off road and snow. Everything down into -50F and lower territory on up thru into the 90's in summer. The KO2 tread compound and other features put even the old BFG AT's to shame. They are that good.

Glad to hear the BFG,s are working out for you.I gonna give these Michelins a try and see how they perform.