Mixed Use Tire for SUV

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CCI

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Jul 15, 2009
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New Mexico USA
I've got the Michelin LTX M/S2 on there now, I like them real well on the highway, OK but not great in the snow on paved areas, not worth much at all off road, especially in the mud.

If 80% of my miles are highway, then about 19% are around town, and 1% are off road, but for the off road part it is absolutely essential that everything works the way it is supposed to.

I realize I'm asking a lot out of a tire -- safe, stable, quiet, and reasonable wear at 80 mph in temperatures over 90 degrees, and then occasionally leave the paved surface for any amount of rock and mud.

Thinking real seriously about the Michelin A/T.

Anyone have any experience either way (good or bad) with them?
 
BFG A/T KO2 is top rated but bet they won't beat a LTX at 80. I'm headed toward the former with 90% below 60mph, little logging trail and snow.
 
You cant have everything.
and michelin AT tires are mediocre.

Nothing is good in thick mud except a mud tire.. sometimes not even a mud tire..
you need giant tread voids and little to no siping to work correctly.

You might try a high rated AT tire:

Cooper Discoverer A/T3 Best value esp with DTD/DT sales
Yokohama Geolandar G015 (best road manners)
BFG k02
General Grabber AT2
Cooper S/T (most aggressive)
Goodyear Adventure AT
Bridgestone Revo2
toyo opencountry AT2

Kumho AT 51
Hankook Dynapro ATM
Etc, I'm sure I missed a few

There are plenty of off-road reviews of most of these tires.
 
Not the best of luck with Michelins off road. Or Goodyear Wranglers. Have taken out too many sidewalls on sharp rocks. Big dilemma for you. 3-ply sidewalls like BF Goodrich are sturdy off road, but suck at smooth ride going down the highway ...

And the Goodrich blocky tread works great off road, but the develop "brake slope" on the blocks and start to run noisy as they get older ... Lots of tire rotations help some ...

I have Bridgestones on my Bronco and they are a decent compromise. But mud will absolutely slime out on any even passably comfy highway tire ...

Plus aspect ration is working against you. Mud needs TALL skinny tires with aggressive tread to get down through the mud to the real footing. Sand and dust want fat tires that will blow off if they even see mud in the distance ...
 
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My summer set, almost worn out are 275/65/20 Michelin AT/2 11X34.4", weigh 60 lbs. 3 steel plies under the tread, hard to balance, no flats.
My winter set, studded Hankook RW-11s, same size except 3 ply sidewall, weigh 70 lbs.
I think a good compromise and likely my next set will be the Hankook RF-10, also a 3 ply in my size.
Some Hankooks are made in China now, so avoid those sizes, as the quality is suspect.
 
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Duratracs and BFG at2 are both the best all around all terrain oriented tires. BFG leaning more toward street manners and the duratracs to off roading. Currently have duratracs on my yota truck and go snow wheeling pretty often in the winter. No not a stock rig. I have had a set of the KO2s as well and they were great in everything but the rain.
 
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but for the off road part it is absolutely essential that everything works the way it is supposed to.


I do know one tire that can do this. It is not cheap, but it works.

Toyo Open Country A/T.

I have had these on multiple vehicles and with all, they delivered very good highway miles and behavior, excellent wear, and great off road performance for a tire that did the other two well.

The caveat with these is two-fold.

1) they do not age well; if you drive the vehicle 5k miles a year, they will be done in 20k/4 years as they will harden. After that the snow and off-road performance really suffers.
2) They aren't cheap!

But they will do exactly what you ask when new and for several years. I am not in your climate now, but I have 4-wheeled in AZ and NM before and understand your environment.

Another thing to check out is the General Grabber A/T. A trusted tire guy I know says they are the cheaper alternative to the Toyo A/T, and good bang for the buck. Look into that, also. Frankly, I will on my next set as successive price increases and exchange rates make the Toyo A/T less attractive.
 
Thanks -- I will look at the Toyos. Glad you mentioned this, maybe a few years ago someone suggested them in a similar way and I forgot about it. Their opinion was identical to yours.

I will happily spend more for something that works the way it is supposed to.
 
Michelin LTX AT2, look no farther
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Originally Posted By: jrvn
Michelin LTX AT2, look no farther
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Michelin AT tires are average or below.. one of the few market segments they arent near class leading

And their premium price.. can get tires for half the price that are as good or better.

I am not anti michelin or a fanboy.. my last 2 cars had michelin or michelin winter tires

For AT tires I would look elsewhere.
 
Firestone Destination AT. Have them on my truck and they do everything I want well enough. Seem to handle moderate mud and snow well.
 
Have Michelin LTX AT2 on Ram 2500 Diesel now, good highway manners and able to get down two tracks to my hunting property. Seem to clean out well with a little pedal when it gets sloppy & wet. I had two other good AT brands prior to to these and the highway ride on these made the difference for me.
 
I had a pair of Toyo AT2s on a previous vehicle and they handled well both on an off road. Little louder but what AT tire isn't. Another tire to consider is the Firestone Destination AT.
 
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