Michelen Premier A/S: Not Impressed; Replacement Q..

[gathermewool]

We had these tires installed on our Forester XT ~22k miles ago.
The front tires are down to 3/32"; the rear tires are ~4/32"
This doesn't seem very impressive.

Of course, while checking them the other day I found a nail embedded right in the meat of one of the driver-side front tire (i.e., not near the firewall).
Luckily, the tire is holding pressure perfectly and the local Townfair Tire charges only a few bucks for a patch, which we'll take care of this week.

Info:
Tires are only used during the warmer months, so snow isn't a concern; however, heavy rain and the associated increased risk of hydroplaning is a concern with such worn tires.

My wife usually drives locally, though we do tend to take the FXT on longer roadtrips over the Legacy, since it offers extra space for the kiddos.

We have Roadside Assistance through our USAA insurance and I only work 15 min away from home.

Depending on wear, I plan to replace these tires at the end of this summer or next.

Question:

1. Should I replace them now?
Note: I will lose my military discount (local base has a deal going with Townfair Tire) within the next month or so, when I turn in my CAC and leave the Navy.

2. What are your recommendations? I honestly thought the tires had more life left, so I haven't done any research yet.
I've had really good luck with Conti DWS tires (which I also currently have on my Legacy's "summer" wheels), so I might go with them to make things easy.

 

[anndel]

I have them on our 05 Avalon and it's noisy despite Consumer Reports saying the Premier is a quiet tire. Don't know if it's the tires or the crappy Honolulu roads. The Michelin Pilots we had prior were quieter. Maybe CR is comparing the Michelins to BF Goodrich All Terrain TAs.

 

[addyguy]

With 3/32nd's and 4/32nd's of tread left, I'd replace them all, now. That is not very much tread at all, and as you said, in wet conditions they will be really touchy and unpredictable.

 

[gathermewool]

Originally Posted by anndel
I have them on our 05 Avalon and it's noisy despite Consumer Reports saying the Premier is a quiet tire. Don't know if it's the tires or the crappy Honolulu roads. The Michelin Pilots we had prior were quieter. Maybe CR is comparing the Michelins to BF Goodrich All Terrain TAs.


Yea, that's the first thing we noticed, is that they were as noisy or noisier than the stock tires!

Originally Posted by addyguy
With 3/32nd's and 4/32nd's of tread left, I'd replace them all, now. That is not very much tread at all, and as you said, in wet conditions they will be really touchy and unpredictable.


This is the way I'm leaning. The mil discount now vs no discount later also helps.

I'm hoping for some good recommendations. Since this is a relatively rare expense, money is (almost) no object.

 

[Rand]

Those start at 8.5/32, its ok to run them for now but I would research replacement
and buy at an upcoming sale or before you lose your discount.

You should get a prorated replacement value since they wore out in less than half the mileage warranty.
I know at DT they will apply the prorated credit to any tire.. not just michelin replacement.
Check into this with your tire place.

Do you have the 17" or 18" wheels?

 

[IveBeenRued]

Tire Rack recommends replacing tires when you hit 4/32" if wet roads are your only concern. My problem with the Michelin Premier A/S is that it starts off with only 8.5/32" compared to most tires with at least 10/32". Heck, the Yokohama AVID Ascend GT in your size starts off with 12/32", and according to Tire Rack's review, the Yokohamas beat out the Michelin Premier A/S in the wet. https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=237

 

[gathermewool]

Originally Posted by Rand
Those start at 8.5/32, its ok to run them for now but I would research replacement
and buy at an upcoming sale or before you lose your discount.

You should get a prorated replacement value since they wore out in less than half the mileage warranty.
I know at DT they will apply the prorated credit to any tire.. not just michelin replacement.
Check into this with your tire place.

Do you have the 17" or 18" wheels?


I knew they started out low, but I didn't remember the initial tread depth being THAT low!

The tires were replaced by a local shop - not sure their vendor. We'll check with them, though.

All-season wheel is 18"
Winter wheel is 17"

 

[gathermewool]

Originally Posted by IveBeenRued
Tire Rack recommends replacing tires when you hit 4/32" if wet roads are your only concern. My problem with the Michelin Premier A/S is that it starts off with only 8.5/32" compared to most tires with at least 10/32". Heck, the Yokohama AVID Ascend GT in your size starts off with 12/32", and according to Tire Rack's review, the Yokohamas beat out the Michelin Premier A/S in the wet. https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=237


We don't often have squalls here to worry about. My main concern was a general one; moderate-to-heavy rain + low tread depth = high risk.

//

Overall, we both drive pretty conservatively (I'd guess 98% of what the FXT sees), though I'm definitely more aggressive on the back-roads, when we take them. This is my wife's DD, though I drive when we go on any family trips.

We should have gone with more of a GT tire than what we did. IIRC, the Premier A/S had VERY good reviews a couple of years ago, which lead me to choose it over others.

If we drove more aggressively (and didn't mind the low tread-wear rating), we'd go for summer-only tires, but that doesn't really fit our driving style these days. I'm sure I'd be happier with summer tire when I'm carving corners during that 2% of our driving during the year, but the increased wear, noise and sometimes cost don't justify them.

 

[joekingcorvette]

I would replace them since they are getting worn down. I always like brand new tires and you will get less flat tires and they are safer.

 

[shiny]

I highly recommend Cooper CS5 Grand Touring tires. They handle very well and are MUCH quieter than Michelin Premiers. In just under four years I've put 55,000 miles on mine and they still have most of their tread.

 

[Trav]

My wife is on her second set of General AltiMAX RT43 on her scooby, great tire with the AWD. The first set got over 50K out of them.

 

[edyvw]

Originally Posted by gathermewool
We had these tires installed on our Forester XT ~22k miles ago.
The front tires are down to 3/32"; the rear tires are ~4/32"
This doesn't seem very impressive.

Of course, while checking them the other day I found a nail embedded right in the meat of one of the driver-side front tire (i.e., not near the firewall).
Luckily, the tire is holding pressure perfectly and the local Townfair Tire charges only a few bucks for a patch, which we'll take care of this week.

Info:
Tires are only used during the warmer months, so snow isn't a concern; however, heavy rain and the associated increased risk of hydroplaning is a concern with such worn tires.

My wife usually drives locally, though we do tend to take the FXT on longer roadtrips over the Legacy, since it offers extra space for the kiddos.

We have Roadside Assistance through our USAA insurance and I only work 15 min away from home.

Depending on wear, I plan to replace these tires at the end of this summer or next.

Question:

1. Should I replace them now?
Note: I will lose my military discount (local base has a deal going with Townfair Tire) within the next month or so, when I turn in my CAC and leave the Navy.

2. What are your recommendations? I honestly thought the tires had more life left, so I haven't done any research yet.
I've had really good luck with Conti DWS tires (which I also currently have on my Legacy's "summer" wheels), so I might go with them to make things easy.

Can you warrant them? Premier's have horrid longevity. It is known issue. I had LTX version on BMW X5 and in talk with friend at DT he said that Michelin is well aware of the issue. try to get some money back.
Since you have two sets DWS is definitely option, or Michelin Primacy. I would go with full summer rubber.

 

[Gebo]

Michelin has always been very accommodating and fair when I didn't get the mileage under warranty. My dealer just subtracts 1/3 or 1/4 (whatever they were under the warranty mileage) from the new replacement tire purchase. Michelin even gives you your money back when you can go to a different brand. I hardly ever get the warranty mileage but I love getting new Michelins at 2/3's of the new price.

 

[gathermewool]

Thanks for the recommendations, guys. I'll definitely look into seeing if I can get some money back on these tires.

 

[newtoncd8]

Discount Tire credited almost $100 per tire (we only got 28k on the set on our RX330). I put Michelin Defender LTX M/S on as a replacement.

 

[spk2000]

Originally Posted by shiny
I highly recommend Cooper CS5 Grand Touring tires. They handle very well and are MUCH quieter than Michelin Premiers. In just under four years I've put 55,000 miles on mine and they still have most of their tread.


I second the Cooper CS5 but mine are the Ultra Touring. I am sure the Grand Touring are great too. Never had a bad Cooper tire. Most Michelins have been pretty good too with the exception that they all tend to get age cracking and age harden more than other tire brands.

That said I really am disliking Goodyear. I have and continue to try and use them but they often break belts prematurely, tread life wears out too soon and overall tire performance is often subpar. I try to like them but I am just done with GY tires. Current ones on Grand Marquis are GY Assurance ComfortTred. Cannot keep the things balanced. The car starts shaking about every 3,000 miles as the tires keep going out of balance. Get them rebalanced and good for another 3,000 miles. Never had tires lose balance that quickly before.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

The CS5 has 11/32 which is actually better than the standard 10/32, and they are US-made, too

 

[A_User55555]

When I bought my DTS, the previous owner put Premier A/S tires on it. In 30K miles and 3 years, they were down to 3/32" and starting to crack. The Previous Owner lived in New Jersey. Not a "harsh" tire climate.

 

[slo town]

I have the Michelin Premier A/S tires on our Element. I keep detailed records on all our cars. As of today I have just under 53k miles on them. They're getting down there but they should make 60k to 62 without any trouble.

FWIW,

Scott

 

[FowVay]

I have them on my 3 series BMW and they've performed flawlessly. The tread depth did start out lower than the competitors but they've worn even, maintain balance perfectly, and work fabulously in the rain. I am at three years and 35,000 miles on my set and they're no where near ready for replacement.