Long Lasting All Season Tire Recommendations

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anl0109

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West MI
Given the rate at which tires on my 2014 Mazda5 van are wearing, I'll probably need to get a set soon to put on late this year or early next year. Will probably get a set of snows too.

The vehicle was originally equipped with Toyo A20 205/55R16 89H tires that most owners complained about due to noise, fast and uneven wear, etc. My current set -- two Chinese Goodride SP06 tires and two Kelly Edge A/S tires -- was installed by used car dealer that sold the car and has been on since Sep 2015 (17K miles on these tires now). Mazda dealer performed alignment shortly thereafter also. While this odd set is wearing evenly, it's also wearing at the rate of 1/32nds per 5-6K miles which is a bit faster than I expected. (I'm at 7 to 6/32nds now.) I hope that's normal for this speed rating...

Anyway, I understand that I should stick with H-speed rated tires as opposed to going down to T. I intend to stay with stock size as well. Wanted to get some recommendations from forum members for a high quality long-lasting tire available in the US. This is not a performance car so I'm not really drawn to UHP or other expensive options. Would like to get a tire that will last a good while (60K+ miles), wear evenly and provide good grip and decent MPG.

From doing research, here are some H-rated tires that I am considering:
Continental PureContact
Cooper CS5 Ultra Touring
General AltiMAX RT43
Goodyear Assurance Fuel Max
Goodyear Assurance TripleTred
Michelin Defender
 
Long wearing? You want Michelin. I've gotten 100k miles on a set before - and they still had legal tread.
 
your second (rt43) and third(cs5) choice are the favorites here on BITOG.
i think rt43 may be a bit quieter then cs5 (no personal experience)
with your first choice (conti purecontacts) coming also in the recent reviews as a good choice also.

on my 2013 touring, 205/50/17 i have the cooper rs3-a because DTD online/ebay didnt have the cs5 in stock in my size when i bought them.
they are planted in wet, dry, pouring rain, but (of course) they are not winter tires at all.....

and yes, the original tires i changed them at 24k miles, they allowed the back to "slide" while on a dry ramp doing 30-35 mph
(yay, i have 27.5k miles on the cooper rs3-a... i will have to measure the thread dept)
 
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Thanks for the replies so far - very helpful.

I should correct myself:
Originally Posted By: anl0109
wearing at the rate of 1/32nds per 5-6K miles which is a bit faster than I expected. (I'm at 7 to 6/32nds now.) I hope that's normal for this speed rating...

I hope that this is *not* normal. I hope a high-quality H-speed rated tire can wear slower than this. Is it reasonable to expect 60-70K miles out of a tire with this speed rating or that's only for T and below? (By 60-70K miles I mean wear down to 3/32 or 2/32 tread depth at the worst.)
 
Everyone is pretty happy with Conti True Contacts.

Michelin you pay a bit more but it is hit and miss if you get sidewall cracking after the 3 year mark.

If that isn't a concern the Defender is what I would pick from Michelin if you go with them, they have a buttery smooth tread. But I am doubtful about "light snow" capabilities of the Defender (even when brand new) for people who have mild Winters or you get stuck in an early snowstorm it is nice that they are at least capable in 5cm of slushy snow.

That is why I would go more Conti... They are actually a pretty decent "All Season Tire" in a pinch, not a 3 season tire. Like if you are ON YOUR WAY to get your Winters put on, the TrueContacs will get you there.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Continental&tireModel=TrueContact

Also, tires expire. The tread gets rock hard even if they are "wearing well" so I wouldn't pay too much attention to trying to get a tire that will last forever but break traction when you take off from a red light that changes to green in October/Nov when it is a bit chilly and wet out. No thanks that irritates me beyond belief.

Also General (conti) has the RT43!
 
Originally Posted By: The_German
Everyone is pretty happy with Conti True Contacts.

Michelin you pay a bit more but it is hit and miss if you get sidewall cracking after the 3 year mark.

If that isn't a concern the Defender is what I would pick from Michelin if you go with them, they have a buttery smooth tread. But I am doubtful about "light snow" capabilities of the Defender (even when brand new) for people who have mild Winters or you get stuck in an early snowstorm it is nice that they are at least capable in 5cm of slushy snow.

That is why I would go more Conti... They are actually a pretty decent "All Season Tire" in a pinch, not a 3 season tire. Like if you are ON YOUR WAY to get your Winters put on, the TrueContacs will get you there.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Continental&tireModel=TrueContact

Also, tires expire. The tread gets rock hard even if they are "wearing well" so I wouldn't pay too much attention to trying to get a tire that will last forever but break traction when you take off from a red light that changes to green in October/Nov when it is a bit chilly and wet out. No thanks that irritates me beyond belief.

Also General (conti) has the RT43!


Thanks! I've read good things about TrueContact but I don't believe they are available in my size and speed rating. As to wear, I prefer to replace tires at 6-7 years since mfg date and at 3 or 4/32nds of tread depth.
 
Originally Posted By: anl0109

I hope that this is *not* normal. I hope a high-quality H-speed rated tire can wear slower than this. Is it reasonable to expect 60-70K miles out of a tire with this speed rating or that's only for T and below? (By 60-70K miles I mean wear down to 3/32 or 2/32 tread depth at the worst.)

this is also a function of:
-your local roads
-your local speeds (and if you add/drive on the + side)
-the nut behind the wheel + starts/stops

i would also check any websites: tirerack/dtd/tires-easy/etc for reviews for mazda5 2008-up (2005-2007 where eating tires)

obs: here michelin's are not really loved (they dry rot in the hot climate), but their higher price over 60k-90k-100k miles may not be that higher + 40-50k miles from the snows.... so you're looking at 100k-150k miles of you dodging rust and idiots on the roads

good luck with your choice
 
Originally Posted By: pandus13
your second (rt43) and third(cs5) choice are the favorites here on BITOG.
i think rt43 may be a bit quieter then cs5 (no personal experience)
with your first choice (conti purecontacts) coming also in the recent reviews as a good choice also.


Yes, its seems like RT43 and CS5 are very much liked. I have CS5 Ultras on another vehicle and they are doing well although it's too early to tell after just 9k miles or so.
 
Originally Posted By: pandus13

this is also a function of:
-your local roads
-your local speeds (and if you add/drive on the + side)
-the nut behind the wheel + starts/stops

i would also check any websites: tirerack/dtd/tires-easy/etc for reviews for mazda5 2008-up (2005-2007 where eating tires)

obs: here michelin's are not really loved (they dry rot in the hot climate), but their higher price over 60k-90k-100k miles may not be that higher + 40-50k miles from the snows.... so you're looking at 100k-150k miles of you dodging rust and idiots on the roads

good luck with your choice


Agree about road conditions, starts/stops, etc. In MI, roads are not great and no matter how high the fuel tax is, it doesn't seem to help much although I haven't lived here for too long.

I got 50K+ miles out of pretty basic 40K rated Goodyear-made Kelly Explorer Plus A/S tires (on a different car) so hope that I can get a good set that will last a while.
 
If you want a long lasting all season tire why wouldn't you get t rated? No offense but how fast are you going in a Mazda 5 van? Personally I would go with the Coopers regardless. I had a set of CS4s that wore like iron on my AWD Equinox and from everything I hear the CS5s are even better.

Price wise I am leaning towards Conti Truecontacts when one of my SUVs need new tires. Probably the newer Equinox. As of right now the Michelin Latitudes are looking good.
 
I will only buy Michelin tires for my 1 ton truck and my wifes sedan. As someone who previously sold serviced and installed tires, they are without question the best all around tires money can buy imho
 
Originally Posted By: Bgallagher
If you want a long lasting all season tire why wouldn't you get t rated?

Because he's been reading too much here, and taking everything as gospel when it's really broad-brush generalizations and outdated data.
 
Originally Posted By: Bgallagher
If you want a long lasting all season tire why wouldn't you get t rated?


I have no problem with that other than that I was told that some installers will not install T-rated tires on a vehicle that has H-rated now and from factory. Read on the forum some members having that problem too.
 
Originally Posted By: Ramblejam
Originally Posted By: Bgallagher
If you want a long lasting all season tire why wouldn't you get t rated?

Because he's been reading too much here, and taking everything as gospel when it's really broad-brush generalizations and outdated data.


I'm certainly willing to learn from others. At the end of the day I'll attempt to make the best decision for me based on what I know.
thumbsup2.gif
 
That you're willing to learn is excellent!

However, I caution that before you adopt a position, it's prudent to understand where it originated (someone's just not parroting), what the source is basing their stance on, and the relevance of their data as it correlates to your application (Mazda5 running 2017 tires).

Regardless, good luck!
 
Originally Posted By: Ramblejam
That you're willing to learn is excellent!

However, I caution that before you adopt a position, it's prudent to understand where it originated (someone's just not parroting), what the source is basing their stance on, and the relevance of their data as it correlates to your application (Mazda5 running 2017 tires).

Regardless, good luck!


Agreed - thanks. This discussion has a lot of subjectivity to it but still helpful to me.
 
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Whichever has the best rebates at Discount Tire during one of their holiday sales, will be by far, the best value. Coopers, Generals, or Hankooks, most likely. All are solid offering, especially when you factor in the discounts.
 
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