Michelin Destiny or Goodyear Assurance Fuel Max

[Caravanseri]

I'm considering these two tires for a 2003 Dodge Caravan. Cornering, wet traction, snow traction, rolling resistance, and tread wear are important. Comfort and noise are less important. I believe the Goodyear will use less fuel, but I'm not sure about the trade-off in cornering or traction.

With rebates, price is about the same.

Any advice is greatly appreciated!

 

[daves87rs]

I like the Destiny

 

[robshelton]

I've had bad luck with Goodyears and great service from Michelins....

 

[nthach]

Destinys. The Fuel Maxs are nothing more than a refreshed Integrity and should not be used on nothing bigger than a Prius or Civic.

Now, if you need a LRR tire with good traction but also more expensive look at the HydroEdges.

 

[willix]

I am hearing great mileage from Michelin Harmony tire on a Caddy. I run Michelin Semmetry and I think they are real good for MPG. Michelin makes good tires, so does Goodyear but anything in a GY above medeocure is Big$$$.

 

[mrsilv04]

If the price is about the same, then I'd be buying Michelins.

 

[chiefsfan]

Get the Michelins. I compared the Harmony to the Comfortred, which are similar to your comparison. Put one on one car and the other on another. Michelin wins. Goodyears didnt age well and kept loosing their balance. The Harmonys improved the gas mileage. Comfortreds made me loose about 2 mpg on the road. No more Goodyears for me.

 

[mrsilv04]

Originally Posted By: chiefsfan
Get the Michelins. I compared the Harmony to the Comfortred, which are similar to your comparison. Put one on one car and the other on another. Michelin wins. Goodyears didnt age well and kept loosing their balance. The Harmonys improved the gas mileage. Comfortreds made me loose about 2 mpg on the road. No more Goodyears for me.


Similar to your comparison?

The ComforTred is not claimed on its Goodyear webpage to be a fuel saving tire. It's claim is a "smooth, quiet, comfortable ride". I couldn't find any claim of fuel savings.

No real surprise that you lost mpg's with such a tire... that not what that tire is designed to do. It would appear that you set yourself up for a disappointment, in actually expecting a product to provide a benefit that it wasn't designed to provide.


I put a set of ComforTreds on my folks' Park Avenue for ride comfort, which is what they were designed to provide... and they provide it well. Therefore, I wasn't disappointed. We've not seen any noticeable drop in fuel economy either.

They've been on the car for over 20,000 miles and have never been rebalanced, and only rotated once.

 

[chiefsfan]

I was unhappy all the way around with the Goodyears. Michelin and GY were similarly priced and made more for smooth and comfort. I didn't buy them for fuel economy, and I know this is a key issue in this thread.
I rotated them once from car to car, switching the Goodyears with the Michelins because they were the same size on very similar GM rims. I liked the Michelins better in every way. Only got 35K on the GY when it was just downright scary to drive them in the rain. The GY also developed "sidewall hernias" at less than 10K, GY said it was the "strongest part of the tire" and not to worry.
Replaced them with Michelin Primacy MXV4s, and love em. Helped the gas mileage too.

 

[Caravanseri]

Thanks everyone!

Just got the set of P215/R6516 Michelin Destinys (from Discount tire) yesterday. Weather has been dry, so I can only comment on dry traction which seems fine.

However, when compared to the OEM Bridgestone EL42, the Destiny is wandering all over the highway and giving noticeably more rolling than the Bridgestone. The Bridgestone tracked better on the highway and cornered more securely, without rolling like the Destiny is doing. I almost feel like I am now driving a Smart (micro) car with skinny tires, which is making me feel unsafe.

I asked for 44 cold PSI and they said they would put that in; its even written on the invoice. But this morning I checked and had just 39 cold PSI, so maybe adding air will help. If not I will be returning them for something with stiffer sidewalls, but not sure where to go next. The GY has softer sidewalls so it's definitely in the wrong direction. Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance!

 

[WishIhadatruck]

Not all tires like to be aired up beyond the mfg. spec.'s. When I bought my Grand Prix new it had GY Eagle LS tires and the dealer delivered it to me with 44 psi of air in the tires (sidewall max). It rode rough and felt squirely with poor stability. It was MUCH better at 30-35 psi. I later replaced those tires with Bridgestone Potenza RE950's and those handled fine at 30 psi and still felt fine at 44 psi (sidewall max). Perhaps these tires just don't like being overinflated? What is the OEM recommended pressure? Start there and work your way up if you feel like it. I wouldn't just start at the max.

One more thing, I bought a set of tires once that felt less stable until I got a few hundred miles on them. Not sure why. After they were "broke in" they felt stable and worked great.

 

[Hokiefyd]

Originally Posted By: Caravanseri
However, when compared to the OEM Bridgestone EL42, the Destiny is wandering all over the highway and giving noticeably more rolling than the Bridgestone. The Bridgestone tracked better on the highway and cornered more securely, without rolling like the Destiny is doing. I almost feel like I am now driving a Smart (micro) car with skinny tires, which is making me feel unsafe.

Any suggestions?


Boy, I don't know. I'm in pretty much the exact same situation, with vastly different results.

We have a 2007 Chrysler T&C, with the 215/65R16 tires, and the EL42s were the OEM tire. I took them off after only 9,000 miles, they were so bad. Wet traction was very poor. We mounted a set of Michelin X Radials, from Sam's Club. These are functionally the same as the Destiny, but the name is different and the tread pattern is slightly different. But the rubber compound and tire construction are the same. The Michelins are a much firmer tire, much more agile, and overall far superior, in my opinion.

You may need to wait until the mold release wears off the tires. It may take a few hundred miles. I run ours with about 38 PSI in the front and about 36 PSI in the rear (36 PSI is spec for all four corners). I've tried as high as 42 PSI in them, and it definitely firms the tires up, but didn't provide me any fuel economy benefits, so I set them back lower.

In general, I've found Michelin tires to be some of the more agile tires out there. But if you have to make a switch, fortunately, there seems to have been an explosion of new tires available in this size. You may try the Yokohama Avid TRZ. I have those on my Corolla, and they're pretty firm tires. (Too firm for me, in fact, and I'll be putting a set of X Radials on it this Christmas probably.) You also have the new Yokohama Avid ENVigor. The Firestone Firehawk GT is probably a firmer choice as well. You could also try the General Altimax HP. The Goodyear Assurance TripleTred and Michelin HydroEdge both offer good handling as well.

I'd definitely let the Michelins break in some before going back. Because in my experience, there's nothing flimsier than those OEM Bridgestone tires, and if the Michelins seem softer still, I think something may be wrong. Did you have 44 PSI in the Bridgestones also? That may be the difference right there.

 

[Hokiefyd]

So, Caravanseri, any update? It's been a few days. Do the Michelins seem to be wearing in?

I had a similar (but opposite) experience with the Yokohamas on my Corolla. When new, they rode like rocks. I thought they had 60 PSI in 'em. They were at about 32; I set them at 30 and drove around for a few days, hating them the whole time. My wife persuaded me to give it some time, maybe I'd like them. Either that, or the really did break in, but they seemed to really soften up over time (a week or so) and I got to really like them.

I've never had Michelins to exhibit any odd break-in behavior, but maybe they got a bunch of mold release on yours or something.

 

[Caravanseri]

Thanks everyone!

I swapped the Destinys for the Pirelli P4s. What a difference. The P4s corner with confidence and the minivan does not roll in the opposite direction in turns especially on freeway ramps. Forward stability on the freeway is very stable and secure, whereas the Destinys kept swaying the minivan from side to side. I thought maybe my shocks were bad but now I don't think they are. The P4 have a stiffer 2-ply sidewall. The only downside so far is the P4 is noisier.

The Destinys are quieter, may last longer, and may perform better in light snow. Considering my driving style and vehicle, the P4 feels safer while driving especially at highway speeds and in emergency maneuvers, but I haven't made a final decision yet.

 

[Caravanseri]

Originally Posted By: Jason Adcock

Did you have 44 PSI in the Bridgestones also? That may be the difference right there.


Yes, I had 44 PSI in the Bridgestones too. I agree about the poor traction and treadwear. But I found the cornering at 40+ PSI to be good and better than the Destinys at 40 PSI.

 

[sciphi]

Originally Posted By: Caravanseri
Thanks everyone!

I swapped the Destinys for the Pirelli P4s. What a difference. The P4s corner with confidence and the minivan does not roll in the opposite direction in turns especially on freeway ramps. Forward stability on the freeway is very stable and secure, whereas the Destinys kept swaying the minivan from side to side. I thought maybe my shocks were bad but now I don't think they are. The P4 have a stiffer 2-ply sidewall. The only downside so far is the P4 is noisier.

The Destinys are quieter, may last longer, and may perform better in light snow. Considering my driving style and vehicle, the P4 feels safer while driving especially at highway speeds and in emergency maneuvers, but I haven't made a final decision yet.



I've had P4's in 205/70-15 on my Buick LeSabre for the past 40k miles at 40 PSI (sidewall 44 PSI). They still grip like glue, and are still very stable in turns. They did just fine in Buffalo, NY winter snow back in late December, and in the snows we had down here recently. They are a bit noisy, and harder-riding. That's fine with me, as my Buick needs a stiffer tire to even get out of its own way, and I like the tire telling me what the road surface is like.

 

[tomcat27]

whats up with people running so high on the PSI?!?!?

 

[Hokiefyd]

Originally Posted By: tomcat27
whats up with people running so high on the PSI?!?!?


Fuel economy and better lateral response, usually. Also, better wear often times.

 

[sciphi]

Excellent wear. I'm going on ~45k miles on my P4's, and the wear is dead even across all 4 tires. The extra cornering sharpness doesn't hurt, either.

 

[CharBaby]

Originally Posted By: sciphi
Originally Posted By: Caravanseri
Thanks everyone!

I swapped the Destinys for the Pirelli P4s. What a difference. The P4s corner with confidence and the minivan does not roll in the opposite direction in turns especially on freeway ramps. Forward stability on the freeway is very stable and secure, whereas the Destinys kept swaying the minivan from side to side. I thought maybe my shocks were bad but now I don't think they are. The P4 have a stiffer 2-ply sidewall. The only downside so far is the P4 is noisier.

The Destinys are quieter, may last longer, and may perform better in light snow. Considering my driving style and vehicle, the P4 feels safer while driving especially at highway speeds and in emergency maneuvers, but I haven't made a final decision yet.



I've had P4's in 205/70-15 on my Buick LeSabre for the past 40k miles at 40 PSI (sidewall 44 PSI). They still grip like glue, and are still very stable in turns. They did just fine in Buffalo, NY winter snow back in late December, and in the snows we had down here recently. They are a bit noisy, and harder-riding. That's fine with me, as my Buick needs a stiffer tire to even get out of its own way, and I like the tire telling me what the road surface is like.


I too have P4's on my 04 Altima and love em. Great in the Rochester, NY snow thus far and I agree that they ride a bit more firm but, a lb or 2 under recomemded inflation will take care of this without any sacrafice in MPG(none that I have noticed and I check all the time). I have tried more air and the ride only gets harsher without any MPG gains. No extra tire ware from simple tire under inflation by a couple of lbs. But, to each his own! As far as noise, my P4's aren't noisy although they are audible only in the wet. I think it's the sound of water evacuation.