Hi Team BITOG,
It's time to replace the tires on our Volvo and I will purchase at Costco, size 235/45/18, and I am considering the following:
- On the cheap
- Firestone Firehawk AS V2 - 50K warranty, $768
- Long lasting- likely the logical choice
- Michelin Defender 2 / X Tour A/S 2 - 80K warranty, $872
- I have these on my son's Sonata and have no complaints at all, but I think I want something with at least a small amount of performance aspirations
- The Performance Choice- maybe a tiny bit worried about noise
- Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4 - 45K warranty, $944
- Probably the one that makes the most sense
- Michelin CrossClimate 2 - $60K warranty, $952
- Also, bonus points for reminding me of the Goodyear Eagle Gatorbacks I had on both of my Mercury Cougar XR-7s
Performance wise, wet weather handling is more important to me than snow (I live in the DFW area and our other vehicle is AWD), and bonus points are awarded for something that has a decent combination of good ride, above average performance, and reasonably quiet. I would appreciate any 1st hand recommendations/opinions (or reliable 2nd hand) please. Thank you!
Also, for what it's worth, this car historically kind of of eats tires, even with no alignment issues and 6K mile rotations, so I expect them to last about 30-50% less than any tread life warranty. The OEM P7s had to be replaced after 20ishK miles, and the current BFG tires are at 3/32 with similar mileage. Car is driven approximately 8-9K miles/year.
I live in Florida. I pay attention to tires (and wheel alignment). I'm performance oriented, more so than many, but I drive moderately. For me, tires are a difficult product to shop for.
I have the Cross Climate II (not Cross Climate I) on a Honda Odyssey. They replaced Michelin MX-3 tires. These are the best 60 Series tires I have had, by a considerable margin. I immediately experienced several differences. The wet weather grip engenders confidence. They're very quiet, and they just feel tight and responsive to me. I chose the Cross Climate tires over the Defenders, and I like that decision. They are somewhat expensive and have a pretty long mileage warranty, but not as good a warranty as the Defender warranty. They are carried at Sam's Club and Costco, for best pricing and warranty. The Tire Rack rating is why I decided on these tires to begin with. I have never bought the cheaper tires, and probably never will.
I wouldn't call them a performance tire, but from my perspective, they come pretty close, considering they are on a minivan. I also have a VW GTi, a sports sedan, and it has Bridgestone RE97AS (225/40-18) high performance tires from the factory, which I don't particularly like. They are getting noisier as they wear. For that car, I will probably get Continental DW or DWS tires when it's time, or when I decide, depending on what's available. I've had enough of the Bridgestone tires.
My other car is a Corvette, with Michelin very low profile Super Sport run-flat tires, with a very stiff sidewall. I should get 30k on the rears, and less on the fronts, due to excess camber on the fronts, but these tires are certainly exceptional. And exceptionally harsh as well. If you are a performance oriented, spirited driver, the Michelin Pilots could be a good choice for you. I don't know anything about these Pilot tires. I have bought the BFG Traction TA or Touring TA tires in the past, and I have been fairly happy with them overall. But tire technology has changed since then, or has, with some tires.
There is a reason you aren't getting good tire mileage on your vehicle. Perhaps your Volvo has a sub-frame alignment problem, which may have been corrected with wheel alignment (at the factory?). Maybe a close examination of the tire wear pattern will tell you why. Over the years, I get the best wear by adding about 5 psi over recommended pressure so it's kept several psi above the recommendation, on average. This makes for a slightly noisier, stiffer ride. It's negligible, but it minimizes edge wear, particularly in city driving. Re: wheel alignment, I set the toe pretty close to zero up front - like 1/16". More toe-in means more scrubbing, but gives more on-center steering feel. Same toe with rear suspension - slight.
Manufacturers specify a range of settings for wheel alignment. Within that range you will find differences in tire wear. When you get an alignment, if it's within range, that's where it will likely end up. If tires don't wear evenly across their width (you didn't say how yours wore) it should be correctible with tire pressure and wheel alignment. A bent rim will accelerate tire wear, and you may not feel a vibrational imbalance with a bent rim. Runout is easy to check with a wheel jacked up. Let something rub on a rotating rim, and look at the gap. As I recall, .004" is a tight spec. Steel rims are allowed more runout than alloy rims in the factory manuals I've seen.
A word on opinions, especially regarding products like tires, where public tech information is extremely limited. Opinions are mostly emotionally based decisions, and tend to conform to the opinions of friends and others. Opinions frequently go unsubstantiated with fact, or nor will they have any significant basis at all. Information is as useful as it is factual and specific. Reviews can be somewhat helpful. But test results form a better basis for tire decisions than subjective opinion from us average folks. I have relied on the Tire Rack website for many years. They have several vehicles in their stable which are used for tire testing. I haven't bought from them because I have beetter options where I live, but I have come to trust their subjective opinions and test results, more so than your average testimonial. I have no connection here, but I have found them to be a better source than Consumer Reports narrow perspective over the years. Like Joe Friday said on the old TV program Dragnet, "Give me the facts, ma'am, just the facts".
