Tire decision

[gmctodd]

Can someone reccommend me a decent set of tires for my Envoy? The factory Michelin Cross Terrain, IMO, have absolutely no traction. Need something a little more aggressive, but I don't want to hear them. Any suggestions?

Todd

 

[Brian Barnhart]

On what surfaces do you seem to need more traction? Wet, dry, mud, snow, or ice?

 

[spasm3]

I have about 5k on general grabbers, i like them so far. These replaced the michelin cross terrains. I did get a good 50k out of the michelins. but i did not want to spend that much on a 10yr old suv.

 

[gmctodd]

I would say wet,mud,snow.
Our previous Envoy seemed to do much better in the snow,IIRC. It was an 06 with about 23K miles on it. I believe it had Goodyears from the factory.
This past spring we were at an RV show. We had to park in a field and it had rained heavy for a couple of days. We had a heck of a time trying to park. It just wanted to slide sideways, while minivans and FWD cars just drove by us. Pathetic. The Car only has 15K on it so these tires are like New yet.

 

[gmctodd]

Originally Posted By: spasm3
I have about 5k on general grabbers, i like them so far. These replaced the michelin cross terrains. I did get a good 50k out of the michelins. but i did not want to spend that much on a 10yr old suv.
What did you think of the Michelins compared to the Generals? Have the Generals seen any mud or snow yet?

 

[pidster]

I just bought a set of Generals and they are just awesomely sticky. You will hear them a bit though. These are winter tires BTW don't know if that's what you're after.

I hear ya on the junk they install on most new vehicles these days. Goodyear Wrangler RT/S my Ranger came with have to be the worst tires I have ever driven on unless the road is perfectly warm and dry. They seem to want to use hard tires so they last and they can warranty them with little risk.

 

[Corvette Owner]

B F Goodrich Long Trail T/A Tour, put a set on my Murano, like them a lot.

Here is a review from a guy who has a 2002 Envoy (he rated them 9.63 out of 10):

I have had these tires on my truck for 28k miles. I keep my air level at 32psi. Recommended Manufactures Tire Pressure posted on the door. I have not noticed much tire wear on the tire at all. Snow traction in light to over 8 inches truck handled like a dream. Living in Wisconsins snow belt i needed something to handle the winters. This was the right choice. Everyone in town sells Cooper tire. My professional opinion being an auto mechanic these tires out wieght out perform in any condition. I would recommend these tires to everyone i know and the cars i work on. Nothing compares to a BFG as long as you keep it all square on all 4 corners. By the way the tire Presure on the sidewall is a MAXIMUM Tire Pressure Always follow your MAnufacture's Recommended Tire Pressure on the door or OWNERS manual.

 

[Jimmy9190]

I'm not sure about an SUV, but the Firestone Destination LE's on my Dakota have been a very good tire for the price. They have always had great traction in wet or dry conditions but it doesn't snow here so I don't know how they would do in the snow in PA. They run pretty quiet, and the ride quality is still very smooth and comfortable even now with 40K on the tires. The Destination LE is a highway tire, they also have a Destination AT with a more agressive off-road tread that might do better in snow.

The only downside to my Destination LE's was I took a 1-2 mile hit on MPG with them and they are getting a slight bit of road noise now that I have put 40K on them. Even at 40K though they still have what looks to me like another 15K worth of tread left on them. I only paid $422.00 for the whole set mounted, balanced and with a lifetime rotation, balance and road hazard policy. I bought them 2 years ago at Tires Plus. Your SUV probably takes a bigger tire than my truck (mine are 235/75R15) so your size of tire might cost more.

I am starting to shop for tires now myself, hoping there wil be a good Christmas/New Year's/Year End sale on the Destination LE. They are building a new Firestone Total Car Care shop near my house and I hope they will have some good Grand Opening deals. For the price and the ride quality, handling, traction in wet or dry and just being a pretty quiet and good-looking tire, the Destination LE gets my vote for best value for the price.

 

[4ever4d]

General Grabber HTS or Kumho A/T KL61 the KL61 is an A/T tire that dosen't look like an ordinary AT but is snowflake branded for severe winter service.The Grabber HTS is an all season tire just a notch up in traction from the ordinary AS tire,just ordered a set of HTS tires for my brother for his Dodge van from Tire Rack.

 

[spasm3]

Originally Posted By: gmctodd
Originally Posted By: spasm3
I have about 5k on general grabbers, i like them so far. These replaced the michelin cross terrains. I did get a good 50k out of the michelins. but i did not want to spend that much on a 10yr old suv.
What did you think of the Michelins compared to the Generals? Have the Generals seen any mud or snow yet?


no real snow, so far good in light mud, i have not driven in heavy mud. overall better than the crossterrains.

 

[GenSan]

It sounds like you should be looking at AT tires.

Try Michelin AT2's or BF Goodrich AT KO's.

I have the BFGs and they are very smooth and quiet for an AT tire. They will last you a LONG, VERY LONG time.

I bought them 4 years ago with 16/32s of tread depth new.
Nearly 50,000 miles later they are still at 12/32s!

 

[Errtt]

On my SUV, I recently had the General HTS put on. Replaced the LTX which gave a lot of miles.
So far I'm very happy with the HTS.
Spent some time on forums, TR & DT, then went down to DT to have them put on.
I'm still under 5k on the HTS set.

 

[Ramblin Fever]

Bridgestone Revo's are perfect for this situation....my truck was unstoppable with these tires and they are fantastically smooth on the highway.

 

[NHHEMI]

I would not think an All Terrain tire is right for this application. A quality All Season tire makes far more sense. This is an SUV that stays on the road not a 4WD truck that goes mud running or into the back woods on old logging trails. An AT is overkill for the occassional getting stuck in a muddy parking lot and a good AS can handle winter weather just fine. The OP's MPG will suffer a lot, ride quality will suffer, and it will be noiser.

I would suggest the OP look at the following AS tires. They all handle snow well and should handle a muddy parking lot when needed.

My recommendation is the Firestone Destination LE. I LOVE this tire line! I have run them on 2 4WD trucks and 1 AWD GM SUV( Chevy Equinox )and they have performed flawlessly. Handle winter weather with ease and even the occassional muddy boat ramp and dirt road no sweat. Quiet, smooth ride, and very affordable. In my uses they have worn amazing well to boot. Highly recommend them.

Others to consider that do well for the listed needs( in no specific order )...

Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza
General Grabber HTS
Michelin LTX M+S( if you can find them - discontinued a while back )
Michelin LTX M+S2
Mastercraft Courser HTR
Cooper Discoverer H/T

 

[Don_B]

I have Michelin LTX A/T IIs on my Wrangler and Michelin "X"'s on my wife's Cherokee; and love them;
my 83 D 250 Dodge 3/4 ton has a mix; Transforce HTs on front and BFG Commercial LTs (235/85R16 load range E) and in the snow they ain't worth anything! that's an old truck but I still spent the $$ on new tires over the summer and bought what I could afford when I could; I bought them at different times; and I don't care about age; I ain't gettin rid of my truck! I have about 400# in the bed which definitely helps.,

the thought that you dont wanna spend the $$ on tires for a 10 year old vehicle is a batch of hooey unless you truly expect not to have it long; in that case find a set of tires taht are used but better than you currently have. Craigslist is a great source. my Jeeps are both 1997s but I put brand new tires on them, the Wrangler 2 years ago and the Cherokee early this year. and I'll do so again when these are shot. I tend to run the wheels off of a vehicle instead of trading them in regularly; I have never ever had a brand new vehicle and never will. I bought the Wrangler 3 years old and that was the closest I have ever had to new; and I pd more for it than ALL the rest of the vehicles I have owned; so I gotta run it in the ground....

Sometimes you can get a deal on a set of "takeoffs" with
and no, I would not be afraid of 2-3 year old tires that spent that time on a shelf... or tires that are 5+ years old "on the ground"; I have had 18 year old tires thatw ere still in great shape dry rot wise and have seen 4 year old ones cracked deeply around the bead of the rim.... just gotta keep your eye on them.

 

[gmctodd]

UPDATE:

Due to a damaged sidewall I had to replace tires last week.On the recommendation of my local tire guy and countless reviews at Discount Tire Direct I installed Hankook DynaPro ATM RF10's and love them. These tires are quieter and smoother than the Michelins that came off and snow traction is Great! They were $140 each installed w/ 50,000 warranty. I am putting theses on my truck as well.

 

[Ramblin Fever]

Good...those are a sweet A/T tire as well.

 

[Ramblin Fever]

Originally Posted By: NHHEMI
I would not think an All Terrain tire is right for this application. A quality All Season tire makes far more sense. This is an SUV that stays on the road not a 4WD truck that goes mud running or into the back woods on old logging trails. An AT is overkill for the occassional getting stuck in a muddy parking lot and a good AS can handle winter weather just fine. The OP's MPG will suffer a lot, ride quality will suffer, and it will be noiser.

H/T


Sounds like the OP went with a very decent A/T tire anyways.

I'd like to know what A/T tire gave you such a horrible experience to have such bad feelings towards them.

I don't go mud boggin, or fiddling on old logging trails, thousands of truck owners who run a/t tires don't either; but we have experienced much better winter/inclement weather traction with them.

There are a ton of cheap a/t tires that would make you hate your vehicle after mounting them, so that's probably where you've had your experience.

90% of the excellent A/T tires on the market today are not any louder then the stupid Michelin LTX tires that came on my truck from factory....hated them, they couldn't grip a wet surface for anything...the older they got, the louder they got.

Don't know why. But that could be why they've since discontinued that design.

There are incredible all season tires, I'll agree, but there are also some incredible a/t tires that do not rob horrible amounts of gas mileage or ride terrible....and if one is extra concerned of gas mileage, a 4x4 shouldn't be in the equation in the first place, gas mileage and these heavy vehicles do not belong in the same sentence.

Anyways...not trying to start anything, just trying to figure out why so much hate for a/t tires that's all.

 

[gizzsdad]

Originally Posted By: Corvette Owner
B F Goodrich Long Trail T/A Tour, put a set on my Murano, like them a lot.


These were OE on my '07 Frontier and I did not care for them. Worst part was wet traction/stopping (on a 2WD pickup). They were surprisingly quiet and rode decent, as well as seemed to be wearing decent. But I did not want my wife (primary driver) going another winter on these.

I chose Michelin Latitude Tours over the LTX M/S2's, based on Michelin's tire selector ratings for MPG/braking/comfort; 10/10/10(Tours) vs 8/9/9(M/S2's). If these are ever off road - it will be an accident - so that was no factor for us.

So far I am very happy with our decision, these seem to be better in every respect than the BFG's, which seems to match TR's survey results in the Crossover/SUV Touring All Season category.