Tire Preferences

[Rick and Mindy]

OK, Here goes, I know that this has probably been discussed on this forum but I can't seem to find the thread. My tow vehicle is a 2011 Ford F350 SRW Long bed and came from the factory with General Grabber tires, size LT245/75R17. As far as I am concerned, the tires are junk. I've already had one tire separate with only 14,000 miles on it. I've always preferred Michelins myself, and have had good luck with them on my Tow vehicles in the past, but I would like to get other opinions on the best tire for a tow vehicle. I am in need of replacing originals real soon and want to make an informed purchase.

[rob_fla]

Our GMC came with Michelins, we have about 58,000 miles on them now, probably good for another 10,000 miles before needing replacement.
I will replace with the same tires.

[atom ant]

I've had Bridgestone OEM, Continental OEM, Michelin OEM, Goodyear OEM, even Firestone OEM. The only complaint I had was the GY Wranglers got a little noisy in time, but they were a pretty aggressive tread. I usually prefer the all terrain over the mud and snow for the truck.

I had Generals back when I had Chevy, and I agree they were terrible. I tore a set up in about 18K miles just occasionally pulling a TT. Won't do Generals.

[Dave&Ginny]

I always bought Michelins but the last 6 tires I bought for the Dually was my last. I couldn't get them to ballance. On top of that, I have had 2 sets on my company vans that cracked so bad on the sidewall we had to replace them and Michelin only offered minimal refund toward new tires.

I'll stick with Bridgstone

[travelin' texans]

My GMC came with Michelins also & have right at 64k on them & plan on replacing with the same tire before hitting the road in the spring, they'll have real close to 70k by then. I've ran several of the other brands mentioned but got no where near the same kind of mileage out of any of them. We had to run GY Wranglers on our company trucks & I wouldn't buy them unless I plan to have them balanced once a month, I think after a few miles they are square & only good for about 25k. Had good luck with Toyos (jap crap) & Yokohama (also jap crap), but they held up better than GY or Firestone.

[sinder]

I've only bought Michelins for the past 10 years. I run the LTX on my truck and currently have about 45K on them with no issues.

Firestone makes a good off road tire with fairly aggressive tread, but probably not best suited for daily highway use. The SouthWest Wildlife Refuges we've been at the past 3 years almost exclusively use Firestone Transforce HT tires on their government vehicles.

[markw]

I've had good luck with Firestone Transforce on 2 trucks. I won't buy Michelins until I'm convinced they no longer crack, long before wearing out.

Mark

[Grizzby]

Have always had excellent service from Michelin's on both cars and trucks.

[mhs4771]

I have a preference for the GY Wrangler Adventurer (previously sold as Silent Armor), they have Kevlar Belts with a farily aggressive tread but still a quiet tire.

[piper guy]

Just put Firestone Transforce HT on the Dually and have to say I'm very impressed. The review on Tire Rack were very good and the price was good. Just did 2000 miles trip and they are nice riding and quiet.

Like Dave, I always had Michelins but the last 2 trucks they were nothing but problems.

[Rick and Mindy]

I will admit the one problem I had with the Michelins was the cracking sidewalls. But I always got high mileage out of them. It looks like Michelin is replacing the LTXM/S with the Defender LTX M/S but I notice the warranty dropped to a 6 year 50,000 miles from the 6 year 70,000 miles on the LTX M/S. Not liking the idea of going with a relatively new tire. Does anyone have any experience with Cooper tires? and if so, which one?

[Titan Guy]

I have replaced the rear with Firestone Transforce HT. I like them so far. I think Bridgestone is one of the finest tire lines in the industry, quality top to bottom. I have an affinity for the Firestone, Bridgestone owned Bridgestone technology, american made at the right price.

[mhs4771]

Had a set of Cooper Discovers on my GM and hated them as they didn't like the front end. Wore very funny and caused vibrations when rounding curves, and it wasn't a truck issue as new GYs have fixed the problem.

[riciren]

Just repalced the Michelin LTXM/S with 21,000 miles and 4 years old due to tire rot from the truck sitting in hot sun and not being used. Bought Bridgstone TA KO2, like the ride with hardly any road noise.

[markw]

Originally Posted by Titan Guy

I have replaced the rear with Firestone Transforce HT. I like them so far. I think Bridgestone is one of the finest tire lines in the industry, quality top to bottom. I have an affinity for the Firestone, Bridgestone owned Bridgestone technology, american made at the right price.

TransForce HTs on mine. 37k 0n them and expect 50+. I've been very happy with them. 83k on the truck without an alignment and tires look good. I do rotate once a year though.

Mark

[Grizzby]

Had one set of Coopers...never again. Had belt separation issues, and excessive tread wear.

Bob

[bull_chips]

I recently replaced the factory tires with Michelins LTX M/S, have about 10,000 miles and no problems. I have also used Cooper Discovers in the past, they were OK, no real problem with them, as well.

[Rick and Mindy]

OK, so I had to make a decision. I narrowed it down to the Firestone Transforce and Michelins. I've always been a Michelin man but Michelin has discontinued the LTX M/S and replaced it with the Defender LTX M/S. Not many reviews on the Defender but I decided to give it a chance. I'm hoping Michelin has improved the cracking sidewall problems. We'll see. Thanks everyone for your input. I'll have to let everyone know how the Defenders are doing as they age.

[Rick and Mindy]

Just an observation I noted yesterday. My son just purchased a new Ram 2500 which came with the Transforce tires. They are Load Range E tires but the sidewall states that for single wheel application the max load is 3,000 lbs with 80 PSI. According to Tire Rack, those tires should have a 3195 max load. Has something changed?

[Titan Guy]

What Size?