Michelin's replacement for 225/75 16 LTX M/S2 ?

Here is some rvnet positive reviews of Hankooks as far back as 2011. They have a vg track record , a good option , maybe a little less expensive than some others.

https://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/25570905/print/true.cfm

Our heaviest weigh-in of our small motor home, per-tire weight was as follows.

2055 per rear tire
1630 per front tire

This means I can safely consider standard "E" (115R) rated tires because we have plenty of margin to spare.

I am strongly leaning toward paying more money to get the Michelin Agilis CrossClimate tires which have a max load rating of 2680 per tire. I fear heavier-duty commercial grade tires will yield a rougher ride. Our original Michelin LTX tires lasted us 14 years, and continue with no cracking due to indoor storage. I can't ignore that. I also like the idea of Made-In-USA to support our economy and to better assure quality control, especially concerning rubber compound formulation that is impossible to inspect. Like someone here said, the savings buying tires made over-seas (like Thailand or Vietnam) is debatable, most especially in the case with motor home tires that everyone has issues and concerns over.

There are two different Michelin Agilis CrossClimate, the standard 115R and the "C" commercial grade version.

*8 years out of a tire used on an RV is great. I think all the ducks were in a row for you. Weather, covers from uv, rubber compound used, driving habits etc :C
Normally, people drive their cars often enough to 'spin the tires' to exercise the rubber but on RV's that usually isn't the case.

We try to overcome sitting idle for long periods of time by using our rv for lunch or dinner rides 2x a week. Especially during covid , we look forward to a different piece of scenery other than my 4 living room walls. It makes us appreciate it even more to be looking out our rv window to view nature to just relax and enjoy one another for the time we have.

I think using a product like 303 Protectant helps to protect tires after we wash our rvs and tires with soaps and maybe other tire chemicals that can possibly diminish the natural protective additives in the tire compound .

From a tire article that I had been reading, I condensed it by copying portions . The rest of this post is from a related article , if anyone is interested in reading about RV 'tire life'. :)

* The primary component in any tire is rubber, which could be natural rubber, styrene-butadiene rubber, polybutadiene rubber, or butyl rubber.

OXIDATION
Tires age the same way as humans. As they age, they lose flexibility. Blame oxygen. Elevated temperatures exacerbate the reaction. Anti-aging chemicals, activated by operating temperature, prevent premature cracking, but most all tires depart for the Happy Hunting Grounds by age 10 no matter the tire protection. Some tires, particularly summer tires exposed to winter conditions or vice versa, mature by six.

OZONE CRACKING
Tires may weather faster in urban areas. They degrade with exposure to ultraviolet radiation and ozone, a lightweight gas found in the atmosphere and caused by the partial breakdown of air from atmospheric electric discharges.

HARSH CHEMICALS
Harsh solvents and detergents used to detail tires can indirectly cause cracking. Tires are manufactured with anti-oxidation and anti-ozone protective tire protection layers, which are designed to shield from the solvents, salt, oil and fluids on American roads. Harsh cleaning chemicals can strip a tire of its clothing, as it were, and leave it exposed to ozone and sunlight without UV protection.

BAD DRIVING
Fast ‘n’ furious driving can cause tires to age too soon. So can scraping against a concrete curb. Also, under-inflated or overinflated tires place undue stress on tire sidewalls and cause fissures and flaws.

My Firestone TransForce on front are 8 years old and just this year show signs of cracking. I will replace them this year.

I ran Michelin X tires on my passenger cars for years because they were decently priced, rode comfortably, quiet and generally went the full 80k.
Michelin discontinued the X and introduced the Defender. I bought one set.. loud, poor traction, fast wearing... even though the warranty was 90K. That was the last set of Michelins for me.

I did appreciate the time Michelin recalled the LTX ties that I had bought from Costco for the Four Winds some 4 years prior... they replaced all 6 with the LTX 2, which were 10 times better.

Michelin Tire Recall/Replacement Project

That was 7 years ago, and while I sold the Four Winds, I still store it for the friend who purchased it from me. Those LTX 2's look every bit as good as when I purchased them. (Yes, I know about ageing... but that's HIS problem now!)

ernie1 wrote:
I recently bought 4 Michelin Defenders for my 2007 Tundra and there was no mention from Costco that they were being discontinued.

My guess is they had your size. My tire man tried all his suppliers when I needed a replacement and they were discontinued at that point.

bobndot; if it's my $200 dollars yes it's worth it because it's a matter of principle. Most of my reason for telling my story is to let people know what they are getting when they buy something. In my case, the tire company, Hankook, and the Ford dealerships were much less than honest in warranting their product. I think people want to know this.

I recently bought 4 Michelin Defenders for my 2007 Tundra and there was no mention from Costco that they were being discontinued.

docsouce wrote:
The Thor 22e Freedom Elite is rather light RV. The Michelin LT MS-2's that were the factory tires lasted for 42,000 miles. I too wanted to replace them with the same tire. Research and found the MS-2's and the Defender were discontinued and the replacement tire is the Michelin LT Agilis Cross climate. These were my choice for the replacement.
As for these Hankook tires. As I said,they are new factory installed tires so we'll see what happens. DW and I are leaving for a 4/5 month crosscounty trip. From the East coast to the desert southwest then zig-zag North and back home eventually. I figure about 10 to 12,000 miles. We'll see how they look after that run.

I wonder why the Michelin website still shows the Defender?

The Thor 22e Freedom Elite is rather light RV. The Michelin LT MS-2's that were the factory tires lasted for 42,000 miles. I too wanted to replace them with the same tire. Research and found the MS-2's and the Defender were discontinued and the replacement tire is the Michelin LT Agilis Cross climate. These were my choice for the replacement.
As for these Hankook tires. As I said,they are new factory installed tires so we'll see what happens. DW and I are leaving for a 4/5 month crosscounty trip. From the East coast to the desert southwest then zig-zag North and back home eventually. I figure about 10 to 12,000 miles. We'll see how they look after that run.