Tires (again)?

[bogie514]

I have, what I think, is a slightly unusual tire question. I have a Silverado 1500 (Crew Cab, 4wd, LTZ, Z71) and need to replace the tires. This summer we are planning on going on a grand "Out West" tour to include AZ, NM, UT, and CO - and of course will be dealing with Ohio winters. While there we plan on going out into the desert on unimproved roads and into the mountains on the easier trails. With all the freeway driving we are planning, my local tire shop manager highly recommended Michelin LTX M/S2's, claiming that they will have great traction in the situations I described above. I am not sure about how they will do in the unimproved (dirt, 2 track, easier trails) roads in the desert and the mountains. So, I am looking for experiences with the Michelins, comments, and suggestions for other tires.

Thanks!

Tom

[brulaz]

Have had MS2s for several years on a 4x2
Great highway and dry off road or rock tire.
But useless on wet grass and mud, especially on a 4x2.
The Southwest is pretty dry, so should be fine on a 4x4.

[FishOnOne]

My truck csme with Michelins AT2 from the factory and got ~43k miles and then I purchased a set of BF Goodrich AT2 and got ~44k miles. I recently purchased a set of Goodyear Wrangler AT Adventure with Kevlar sidewalls. When I drove the truck I immediately noticed they road smoother than the two previous brands. They are a 60k mile rated tire like the Michelins so we'll see how long they last.

[MVH1]

I'll add a vote for Nitto Terra Grapplers. I Recently put these on my truck and have been very impressed so far. They have had great reviews and mine have a 65,000 mile rating which I th is amazing for a All Terrain tire.

[Charlie_D_]

Cooper HT3 here. Unless they create a problem in the future I will make that a replacement for all my tires in the future.

[cummins2014]

Thunderbolt wrote:
I like my Cooper AT3. Work great in Minnesota winter and on the road. Also wear well.

That would be my choice, either them or the Toyo AT2

[Thunderbolt]

I like my Cooper AT3. Work great in Minnesota winter and on the road. Also wear well.

[blt2ski]

I'll go with Toyo or Cooper generally speaking. No blow outs with those brands of tires. Now Micheblows on the other hand.......too expensive for what you get! IMHO.

Then again, Tires are like truck brands.....everyone had an opinion.....kinda like rear ends, all stink at some point in time......LOLOL

Marty

[Tystevens]

You'll be fine on Michelin MS2s. I live in Utah and have done several 'easy' Moab area trails with them on (Gemini Bridges, Shafer), as well as a couple fairly deep sand routes in the Escalante region, no problems at all.

I used to only run AT tires on my trucks (usually BFG AT), since we like to get off the 'beaten path' every so often. Decided to go with the MS2 last time I needed tires. I didn't notice any decrease in snow or off-road traction. Just less noise and a bit better mpg.

Sounds like a fun trip!

[Greene728]

1st Cooper Discovery AT3
2nd Toyo Open Country AT
3rd BFG AT 2

For price, wear, ride, road noise, traction (on and off road) the Cooper AT3 is top notch IMO. Always at the top of 90% of reviews you'll find on them also.

I'm firmly in the Michelin sucks camp!

[Ductape]

A sidewall cut is more a concern than traction. Firestone AT get great reviews and are priced right usually. I've used them and was satisfied. Made it to the top of Engineer pass with a set of those in 2wd.

[scrubjaysnest]

We use Toyo A/T's, 60k miles on the first set which were rated for 40k. The current set have~40k and about half the tread left with lots of time in the rocks of NM and AZ.

I will never buy another Michelin, the side walls rip out under off road conditions to easily.

[tragusa3]

I just bought a set of the newer version of that, the Defender M/S (in an LT). So, I can't answer your question. 🙂

I'm not worried about off road traction. The trail riding that we've done with our truck in Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, etc. was a snap for our current street tires. We didn't so much as slip on trails that I'm comfortable on.

The traction control on these new trucks is pretty amazing.

[Lessmore]

Had two sets of Michelin LTX M/S tires. Great tires on the highway, never used them off road, so unsure about that application.

[Shadow_Catcher]

Check TireRack ratings Rating