View Full Version : Who has changed out there original tires?
lgrpup
07-02-2005, 01:58 PM
Last month I noticed my tire was leaking air, when I put it up in the air I found a nice big gouge in the inside sidewall of the tire. After driving around on my darth vadar (sp) rim, I decided to go tire shopping. I was almost blown away by the price of the of original BFGoodrich Opentrails. I called every store that carried it and looked online. I guess this tire was made just for the TB, which makes it pricey. It wasn't a really bad tire, though it seemed to be wearing quickly. So I pondered buying one new BFG now and then having to buy three more probably in the spring time for the big asking price, or getting four new tires of a different brand. After doing some looking around I decided on the Cooper Discoverer ATR. It had a more agrressive look and it cost less than the OpenTrails. I have had Discoverers in the past and liked them, even though Cooper is not a really big brand.
The only thing is now that these tires are on, the TB rides like its going to trip all over itself. The bumps are more pronounced and if I hit bumps while going around a corner I feel like I am going to wiggle right of the road. Which sucks because that and having tons of bumps at an intersection that make your ABS go off when you try to stop are very common in Lansing. Well for whatever reason I decided to check the tire pressure, they had filled these things to 40psi!!! and I only need 32. So I took some air out and I am now at 36psi, I want to get to 32psi but do not want my tire to look flat. I am wondering if that BFG tire was designed to give the TB its good ride and handling, and now that I have something different it handles like crap. Or is it my tire pressure?
Black Ice
07-02-2005, 02:03 PM
Last month I noticed my tire was leaking air, when I put it up in the air I found a nice big gouge in the inside sidewall of the tire. After driving around on my darth vadar (sp) rim, I decided to go tire shopping. I was almost blown away by the price of the of original BFGoodrich Opentrails. I called every store that carried it and looked online. I guess this tire was made just for the TB, which makes it pricey. It wasn't a really bad tire, though it seemed to be wearing quickly. So I pondered buying one new BFG now and then having to buy three more probably in the spring time for the big asking price, or getting four new tires of a different brand. After doing some looking around I decided on the Cooper Discoverer ATR. It had a more agrressive look and it cost less than the OpenTrails. I have had Discoverers in the past and liked them, even though Cooper is not a really big brand.
The only thing is now that these tires are on, the TB rides like its going to trip all over itself. The bumps are more pronounced and if I hit bumps while going around a corner I feel like I am going to wiggle right of the road. Which sucks because that and having tons of bumps at an intersection that make your ABS go off when you try to stop are very common in Lansing. Well for whatever reason I decided to check the tire pressure, they had filled these things to 40psi!!! and I only need 32. So I took some air out and I am now at 36psi, I want to get to 32psi but do not want my tire to look flat. I am wondering if that BFG tire was designed to give the TB its good ride and handling, and now that I have something different it handles like crap. Or is it my tire pressure?
What kind of price did you see for the BFG OT, the cheapest ive seen for them is from tirerack for about 104$ a tire for white letter and 96$ for the black wall for the same tire. local they want about 123$ a tire..
MoJoe
07-02-2005, 05:02 PM
Just purchased a set of Cooper ATR's for my wife's Jeep. She loves them. Price was great also. I have always had good luck with Coopers.
Sinecure
07-02-2005, 07:06 PM
I know hindsight is 20/20, but I would have suggested to you that you put the BFGoodrich OpenTrail tire from the spare onto your good rim, then bought some cheap tire to replace on the spare rim. At least you would have had 4 matching tires, and would have been able to replace them all at a later date when they were good and worn.
lgrpup
07-02-2005, 09:27 PM
Locally it was about $130 a tire plus mounting and all that stuff. I was considering putting the spare on and getting a cheapy, but my tread was actually pretty worn. Which was surprising considering the miles I have on my TB. So I would have probably gotten new tires next year anyhow.
02EnvoySLE Guy
07-03-2005, 12:11 AM
Instead of the Opentrails, you might consider the Rugged Trail T/A.... that's what came OEM on my Envoy; I like them. I'd probably get another set when I replace the tires at the end of this year; I haven't decided if I'm doing that or going the route of Coopers.
MoJoe
07-03-2005, 01:10 AM
I am also considering the Bridgestone Revo ATII's. One of the best tires out there I hear. Just a little pricey. :worried:
Envoy Fan
07-03-2005, 02:09 AM
they had filled these things to 40psi!!! and I only need 32. So I took some air out and I am now at 36psi, I want to get to 32psi but do not want my tire to look flat. I am wondering if that BFG tire was designed to give the TB its good ride and handling, and now that I have something different it handles like crap. Or is it my tire pressure?
Too much or not enough air pressure will affect your ride and handling. :m2:
I don't believe running 32 PSI will make tire look low.
a good tire 2 run is nitto terra grappler i had the on my 94 f/s blazer loved them :D
MoJoe
07-03-2005, 12:43 PM
a good tire 2 run is nitto terra grappler i had the on my 94 f/s blazer loved them :D
The ride nice, and have great traction, but my Silverado ate them up. The tread was to soft for me. But they are a nice tire.
sallen
07-03-2005, 01:29 PM
what about michelin are they any good for our trucks,
shay, its the llama's fault
ScarabEpic22
07-05-2005, 05:19 PM
I just want to replace the tires on my TB with something a little better, my stocks have just reached the wear bar (really bad, I know), and was looking at tirerack.com, and saw a few tires. Any suggestions? Also, is it worth it to have your tires inflated with nitrogen??
MoJoe
07-05-2005, 05:34 PM
I just want to replace the tires on my TB with something a little better, my stocks have just reached the wear bar (really bad, I know), and was looking at tirerack.com, and saw a few tires. Any suggestions? Also, is it worth it to have your tires inflated with nitrogen??
Read this article, it may help you with the choice. http://www.tirelast.com/id15.html
ScarabEpic22
07-05-2005, 06:08 PM
Thanks for the article!!!! This is the best resources in the world! I will definately insist on nitrogen now! :D
02EnvoySLE Guy
07-05-2005, 07:23 PM
Thanks for the article!!!! This is the best resources in the world! I will definately insist on nitrogen now! :D
Good luck finding a place that does it.... I don't know of ANY around here that do.
what about michelin are they any good for our trucks,
shay, its the llama's fault
I'm going to try the Michelin's for $138 a tire. They received a lot better reviews on tirerack than the BFG RT.
I use the recommended pressure for my 2003 TB EXT V-8 which is 30 front, 35 rear. It handles better than with 35 all round, gas milieage is the same.
Envoy Fan
07-06-2005, 12:13 AM
I'm going to try the Michelin's for $138 a tire.
Michelin Cross Terrain are OEM on the Rainier and Envoy. They do a good job for me when I am not running the 20's.
Michelin Cross Terrain are OEM on the Rainier and Envoy. They do a good job for me when I am not running the 20's.
Anyone try the Michelin LTX. They look like they have better grip than the GY Fortera.
Jman423
07-06-2005, 12:24 AM
I think I might have to try that nitrogen thing too!
rcam81
07-06-2005, 12:34 AM
I ran the Michelin LTX on my Chevy Venture van. I went one size larger than stock. I pull a 3000 lb boat and the michelins never slipped on the boat ramps. My BFG's are almost worn out at 25k. I am going to replace them with the LTX's before winter.
sallen
07-06-2005, 02:10 AM
my roommate puts nitro in his tires, he gets it at work, he is a aircraft mech. and they fill the jet's tires with nitro, he swares by it, i wanna do it now lol
shay
02EnvoySLE Guy
07-08-2005, 02:59 PM
I ran the Michelin LTX on my Chevy Venture van. I went one size larger than stock. I pull a 3000 lb boat and the michelins never slipped on the boat ramps. My BFG's are almost worn out at 25k. I am going to replace them with the LTX's before winter.
Are you referring to the Pilot LTX??
my roommate puts nitro in his tires, he gets it at work, he is a aircraft mech. and they fill the jet's tires with nitro, he swares by it, i wanna do it now lol
shay
Yep! I've been an acft mechanic for 19 years. We use liquid nitro in the tires and pneumatic systems.
There are tons of advantages and a few disadvantages. One is availability. Nitrogen pressure does vary with temperature some what. The other is LN is really cold, colder than liquid oxygen. Around -290 F. Yes there is a minus in front of 290. It is still safe to use. Our main protective equipment is a face shield because we are dealing with 300 psi in the tires and up to around 2,100 PSI in the pneumatic systems. Now Liquid O2 is a different story.
I would like to see nitrogen used in tires because it is more stable (acft tires are under a lo of stress) and it is not flammable and can't support combustion. Eventually it will find its way into cars just like so many other aircraft systems have (anti-skid, fly by wire).
sallen
07-09-2005, 10:16 AM
yea i love the airline industry, i originaly started off in that career went to school, and got all my pilot ratings from private, to multi engine commercial instructor, and had a good job here in fl, and lost it aft sept 11th, havnt found anything worth getting back into the industry again, now i make great money running a restaurant for chilis, lol funny where life takes you
shay
rcam81
07-09-2005, 01:16 PM
I had the Michelin LTX A/S. These tires were as good in the snow as they were on the slimy boat ramps.
MoJoe
07-09-2005, 01:19 PM
Michelin tires are among the best out there, just so darn pricey. But I know you get what you pay for. :)
homertime
08-04-2005, 11:16 AM
I am also considering the Bridgestone Revo ATII's. One of the best tires out there I hear. Just a little pricey. :worried:
I second this one
Bridgestone Dueler A/T Revo's were the best tire I put on my TB.
The stock BFG's belts broke at about 20,000, so I needed a new tire. Spent a bunch on these, but they were definitely worth it.
The snow/mud traction is unremarkable. Many times I kept my truck in 2Hi when I should have been in 4Hi and had no slippage.
Stopping on ice is the same as any tire... sucks.
The tires are known for better performance in the rain, which I did note.
Only down side of the tire was a slight increase in road noise, and the ride was a little bit rougher then the stock tires. But that's what you get for an A/T tire, if you want closest to stock get the Bridestone Dueler H/T.
bmm354
08-04-2005, 01:48 PM
Michelin Cross Terrain are OEM on the Rainier and Envoy. They do a good job for me when I am not running the 20's.
I'll throw in a vote for the Cross Terrains as well. I found out pretty quickly that you're faced with a fairly limited selection if you have the 17" OEM rims. Two of my tires wore out at 60K (orig. from what I could tell) and I just replaced them last month.
There was a $100 Firestone that would have fit, but I wanted to stay away from that brand plus I don't want to experiment and end up w/ something I don't like. I also figured the engineers spec'd the Cross Terrains for a reason. So that's what I went with, which is fine because I've read and heard personally that those are great tires. They were specially developed for SUVs. They are a tad pricey though, about $160 each.
Keep buying those Michelins fellows, they need the money to send my retirement check. :laugh: But they are good tires and as a matter of interest Michelin owns Uni Royal / Goodrich so the same technology goes into those tires also. I think Michelins multi-sector mold is a better process though.
the roadie
08-04-2005, 08:29 PM
I'm strongly leaning towards a set of Goodyear Silent Armors (Wrangler, not Fortera), which just last week started shipping in 265/70/17 size. 2 steel belts plus a kevlar layer, about $170 each.
Seem to have good reviews, and a temporary shortage due (hopefully) to pent up demand.
http://www.goodyearwrangler.com/goodyearwrangler/html/index.jsp
Just waiting for the spacers I ordered to come in so they'll miss the upper control arm.
lt_xtrm
08-05-2005, 01:18 AM
I agree with MoJoe. I work at Discount Tire Company. Michelin tires are one of the highest quality tires out there. I recommend those if you're willing to pay for em.
I have had Cooper Discoverer A/T's on my last two vehicles. Personally I think you can't beat them for the price. I love them on my TB. You can't go wrong with Coopers in my opinion.
p.s. I hated the BFG Open Trails. They had absolutley no grip in snow or wet weather, and they didn't wear for crap.