Needing new tires

[Barry M.]

I'm needing new skins on the Suburban and looking for a nice ride, good mileage, all around decent tire. The Suburban came with the Firestone Steeltex Radial A/T's from GMC and its time to replace (48000 miles). I have compared the Kelly Safaris, Bridgestones Duelers, and the BFGoodrichs. Any recommendations? I use the vehicle for pulling the boat/camper, and hunting. Its a 1996 SLT 4X4 1500 Series! Thanks- Barry M.

[minneman]

my sub came with the steeltex on, 65000 mi later i needed a new set, the guy at the tire shop sold me on uniroyal,im now wishing id have spent the extra$$ for the steeltex, they will be my next set, minneman

[DaveIN]

A couple of years ago, when I needed new tires, Consumer Reports rated Dunlop as the best tire built for light trucks. I don't know whether that would apply in your case but I would think so.
They were rated so superior that they did not list a second choice.

[AquaMan]

LAST EDITED ON Apr-14-00 AT 09:31AM (CST)[p]I am VERY happy with the Firestone Wilderness AT. I have them on the Suburban and the Explorer. Good traction in snow and water, quiet, and long lasting. The set on the Explorer have over 35K and still look like and drive new. However, ROATAION and PRESSURE are vital to the life of your tires. Keep both on a regular maintenance schedule and your tires will last longer

The recent set on the Burb ran $107 each installed last fall. (4 for 3 sale at Firestone)

AquaMan~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[TBO/MN]

I saw the same Consumer Report, so I went out and replaced the tires on my 92 Ford F-150 4X4(came new with Firestone, junk, lasted 26,000 miles) with a set. MISTAKE! They were not cheap, $114. out the door each, and they lasted 24,500 miles. When I traded the truck they were pretty much all gone. I have to replace the tires on my 97 Suburban now, and have been searching for a good tire for the money, big job. Have narrowed my choices to Cooper Discover and Duralon Baja Radial HT (sold at Fleet Farm) These are not the most expensive tires, but from what I can gather, they give the most for the money.

The Big One

[ccarlson]

I went through the same search for my suburban just last fall. Had decided on the Dunlops (the mid price,not cheap versions) because of the c.r. report the others mention. Dealer misplaced my order 2 times so I looked elsewhere and was glad I did. I ended up getting the Toyo radial open country, E rated. Great Tire, I have about 10k on them so far and they did well this winter and still look like new on the tread. Nice road tire and good for mild off road.

By the way, consumer reports came out with a new rating of these types of tires after I bought mine and they rated the Bridgestone Wilderness AT as the best. (Better check that, I'm going from memory. It would be in about the December issue of last year.) They don't test all makes though and Toyo was not tested so don't know comparison of that.

[AquaMan]

Are you sure that the Wilderness AT is Bridgesone or Firestone. Mine are Firestone.

AquaMan~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[bob oh]

Buy the Coopers; company is located here and they have first rate products.
Bob

[Ernie]

I put Cooper Discoverers on my Dodge 1500 over a year ago and they are working out great. No problems, good ride, good traction in winter, and little visible wear. I keep an eye on rotation schedule, pressure, and alignment.

[MR.Pike]

I own A 95 Ram1500 4x4. Came with Goodyear Wrangler AT's. I had to replace at 35K. Not acceptabe to me. Decide to try the Goodyear WORKHORSE EXTRA GRIP. I replaced that set after 98K on odometer(you do the math). I put another set of the workhorses on again, and with 112K at present they still look mean and have alot of meat yet! I think I can expect the same amount of miles as last time. I have had great luck with these tires, around $130 a piece on sale. Plus I've never got stuck at a landing or when pulling the sleds around this frozen tundra called WISCONSIN,LOL. Good luck on your purchase!
<;{{{{{<<( Mr.Pike P.S. Someone had to represent Goodyear? Didn't they?

[chadk66]

have had two sets of uniroyals on my chevy truck, and both lasted 80,000 plus. Absolutely love em.

[Ron]

I've put two sets of BF Goodrich All Terrains on and each lasted in excess of 60,000 miles. I live in North Dakota and most of my driving is on gravel I'll by them as long as they make them. good luck this season.

[Mike in MN]

I have been running Bridgestone Dueler M/T's on my '94 Dodge Ram 4x4 for around 35k miles now. My one major complaint is that the older they get, the noiser they get. The noise was a factor for me when I bought these tires, and when they were newer, they were pretty quiet. Now they are just way too loud. Other than that they're very good tires as far as durability and traction. Also they don't seem to hydroplane at highway speed like some other aggressive tread tires I've had.

[TBO/MN]

Took the plung, bought the Cooper Discovorer H/T.
Seems to be VERY quiet and much better ride than the old Goodyears. I thought I got a great deal also, $385.23 out the door. I am sure this subject will come up again, so I will report on these tires later.
The Big One

[SweepT]

Have used goodyear ATS's on my trucks and have had nothing but excellent luck. great traction in the mud and snow. have gotten good miles out of them also.

[Snag]

Al though I've never ran them, I would go with your Goodrich option. I recall the Goodrich did very well in the Dec. Consumer Report on LT tires. Buddy of mine has em on his burb and they run smoooth.

As for my burb, the Goodyear RTS's were cupping at 9,000 miles. Pulled them went with Michelin and loved them for 45,000 miles.

Was going to go with the Goodrich on the new set because of the C.R. test but found a helluva deal on Continental's. Don't laugh I said what the h___ is a Continental when my dealer suggested them. They are the OEM tires for Lincoln' Navigator.

6,000 miles so far, smoooooth! Very good in the rain, running true too. Price was one half of new Michelins.

[Bacala]

I bought a set of Cooper Discoverer Radial LT's about 6 or seven years ago for my old beater. (86' Ford 1/2 ton) At that time, everybody and their mother tried pushing Goodyears on me. The price was about the same but the Coopers looked to have a bit more aggressive tread. Well...I have over 50,000 miles on them and they still got about half their tread. Make sure you keep the rated air pressure in them...think thats what kills tires the fastest.

[dahopping]

Two tires I have had and really liked:
1.Goodyear GS-A They wore well and handled very well while still giving a very nice road ride. They have a heavier inside shoulder so they may give some of the extra traction you may want for the hunting applications.
2.Michelin LTX-AS - I have these now and WOW do they have a major league road ride, couldn't beleive the difference. These tires ride better than anything I've ever had on the highway and do fine pulling. They're not very "luggy" so don't know about any off-road apps as I don't do any of that. Definitly worth the money for me.
Open up the pocket book for either of these. Really depends on what your looking for, I go for the Smooth highway ride as a primary need since that is what I ask of my tires the most.

Hop