Truck tire question/experience

[GMP]

Guys, its time for tires on my '10 toyota Tundra Crewmax. The stock BStone Dueler H/Ts (P metric) seen to be a price point tire and wore fast. My question is would it be a better idea to go to an LT 6 ply "C" rated tire or stick to a high quality P metric of the same size? I'd like less flex in the front tires for a more positive feel, but this is my daily driver and I would not want to kill the milage. I know the 10 ply E tires will do this. Its a fairly heavy truck, a bit more so than an F150. I tow a large pop up a few times a year plus gear and bikes, but no where near the trucks limit. I've looked at all the load specs and would be fine with either. Any experience here?

 

[twowheels]

Lot's of experience, but without giving too much away - does Toyota offer the "C" range tire on a work-truck model of the Tundra? If so, buy that.

Next up would be BFG Rugged Trails.

 

[GasGasDreamer]

when i wore out the cheap stock tires on my silverado and went for the michelin ltx. they meet all the requirements on paper. i really liked them. the truck stopped better, handled better, didnt spin loose as easy, the mpg increased a little i think, they were quieter and i loaded them up past the specs several times with no problems. i paid about 35 extra per tire for the free replacement insurance thing at discount tire and used it twice so that paid for itself. i know this didnt exactly answer your detailed question but i thought it might help.

 

[Stoby]

Tires

used to work at a place that sells tires Lts are what i'd recommend if you're towing and you'll get good wear .2nd on the Michelins

 

[GMP]

I know the tread depth is greater on the LTs, as well as the weight due to the extra plys. I tow but nothing that will push a P metric tire and not real often. I'm considering it for a firmer ride and less wallow in turns, thats basically it. Lots of options in my size. E rated Michelin LTXs are overkill, expensive, and too heavy. I'm looking for anyone with experience going from a P metric to the same size LT C rated AT tire like the Toyo Open Country or Cooper Discoverer.

 

[ScottyR]

Steve prolly knows more than all of us about car/truck engineering.

That being said, I have used several sets of the Cooper Discoverer and really liked them. They rode great and were very quiet.

For some reason, the price got crazy on them in Canada in the last few years so I quit buying them for my shops trucks.

 

[einsteingarage]

3rd on the Michelin's but if price is an issue, I have run the coopers on my toyota also and they were good.

 

[Cruiser]

Id jump to the Lt tire,, p rated are too light a sidewall for the weight of the tundra. They went this way as oem to get the fuel milage down. I recently went with bf long trail touring as they have good wear(60k) and low drag tread, highway design, for the wifes liberty. Decent feel at 115mph and no noise and much better fuel milage than the all terrain firestones that were on it. The michelins are great but cost way more than I like to spend, and I don't notice any extra life out of them. Some do but from my experience when they get down to 20% they don't have very great ride manors, but they will last 60-70k if you run them that long. I also get that milage out of my toyo open country mud terrains on my jeep, just took them off at 74k miles. And even lasting that long I would not buy toyos again. That was only 2 years of driving.

 

[gasgasman]

I used to be a Michelin fan. They just wear out too fast and cost too much.
I have the BFG Long Trails and they are wearing pretty good. Very quiet and excellent wet traction.

 

[Skidad]

Go to this link, pick your catagory of tires and start reading. Have fun

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/index.jsp

 

[GMP]

I've been to all the online sites, and the Tundra forums. Opinions are all over the map, but what is consistent is the fact that LT E rated tires will impact the milage. Figured I'd look for an answer from people I know, if anyone has done it.

Bottom line is with gas at $4 and a 80 mile round trip commute I don't need to kill milage any more than necessary. I think what I have now is a total crap tire for that truck, and a better quality P tire with a 114 load index like the Toyo or Cooper would be fine. LT for a firmer ride sure but not at a big penalty. Maybe it won't matter much as the truck has a lot of torque with the 5.7L

I had Michelins on my first Tundra. They lasted a long time, had a firm controlled ride, but were hard to balance and when they were more than half worn were real slick in the rain. I had Toyos on an older Toyota pickup and they were great.

 

[Eric K]

The thing to keep in mind about tires is that the mfg process has variability.

The 2 key areas are rubber compounding and dimensional precision.
Rubber compounding is a bit of a black art. Some batches are great and have great coefficient of friction (stick to the road) and others harden within a 1-2 years and then have poor grip.

Dimensional variation is what most often causes the balance issues due to poor concentricity of the tire. Balance weights will not effectively fix this problem. If your tire is not concentric (out of round) when mounted on the vehicle get a replacement. This requires a good tire dealer to get the issue fixed if it arises. There are some good tire dealers out there, although few and far between.

My experience is that Michelin has the most consistent mfg processes and the most consistent quality tires. For light trucks Michelin LTX M/S is the way to go. I have had them on a number of vehicles over the past 15 years. I look for used Michelins on Craigs list. It requires patience and persistence, but can pay off in the long run.

I put some 9 year old used Michelin LTX M/S E rated tires that I put on my F-250 this spring. They ride & handle better and stick as well as new Cooper Discover M&S tires and new Nokian Vatiiva tires.

 

[Tlineman]

This one could be argued forever. Too many variables. I have an 04 Chevy duramax 4wd. On my 2nd set of Toyo M55's. They are a heavy duty type M+S truck tire. First set I got 80k, now on my 2nd set and I'm up around 75k on them, they are just about toast. I have never had a flat on any of these tires. I use my truck for hunting, fishing, towing, you name it. For a diesel truck, heavy on the front at all times, this is pretty good mileage.

Needless to say even though they're a little pricey, I'll be buying another set this fall.

 

[GMP]

I think I'm going with a set of Toyo Open Country ATs in load range C. I can get them for $199 ea mounted and balanced. I think it will be a good choice as the Tundra is bigger and heavier than the other half tons. Too much for a P tire but Es are not really neccessary.

 

[mrkartoom]

I used to be a Michelin fan. They just wear out too fast and cost too much.
I have the BFG Long Trails and they are wearing pretty good. Very quiet and excellent wet traction.

Ditto on the BFG Long Trails. I got 78k on a set of them and they still would have passed inspection. Running the Toyo Open Country's now cause I got a deal on them and they seem on par.