Another Tire Thread - Michelin LTX A/T 2

[JordanB]

Does anyone have any experience with the Michelin LTX A/T 2? I want to maintain as much of the ride/drive quality as well as the long tread life of the original Michelin LTX A/S but I wouldn't mind a bit more traction in the rain, snow, wet grass, and very little mud. I have 70,000 miles on the truck and only rotated the tires once around 37,000 miles and they wore quite well. Remember, tread life and ride/drive quality are of the utmost importance. I ran Perelli Scorpions on my old Dakota and learned the hard way that their ride/drive quality were horrendous! Thanks for any help you guys can give me.

 

[seafish]

Lots of people, including myself, have had only positive experiences and things to say about the Michelin LTX A/T2.

You will lose some tread life, but gain EXCEPTIONAL ride/drive quality AND safety.
I got only 27k out of my set, but then again I have never gotten more then 25k miles from my truck tires, ALL Michelins since I have been old enough to drive.

I am running the Toyo OpenCountry 285/75/17 E right now because I wanted a taller tire in an E rating and Michelin makes their 285/75/15 only in "D". The Toyos drop my highway RPM down to an acceptable 1950 rpm, instead of the 2100 with the oem 265/70/17 E. The Toyos are also an excellent tire, (quiet, stable, smooth handling, good tracking) though like I said , I would prefer the LTX AT2 if they made it in a 285/75/17 E. If the Toyos do not give me more then 30k miles, I may go back to the Michelins and either put a 3. 42 diff in my rear axle, or try to get an updated G56 with the lower 6 speed gears.

For WAY more details, plug in Michelin LTX A/T 2 into the TDR search engine, and you will be able to read for hours, maybe even days... :-laf
But it is pretty much ALL positive. Oo.

Here is a couple of links that deal with them--

https://www.turbodieselregister.com...sion-discussions/189691-michelin-ltx-at2.html

https://www.turbodieselregister.com...210905-michelin-ltx-t2-toyo-open-country.html

 

[jgillott]

We have been through 2 sets of Michelin LTX A/S and now are on our first set of the LTX AT 2 on our '04. 5. Both LTX A/S sets have gone close to 100K and I'd have to check for sure, but I think the AT 2's are in the ~40K range now. That truck sees a lot of highway use, tows quite a bit, and is used off road nearly daily. All and all, the tires are worked hard. Now, I am doubtful that the AT 2's will make it anywhere near that 100K range. But they are offering much better traction off road and in the snow. I can't say anything negative about the LTX AT 2's other than they are becoming a bit noisy as they get some wear on them.



Just a little food for thought, I have had a great experience experience with the new Firestone tires on one of our Chevy work trucks and decided to put a set on my '07 Ram. Having the Firestone Transforce AT's on the '07 and the Michelin LTX AT 2's on the '04. 5, gives me an excellent chance for comparison. So far, both brands have been excellent and I can't really tell any major difference in performance, traction, wear, etc. The Firestones are considerably less expensive than the Michelins, making me seriously consider running them on everything eventually as long as no major factor comes up.

 

[opjohnny]

I have been through a set of the A/S tires, 68k miles. I now have A/T2's with 45k on them. I can tell the A/T2's won't last as long though much better in snow. I would try the new M/S2. It has a 70k tread life warranty. To me it seemed the A/T2 was as quiet as the A/S when new.

John

 

[BarryG]

So far I dont have that many miles (8k) on my A2's but they have done well so far this winter still look new and did very well in the snow. The ride is good. Towing they seem very good but so far have only really seen light towing duty with a 6k trailer.

 

[GCroyle]

I just put 2 AT/2 on the rear of my 2500, wanted a bit more bite on my 2WD for putting the new camper where I need it to be. I only have about 400 miles on them, rear only. Ride, noise no problem. Handled the 8K trailer with ease.



I plan on one more test before I jump the joy dance. I have a spare set of OE Michelin's on rims. I am going to mount them on the rear and take the truck for a test drive again doing a slight L-R-L-R steering wiggle on a flat smooth road. With the AT/2 it seemed that the rear was squirming on the tread block, no proof but the front was definitely wagging the tail. I never tried that with the OE old tires as a base. I should also try towing with the old tires as a comparison also. I brought the TT home on the old rubber, don't remember any tail wagging.



More to learn.



Having the spare wheels and tires, I'll be able to save these for necessary use and wear down the old tires.

 

[HookMeUp]

I bought my set 2 years ago. Great tire, quiet, smooth ride, and great traction in snow and ice. The tire is made in a multi-segmented mold so it is rounder than your average tire. Now for the rest of the story, I will probably need to replace them at the end of this year. They are a soft compound and wear fast. I figure 36K to 40K by the end of this year.

 

[GCroyle]

I removed the new AT/2 from the rear and mounted the old OE Michelins that have about 30K on them, did my L-R-L-R again, same road, same speed. It feels a lot tighter, much less tail wagging.



Is this due to the open tread blocks squirming compared to more of a rib type tread that has 30K on it?

 

[opjohnny]

Correct, plus the the AT/2's start out at 17/32 and the AS is 15/32 tread depth. As the tires age the rubber gets harder. Tread squirm is what I have heard it called.

John

 

[JordanB]

Well I bought the A/T 2's today. Hopefully they'll wear nicely. To me it seems that they may be slightly heavier than the factory A/S; not too bad though. I didn't notice any increase in road noise or squirming, though it's been pretty windy today so that may be skewing my informal test. They look nice on there and time will tell how they hold up!

On a side note, they mentioned my left front inner tie rod had a bit of play in it as did all four balljoints, but they felt it was safe. One of the service writers owns a 2005 Cummins and said all of these trucks' tie rod/ball joints tend to be a bit loose. I know these trucks are notorious for front suspension wear - any thoughts?

 

[rbattelle]

only rotated the tires once around 37,000 miles and they wore quite well. Remember, tread life and ride/drive quality are of the utmost importance.

I'm having trouble reconciling these two statements. If tire life is critically important, why not rotate them?



Ryan

 

[JordanB]

I'm having trouble reconciling these two statements. If tire life is critically important, why not rotate them?



Ryan

Sorry for any confusion. The point I was trying to get across was that I was extremely impressed with the factory Michelin tire wear considering I'd only rotated once in 70,000. I was just trying to find a comparable tire that would hold up to my neglect, but in an all-terrain instead of highway terrain. In other words, I want my cake and eat it too. We'll see how it goes!

 

[Wayneman]

I love mine. Had them on my last truck which I traded in. They had 28,000 on them and the dealer commented that it was nice that my trade-in had such new tires. This truck has had them for 11,000 miles with one rotation at 6000. Great in the snow, quiet, what everyone else has said. No visible signs of wear yet, still look new. One negative, price, $1,000 for a set of 4 seems a little extreme.

 

[HBarlow]

If you do the math Michelins are cheaper to run than the cheaper brands because they will last much longer.

 

[lawdog]

I bought them LTX AT2 and traction ride is good, noise is good, tread wear seems to be choppy, and WAY more nervous feeling with the 40' Gneck race trailer attached. Enough so I am now contemplating a Dually conversion.