Buy Michelin A/S or M/S?

[HGDMARTN]

Looks like time to buy a set of tires. Currently have 55k plus on original set of Michelin LTX A/S and could have gone many more if first owner would have rotated. I really like the tires and would like to go back with Michelins but I don't know whether to go with the A/S or the M/S. I have a 2WD that occasionally sees a dirt road or grassy field. My A/S tires have left me spinning in every instance. Will the M/S perform better for me and will it give me the excellent ride and long life like my current set?

I'm open to other brands also if anyone has any that really stand out.



Thanks in advance.

David

 

[fox]

I have had both and the a/s is quieter it will also spin first. A freind has them still on his truck and said he was pulling a trailer up a hill and they spun and concerned him.

I do mostly pavement driving and will be looking for an even more aggressive tire when these are gone. I hope michelin has them, as it is a good brand name, but not the only tire I will consider.



fox

 

[VicR]

LTX A/S discontinued?

I just replaced the tires on mine, and had to search high and low for the LTX A/S. Everyone local told me it had been discontinued and the distributer that handles Northern Nevada didn't even list a stock number for them anymore. The only place I could find them was tirerack.com.



-Vic

 

[Pit Bull]

I have LTX/MS on mine and they spin on the rear when I am in 2wd going up rain soaked paved hill to my house. I have BFG AT/KO's on my Toyota Landcruiser and they stick like glue, but it is AWD. Go to tire Rack on the internet and read their user comments section on the MS and AS for a comparison. Also read the BFG AT/KO comments. The BFG's will be noisier but they are not bad on the LC and as loud as our Cummins engine is I doubt if you would notice. Hope this helps.

 

[Ted Constantine]

I have had both and still have a set of A/S in the garage with very few miles on them. I would say they both leave a great deal to be desired but if I have to choose the A/S rides better, is much quieter and the difference in traction is minimal. I am with pit bull on the BFG ATko. I am running the 295 75 16 right now with 25000 miles on them. They do get louder as they get older as observed on a friends expedition but you can't even begin to tell the difference over the cummins and the traction difference is night and day.



My $. 02



Ted

 

[dan_gilson]

I have the M/S and their traction really sucks. The pretty much look like road tires with the M/S marker. Every time I have gotten into Mud or Snow they have spun. I slightly more aggressive traction tire is what I am looking for. I have about 65K on mine and they get rotated every oil change (5K miles).

 

[Posm]

I have a 4 WD and drive a 60K highway miles per year. I get in the grass and in some sand once in a while. I love my M/S tires. The truck came stock with the A/S tires and they wore good, but I was not satisfied with the wet traction. Most Michelin dealers I talked with said the A/S is not nearly as good as the M/S tire. They told me the A/S was mainly designed for and OEM tire. I can not tell the difference in the ride or the noise between the two tires. I can tell you the same thing the dealers told me, the M/S will wear about 25% longer then the A/S. That has been my experince with the tire. Go to the Michelin web site and they do a good job with the comps.

 

[Forrest]

M/S

The M/S is the best weather traction tire so far. I saw them on a friends truck & asked him why he had them. He got them because of a Hummer tire test experiment where he was the driver. They had a sand, mud & river course set up & the BFG sponsors wanted to see how their mud tire beat the others. He had to back out of the Michelins so as to NOT beat the BFG's. :-laf



He said it wasn't easy because he couldn't get out of the throttle too far because the spectators would hear him throttle back. One of those corporate $ things. Anyway, I had them already & knew how they worked for me ... just made me feel better that I made the right decision.

 

[GFoley]

For what it is worth:



Either tire in a 245/75/16 is rated at 3042 lbs. If you step up to the 265/75/16 you get a tire rated for 3415 lbs. Both ratings are at maximum 80 PSI.

 

[pwknapp]

Try the Michelin XPS/traction. I've been getting 70-80k with 10k rotations. Supposedly built like the big truck tires, just in our size.

 

[BRobertson]

I highly recommend the TOYO Open Country 265 75 16 E rating, 3415lbs at 80psi.

I was unhappy with the OEM Michelins 265 75 16 A/T. They were very prone to side wall failure (first at 22,000 miles). They had no traction in packed snow or ice. They did wear well though.

The Toyos are far stickier on our typical Alaska winter roads and so far seem to be just as good on wet roads. (We get approx 180" of rain here!!)

When I drove home from Washington (where I had the tires mounted) in Feb , I was pleasantly surprised at the great improvement in traction over the Michelins on the Alcan, which was basically 2000 miles of packed snow and a lot of ice.

The TOYOS have a far thicker and stiffer sidewall and don't tend to roll under in a turn.

Bob

p. s. they are also cheaper!!!!

 

[ralphr]

tires

"Try the Michelin XPS/traction. I've been getting 70-80k with 10k rotations. Supposedly built like the big truck tires, just in our size. "



pwknapp, I am glad someone else has these tires. just changed my oem originals to xps. how long have you been using them, and what is your opinion?



thanks!

 

[AlK]

I also run the Michelin XPS traction tire load range E. Have had them on the truck for 10 years and approaching 100,000 K and keep them inflated at approx 75 lbs. They are a little pricey, but that is what the replacements will be.

---

Al

 

[Steve Campbell]

Can anyone ...

post a picture of the XPS???

 

[pwknapp]

As for a picture just go to BFGoodrich web site. I am on my second set of them (BFG/XPS). I've tryed a bunch of other brands and types and I'm sticking with these for hauling. I run 75psi rear,70psi front and balance with Equal powder. They offer a straight highway tread and a traction tread,I use the traction. Sure wish they offered them in a skinny 255 but oh well. JMHO

 

[DHawthorne]

My 96 CDT has the XPS Michelins. 75k on them now. Might go another 10. My 2000 3500 has the LTX M/S. The big differance I've seen in driving both in Florida is the Road Traction in Heavy rain is far better with the M/S than it is with the XPS. My son drives the 96 all the time and had the LTX M/S on his prior truck. He is also of that opinion. The XPS is the best for mileage of any tire out there. I run the M/S only because I go north of I-10 in the Winter some times and XPS don't do good in the snow and ice.



Dave