Tires

[Randy J]

Ok, I need some help here. I needed tires for my daughter's car, so I decided to go ahead and work a deal for truck tires at the same time. I went with Discount Tires brand, all terrian in a 285. With the 1st set the back end wallowed around so much I thought I had a flat. I had Discount put new rear tires on. It is better, but still wallower's around quite a bit. Do you think the tires will get better with miles, or should I buck up and spend more money on better tires. If I do, should I get the Goodrich All Terrians in 285's, or the Michelin's M/S in 265's. I had fully intended to get Michelin 265's, but I wanted the A/T, and they're only 6 ply. Only the M/S, and other less agressive treads are 10 plys.

 

[Cooker]

IMO offbrand tires cannot hold up when put on a Cummins. If it were me, and you are not concerned with the size issue, the Michelens are an excellnt tire. I have a set of these on the truck now that I bought used. I've put 15,000 miles on them and they still look as good as the day I bought them.



If you want a little bigger tire the BFG's are nice. I am almost positive they are an 8ply Load D tire so you might want to double check that.



Both are excellent tires. I think the Michelens will outlast the BFG's. In any case I think you should remove the generic tires on your truck. I think you will always be disappointed with them, especially their longevity.



-Ryan

 

[Randy J]

Thanks. The only concern I have about the michelin's is the tread design. If the A/T came as a load range E, I'd have them by now. Just not sure I'm going to like the M/S. That's why I like the Goodrich.

 

[The patriot]

Hi Randy, how are you doing?

I have the Michelin 265 75 16 M/S tires. I've only had them for about 10K miles, but they seem to be wearing well.

These replaced the factory michelin 245 75 16's. (too small) I got over 60K miles out of them. They handled well in the rain right up to the day I got the new ones.

Unless I find a deal on a complete set of 19. 5's , I'll buy Michelins again in a heartbeat.

Eric

 

[Cooker]

Another option for you if you like the Michelin AT's is get a 235/85 size? These are load range E, 10 ply, and they are the same height as the 265/75 only about 1" narrower. Just a thought.



FWIW - I thought the MS's were too mild, but these things were excellent in the snow (I know you don't have to deal with snow). I didn't think they would be a good snow tire because of their mild tread. They sure suprised me.



-Ryan

 

[RT66DOC]

I have 15k miles on 265/75 BFG ATs and like em alot - good handling, quiet, great in snow, and seem to be wearing fine. Even if they only last 30-40k I'd buy another set. Btw, Load Range Ds (265s) are rated for somewhere around 3000 lb - same as the Es (245s).



I don't tow and seldom have anything in the bed so I run pressures of 60 front and 45 rear with RS9000 shocks set at 3 front and max soft (1) rear. I think the ride is about as good as it gets in a Ram, except for the way it skitters and launches off some rough bridge joints on I-40. (New Mexico roads, along with many other things which I will not go into here, suck. ) I'm going to try Rancho Traction Bars in an attempt to minimize the near total loss of control going over those expansion joints I figure it's either that or slow down and go around them on the shoulder which would probably p*** off the nose-to-tail idiot drivers out here.



P. S. Randy, lose the Discount tires -ya get what ya pay for. The berm of our crappy NM roads is LITTERED with pieces of tread and bits of rubber from peeled retreads and blown el-cheapo tires. We've had several fatal roll-overs in the past year - P/U trucks ---> blew a front tire --->over she goes. Think about it... we'd hate to lose you.

 

[Randy J]

Thanks for all the input guys. The house brand tires I've come to find out were made by Goodyear, which I've never liked anyway. Either way they're going. My real dilema is Michelin 265/75/16 vs. Goodrich 285/75/16. I've really grown to like the look of the 285's, not sure if the 265's would look too small or not. As for tread, I've never really liked (the looks of) the Goodrich A/T's - I know I'm weird that way. But I really don't care for the looks of the Michelin M/S either, and just like Cooker, I can't imagine them being very agressive. I may have to start worring about snow in the future, but it's not like I do that much mudding. Looks like both are going to cost about the same, and should last as long, and should handle about the same weight. Just a matter of which tread design I want. Decisions, decisions...

 

[Cooker]

FWIW - My next set of tires (before next winter) will be Dunlop Radial Rover RV's in the 255/85 size. If I lived where it didn't snow, or I was shopping for a summer tire I go with the 285/75 size. Check them out here: http://www.dunloptire.com/products/tire.html?tire=radial_rover_rv



-Ryan

 

[Randy J]

Well, thanks all. I finally decided to go with the Goodrich A/T's, in 285's. I had already switched to a 285 spare, and didn't want to switch all 5 tires. Plus, I just didn't like the looks of the Michelin tread pattern. Drove much better on the way home tonight, so now I'm happy!