Nokian tires made in Finland by Nokia (yes that Nokia), which was a rubber manufacturing company before they made phones. Pretty much the gold standard for winter tires here in Finland, but they are not cheap. A set of studded Nokias on my 2wd van is better in snow and ice than any 4wd with all seasons I've ever driven.
That sounds about right. Most OEM tires are only good for about 35-45K max. You really think the manufacturer is going to put top end long lasting tires on a new car being sold at the dealer? They are keeping costs down so they can make a profit and once it's out the door all the maintenance is up to you. I have had great luck with the Michelin LTX MS/2 tires and won't put anything else on my truck. I'm currently at 46K on the last set I bought and during my last state inspection they were only 50% worn. And BTW - Cooper tires SUCK! The only people who buy them are those who are too cheap to buy a decent set of long lasting tires.
Rhe Coopers I put on my Explorer are holding up well. 40K and still looking to get another year out of them...have to see just before next winter though....should be at 55K by then. All easy driving, it is just an Explorer after all.
NTB.. I have a good friend who is the GM @ Peachtree Corners..PM me and I will give you his contact info..
Imo the Michelin is the best tire you are going to get but also pay. Don't have exp with nokian but have heard good. Coopers are fine, they are just a middle of the road tire no pun. I have a set for winter. The cooper ate3 xlt and another have deeper tread than the standard version.
Spitz brings up a valid point, mentioning tread depth. You really have to pay attention to what you’re buying. The cheaper tires don’t have as much depth, which is why they’ll have 40K-45K mile warranties and the premium tires may have up to 75K mile warranty. Also, “P” tires are shallower tread depth and lower load ratings than “LT” tires. When buying online or without being able to visually see the tires before purchase, it can be difficult to determine exactly what you’re buying.
Discount Tire is really lacking, in that department. When searching the manufacturer’s sites, many don’t list tread depth, either. It can be tough to be an informed consumer. I like Discount Tire, because they’re the only place in my area with a road-load balancer. I like getting the printout and being able to go over the runout results with the tire tech and knowing the tires I’ve received have no issues.
Firestone Destination AT! Had two sets of Michelin LTX on my Jeep which is a good tire but Firestone tire blew it out of water with wet, snow and dry traction. I installed Destination tires at 100K and they are about done but after I put on them around 100K (odo reads 195K now). Just food for thoughts, after FS had that fiasco with tires delamination which almost took them out they had to come up with good product... Do your homework.
I’ve recommended the Destination A/T to several people. It is a good tire. They wear well, if properly rotated and pressures kept in check. They do tend to become quite noisy, as they wear down. I know a bunch of people that worked at the plant who manufactured the tires in question. There was a whole lot more going on than was reported. Blame had to be placed somewhere and, unfortunately, it fell on them.
Really? I haven't shopped for skins in a while but I remember them having full specs on everything I was looking at. Yep, you're right. Don't have shit for info anymore. Boo!
I absolutely agree, I rotated mine every 5K when I did oil change and stay on the top of tire pressure. Even with all the miles mine never got noise so that may be result of above actions. Like always there is way more going on than general public is aware of but general public forms opinion based on info that is presented to them. With that said Firestone knew that consumers like you and me are generally deciding factor in keeping their tire production going or not.
Second set on the Dodge and put em on the Ho too. Nice balance of everything for on road and mild off as well as snow and other crap weather.
Think I'm going with the AT3 4S. Lots of feedback on the 4runner forums and a little bit more bite than the Nokians I was considering initially.
The 4s is the one with less tread but I think the xlt and lt which are a bit deeper only come in e rated tires (stiff 10 ply). Mine are decent for snow, expect 35-40k from them. We sell a lot of cooper, seems to be a cost thing, they are a bit cheaper. People around here don't spring 1500 for mich. Even though the value is there.