Humor me- which tire Destination A/T or LTX M/S

[Blueraven]

99 Explorer Sport 4X4

I know there are many people asking for everyone's opinion, so excuse me for being one of them.

What's your vote?
Firestone Destination A/T- $528 out the door
or
Michelin LTX M/S- $550 out the door

Also, I have on 255 70 R16s,
Would it be wise to go with 265 70 R16s to get the an extra 1/2" of width and would the extra 1/2" be worth $30 for the Firestones or $124 for the Michelins.

Thanks
Blueraven

 

[mattbreaksthings]

Destination A/T fo sho

 

[sport97]

The destination A/T is a great tire. That seems like alot to pay though. I put mine on last year for 450 out the door(same size tire), installed and balanced. My parents put 235's on their bravada for under 400 out the door. I would shop around for the price.

 

[Blueraven]

I've shopped around the Omaha area for the past week and the cheapest place for tires is on the military base. I've retired military. The Firestone Shop wants $155 a tire plus mount and balance.

Perhaps you got a great deal.

Blueraven

 

[toypaseo]

I considered the Destination A/T, but opted for the LTX M/S at the last minute. No regrets there.

The survey ratings on Tirerack are better for the Firestones, all except Treadwear, 8.7 versus 9.1

Going strictly by the numbers, go for the Firestones...

There are alot of people on here that will vote for the Michelins...

 

[CDW6212R]

I wasn't thrilled with the AT, it didn't have the grip I was hoping for(the ratings), and it lasted a little over a year(under 25k). I had the AT's last year, and in December the Firestone store convinced me to take the LE version(AT not in stock).

The LE's are really poor wearing, they handled better but just 9 months to wear them out is bad. I just installed General HTS 245/70/16's last week. These are rated very high also, the rain/snow even better, plus being harder(640). We'll see, my mail truck eats tires, if they can last more than 1.5 years, they are good. Regards,

 

[Blueraven]

I had a set of Michelin's on my Chrysler 300, they only last about 30,000 miles, but boy did they grip the road. I felt like I was Mark Martin taking a turn at Bristol every time I got behind the wheel.

Of course I didn't put them back on due to the wear and went with a BFG. The BFGs started sidewall failing in less than 20K. I'm now on Goodyears.

The tire I really want is the BFG KOs, but I can't see putting $800 worth of tires on a $2000 vehicle.

All that being said, this 99 Sport was bought for my newly licensed Son, so I'm more concerned with traction that wear.

The Destination ATs have good reviews, but so does the LTX M/S. Hence my problem deciding on which.

I guess I'll just have to toss a coin

Blueraven

 

[CDW6212R]

That's why I mentioned the General HTS, it's rated higher than those. It costs less also, I gave just over $450 shipped for these from the Tire Rack. For the 255mm size, figure about $475 for those. I also have them on my wish list for my 98 truck, in case they are still a best buy when I need new tires for it.

 

[bisjoe]

I was considering the same two. In doing my research I discovered the Nokian
Vatiiva A/T and will probably give them a try. No reviews on Tirerack, because they don't sell them. The dealer (Tire Factory) compared them to the Michelin (which he also sells) but at $30/tire less. Nokian developed them in Finland so they are engineered for winter traction which I need on my Ranger.

 

[94xlt4x4]

I've been running the LTX M/S for about 4 years now (roughly 55k miles - maybe another 10k left) and the absolute only complaint I have with them is the amount of sidewall flex. They're a great tire, grip well in rain, snow, etc, but I could never get them to look like they were actually properly inflated. My next tires, FWIW, will probably be Cooper Discover ATRs.

 

[bp1506]

I had the ltx m/s tires and now switched to bridgestone dueler at. I like the dueler at better but wouldn't mind getting Michelin if there was a good deal.

 

[gijoecam]

I had the LTX M/S's on the Explorer. EXCELLENT in everything except mud. (Tread is too fine, so they bald right up). Treadwear couldn't have been better.... 99,960 miles on them when I replaced them. One of the four tires had nine (yes nine!!) patches in it (not the tire's fault), but I had nary a complaint. Quiet, smooth, and they lasted a lot longer than I ever expected them to. One thing to note: IIRC, they recently redesigned them and changed the rubber compounds a little bit. The *old* ones had a treadwear rating of 500, and IIRC, the new ones are a 640 rating... Just something to consider.

On the Tire Rack site, the Firestones get a lot more negative reviews than the Michelins, mostly related to treadware (or more specifically, abnormal treadwear)... IMHO, if it's going to be a daily driver, go with the Michelins. You won't be disappointed.

 

[gtyates]

LTX's. Excellent tire. Quiet on road. Excellent wet and snow grip.

 

[ProjectAviator]

I had the Michelin's on my explorer when I first got her many years ago. they where terrible for off roading. but was decent on the highway. Crappy in the snow too.

Tim