Time for tires

[kam327]

OK, then they're aftermarket. 18s are standard on base and XLTs. 20s on Limited and above.

20" polished aluminum wheels are currently a $1,295 standalone factory option on the '19s. I'm sure it was on the '16s too. Why is this so important?

 

[peterk9]

I don't have the 2016 brochure but the 2017 shows the standard tire for the Base and XLT (200A) is the 245/60R18 as mentioned. The 20" Polished Aluminum Wheels were an option with the 201A and 202A packages.

Peter

 

[Jon M]

OK, then they're aftermarket. 18s are standard on base and XLTs. 20s on Limited and above.

I don't have the appearance package either, but these are the OEM polished wheels that come on the limited, and they came on my XLT. My '13 with 202A had 18s, this one has 202B, with 20s.

 

[peterk9]

I don't have the appearance package either, but these are the OEM polished wheels that come on the limited, and they came on my XLT. My '13 with 202A had 18s, this one has 202B, with 20s.

Looking at the 2015 Order Guide Jon, there is no 202B package. The 20" Polished Aluminum Wheels were an option with the 201A and 202A packages just like to 2016.

Peter

 

[Jon M]

Looking at the 2015 Order Guide Jon, there is no 202B package. The 20" Polished Aluminum Wheels were an option with the 201A and 202A packages just like to 2016.

Peter

I can't find my window sticker at the moment, but I swear that's what it said. I thought it was odd, but...

 

[Jon M]

After a bit more driving, I really like these. I can't wait to see how they perform in the rain.

The park I take the dogs to has a fairly loose dirt/dust/small gravel parking lot. With the Hancooks, the slightest touch of the accelerator would spin the front tires. I tried to get these to spin in the parking lot this even, and they wouldn't. No matter what I did, they just bit in and moved me forward.

I got the 109H "XL/extra load" tires (Hancooks were 104H). Some probably won't like the extra stiffness in the sidewalls, but I do. It fits my driving style. It's noticeable on every bump, from speed bumps, to the awful VA parking lot, to the dirt parking lot, to my driveway, I know what they all feel like. The difference is significant, but not at all unpleasant, at least to me.

Let us know how your gas mileage is with the new tires.

That's going to be a bit of a challenge, because I spend a lot of time idling with the A/C on in the summer. I happened to fill up today, but then had to make two stops, with the dogs in the car, so last I looked I was at like 10 mpg on the new tank.

 

[Napalm]

No they're not aftermarket. Still OEM, just an option.

my 2016 is an XLT and it has the optional 255/50/20 wheel and tire. it's an OEM wheel. and OEM fitment.

Optional sure - but still OEM.

 

[Jon M]

Reconfirmed on the loudest, worst road that I drive; these tires are 5 dBa quieter at their worst. Radio off, on the highway, the Hancooks hit 82 dBa, the BFGs peaked for a second at 77, but mostly ran 75 dBa on that stretch of road. For context, 45 mph, all four windows down, and the radio on is 75 dBa.

 

[Jon M]

Let us know how your gas mileage is with the new tires.

My 13 month average has been 17.7mpg. On the way home, I reset the average for a 27 mile, 42 minute, trip that was almost exactly half suburbs (45mph, 6 lane divided highway, with frequent traffic lights) and half interstate, with the last couple of miles being neighborhood roads. It showed 19.6 mpg.

 

[2018explorersport]

My 13 month average has been 17.7mpg. On the way home, I reset the average for a 27 mile, 42 minute, trip that was almost exactly half suburbs (45mph, 6 lane divided highway, with frequent traffic lights) and half interstate, with the last couple of miles being neighborhood roads. It showed 19.6 mpg.

Thanks, that is good to know. I am planning on going with these bf goodrich tires when I need new tires. I have a similar commute.

 

[Jon M]

Thanks, that is good to know. I am planning on going with these bf goodrich tires when I need new tires. I have a similar commute.

Now that I have them, I wish I hadn't waited. That big of a difference.

 

[Michael Lopour]

Now that I have them, I wish I hadn't waited. That big of a difference.

I’ll second that. Really appreciate you sharing your detailed experience and comparison with the board!

 

[Jon M]

Now that I've finally had a chance to drive them in the rain, I can say that these are absolutely the best tires I've driven on in a decade, wet or dry.

The only time I've felt any loss of traction is when making a left turn with very hard acceleration, and that was only on the left front wheel. All other circumstances, wet or dry, hard driving, loose dirt/gravel, they have been rock solid. These are what I've been looking for since the Dueler A/T Revos on my 1999 Explorer.

 

[Ryan M. Coy]

Does anyone have any experience with the Goodyear Assurance line, specifically the MaxLife or ComforTred? Was sold on the Michelian Premier LTX's from all the raving on here, but many of the reviews on TireRack talk about how horrible the tread life has been on them.

Thanks for any insight!

 

[peterk9]

Welcome to the Forum Ryan.
Michelin Premier LTX treadwear ratings are about the same on 1010tires.com. Not very encouraging.

Peter

 

[mercierexp2019]

I'm looking for the quiet tires, does anybody have or run the Bridgestone Dueler H/Ls or the Turanza serenity plus's? looking to compare these two, price is significantly more for the Duelers, yet has a shorter tread warrenty

 

[peterk9]

I'm looking for the quiet tires, does anybody have or run the Bridgestone Dueler H/Ls or the Turanza serenity plus's? looking to compare these two, price is significantly more for the Duelers, yet has a shorter tread warrenty

I did a 'Search' within this thread and didn't find any posts on the Turanza except yours. There were 24 posts with Dueler H/L.

Peter

 

[SQ5]

Just put a set of Michelin Defender LTX M/S XL 255-50/20 on my Limited, replaced the Hankooks, what an improvement!

 

[Jon M]

I just did all of this research, traction, treadwear, noise, and went with the BF Goodrich Advantage Sport LT. Michelin owns Goodrich, and they get better reviews than any of the others.

 

[Explorer XLT 17]

I had 4 BF GOODRICH Advantage T/A Sport LT 255/50R/20XL tires installed today at Andy Shaw Ford in Sylva, NC. The ride home from the dealership was smooth, quiet, and comfortable. At 65 mph, there was no tire noise and the Explorer took the mountain curves with ease. The tread depth appears to me anyways to be much deeper than the original equipment Hankookraps and the tires seem to look wider but are the same size as the originals.

I appreciate the comments made by other posters here about these tires and also the advice to check the tire ratings on Tire Rack.com. The dealer matched the Tire Rack pricing.