I (my wife) has a new to us 01 expy eb and I feel it is very touchy on the highway as far as the steering goes.Could it be the tires?or maybe something else. It really hydro-planes in the puddles and the tires are in great shape (2front new, back2 5k) oem equip. Thankns for any help!!!!!!!

 

OEM tires are mediocre at best, terrible and dangerous at worst. Don't wait until you've worn out the shoddy ones, as soon as you can afford it, get Michelin LTX M/S for street and occasional dirt use. Get Bridgestone Dueler REVO A/T tires if you do much in sand, gravel, mud, snow, or ice. The first is great, the second is the best all round tire I've seen in 55 years of driving hard and fast on and off road, bar none.

 

First off, the stock Goodyear Wrangler RT/S' are trash. I'm a salesman at National Tire & Battery, and I try to avoid selling Goodyears because I know they'll be back for warranty problems, which dig into my paycheck.

I enthusiastically agree with the suggestion for the Bridgestone Dueler A/T REVOs if you're looking for a great tire that rides real smooth and still looks tough.

If you want your Expy to ride like a Cadillac, then check out the Michelin Cross Terrains. Very plain looking, and the tamest tread you'll ever see, but they are pretty darn quiet. However, the Bridgestone Dueler A/T REVOs are only slightly noisier (I notice these things; most folks wouldn't) but $70-80 less than the Michelins. Plus they look cooler.

As far as the Expy being touchy at highway speeds, I've seen this problem jump up before. First off, check your tire pressures. I set mine 5psi above factory spec (35 F, 40 R) and it stays firmly planted on the road. Providing that there aren't any mechanical problems in the front end, I would suggest a steering stabilizer (it's basically a shock absorber that dampens vibration and twitches from the from end) which can be had for about $50 or so.

Keep us posted on this.

XXL

 

Matt XXL
Maybe you could offer a suggestion on tires. We just bought a 98 EB w/LLS that has Mich. LTX MSes on it. The rears still have a little life left but the fronts are trashed. The outsides have zero tread and the sidewalls look like the have been scraped up against the curb a few thousand times. I'm thinking I'll just replace all four. This is my wifes truck and will probably never see anything other than a dirt road as far as off-roading (thats what my FJ60 is for) but it will see a fair amount of snow. We live at 5000' in Utah and the in-laws live about 50 miles away in an area that requires traveling over a 9000' pass that is not always plowed the best. I have been considering the Cross Terrains but given my circumstances do you think the Bridgestone's would be better?

Thanks!

Brad

 

I don't mind offering suggestions at all. I have the Cross Terrains on my truck, and I was out and about during this year's east coast blizzard. The Cross Terrains do suprisingly well in the snow. However, I live in Annapolis, MD. If you're anticipating being in the middle of a snowstorm on that 9,000' pass, I would go ahead and get the Bridgestones. They have all the best ratings of ALL A/T tires in tirerack.com (they even beat the BFG A/Ts and Michelin LTX M/S) and like I said, they're quiet and look great.

So basically, if getting stuck on that pass is a bad thing (like "life-threatening" bad), then get the Bridgestones. If it's not too bad, then the Cross Terrains will do.

Once again, IMO, the Bridgestones are just as good as the Michelins, but $70 less. Once these Cross Terrains wear out, I'm putting on a set of Dueler A/T REVOs.

Take care - let me know if you need any more advice.

XXL

EDIT: If the outside tread is at 0, then have the alignment checked. 99% of cars that come into NTB are out of alignment - it never fails.

 

Thanks for the advice! I was planning on the alignment. Nince to have it confirmed! From what you have said I'm leaning towards the Bridge. Which of the two tires will hear better?

Thanks!

Brad

 

I take it you mean "wear better"

The Michelins wear really well - the Cross Terrain has a 65K warranty compared to the Bridgestone's 50K. I personally don't pay much attention to the tread warranty - it's not that the tire won't last past the warranty, it's just that the company doesn't want to be dealing with warranty issues on a tire that's been on the car for a few years (the older and more worn a tire is, the more likely to fail, and everytime somebody gets a flat, they blame a "manufacturer defect" ).

Both tires, IMO, are well constructed. The Michelins have worn very well so far, and I expect the Bridgestones to wear just as well. I wouldn't worry about the Bridgestones falling apart.

Until I read all the literature on the A/T REVOs and put them on my brother's truck, I hated Bridgestone even more than I hate Goodyear. I still think that Bridgestone's car tires are crap, but their truck tires are some of the best in the business, IMO.

Take care!

XXL

 

I"ve had these Bridgestone Dueler Revos now for 11K miles and driven 7K miles of that with the 5K lbs trailer in tow. Every road surface and temperature. They are wearing very, very, little. The tread mold sprues are still sticking out of the edges of the tread in contact with the road! I expect to easily get 60K miles out of these, like I did the Michelins. I always replace when they get down to 3/32.

 

Thanks all! and yes I did mean hear ...I mean wear better!

Brad

 

Costco has a really good sale right now on a set of 4 Bridgestone Dueler Revo tires for $137 each installed and $60 off total price.

You need to coupon and its valid from June 9 to June 29. Basiclly a set of Duelers on and out the door for under $500.... Sweet deal...


Big Mick

 

The Costco by me says they can't get them in 265/70/17s !

 

I encourage you to visit the website and/or contact the folks at Tirerack.com. Personally have great experience with their products and their recommendations. They take into account the dynamics of your vehicle AND how you drive when making tire suggestions. I have Yokohama on one van, Kumho on a truck, Michelin on one car and Bridgestone on the other car.
Their service is good, tires are delivered UPS very promptly. The automotive service center that we use will mount/balance/stem for $7. each - can't lose.

Good Luck

Russ

 

How does the BR Goodrich Long Trail TA work on this verhile? I have them on the explorer and I havnt had a better tire. Great traction and great wear. Any comments?

 

All I can say, is that out here in Nevada, my 285-75-16 BFG AT's work awesome... I have used several tires, and with our desert, BFG's are king. I do say however, that certain Goodyear tires have an excellent tread compound for the street, alittle weak in the side wall area for hard use.

 

Rangerruss, how do you like your Kumho's ? I am about to buy a set of the stx 285/60/18 for a set of lightning wheels im going to put on my expy.