I know exactly what I would put on my own truck because I have been completely satisfied with the Michelin AT2's on two different vehicles.

However, my son just picked up a Nissan Frontier, and he can neither sport the cash for an AT2 option, nor are the AT2's available in his tire size (265-70-R15). The truck is 2WD and will not go off road at all, which means that highway tires is all he needs. He also won't be towing much of anything at all (down the road, a very small trailer with landscaping/lawn equipment)

What I am seeing is the following (highest wear ratings at reasonable costs), and I would greatly appreciate any input from the Brotherhood for those who have experience (positive OR negative) with any of these tires...

Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza Plus
Michelin Latitude Tour
General Grabber HTS
BFG Long Trail T/A Touring


Thanks

 

I've become partial to Toyo's Open Country. I've run there AT's on my F-150 and 250, and their HT on my wifes Outlander. My F-150 was a 2 wd that saw some occasional off road travel, so I opted for the AT's. They worked good, and still had good tread after 3 yrs when i sold it. My F-150 tire size was hard to find in an AT. Still a little pricey up front, but for the tread wear they were worth it in the long run.

 

Thanks, Greg. I'm trying to stay away from typical AT's so he can get more mileage from the tires. Looks like the Toyo's don't even offer a tire in the size he needs, neither does Continental, Firestone, Fuzion, Hankook, Sumitomo, Uniroyal, or Yokahoma... at least they don't show anything on the TireRack site.

 

Here's what's on Toyo's website Toyo H/T
Seems like a small rim for that tire size.

 

Thanks, Greg. That's a nice looking tire.

I keep getting conflicting information on this truck's stock tire size. The TireRack site shows it as 215/65R15, but the door sticker says 265/70R15. I know that what is on it now is a set of nearly bald 225/70R15's, and that at 70 mph (actual) the speedo reads 79 mph, which leads me to believe that the 265 width is the right size.

 

I would trust the door sticker. I gave up on TireRack after having a poor selection for my trucks. And even though Toyo makes tires in the size that fit my truck, TireRack didn't have them.

 

You are correct. 265/70R15 is indeed the correct size.

Call me crazy, but I always try to find the exact brand and exact model of original equipment tires for my replacements. I figure that the OEM's put on the tire that would sell the vehicle on the test drive.

I figure the original tire is also the one that met the fuel economy rating published by the EPA, as well as any other tests the vehicle underwent, including ride, handling, braking, traction, and collision avoidance tests.

Since all that tire evaluation engineering has already been done for that specific vehicle, why not take advantage of it?

 

Hey Pete, I know it's already been pointed out, but I figure I would reiterate anyway. Toyo makes a highway all-season truck tire in a 265/70/R15.

The Open Country H/T Open Country H/T | Toyo Tires looks to be a pretty good tire.

Stewart

 

What tire are they putting on the trucks when they do their safety tests today? Is it the same as what they used in 1999-2003? Do they sell the truck with the same tires they test it with?

I saw this on the Toyo link:

Light Truck Sizes: Limited warranty only; treadwear warranty does not apply.

This one is biting me in the butt... quite literally (vibration). Do the existing tires have even wear?

 

That's a good question. If you have uneven wear you can identify any underlying problems that will shorten the life span of you nice new tires.

 

Even wear on all four corners, and that was one of the things which helped us make the choice on the truck purchase. Evidently, the suspension is in pretty good shape all the way around. Shoot, we bought it with only 100K miles on it.

Granted, though, the PO only got about 30K out of the tires, but they DO appear to be on the "cheapo" side of the tire market, too.

I saw the "does not apply" statement as well, Rich, and it bit me, too.

 

I have the Michelin MS2's on my truck and they are great! They are
guaranteed for 70000 miles and they are one of the best highway tires IMO.

 

I also have the Michelin LTX MS2's on three trucks and they have been great! On the truck that has had them the longest, we are at 60K and it looks like we will get the 70k advertised mileage. And, yes they are a great highway tire, according to the Michelin website they have the longest wear life of their light truck tires even longer than their XPS Rib Summer tire!

Shop for Light Truck Tires | Michelin Tires

And they have them for the Nissan Frontier:

http://www.michelinman.com/tire-sele...2/tire-details

On my van I went through three sets of Toyo Open Country AT's getting no more than 35K and often breaking a belt or getting a sidewall bulge. They may be good for others but not for me.

 

I can't tell if these are rhetorical questions or if you are really seeking answers.

Obviously, the original tires for the 1999-03 are irrelevant to the original tires of the Nissan Frontier. And of course Ford has changed both the tire and the wheel size of today's Super Duties. So "no" on both counts.

That being said, just because a vehicle platform gets some new kicks (shoes), doesn't mean that the original tire that used to be OEM cannot be had. In some cases yes, in some cases no.

In the case of yes... the Prius serves as a good example. The OEM tire that the car was validated with is the Goodyear Integrity. I get 100,000 miles out of a set of tires, and it doesn't really matter what brand. So when I needed new tires, I simply looked at my OEM tire brand and model, and ordered a set of those. That way, I get the benefit of all the engineering I already paid for with the price of the car.

In the case of no... the truck serves as a good example. The OEM tires were discontinued. They proved to be problematic in the field, and Ford replaced them with a different tire from the same manufacturer. So when I got new steer tires, I got the current tire that Ford is using, as the wheel rim size didn't change for my model truck. Again, I get the engineering, testing, and validation all done for free, by just using the same tire as the OEM.

That's how I look at it anyways. Might not be suitable for everyone, because like I say, it doesn't matter what tire I have, I will get 100K miles out of them. Probably because of how we drive. "We'll let you pass, no problem. Yes, of course you can have our right of way, go ahead." It's cheaper in the long run, and we always catch up to them at the next red light.

 

I wonder if that is why they came out with the AT2's and discontinued their original. The original AT's are what I had on my F-150 with no problems. I currently have about a year and close to 20,000 miles on my AT2's on my 250.