Yet Another Stupid Tire Thread

[mateored]

Hi - I've read all of the tire threads on the board and looked at most of the tire sites, but I'm still confused about tires. I've got a 2011 LR4 HSE with HD package and 19" stock rims. My OEM Contis are almost bald (my wife has been driving the truck and I wasn't checking recently). I had to replace one of the tires about 8 months ago, so I only "need" 3 tires. I love that the Contis are really quiet on the road and the handling seems pretty good on the road. We live in LA, and 90% of our driving is on SoCal streets and freeways. I want to get a tire that is not appreciably louder on road than the Contis and doesn't get any worse gas mileage.

A few other pieces of information: (1) we drive the truck to a horse ranch every day and drive a short distance on dirt roads (I don't think that really matters - it's not really off-roading); and (2) we go skiing anywhere from 4-12 times a year in the Sierra Nevadas, which can get major snow storms; and (3) on occasions, we drive on dirt fire roads for longer distances in the Sierra Nevadas or in the Santa Monica and San Gabriel mountains to go mountain biking or hiking. Haven't done any real off-roading yet and don't have any specific plans to in the immediate future. The Contis are terrible in the snow and I've had to use my chains in situations I didn't expect to have to. However, it's not practical for us to have dedicated snow tires.

I'm thinking of the Pirelli Scorpion Zeros or Bridgestone Dueler Alenzas. I think the Nokian WGR2's would be over-**** for us in LA.

I don't need the longest lasting tires, just the best for this situation.
Thoughts?

 

[umbertob]

What's wrong with purchasing another set of OEM Contis? Sounds like they do 99% of what you are looking for, save for handling in the snow (the Pirelli P-Zeros and Bridgestones wouldn't fare much better without chains.) If you drive mostly on dry pavement, with little rain or snow, appreciate a quite ride and competent handling, and your off-pavement activities are limited to driving on dirt and fire roads, I don't see anything wrong with another set of Continentals. Or are you unhappy with them because they wear too fast?

 

[mateored]

The Contis are really bad in the snow. According to reviewers, the others are a bit better (but this may not be accurate, who knows).

Also, the Contis are substantially more expensive. According to tirerack.com:

4 Contis = $1192
4 Pirelliis = $1000
4 Bridgestones = $752

Of course, if I get the Contis, I guess I only need 3 of them, so that will save some money. Mostly, it's the snow issue.

 

[PeterA]

I've owned my 2013 LR4 about 2 months and we've been bombarded with bad weather here in the east. I only started researching tires (here) because of the dreadful performance of the OEM Contis on roads where snow hadn't been completely removed. Just yesterday I had Nokian WGR2's installed. I didn't expect to but could feel the difference immediately (on dry pavement); A much smoother (less rigid - the bumps better absorbed) ride, if that makes sense. We are expecting a major storm on Monday. I'll report back on how they perform.

 

[thorgal]

You have made a good choice Peter.

WRG2s are an excellent tires and you won't regret buying them. This is what I had on LR3 for over 50000 miles with super storms in NJ back in 2010 , thru slush, rain and snow and many other hairy mixed conditions .I almost felt too confident driving in snowy, slushy storms , when I had WRG2 installed,.This may be the only tire , that regular LR3, LR4 owners will ever need , with the exemption of moderate to heavy off road.One thing though,this tire will pick up a lot of small pebbles, when traveling on loose gravel roads, which I have done a LOT, many times, traveling thru Maine's back roads and it might get you stuck in mud, but..as any serious off roader , one should have another set of tires for this particular application anyway..

WRG2 got me thru storms, that made plows and fire trucks stuck, not even mentioning other vehicles,it is the only winter tire, that is safe to use all year around, even in 100 degree weather, which we have pretty often nowadays,during summers in NJ.I recently installed them on my wife's Honda civic and even she can feel the difference as she has to drive a 100 miles a day now in unusually snowy and cold winter on East Coast.At first she was skeptical and angry, why so much money , she said, if I can get a cheaper tires , but now she thanks me for that upgrade and I take it , as we married people don't get too many thanks from our spouses nowadays, right?

 

[epiclr4]

Have you looked at the Goodyear Wrangler Adventure that has a thread already started in this forum? I believe the size is slightly larger than stock but out of the people who have tried it I think only 1 out of 4/5 people hasn't liked it.

Something to look into.

 

[mbw]

Have you looked at the Goodyear Wrangler Adventure that has a thread already started in this forum? I believe the size is slightly larger than stock but out of the people who have tried it I think only 1 out of 4/5 people hasn't liked it.

Something to look into.

I agree with this. Don't shy away from the mild A/T tires like those GYs. I dont find my Silent Armors to be loud at all. They probably don't get the same MPG as the contis, but I would expect that. Look at the tires on the prius or the new 'eco' tires out there... pitiful and unsafe IMO.

 

[Lone Star landy]

I put Michelin Latitudes on mine. They ride better and are more quiet than the contis.

 

[epiclr4]

I agree with this. Don't shy away from the mild A/T tires like those GYs. I dont find my Silent Armors to be loud at all. They probably don't get the same MPG as the contis, but I would expect that. Look at the tires on the prius or the new 'eco' tires out there... pitiful and unsafe IMO.

If you haven't watched videos on ECO tires then you really should. Putting those on a vehicle are very dangerous as the tread and compound is purposely made to create very little friction to the road. Breaking distance is instantly increased by 20+ ft when those tires are placed on a vehicle.

 

[PaulLR3]

I have to agree with PeterA & thorgal on tire selection - get a set of Nokian WRG2's and you are good to go on dry, rain, slush & snow.