Kuhmo and Avon tires- How are they holding up?

[drstan]

I'm looking for new tires for my 2006 LR3 and am wondering how the Kuhmo's and Avons are working for people as far as life of the tires. Has anyone put on 15-20,000 miles on a set and how are they. I see Tirerack has been running a special on the Avons for 99 dollars each. Any info would be appreciated.

 

[mustbeaudi]

Running a $99 special might be what's required after Consumer Reports rates your tires poorly. I used to bottom fish for lowest price tires, but sometimes gave up way more than I saved. Increase your budget a bit, and get that CR report on both AT & highway SUV tires.
So much info available here to use for choosing tire, not just price. No need to buy top dollar Michelin, etc. to get better tires than bottom rung!

 

[franklin]

Agree 100%-spend a little more on tires that have proven to be reliable and you will save in the long run. I hear the coopers and the BFGoodrich fall into tis category.

 

[mustbeaudi]

More on tires:

Avon M500 and M550 series were the two poorly rated ones.
Kuhmo's Road Venture AT was rated 4 of 11 for all terrain tires.
There was a Kelly and a Hankook that tested highly under all season SUV tires, for budget choices.
Head to the library for the 2009 buyer's guide, or I could try to scan and email if there are no CR copyright lawyers lurking about (won't post).

 

[dantheman1]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but weren't the pirelli scorpion ATR listed as #1 all terrain tire according to CR? (I have no account and can't check). It's available right now on tirerack for both 18" and 19" LR3 wheels. I figure if there good enough for Ford to use them as OEM on king ranch trucks, they should be pretty darn good. As you can tell, I'm saving up to get some as my next set (they are $$$).

 

[mustbeaudi]

Scorpion ATR rated 2 behind a Fortera GY, but failed for snow and ice. High all other areas except rolling resistance is high (makes sense if sporting emphasis applies). Good choice, if pricey, for those in warm climates or who use snow tires. OEM selection is not a good guide to tire selection, look at the OEM LR3 tire! I favor OEM brands over private label tires like Avon (simply made for TR with its brand on it, there's actually no more Avon Tyre company and TR just bought the name rights) since they build and design to tough standards, but then I bought less common Kuhmo performance tires once for an Audi with good result.

 

[yrbender]

The ATR are #1 in CR for all-terrain had bad results for ice braking and roll resistance. The yokohama geolander and the bridgestone dueler were the next two.

 

[Houm_WA]

...nevermind that CR is written by a bunch of egg-heads!!!

 

[richpike]

Not sure if this is kosher or not, but this seems like "fair use" to me (I'm not copying all of CR, I'm not gaining from it, etc). Feel free to delete the pics if this violates any rules.

-Rich

All-Season Tire Rankings from CR:

All-Terrain Tire Rankings from CR:

 

[richpike]

BTW - I do enjoy my Consumer Reports subscription, and use it extensively when purchasing baby/child things, but I'm not sure I totally agree with the tire rankings. We have the Grabber AT2s and have been very pleased, while I know someone who has had the Scorpion ATR and was not pleased with them at all.

-Rich