[ethos]

I'd like people's opinion on the best all terrain tire rated for the longest milage. Some A/T tires are only rated for 40,000 miles. Other tires (not all terrain, but all season) are rated for 80,000 miles. Is there a healthy compromise that will be good on and off road and in snow, but also last a decent amount of time?
Opinions welcome
EDIT: I am currently running Yokohama Geolanders 225/70/16 and I'm wondering if I should get another set (I've liked them) or if there is something better for the money.
I have searched and thought this would be a helpful addition for someone doing research in the future.

 

[scorsone]

I run the Firestone Destination LE tires and have 40k on them now and they have loads of life left. They are more on road than off but they are very common on most trucks/suvs in my area. They handle pretty well off pavement. There is a set of destinations that are slightly more off road but I can't remember the letter designations off hand. My tire dealer suggested these over the Yoko's for the price. My wife has the Yoko's on her Rav-4 and they are nice too.

Unfortunately off road/AT tires usually have a softer rubber for the rough terrain and that gets eaten alive by the hard road surface.

 

[helcaraxe]

I put 45,000 miles on Hankook DynaPro M/T's with a heavy-as-heck F250 before I had the E. If they can withstand that much weight and still have tread after all those miles, you know they're good tires. I dunno if they come in a good size for the E, but if they do I'll be replacing the stock tires with them and a better looking wheel eventually.

 

[Teddi]

I've got the BF Goodrich All Terrains in stock size. They currently have just over 60,000 miles on them. Still in great shape too! I imagine I'll probably get 80,000 easy possibly a great deal more.
They cost me around $700 for the set but that includes the road hazard warranty and I had to have one replaced early in it's life from a nail close to the sidewall so it paid for itself!
They are rated for severe snow too (which some of the other AT's aren't) so haven't needed snow chains...kept perfect traction when all the other SUV's were slip sliding all over the roads.
If you can live with the cost and the extra road noise, I highly recommend them!

 

[hownowcb]

I currently have around 55,000 miles on my Pirelli Scorpion ATRs (30x9.5x15R). As you can see from the photo below taken a few weeks ago, they still work fine. It looks to me as if there's another 20-30,000 miles of tread left, though obviously, remaining tread depth won't lend itself so much to rain, mud or snow traction by then. I've been very pleased with them. The ride is much nicer than stock; slightly more road noise, but vastly improved traction and handling in all conditions. I suspect extended tread life is due in part to the Element's light weight, compared to the tire's actual rating. I got them from Discount Tire (great to do business with!), and they weren't particularly expensive.

 

[onetracker]

I really like the Yokohama Geolanders. Look cool too!

 

[helcaraxe]

I currently have around 55,000 miles on my Pirelli Scorpion ATRs (30x9.5x15R). As you can see from the photo below taken a few weeks ago, they still work fine. It looks to me as if there's another 20-30,000 miles of tread left, though obviously, remaining tread depth won't lend itself so much to rain, mud or snow traction by then. I've been very pleased with them. The ride is much nicer than stock; slightly more road noise, but vastly improved traction and handling in all conditions. I suspect extended tread life is due in part to the Element's light weight, compared to the tire's actual rating. I got them from Discount Tire (great to do business with!), and they weren't particularly expensive.

Looks good... what kind of wheels do you have? any close-up pics of the wheels/tires combo?

 

[hownowcb]

My wheels are Enkei RZ-5 420-5656538GM 15x6.5 Gunmetal with a polished lip. I preferred the tall sidewall/small wheel look, more often associated with offroad trucks than the more commonly chosen short sidewall/large wheel look, more often associated with a tuner or street look.

My overall tire diameter/tread width is the greatest that fits inside the fenders without rubbing, except at low speed full-lock turns which one only encounters in parking manoeuvers. My tire and wheel combo cost exactly $1,100.00 including taxes, mounted and balanced.

I'm not sure if Enkei still produces the same model, though I do know they were also available in 16" at the time I bought mine because Empire had the 16" wheels on his.

I've run these rims year-round in Minnesota, and have found them impervious to the tons of road salt used here in winter. I'm also not known for slavishly washing or otherwise keeping my car clean, so I believe they're quite well made and durable.

A couple of things to consider: fuel economy drops because of increased ground clearance, additional weight and width of the tires. There is also a noticeable change in final gearing. RPMs drop at the same road speed compared to OEM, so seat-of-the-pants result feels less peppy. My combo also results in a 5% speedometer error, so an indicated 50 mph is actually 55 mph. I had anticipated all these factors and have been very happy in spite of the tradeoffs.

 

[E277]

Michelin LTX.

Got them at Sam's Club.

I have 75,000 currently and they still look great.

They made it through a 30 inch snow storm a few weeks ago with no problems.

P.S. I saw some Nitto Grapplers today on a 4Runner that looked sweet..... I don't know if they make them in sizes we can run but I would look into them.

 

[BluesforChallah]

I've got the BF Goodrich All Terrains in stock size. They currently have just over 60,000 miles on them. Still in great shape too! I imagine I'll probably get 80,000 easy possibly a great deal more.
They cost me around $700 for the set but that includes the road hazard warranty and I had to have one replaced early in it's life from a nail close to the sidewall so it paid for itself!
They are rated for severe snow too (which some of the other AT's aren't) so haven't needed snow chains...kept perfect traction when all the other SUV's were slip sliding all over the roads.
If you can live with the cost and the extra road noise, I highly recommend them!

Teddi, how do those sound at highway speeds? Loud? Quiet?

 

[Teddi]

Teddi, how do those sound at highway speeds? Loud? Quiet?

Well, I'd say quiter than I thought they would be, but louder than most people would prefer.
If you are in the front seats, it's much less noisy than the back seats. I had a family member who is used to a Prius back there around Christmas and she REALLY thought it was loud. Of course, her car is almost silent.
At this point for me, I don't really notice the sound. But people who aren't used to it always comment.
Highway speeds are significantly quieter than around town. I hope this helps you!