| Author | Message | ||
     Scott Scott (Scottoz) New Member Username: Scottoz Post Number: 30 Registered: 02-2003 |
I am thinking of replacing the factory Michellen 4x4 XPC's with the BF 245/70 ATR - any feedback. They are apparantly the new Silica compound. They are one size wider than standard. I have looked at the archive and it seems there may be trimming needed (series II disco) is that correct? I dont want to sacrifice TOO much on road wet weather performance. Cheers from OZ | ||
| Scott Scott (Scottoz) New Member Username: Scottoz Post Number: 31 Registered: 02-2003 |
...or the Goodyear Wrangler ATR silicas - 245/75/16? | ||
| Kennith P. Whichard III (Kennith) Senior Member Username: Kennith Post Number: 330 Registered: 05-2002 |
Scott, Naa, I have 265/75s on my Disco II with no rubbing. You should be fine with the 245/70's. I have the new mud terrain ta km tread pattern, they run about 32". Until I lifted it they were fine. With the 2" lift, I suppose the castor change caused it, the fronts rub a little with the wheel locked. This is nothing that rednecking around with the bump stops can't fix. They stuff into the wheel wells fine though, with no rubbing, I just did it today. Even the mud terrains handle extremely well on the road, with only a minor loss of wet grip on the tarmac. My old tires were those shitty stock badyears, and these mud terrains are better in every way. I have had them up to 80mph testing them with no vibes or noise. I can't imagine how the all terrains handle, probably better. Stay away from goodyears. Cheers, Kennith | ||
| Leslie N. Bright (Leslie) Senior Member Username: Leslie Post Number: 2041 Registered: 02-2002 |
On a DII, 245/70R16 or 245/75R16 should fit w/o any problems at all... The BFG is a good tire. IMHO, FWIW..... -L | ||
| Jonathan Hensel (Nanoscale) Member Username: Nanoscale Post Number: 41 Registered: 03-2003 |
Kennith so you like the new mud terrains? NO noise or vibes at 80? I've been contemplating them versus the A/T's but they have to put out a nice whirrr at 80. Sticking with your story?  | ||
| Usoff Tsao (Usoff_tsao) New Member Username: Usoff_tsao Post Number: 22 Registered: 02-2003 |
how about that 245/70 or 245/75R16 on a D1? | ||
| Leslie N. Bright (Leslie) Senior Member Username: Leslie Post Number: 2043 Registered: 02-2002 |
Depends.... I put 245/75R16 tires on the D1 I had w/o a lift: I had to trim the rear of the rear wheelwells slightly (check the archives, it's in there somewhere); alternatively, you could fit a bracket to push the rear wheelwells out slightly, instead of trimming. The 245/70 *should* go w/o trimming. What it depends on, though, is which tires, as size can vary by manufacturer, and style; and also on whether or not your D1 has any sag to its springs (ie, age, a '94 on worn, tired springs versus a '99 on not-as-old springs). -L | ||
| Kennith P. Whichard III (Kennith) Senior Member Username: Kennith Post Number: 333 Registered: 05-2002 |
Jonathan, Yeah, I'll stick with my story on this one. They totally blew me away. They say the KM (Key feature Mud) tread pattern was optomised for the highway as well, and I did not believe them. I couldn't see how they could be quieter. Now, if you look in my gallery you will see that I was running the standard issue LR Goodyear Wrangler HPs stock, at about 29" and severly worn. At 80mph those tires were like riding on a pnumatic hammer. The 265/75 R/16 BF Goodrich Mud Terrain TA/KM's I bought actually hold the road better when the pavement is dry. They are noticibly quieter on the road, and I while I have noticed a slight decrease in wet traction, the bite is predictible and consistant (no suprises). It was raining when I put them on, so I got to test them side by side with the Goodyears. I'll stick to my story and reccomend the KMs because they are extremely livable on the road. If you need the All Terrains, though, I suppose they would be even better on the pavement. Look at it this way, those H2s come stock with them, they wouldn't if GM thought there would be a wet traction problem. Cheers, Kennith | ||
| gary pain (Gary_p) New Member Username: Gary_p Post Number: 1 Registered: 04-2003 |
Scott, I run 245/70 16 BFG A/T's on my 95 D1, at the moment I have standard springs and no trimming. I have had no problems with these tyres. I'm soon to be going to 265/75 16's with a 2" lift...I imagine some trimming will be needed with these | ||
| Jonathan Hensel (Nanoscale) Member Username: Nanoscale Post Number: 43 Registered: 03-2003 |
Sweet. Highway manageable muds. I wonder how well they wear... | ||
| Kennith P. Whichard III (Kennith) Senior Member Username: Kennith Post Number: 334 Registered: 05-2002 |
I can't say anything about wear yet, but it seems they are hard enough they should last a while, and the tread is thick enough I suppose they will definately last longer than the 25k the goodyears gave me. I figure they might be good for 30k, but the way I drive... I am unusually hard on my vehicle and it's componants, so if something works for me, you can pretty well bet it will work for most people. Yesterday I was power sliding through gravel and rocks to test the sidewall strength, and I can say that I hit a few that I figured would send these tires to their maker, nontheless, they held up with barely a scuff. I do this sort of thing with everything I buy, I like to test the limits of the merchandise so I can either reccomend it to others or tell them to stay away from it like the plague. One thing I really do reccomend you do if you haven't is trim your front bumper. It does wonders for your front step height, and looks all kinds of good in person. The easiest way is to get a mandrel and cutoff disk set for your power drill and go to town. This will run you about 12 dolars. It is very easy to get a perfectly straight line. You will really be suprised to see just how much clearance you have under there. Cheers, Kennith | ||
| Scott Scott (Scottoz) New Member Username: Scottoz Post Number: 32 Registered: 02-2003 |
Thanks all - just on thing though - why does nobody reccomend Goodyear - have you guys in the US had some bad experience with them? I have got a feeling I read something in a Mag somewhere but cant place it. Thanks again | ||
| Garrett (Rover7592) Member Username: Rover7592 Post Number: 86 Registered: 03-2003 |
I put some Cooper Discoverer S/T's 245/75/16's on, they have more tread than a BFG All-Terrain T/A, and look a little more beefy in my opinion. Also they are a hell of a lot cheaper, i think almost $50.00 a tire cheaper. They have almost zero noise on road (a lot less than BFG), and perform extremely well off-road. Would reccomend this tire to anyone. | ||
| James (Jimmyg) Member Username: Jimmyg Post Number: 226 Registered: 10-2002 |
I had both the Goodyear MTR's and BFG KM's. The GY is a softer rubber and has lasted longer than my KM's. The GY are also quieter on the road. 245/70 fit on my D1 with NO trimming. Go with the Mud tire. You will never regret it if you take your truck off road at least once every 6 months. | ||
| Kennith P. Whichard III (Kennith) Senior Member Username: Kennith Post Number: 336 Registered: 05-2002 |
I'm sorry Jimmyg, But I cannot understand something here. "The GY is a softer rubber and has lasted longer than my KM's" That's an oxymoron. The softer tread tires, like Goodyears, have a shorter treadlife. I suppose that you had some definate driving pattern differences between the tires to produce the results you bring forth. This leads me to assume you wheeled the KMs harder than the Goodyears, and if that's the case, I would assume you had more confidence in the KMs. Also, I have never spoken to anyone who didn't agree that Goodyears are noisy as hell. The quality of the KMs is immediatly apparent upon first glance, the tires are worth the money. As has been said before, the steak is in the sauce, and the truck is in the tires. Cheers, Kennith | ||
| Scott Scott (Scottoz) New Member Username: Scottoz Post Number: 33 Registered: 02-2003 |
Thanks again - the thing that complicates the decision is that both manufactures now use Silica to increase life and they then make the comound softer (so I told) to increase grip. Of course the other issue is "What Do You Use Them For" - I do a lot of sand driving, so the MT's might well reduce my sand ability even going up one size from standard - any thoughts on that? Cheers | ||
| Scott Scott (Scottoz) New Member Username: Scottoz Post Number: 34 Registered: 02-2003 |
Kennith - something that troubles me - I might have misunderstood; if you had a loss (albeit slight) on wet tarmac grip with the Mud Terains on, but were comparing the MT's to a shitty bad year, doesnt that mean the MT's are pretty crap in the wet (tarmac) with say the Michelin 4x4's or other equivalent? Thanks mate. | ||
| James (Jimmyg) Member Username: Jimmyg Post Number: 227 Registered: 10-2002 |
Kennith, That is what I would think too. Maybe Goodyear just has a better/different rubber compound? Once any MT gets chunks missing, they will be louder, not really loud. The GY verse BFG brand new, the GY is quieter. I will say that the BFG is probably less prone to haveing small chunks taken out due to rocks. Both GY and BFG are much better than my other Dunlop MT for sure! Oh yeah, it appears that the sidewalls are thicker on the GY MTR. | ||
| Kennith P. Whichard III (Kennith) Senior Member Username: Kennith Post Number: 337 Registered: 05-2002 |
Scott, The Badyears slid all over the place in hard driving. The KMs only really squeak when powering around a 90 degree turn from a dead stop. I'd wager they give phenominal traction given their mud biased tread pattern. If you are doing a lot of sand driving, you would probably do better with the BFGs more flexible sidewall. You will be routinely airing down your tires and want a rather large contact patch. I'd probably go a little wider as well if you spend that much time in the sand. Cheers, Kennith | ||
| James (Jimmyg) Member Username: Jimmyg Post Number: 228 Registered: 10-2002 |
Kennith, Do you think that all the professional rock-crawlers that use MTR's use them because they have a stiff side wall!?! You sound like you are coming from a background with limited variety of tire use on your rig. Nothing bad but....Anyway, most MT suck in sand due to their purpose. Both the GY and BFG are just modified All-terrain tires anyway. One has more voids in the center, one has more on the sides. Both are good. | ||
| Craig Edmonds (Porkchop) New Member Username: Porkchop Post Number: 5 Registered: 12-2002 |
Scott... are you looking for more of an aggressive look or are you serious about off-road driving. You may want to look at Dunlop Radial Rover RV. 235/70/16. Just a thought guys ! |
