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Tires and WheelsDiscussions and experienced advice about tires, wheels, traction control, proper balancing, improving tire life and more.
This is a discussion thread titled "A DJ Michelin Tire question and thought post", within the Tires and Wheels forum, part of the Technical & Vehicle Assistance Forums category.
Ok I am currently running Big O Xts 10ply and been doing great in the desert terrain rocks and brush. Just the road wear is lacking.
As you are the GURU on Michelins can the sidewalls handle the abuse? I am a little concerned about the tread design as it does not look open enough. But you use them for every purpose from hunting to on the road.
I realize Mesquite can poke most any tire but so far the Xt's been holding up.
So any thoughts comments would be appreciated.
I don't have any experience offroading in desert rocks and brush. So, I have no experience with Michelin tires doing what you want them for. I'm generally pretty easy on tires, intentionally so. To me, "offroad" means "not on pavement". The only offroading that I do is while hunting, typically in farm country.
I might be able to help...maybe...but some of this will be opinion and conjecture, with a lot of web wheeling thrown in.
I ran Big-O XTs for years and loved them in every condition except ice, where the big lugs and lack of siping could be a handful. Offroad, they were great. I don't remember the sidewall plies (not the same thing as ply rating!), but they were stronger than the "street" variety tires I've seen on a few trips (and helped changed after sidewall tears). I suspect they're just a strong (thick) two ply sidewall like most other tires, but any Big-O should be able to help find out.
Michelin does not make a tire for the same conditions. The tire they list as "offroad" is more for gravel and dirt roads, not abusive routes where "road" is too polished a descriptor. If they made a 37" road tire, I'd run it daily...I just had a rental car with Michelins, they were beautiful...but they don't.
The only tires Michelin makes specifically for abusive offroad work are mil-spec tires, for our vehicles they'd probably be the 7.50R16 XL, XML, XZL and other similar treads. I don't offhand know the diameter of those tires, but the 9.0R16 is a 36.5" tire. They wear like iron, are loud, stiff, steel belted with steel in the sidewalls, hardly flex on our vehicles as they're made for much heavier rigs, and handle poor in the wet and on ice and snow as they're not siped at all. Their extreme durability makes them a tire of choice for overland travel, competitions like the Camel Trophy, and other beating around in the bush. They are not rock crawling tires, and they are not pavement tires. As of 11SEP01 they started getting awful hard to find.
If I were you I'd stick with the Big-O XTs...better warrant, ride, availability, and IMHO probably better offroad performance in a wider variety of terrain.
If you're looking for a desert performer with good road wear, the BFG TA/KO has been the "standard" for years, tho recently I've been seeing a few threads regarding problems with quality control. There are quite a few other options worth scrutiny, check out this thread...Toyo, Cooper and Bridgestone are mentioned. Also maybe send LilCuteSurferGirl a PM...she's in the tire business and might have some suggestions.
Michelin does not make anything aggresive enough for you in AZ! You need to get a set of those BFG Krawlers and maybe a set of road tires? You will not find a tire that will give both benefits that equal Michelin wear, their sidewalls are kinda clean and will not take to rock chunking well at all and for their price it would be cheaper to get a tire that can take the abuse you will be throwing at them! Some AT tires will get you fair road performance and i have 2 sets of the LTXAT2's but they are at best an occasional offroad AT application. They are what they are, and just a step above the OEM AS tire but i like them since i have no need to bounce from rock to rock as i did when i was a youngster in Arkansas! Have only a few miles on 1 set and around 1500 miles on my other set and no offroad time on them but they do drive nice on ABQ streets which are similar to your offroad trails!
If you're looking for something to abuse...dunno if you can justify or fit a 35x12.5D16 but these are about as abuse-ready as they come. Saw them in person a couple weeks ago, they're really nasty.
Those are nice looking tires,
My current situation with property in Montana and Arizona both in Rocky country dictate the tire has to be able to get back and forth on the road and still be able to run 80 mph all day. A hard to compromise situation. So looks like a 265x75x16 would be the best bet still instead of the 255x85x16's which requires the pinch weld mod. I am already rubbing the paint off my ARB underneath as it acts like a plow on the approaches. So will need to figure things out soon.
A DJ Michelin Tire question and thought post
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