1 billion passenger cars! Wow. Could you check that empirical evidence for the globe and post how many of those cars use 195/70-14 H rated tires ;)

I am sure there will be 14" tires available for some time. Chinese companies will make them if there is a market.

However, as I mentioned, even right now, we can't find 14" tires with correct speed rating for 107s and sedans that use 205/70-14H or V tires.

For 99+% of the North American market a 14" tire that is rated for 130 MPH max continuous operation (H rated) is irrelevant, hence it falls from production.

Frank. It is true that for our highway speeds, a lower rated tire may suffice. But some jurisdictions, including ours, require the inspector to confirm that the tires installed meet the car manufacturer's specifications. For many of our cars, H or V. I always bought H rated tires until they were no longer available in size required. Some owners have gone to 15" rims where selection is better.

I just got new tires this summer. Maxxis MA-202, they are made in Taiwan. About $50 each, delivered, from walmart.com So far, so good. I could not find any domestically-made tires in my size.

I upsized to aftermarket replica 15" wheels to have a better choice of tires.

I have done that a few times....usually getting away from tall short profile tires. The extra cost of the taller tires can sometimes offset the cost of the new wheels.

You're right. Across the pond, Michelin no longer supplies 195/70 R14 rubber. Continental hasn't for a while either. Very unlikely they'll manufacture more.

The next best option available is the Dunlop StreetResponse 2, which is actually a higher spec tyre than the Michelins. Whatever you buy, don't buy Chinese tyres!

Wondered just what the heck you wanted a snow rated off-road tire for on a Benz, until I saw the signature and remembered what you’re driving. Not that it’s never happened, I’ve seen some cool photos of a bad ass 300SDL with a small lift and off road tires and various other off road gear...

Anyway, for your question - Duratracs will fit the bill quite nicely. Since they came out there seems to be a lot more tires moving in this direction and they have more competition from the big money brands like Toyo and Nitto. They’re a bit of a hybrid tire in a number of respects. The BFG A/T KO 2 would be another similar tire, a small update of a long-standing classic.

I personally run Duratracs year ‘round on my truck. I just moved out to the mountains from the west coast, and they were my go to in the city because they were about as good of a do it all tire I could get. It rains a lot there, and they performed well in the rain due to their tread design and siping. Great resistance to hydroplaning even. Where I live now, it snows A LOT, one of the snowiest places in the continent, with serious mountains... and even the access road you have to take just to get to my property is basically like going up a rough steep forestry road, since it’s private and maintained by just us few residents that use it. I spend a lot of time on forestry roads as well for recreation (hiking, backcountry snowboarding, rock climbing, etc) and wood gathering, so I’ve tested them pretty well in basically all applications. Most aggressive tires will pick up mud, and some are really bad for rocks, but Duratracs have some great design features to try and address that and they tend not to get too caked or throw stones too hard when you hit the highway. One of their only real weaknesses is they don’t have a bulletproof sidewalk and are susceptible to damage in that area. That and a true rock solid winter tire like a Nokian will do better on the real slippery hard pack and ice, and in extreme cold. That said a lot heavy tow’ers and serious off-roaders still make them their tire of choice.

Here’s the thing though - they aren’t quiet. No tire that fits what you’re looking for truly will be, not compared to a glassy set of Michelin’s or whatever, but for a tire of their type the Duratrac is actually considerably quieter. I noticed a big difference from the mud terrain tires that were on my truck when I got it. Not that they don’t have stiff noise competition already anyway from a big old straight piped diesel under the hood, but it’s still noticeable. Hopefully your truck does just fine with them being as it’s so light compared to a tank like mine. I’m fairly confident it will even if it’s a different dynamic.

Good luck and report back!

Thank you for the info, definitely sounds like the Duratracs will be perfect.

The Guard Dogs I'm running now have been absolutely fantastic, but the more they wear the louder they get. Swapped the cheapo Chinese Westlake tires off my utility trailer onto the front of the truck, and the difference was incredible! Can actually talk to my passenger, and hear the exhaust now.

Agreed (assuming you can find them in 14"). I have General RT43's on my 124 and my mkvi tdi golf. This is the second set on the golf. I got just shy of 55k miles on the first set. They wore very evenly and probably could've gone a few thousand more miles, but they started getting slippy on wet roads (and I was getting ready to hand off the car to my 16 yo).