My dilemma (not MB related)

[LUVMBDiesels]

Here is my dilemma; Do I go with dedicated snow tires on the Jeep for $265 or spend $376 on A/T tires I can keep on all year? I have decent highway only tires on the Grand Cherokee now but they need to come off for the winter. (I would never put highway only tires on a 4x4, but the truck came with them and they have lots of life left) Opinions? I know this is not Mercedes related, but I trust your wisdom in all things

[SwampYankee]

If the highway treads are good and you don't plan on going offroad with it go with the dedicated snows. The highway tires will be quieter and offer less rolling resistance, in theory being more efficient.

[Brian Carlton]

You certainly don't need dedicated snow tires, with their very high noise, poor durability, and lousy fuel economy in Virginia, unless you live in the mountains. Even then, it's usually a poor choice for the few occasions that they might be desirable.

[SwampYankee]

How many snow events do you normally get and how much per? Forgot you were in VA. Definitely no need for the expense, noise and inefficiency of A/T's. Whether or not the negatives of snows is worth it for the few times you'd need the positive attributes, and maybe peace of mind, depends on your comfort level when driving in the white/grey stuff. I'd probably just run the highway tires year 'round.

[kknudson]

I'd vote for the A/T, I always had them on my 4Runner and was pleased.

Agree though with looking at how many snow events, what kind of terrain (do you live in a hilly area ??) etc as they my be overkill.

Although our Indy put aggressive highways on the wife's Jeep and neither of us are happy with them in any kind of bad weather.

[Skid Row Joe]

Originally Posted by Brian Carlton

You certainly don't need dedicated snow tires, with their very high noise, poor durability, and lousy fuel economy in Virginia, unless you live in the mountains. Even then, it's usually a poor choice for the few occasions that they might be desirable.

That, in BOLD, and, we never put snows on our JGC fulltime 4X4 in Omaha, NE.

Snow tires are kind of out anyway with radials, and all the FWD cars, aren't they??

[retmil46]

Depends on what brand and type the highway tires are. Go over to tirerack.com or a similar website - they have ratings and customer reviews on nearly every current model of tire. See what they say about your tires in the type of weather and driving you'll expect to encounter this winter.

On my '05 Jeep Liberty 4X4, OEM tires were Goodyear Wrangler S/T's in 255/75/16. Those things were damn near worthless even on dry pavement. A tall narrow minivan tire - on a 4000 lb SUV! On tirerack, Wrangler S/T's were rated as unsatisfactory or poor in every category by people that had used them - I didn't see a single positive review. Every time I went around a curve at even close to the recommended posted speed for the curve, that Jeep felt like it was on the verge of tipping over. The Wranglers had zero traction on wet pavement - 4 years ago a woman in a Lincoln Navigator pulled out 4 car lengths in front of me, trying to do a left hand turn, saw me coming, and sinmply froze and stopped in the middle of my lane. Even at only 35 mph, on a wet street, that Jeep slid along like a pig on roller skates, ABS chattering like mad, because those Wranglers didn't have any grip, and I went into her left front quarter panel square on. Better than 2 grand worth of repairs to my front end.

After that, I switched to Cooper Discoverer ATR's 245/70/16. Same overall diameter, and pumped up to 40 psi, haven't affected highway MPG enough to notice (but then, I have the CRD diesel version). Beast also feels much more stable with wider tires on it. Been quite satisfied with Coopers - on both of my vehicles and all of my parent's vehicles.

[LUVMBDiesels]

The highway tires are BFG Insignias which are junk according to the reviews at tirerack! I have AT Revos on the Suburban and I love them, they are SOOOO much better than the highway tires that came with that beast. I am thinking that I might go for the A/T tires as it IS a Jeep and must go off the road at least a few times! The Suburban will do dirt roads (lots of them around here) but is way too big for going on trails.

I live in Front Royal which is where the Blue Ridge mtns start rising from the Shenandoah valley. We are about 600 feet above Fairfax, which got hammered last year. That is why I was toying with dedicated snows. I always put Blizzaks on the Mercedes and now have a set for the wife's Volvo S60 FWD.

Any ideas as to which A/T I should get/ Hey Luke! Any answers for me?

This is why I love this place! I can come on with a question about a JEEP and you guys will give me good answers! Try asking 300 SDL questions on Jeepforum or Volvoforum!

[retmil46]

Might consider Cooper Discoverer ATR's. I've used them for nearly 4 years on my 05 Liberty. Won't find them on tirerack, have to go to the Cooper or Discount Tire websites. Back when, set of 4 in 245/70/16 cost me $450 out the door mounted and balanced. Got close to 25K miles on this set, very little visible wear on them. Ride and handle well on the KJ.

Cooper makes a good quality tire, still made in the U.S. at least when I bought mine. I've been impressed enough with the quality of their tires, especially for the prices they sell them at, to have switched over both my vehicles and my parent's as well to Cooper tires. I put a set of their 80K mile touring tires in 205/15 on the 87 300D, performed better than the OEM style Michelins that were on it originally.

[LUVMBDiesels]

Went to Tirerack.
Had to have made in USA tires - it is a Jeep after all.
The ones that were rated highest in the stock size 225/75/15 were the
Firestone Destination A/T.
This is the first time since I had a 1977 Impala that I am going to be running Firestones!

I was surprised that the Bridgestone Dueller AT Revo does not come in a 15 inch size...

[Local2ED]

Originally Posted by LUVMBDiesels

Went to Tirerack.
Had to have made in USA tires - it is a Jeep after all.
The ones that were rated highest in the stock size 225/75/15 were the
Firestone Destination A/T.
This is the first time since I had a 1977 Impala that I am going to be running Firestones!

I was surprised that the Bridgestone Dueller AT Revo does not come in a 15 inch size...

Thank you for buying "MADE IN THE USA" tires.

[cjlipps]

My 2003 Yukon XL 4X4 came stock with Firestone Wilderness tires. They are a very good compromise year round. We don't get much snow here but the freezing rain is much more treacherous to drive on and we go skiing every year and I've been happy overall. Quiet and a good ride too. The first set lasted 72K and would have gone 10K more but I put new ones on before a long summer trip for the peace of mind.

[aklim]

I have found little selection in tires that has the wear characteristics of Michelins. For the price, they are hard to beat. I had Firestones on my Excursion and they wore quickly so I switched to Michelins since I have used them on my other vehicles and when compared to what came off, I got better wear.

I also have a set of Brigstone Blizzaks for the E300 mounted on rims. This way, I can mount it when the weather gets bad and leave it on for a few days before I take it out and switch back to regular tires.