Another tire thread

icarus

Well-known member
Time to retire the original Contis POS tires

So, Michellens or Nokians?

All season, some snow, but mostly long road trip tire, near GVW. I have loved my Nokians on other vehicles, but with the weight of the Sprinter, I'm thinking Michellens.


Icarus
 

OrioN

2008 2500 170" EXT
I have Michelin LTX M/S... leaps and bounds better than Conti's. Smoother ride. Quieter ride. I killed (shredded) the Conti's in 15k miles. The Michelin's still have 3/4 of their tread left after 25k miles (I am rotating in the spare, so I expect well over 80k miles) and showing very even wear.

Only tried them once in snow, fresh and over 1 ft., for 30 minutes and they were respectable.

However... if you are running loaded and over 3/4 of their weight rating like I am now... they become very mushy, and handing is similar to having no/little sway bar. Also, I'm running one size larger in dia. and slightly narrower (1.5" larger dia. over stock) so the taller sidewalls are not helping.
 
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david klair

New member
I wound up with Open Country H/T from Les Schwab and am very happy with them. I wanted the Michelin M/T, but found myself with a flat while fully loaded on a very busy hiway. I called Les Schwab roadside service not knowing they did not carry Michelin. I had to make a choice of what they had as I was in the middle of a delivery. I decided to repace the two rear tires with the Open Country A/T. I instantly hated them. The van drifted all over the place. After my delivery I stopped at my local Les Schwab and informed them that I not only disliked the tires but they were actually dangerous to drive on. I was hoping to get my money back and go get the Michelins but they talked me into trying the H/T flavor. They said if I did not like these I could return them for a full refund , no questions...so I had them put on four of them. I liked them right away. I run all four at 80psi.
 

icarus

Well-known member
08 2500

I am currently in Maine, and need to retire before a trip back to thePAC NW in November.

How mushy is the ride with the Michellens? The last thing I want is mushy? The Contis handled ok, they just wore very quickly, and You get stuck in your own shadow, in snow, on grass, or in sand!

Icrarus
 

Graphite Dave

Dave Orton
Glad you asked the tire question again. We are in the same situation. 08 2500 with need of tires. I have searched for a wheel replacement without luck. I want to go to the next larger size tire but they require a 7" to 8" wide rim. My stock steel wheels are 6 1/2" width. Contacted Michelin and they said not to put tires on 1/2" narrower rim. I suspect it would not be a problem but would like the wider rim. I will be contacting a company that makes wide hot rod wheels by removing the center section and welding on new wider rims. Originally I was asking to weld on a 17" rim and was told no. Now I will settle for a wider 16" rim. I have 30,000 miles on van and it looks like I will get about 36,000 miles out of the Conti's. I rotate all 5 tires and enjoy watching the computer struggle by flashing lights and beeping. I check tire pressure the old fashioned way - manualy.
 

icarus

Well-known member
I have 35k on the Contis. I rotated them front to rear at about 15k. The rears still have 10k left not them. The dealer screwed up the front end doing a strut repair, which hastened the demise of the Contis.

I am looking for the best wearing, best fuel mileage, best traction all season combination. Like I said, I love Nokians, but hear great things about the Michellens.

Icarus
 

OrioN

2008 2500 170" EXT
Mushelins... but that is why they give the most comfortable ride. There's always a compromise.

You say you want "the best wearing, best fuel mileage, best traction all season combination." with no mention of 'comfort'... Then the Michelin may not work for you. Mush is noticeable, parking lots & highways.
 

sikwan

06 Tin Can
If you want something that lasts then you have no choice but Michelins. The only two that I can think of are the...

LTX MS
LTX AT2

Mind you that a few (well, maybe one) have stated that the AT2 had a mushy feeling. Me OTOH like that I didn't feel every bump in the road when I switched to AT2's from AS's (discontinued). The tires are inflated to ~55psi all around and I don't run with a heavy load.

My guess (and it's a guess) is that the sidewall of the MS is very similar to the old AS and the newer AT2 has a redesigned sidewall (softer, more pliable).

Also, the AT2's sidewall have the "mud & snow" moniker written on them.

There are also the XPS's (Ribs & Traction), but they're more expensive.

ps. I had Nokians, but they were on my passenger vehicle.
 
Glad you asked the tire question again. We are in the same situation. 08 2500 with need of tires. I have searched for a wheel replacement without luck. I want to go to the next larger size tire but they require a 7" to 8" wide rim. My stock steel wheels are 6 1/2" width. Contacted Michelin and they said not to put tires on 1/2" narrower rim. I suspect it would not be a problem but would like the wider rim. I will be contacting a company that makes wide hot rod wheels by removing the center section and welding on new wider rims. Originally I was asking to weld on a 17" rim and was told no. Now I will settle for a wider 16" rim. I have 30,000 miles on van and it looks like I will get about 36,000 miles out of the Conti's. I rotate all 5 tires and enjoy watching the computer struggle by flashing lights and beeping. I check tire pressure the old fashioned way - manualy.
How about these:



16x7 and 17x7.5. They are 4x4 rally wheels built to survive DAKAR so might be strong enough. I just put some on our 05 2500:



There are also Sprinter specific wheels from Team Dynamics. I recently got my friend a set for his 08 .



but they are only 16x6.5.
 
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dukepilot

Custom Spooling USA
I like those BRAID wheels. As for tires, take a look at the Bridgestone AT Dueler Revo 2 (235-85 size, 60/65 psi). Much better traction/ride/wear/handling than the stock Conti rim protectors. Couldn't stand the Conti tires and replaced them with the Revos at 15k miles.

I expect to get at least 60k out of out of the Revo 2. Good performance in off road, snow and wet conditions. Symmetrical semi aggressive tread pattern does sing a little on the highway but not overly loud or annoying. I will get another set when mine finally wear out.
 

AlbertaBear

Member
Graphite Dave

Not quite sure you must go to a wider rim for a larger tire.

My 265/75-16s fit well on original rims.

Observing the wee clearance between tire and body parts, I often wonder if I did the right thing. But after nearly 2 years of driving they have never rubbed anywhere. Glad I have never needed to put chains on.
 

icarus

Well-known member
I run 60 psi in the front, 80 in the rear so a " soft ride" is not in the cards. I know from VW westy experince that stiff side walls are a must.

Icarus
 

Graphite Dave

Dave Orton
What is wheel load rating in lbs. The original equipment Continental tires have a load rating of 3042 lbs. The NCV3 Sprinter (07 and newer) has the following wheel specifications:

16" dia.
6 1/2" width
6 bolts
130 mm bolt circle
83 mm hub bore
54 mm offset ( 2 1/8")
Depth from inside edge of wheel to bolting surface is 6"
13.8 mm bolt diameter18.5 mm bolt hole diameter

I would like to install Michelin 26575R16 tires. They have a load rating of 3415 lbs. and require a 7" to 8" wheel width. What wheels would fit the requirements?
 
Load rating 1540lbs for the 15" and 1760lbs for the 16" and 17". Seems low for such a strong wheel.



On this car the wheels and tires were the only things that survived the roll intact.

The team Dynamics Rimfire we put on my friend's van are rated at 2750lbs though.

 

Graphite Dave

Dave Orton
Since you are in the wheel business, why not find a suitable wheel for the NCV3 Sprinters that has over 6 1/2" width. They are available in Europe but not here. Someone will fill this void and make some money.
 

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