Tires
- Thread starter Tress
- Start date
Gravity
Observer
Well, I know they are not technically A/Ts but I recently installed a set of Toyo Open Country M/T's. They're 285/75/16's and are rated at 3700+ lbs. After a few hundred miles this past week, they're not much louder than the BFG AT's I replaced and they seem to ride relatively smooth. From my research these were one of the highest rated MT's in the durability, smooth ride and lack of noise departments.
-d
-d
charlieaarons
Explorer
spencyg said:
We're getting up there in tire diameter. Michelin 255/100R16 XZLs are rated at 4665 lb @ 85 psi @ 62mph or 3750 lb @ 65 psi @ 68mph. They are 10" wide, 36.4" tall and weigh 87 lb.
I found they fit on my 88 F350 4X4 with no lift and no rubbing even at full lock on stock rims; but it needed a gearing change.
XZLs are a high mileage tread despite their comparable appearance to M/Ts. I'm wearing my 395/85R20s on my Unimog at an average of over 70,000 miles/tire despite the high weight (67% of 70 mph rating, 52% of 55 mph rating).
I think they'd work great on a Sportsmobile with perhaps a slight lift and gearing increased by one notch.
On the recent Australian trip with one Mitsubishi and one Isuzu from Magadan to the Trans-Siberian, one rig had the Michelins referred to above and absolutely no problems. The other had Mickey Thompsons on 18" rims and had to replace two tires. Fortunately certain Russian medium duty military vehicles run 10.00-18 bias ply tires so I think they rounded up a couple of not well matched replacement tires by sheer good luck.
Charlie
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dennisuello
Adventurer
Where do you find said 255 series XZL's? I've looked for XZL's before because they appear to be a far superior tire for my vehicle, but the smaller ones don't seem to be available in the U.S. I REALLY want 8.25R16's, but apparently they aren't available in the US....
Spence
Spence
charlieaarons
Explorer
spencyg said:
Order them from a Michelin (truck) tire dealer, using the correct inventory #s.
8.25s are 46526. My US truck tire catalog (2004) doesn't have the 255s, just 9.00R16 XZLs which are 68169.
I have purchased 8.25s twice from US Michelin dealers in this decade.
Or, if all dealers look at you like they would if they were on hallucinogens, order from a European source and pay the 2.5% duty.
Charlie
crawler#976
Expedition Leader
Our Wrangler SA came with a 50,000 mile tread wear warrenty...
charlieaarons said:
I called every commercial dealer within 250 miles, and none of them even had that stock number in any of their corporate resources. I've got an e-mail out to Michelin UK in hopes of getting an idea of European availability, but regardless of their answer, I'm not going to jump on it. The chances of finding a replacement tire on the road if necessary (only carrying 1 spare) is practically non-existent with the ZXL's. I'll stick with my reliable BFG/AT meats which I know can be replaced everywhere I plan to travel.
After searching, it also appears that our lovely military is consuming ALL heavy off-road truck rubber in the entire country....
Spence
So whats the deal with these Michelin XZL's? I was just going back through this thread cuz im on the verge of installing some new tires for the trip. Im still leaning toward BF A/T's but how do these XZL's do? Are they expensive, do they make them in 305x70x16? What makes them so special aside from the load rating, are they much much tougher? Thanks for any input!
charlieaarons
Explorer
XZLs are tires for military vehicles and are not made in a lot of different sizes. In 16" they come in 7.50R16 and I think 235/85R16 labelled as "OR 4X4"; you must order these sizes from Europe. These are 32", suitable for unmodified small 4X4s. 8.25R16 XZL is available in the US and is 34" tall. They will fit on dually setups for 235s without rubbing and have a 3200 lb load rating single. They aren't cheap.
There's also a XPS Traction in 235/85R16 which also has an all steel casing and is sold all over the US. Maybe that's what you should look into. They are about 50% more expensive than 235s with polyester casings, but I believe you get what you pay for.
The next size up in XZL is 255/100R16, which is 36.4" tall, 10" wide and would require a lift for most small 4X4s and re-gearing. Then there's 11.00R16 (38.7" tall) and then all the 20s: 275/80R20 (37"), 335/80R20 (40.7"), etc.
Charlie
There's also a XPS Traction in 235/85R16 which also has an all steel casing and is sold all over the US. Maybe that's what you should look into. They are about 50% more expensive than 235s with polyester casings, but I believe you get what you pay for.
The next size up in XZL is 255/100R16, which is 36.4" tall, 10" wide and would require a lift for most small 4X4s and re-gearing. Then there's 11.00R16 (38.7" tall) and then all the 20s: 275/80R20 (37"), 335/80R20 (40.7"), etc.
Charlie
Sounds like there prolly a ways out of my price range, for this trip at least. What would you say would be a good load rating for a 4x4 van that weighs around 5000. I was looking at some D rated but when i search per vehicle i am told to use an E rated tire. What is the big difference besides the weight they can carry, would one last longer than the other? Will it ride stiffer?