New Kelly Edge AT Tires

John Baucom · March 1, 2016

I just put a new set of Kelly Edge AT tires, size LT265/70R17, on my 2014 Sierra 4x4. I couldn't find ANY user reviews and/or pictures about these tires, but I decided to take a chance and ordered a set at my local Goodyear store. I will use this space to provide an initial review and post updates as the miles add up. Hopefully someone will find this helpful.

As background information, my Sierra is a crew cab 1500 with a 4.3 V6. The original tires were P255/70R17 Bridgestone Dueler H/Ts. These tires were smooth and quiet, but wore quickly. According to the Tire Rack spec sheet, they started with 10/32" tread depth, and by the time I replaced them at 15,270 mi. today, the tread was down to 5/32". The performance and fuel economy with the factory tires was good, so I didn't want to deviate too far from the factory specs, but I did want a slightly larger, more common size, that was tougher and a bit more aggressive than stock. I use my truck primarily for commuting, but on weekends and days off, it is used to reach (sometimes remote) trail-heads and kayak launch points. Towing is limited to <4000 lbs, very infrequently, while I haul 800-1200 lbs in the bed once or twice per month. Most loads are limited to just a couple hundred pounds.

I compared these tires to the Cooper Discoverer RTX, Discoverer ATP, and the Bridgestone Dueler A/T Revo 2. The Discoverer RTX was ~$100 cheaper at Tire Kingdom on a $100 off deal, the Discoverer ATP was essentially the same price at Discount Tire, and the Revo 2s were about $200 more at Costco. I ultimately ruled out the retailer specific Cooper RTX and ATP. The price of the Cooper RTX was a strong draw, at less than $600 out-the-door. However, I was willing to pay a reasonable premium for the security and convenience of a truly nationwide warranty valid at ANY authorized Goodyear retailer. That may not be a factor for everyone, but it mattered to me. Plus, the Goodyear dealer is located a few blocks from my office, while the nearest Tire Kingdom is 17 miles away.

These Kelly tires stand just over 31" tall on my truck, inflated to 45 psi. There is noticeably more road noise than stock with the radio off, but realistically, I never drive with the radio off unless I'm on the phone. The road noise is not intrusive enough to impact hands free phone use. The ride was firm, but not harsh, and handling was normal. There was none of the sponginess that I associated with the P-metric tires at 35 psi. I detected no vibrations or bounciness after installation, so apparently the tires are round and the tech who installed did a good job balancing them.

I measured the tread depth at 15/32" before I left the Goodyear store; spec sheets that I looked at listed the tread depth at 13-15/32 and Kellytires.com listed 14/32". According to a Kelly tires rep, the weight is 47 lbs each, which is on the light side for load range E tires in this size. Sidewalls are 2 plies polyester and tread is 2 plies polyester, 2 plies steel, and 1 ply polyamide. Kelly offers a 30 day ride quarantee.

Daryl Z71 · March 1, 2016

Looks like a nice tire. My family has used Kelly tires on some of their vehicles in the past without any issues.

Big Whiskey · March 2, 2016

Welcome to the forum! Nice first post! Thanks for the information. Those look like nice tires!

John Baucom · October 13, 2016

Update:

I now have 11,000 miles on these tires and they've worn down 2/32". At this rate they should easily make it to 50,000 miles with adequate tread depth. Traction on dirt, gravel, light mud, wet grass, and wet roads is good. The extra weight over stock tires is noticeable, and between the weight and tread pattern, I've lost almost 2 mpg. The only issue has been a high vibration. Goodyear balanced the tires 3 times and the vibration barely improved, but after the GMC dealer balanced the tires, the vibration almost disappeared. Now a slight vibration begins at 75 mph, but is only really noticeable if there is a drink in the cup holder. The vibration isn't significant enough to worry with.

mallensw · September 13, 2017

I also have decided to give the Kelly Edge A/T's a whirl for my Silverado. I had good luck with them in past (Kelly Road-Huggers) but none within

A/T type. So far they look good, ride good are not too noisy. But I agree the true test will be in 10k miles.

MB2008LTZ · September 16, 2017

The only experience I have with any kind of Kelly tire was the Safari tires back in the day....They were noisy as heck and wore horribly!

Those look decent, good luck!

John Baucom · February 18, 2018

30,000 mi. Update

The tires have been rotated at every oil change (6,000 mi) and they're wearing evenly, with a tread depth of 6/32" all around. The balance issues have resulted in some cupping, and road noise has increased, though they're still not loud. Traction on dry and wet pavement is still good. We haven't had much snow here in SC, but I find some on occasion in the mountains, and these tires have performed well in snow and slush. Generally, I've been well satisfied with the traction these tires have in all road conditions. In addition to paved and gravel roads, I've put on a couple hundred miles in dirt, rocks, and light mud. Performance was fine on dirt, rocks, and light mud (clay), though lack of tread depth is beginning to become an issue in mud. The tread shows very little chunking, cuts, or other damage. I believe I can run these tires until November - December without hitting the wear bars, but they will be replaced before it snows next winter.

The worst aspect of these tires is the difficulty in balancing and maintaining balance. It took several attempts at balancing and a few thousand break-in miles before the tires would run acceptably smooth at interstate speeds. In the past month, an obnoxious high speed vibration has returned at speeds above 75. It's a shame that imbalance and vibration have been problems, because the traction and handling have been good.

John Baucom · July 5, 2018

36,000 miles

The tread depth averages 4/32". At this rate, I could probably get another 6-7,000 miles before hitting the wear bars. Wet traction is still satisfactory, even when driving through standing water at highway speeds. I suspect wear would have been more even, high speed vibration reduced, and tread-life increased, if my local GMC dealer had cross-rotated the tires instead of a simple front-to-back pattern where the tires never swapped sides. I cross-rotated them myself 500 miles ago, and the vibration above 75 mph is almost completely gone - my cup of ice water in the cupholder doesn't rattle on the interstate anymore.

MaverickZ71 · July 6, 2018

Thanks for the updates. That looks like a pretty good tire, and I was not aware that it existed. We have Goodyear stores all over town, but all they advertise is Goodyear.

Goodness yes, for the smoothest ride, always use the GM-recommended (in the owners manual) cross-rotation pattern. That way each tire ends up on all 4 positions, both front and back, and rotating both directions, over time. Any dealer that doesn't do it that way has lazy technicians--to do it right would take them only another couple of minutes.

I have 70K+ miles on my OEM Bridgestone Dueler AT's, and the truck would have REALLY been jumping up and down by now if I hadn't cross-rotated at every oil change. I have never had to have a vehicle's tire balanced, except for when they were installed as brand new, or after a flat was repaired.

Edited July 6, 2018 by MaverickZ71

John Baucom · October 12, 2018

41,000 miles

These tires are at the end of their useful life, though not quite to the wear bars yet. Wet traction is now unacceptable, and they will easily hydroplane if not cautious when hitting any water on the road. Dry traction is still good, of course. I'm satisfied with the value I received from these tires, but did not choose to replace this set with the same. I have a set of LT275/70R17 General Grabber A/T X in the garage waiting to be mounted.

56napco · April 5, 2019

Bringing an old topic back from the dead. I also have the Kelly Edge AT's on my 2002 Yukon XL 2500, LT265/75R16's. So far I have 56,000 miles on them and they're just now getting close to the wear bars. I've rotated them at each oil change or close to it, probably averaged ~7500 miles between rotates. They've seen gravel, snow, ice, mud, pavement, highway, city and trailered with them too. They're quiet, worn flat and even and stayed in balance the entire time. I'll be putting them on again for sure and on my next truck. My dad is also on his second set on his '04 2500HD and he got 45,000 miles or more out of his first set.