Re: Went Back To Oem Tires

CapitalTruck · December 14, 2009

Awhile back I posted something about me having purchased some new OEM tires for my truck, Wrangler ST's. Well, end of that little experiment. I had forgotten of how bad they are. I drove from Washington, D.C. to Green Bay WI last weekend to see the Packers game (got there in one day, took two days to drive back with that nasty weather). Horrible traction in rain and sleet covered roads in the ST's. Clearly I don't expect an indycar-when-dry grip, but something more than this would have been nice. So, went to Goodyear dealer today and he took them back and put on new Wrangler SR-A's for me (I just had to pay the little difference). Now I know these might not be the best rubbers either, but they have to be better than the ST's. At least they got an "A" on the government's traction test as opposed to the ST's "B". Here's a nice picture of my car in the median strip between Green Bay and Milwaukee. Hello black-ice, goodbye control. This occurred when driving in a straight-line below the speed limit attempting to be cautious. Apparently not cautious enough though. While I was digging my truck out of the mud 3 more vehicles left the road at the same spot. I was waiting for the "crunch" but it never came, thankfully. I was pleased that with some folding-shovel action I was able to drive out of there (it's a 2WD). I did have 8 bags of gravel in the back for some traction, that probably helped also.

Here are some pics.

trucc_boi · December 14, 2009

lol this is why i live in texas

lvlagnum · December 14, 2009

Try consulting the consumer surveys on a reliable site such as Tirerack. The survey results are written by the people who are actualy using the tires, not by a corporate spindoctor. The surveys are also customised to each type of vehicle and use. For example, the Wrangler STs rated 72nd out of 73 tires tested and the Wrangler SR-As rated only slightly better at 49th out of 73 tires tested.

I have used the Tirerack cunsumer surveys many times to help select tires for myself, family and friends and have never had a bad result. You have to remember the OEM tires put on any vehicle at the factory are usualy what they got a truckload deal on that week. Sad to say but I've actualy seen whimpy little highway tires on a few Silverado and Sierra Z-71s just because that's what GM got a deal on when those trucks were built.

Cheers, lvlagnum

sabre364 · December 14, 2009

I have driven a lot of jeeps and unfortunately the STs used to be standard on many of them. Awful, awful tires. Nowadays, the popular tire from the factory is usually the wrangler sr-a. Another bad tire. Luckily, some jeeps (no idea why) come with the fortera hls (actually the same tire on the acadia/traverse twins) which are far superior.

I second the tire rack suggestion as well.

salden77 · December 14, 2009

+3 to tire rack. you were very fortunate to get out of that with out any 4wd, and with out crunch

Stex · December 14, 2009

lol this is why i live in texas

+1, spent a winter in Concord NH one decade....no tire is very good on ice but I just stay away from goodyear...+1 on tire rack...discount runs something like it..glad you got out of that mess...

herkdriver007 · December 14, 2009

ouch...glad you're okay and no one else was injured. could have been much worse, especially with other vehicles hitting the ice at the same spot...

Be careful out there in the weather!!!

Wires · December 14, 2009

The Tirerack surveys are great.

I've used them for past tires, and my results were exactly like what other posters had listed. Right down to a set of Continentals that other people said had a flat spot when sitting cold for a while.

Only tires that my results didn't align with were the OEM Goodyear ones on my 08 SD. They are more of a "car tire" for traction (no deep lugs). I find they work really good in snow (not deep though)/ice. Other listings said they were brutal. I don't know if they expected deep lug traction like a Wrangler from something with shallow treads though....

rodram · December 14, 2009

I remember reading your post about you going back to the OE stock Wrangler ST's tires. My immediate thought was ... I hope you are not sorry....

I've only driven once on ST's ... a few hundred miles on a rental Dodge Nitro.... (it was summer in northern Manitoba on pavement and gravel roads)... and I can honestly say that the traction, steering and suspension response of those tires scared the living crap right out of me! I had just put Load Range D TOYO AT's on my own truck , and there was no comparison.

I truly hope that your SR-A's prove to be a better tire on your truck.... good to see that your tire dealer is willing to help... not all tire outlets will do that!

Josh · December 14, 2009

lol this is why i live in texas

+1, spent a winter in Concord NH one decade....no tire is very good on ice but I just stay away from goodyear...+1 on tire rack...discount runs something like it..glad you got out of that mess...

GM-Trucks.com's office is located in Henniker, NH just about 10-15 mins down the road and your in concord

What brought you to the area?

steveR · December 14, 2009

All seasons are only, OK tires. Not great in the summer, not good in the winter. They are only good for long life. I can push my car sideways, by hand, on a snow covered road with the summer tire.

Anything under 5°c, or 40°F all season tires stop being pliable. I always try and run winter tires. Lots of skiing and snowmobiling, and bad bad roads.

tire rack test

lvlagnum · December 14, 2009

Another good brand of winter and all season tire worth looking into for both cars and trucks is Nokian. They are originaly a Finnish company but they're all over the world now.

One of my ex-girlfriends has a set on her '03 Honda Civic. I know, I know! That's why she's an EX-girlfriend. lol

Anyways, she loves them so much she recommends them to anyone who will listen and many of her friends have had very good results too.

Most Nokians are meant to be snow tires but certain models are wearing so well they are marketing them as a true all season tire. If you live in Quebec or other places who legislate manditory snow tires in the winter, the Nokians might save you from having to have two sets of tires. The mountain and snowflake symbol on the sidewall should meet the legal requirements for a snow tire in most juristictions I know of.

I don't see them listed in the Tirerack consumer surveys but I know from experience they're damn good tires.

Cheers, lvlagnum

bugmenot · December 14, 2009

I had the Goodyear Wrangler HP tires on my truck and an SP for a spare. After about 10,000 KMs I had a flat and used the spare for a while. I started to ask around about new tires. Everyone here said to check out the Tirerack so I did. There was nothing good said about the HP and ST tires and I understood why. They are not winter tires and they are poor in the rain and on gravel roads. I purchase the ATS tires because they were on sale and the ratings at the Tirerack said they were an ok tire and now I think so too. How much weight did you have in the box? I always add some weight for winter driving. About 400lbs of sand bags works great.

ColoradoSkiCountry · December 14, 2009

I had a set of Yokahama Geolanders on my old 99 that I picked up from Discount. Not only did they look good, they were awesome in the snow. The Wranglers I have on my 07 that came from the factory only have 25,000 on them and they flat out SUCK. Won't make it another 5000 miles in them before they need to be changed, and the traction was very crappy even when new.