Tires for better mpg

[Bdevr]

I'm guessing that this answer has been asked many times before, but here goes.

 

I've had my leveled 6.2 Sierra SLT for roughly 6 months now. It came with 275/55 20 Nitto Ridge grapplers which now have 50% of their tread. 

 I am currently averaging 15.6 MPG. I live 5000 feet above sea level, and the roads here are essentially a roller coaster. Highway and backroads (even mix) are all up/down hills.

I'm looking for justification to switch to a much more road friendly tire like a Cooper HT. 

[Ozer]

On the same boat, if you do pavement driving mostly you dont need those tires, except for the looks.

I just got denali 22s that came with the stock Bridgestones, i should get better mpgs in spring time.

[Snowcamo]

You'll see an increase. Totally different mpg friendly treads. Likely to last longer and will pay themselves off.

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[BlancoSilverado]

Michelin Defenders LTX M/S2. I will be purchasing for next set.

another good one is Michelin AT2. they offer better offroad traction then LTXs but will take roughly .25mpg away.

 

The Cooper HTX will be better and quieter then the Nitto tire you have now. 

[aseibel]

getting new rubber of the same size with "highway" treads will help a little, but not a ton. If you are not changing the dimensions or weight of the tires you won't see much difference (less than 1 mpg)

If you really want mpgs, you need a narrower, lighter tire. You should be able to go down to a 265, which is/was pretty standard width. Find out what the OEM tire size was on your truck and start there.

[TXGREEK]

I'm guessing that this answer has been asked many times before, but here goes.
 
I've had my leveled 6.2 Sierra SLT for roughly 6 months now. It came with 275/55 20 Nitto Ridge grapplers which now have 50% of their tread. 
 I am currently averaging 15.6 MPG. I live 5000 feet above sea level, and the roads here are essentially a roller coaster. Highway and backroads (even mix) are all up/down hills.
I'm looking for justification to switch to a much more road friendly tire like a Cooper HT. 

I dumped my Nitto Ridge Grapplers at 16k miles, crappy tires. Switched to KO2’s and gained 1-2mpgs. Going to Michelin Defenders will DEFINITELY give you a much better ride quality and better mpg’s. Less lugs means less resistance and with the Michelin’s, not only better mpg’s but longer life too. Good luck!


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[diyer2]

Michelin Defender LTX M/S

My next tire.

 

[DominatorZ71]

I've had nothing but good things of my Nittos. I also didn't buy a truck for MPG. I wouldn't care if it got 12mpg it's a truck. I get an average of 16-18 on 35" Ridge Grapplers with the 5.3 6spd.

[TXGREEK]

I've had nothing but good things of my Nittos. I also didn't buy a truck for MPG. I wouldn't care if it got 12mpg it's a truck. I get an average of 16-18 on 35" Ridge Grapplers with the 5.3 6spd.

Don’t think anyone buys a truck for mpg’s but adding 10-20 miles onto your separate search for fuel during a road trip helps lol. Not only are Nitto Ridge Grapplers WAY OVER RATED but they ride very rough and siping wears out fast too, mine wore fast by 16k, got 18-19 mpgs and now 20-21 with KO2’s. One thing I’ve learned in my life, never judge a tire based on its new ride feel, 15k miles should be a minimum on reviews cause all tires for the most part have soft and grip more when new, Michelin brands aren’t rated the best just for their extended wear qualities but for their added ride and performance too.

New with siping


Only 16k miles with siping disappearing causing lots of slipping


I’ve had two separate sets of Nitto ridge grapplers and both performed just as bad.
KO2’s have siping straight through the lugs, not cosmetic like Nittos



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[Bdevr]

Of course I didn't buy a 6.2 V8 truck for it's fuel economy.  I bought this truck for the 10-15 times per year that I drag my family and camper over 8000+ foot elevations where my old 5.3 just wasn't cutting it.

 

I also didn't buy it to ride trails/ go mudding/rock climbing.  IF I can gain 1-2 mpg by ditching the heavy, aggressive tread tires, it makes sense. 

 

Feel free to call me old and uncool.

[DominatorZ71]

My Nittos are my favorite tire to date. Nothing performs like them. I've had KO2s, suck in sugar sand, Nitto Terra Grapplers, decent but don't look aggressive at all, and now Ridge Grapplers. Aggressive and ride smooth and quiet but handles all terrains. To each their own everyone drives different mileage and environments. I'm in Florida so it's all pavement, sand, and occasionally dirt/mud. I originally had Goodyear Duratracs A/Ts which looked good and rode ok but were super loud for some reason.

[Black02Silverado]

I have 71k miles on my Michelin LTX  M/S 2's  Love them.  Although they are getting down to the wear bars and this last rain pulling the trailer on the interstate was a little scary.  Time for new tires.

[TXGREEK]

My Nittos are my favorite tire to date. Nothing performs like them. I've had KO2s, suck in sugar sand, Nitto Terra Grapplers, decent but don't look aggressive at all, and now Ridge Grapplers. Aggressive and ride smooth and quiet but handles all terrains. To each their own everyone drives different mileage and environments. I'm in Florida so it's all pavement, sand, and occasionally dirt/mud. I originally had Goodyear Duratracs A/Ts which looked good and rode ok but were super loud for some reason.

The ironic thing is that KO2’s are very well known to do excellent in sand especially overseas in Australia which has a lot of it in 4x4 areas, my Nitto Ridge Grapplers dug into the beach sand almost stranded me a couple times, big difference between the two. A smoother less aggressive tire surface outperforms hybrids and mt’s. You’re correct, to each their own. Good luck and be safe


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[swathdiver]

1 hour ago, DominatorZ71 said:

My Nittos are my favorite tire to date. Nothing performs like them. I've had KO2s, suck in sugar sand, Nitto Terra Grapplers, decent but don't look aggressive at all, and now Ridge Grapplers. Aggressive and ride smooth and quiet but handles all terrains. To each their own everyone drives different mileage and environments. I'm in Florida so it's all pavement, sand, and occasionally dirt/mud. I originally had Goodyear Duratracs A/Ts which looked good and rode ok but were super loud for some reason.

I've played in Florida's sugar sand and beaches without issue with the KO2s on my Yukon XL.  I do wonder if there is a tire that would deliver better gas mileage but none that I've seen look near as good or perform near as well overall either.

[TXGREEK]

I've played in Florida's sugar sand and beaches without issue with the KO2s on my Yukon XL.  I do wonder if there is a tire that would deliver better gas mileage but none that I've seen look near as good or perform near as well overall either.

You’re correct, the tighter/closer the lugs the better they float over sand [emoji1303]


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