Michelin Defender LTX M\S

Has anyone run the Michelin Defender LTX M\S? I'm looking at them for the wife's Rav4, and are wondering how good they do as far as wet\snow\dry\road noise\ and longevity. I know they won't necessarily have the exact same handling characteristics on the Rav4 as the Tacoma, but it should be close enough to give an idea, and this is a great place for unbiased product reviews.

 

Best suv/truck road tire imo

 

Agreed. This is what I’ll be replacing mine with when it’s time.

 

Loved the last set I had. 62,000 and had plenty of tread life remaining. Traded the truck in before I had to change the tires. I have the Michelin Primacy Xc tires on this truck now but they are not as nice nor as long tread life rating.

 

TONS of people run them. Including myself. Went through many AT tires and came back to the NON LT SL rated 265/75R16

You will not find a better on road grip, wet road grip, icy road grip, longer lasting tire around. AT tires get laughed at by the LTX M/S in literally every situation except maybe mud and deep snow.

 

We have a set on an '02 Chevy Trialblazer. Mounted 2016. Still look new. They handle daily driving in all weather conditions in Central Iowa. They actually are better than the GY Wranglers on my truck. The 2wd Trailblazer is more friendly to drive on snow pack than my 4wd Tacoma.

You really won't make a bad choice on these tires.

 

I plan on switching to them once my stupid Cooper Discoverer AT3s are worn out. The Coopers have become excessively noisy despite being balanced and rotated every 5k.

 

+1 on everything above

 

I need to replace my Bridgestone Duelers soon, I was considering LTXs or the new Toyo AT3

 

Literally had the SAME expirence with my Cooper AT3 LT 265/75R16's in the load range C. Traction dropped like a rock at 15k miles and they became SUPER noisy even with habitual rotations.

 

Thanks for all the feedback. I'm somewhat versed in off road tires, but not so much in road tires. Its what we are going to go with, they just look like they are built to grip the road. I have always bought Cooper tires, I just couldn't find any of their highway tires that I liked.

 

Purchased a set to go on my 03 AC. Great tires. Low noise. Great in the rain. Wore good. No complaints other than they’re a little expensive. Matter of fact I’ll be getting another set when the originals are done on the truck I’ve got now.

 

I ran 2 sets of AT2s before I ran the Defenders. The Defenders are the best road tire and does quite well on dirt also. I think the built in sipping gives it an advantage over the AT2 in ice and snow. Great tire and will buy again.

 

Best all around tires you can buy. I've been running them for about 20 years now. Other than mud, you can't beat them. If it's a little soft, you can air down to about 20 psi and they still do pretty decent.
I can't recommend them enough. Properly aligned and inflated, you'll easily get 60,000 miles out of a set on a light vehicle like that.

 

Been driving since 1978. Best tires I’ve ever had, will always run them.

 

So the consensus here seems to be the Michelin Defender LTX M/S are better than the Falken Wildpeak AT3W in everything except extreme off-roading?

 

Got 70K on my last set. Went with 265/75’s this time. Factory load rating. My 2WD handled just fine in the snow with weight in the bed.

 

Not just the AT3W but ANY AT tire other than extreme off roading.... and TBH at that point a purpose off road tire (mud tire, rock tire, etc) would be better suited. Every single AT tire I have ran gave up SO MUCH in the form of day to day grip in dry, wet, icy conditions, weight, rolling resistance, noise etc all for looks and a SMIDGE better general off road performance and maybe a smidge better durability off road (rock slashing side walls type stuff) - but again if you are off roading that much a purpose built off road tire would be better suited.

 

AT tires are middling in all scenarios.

 

when i had rav4.............ran them w/o issues or incidence

running them on my Taco after 2 weeks new

HI Mileage asphalt tyre

very good rain tyre

the few times it snows these parts = all terrains

the kind o weather we USED to get

that happens once eveery few years

i simply take the snow day off.............................................