Which tire is comparable to Michelin Defender LTX M/S?

Whelp its been like 6-8 months an Michelin continues to fail at producing NON LT 265/75R16 of the Defender LTX M/S. You can find LT265/75R16 Load range E all day long... but the 116T 265/75R16's they just seem to refuse to make.

Reason i want the Defender LTX M/S in that specific tire is their superior weight and wet / ice traction. I AM DONE with shitty AT tires that get stupid loud at 10-15k miles and have horrible wet and ice traction and crappy highway manors. I tried a set of Hankook ATM RF10's in a P265/75R16 and had a blowout, and currently have LT 265/75R16 Load range C cooper AT3's, which have gotten almost unbearably loud, and SCARY on ice, not to mention the 1.5mpg hit due to their weight. Needless to say i always come back to comparing my tire purchases to the Defender LTX and have always been disappointed for not going with them.

Are there any others out there that have been fans of the Defender LTX (aka MS2) and switched to a similar highway tire and have been satisfied with similar to the Michelin's performance? If so what tire was it?

 

@Maticuno have any insight?

 

KUMHO CRUGEN HT51 looks to be a good alternative? anyone run those?

 

I really like my Cooper ATW’s they come in a 115/116 load range.

 

The Cooper Discoverer ATW would be the closest match to the Michelin MS2.

 

Really? Seems like its marketed as a winter tire.... also, way to similar in tread block sizing and spacing for me to be confident in buying it and not have it get STUPID loud like my current Cooper AT3's and with siping that only goes down about 1/4 of the tread depth.... no thanks.

 

You must have amazingly good hearing if you think the AT3's are loud. But now I have a better idea of what you're looking for. Give the Cooper Discoverer HT3 a look. If you are truly set on the Michelin, though, the 116T seems to be available here:

https://www.onlinetires.com/product...ltx+m%2Fs+116t+orwl-MICHELIN99123-p60461.html

 

im trying to get some more user info on those Kumho Crugen ht51, seems like the real tire experts aren't impressed, but the regular users of them think they are great.https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/kumho-crugen-ht51-tire-reviews-needed.591028/

 

They are bad man, I have ~ 30k miles on the cooper AT3's and the tread block wear is so uneaven that at lower speeds the whole truck does cyclic vibrations... There are tread blocks that dont even touch the ground due to such wacky wear, And no its not the truck, alignment is perfect and shocks are great so thats not the issue.

Needless to say id NEVER be ok with some mud tire on my truck haha.

I wont be buying the Michelin's from some random online place as there would be no local support, i typically buy from Americas tire / Discount tire.

 

Yeah seems like lots are comparing them to the Michelin Defender LTX / MS2 but nothing definitive.

 

I personally think the Michelin Defender is the best road tire on the planet regardless of price. My wife has those on her SUV. I have been pleased with the Michelin LTX AT2 which is a little better on dirt but not as good on ice. The AT2 is pretty quiet but not as quiet as the Defender. The AT2 looks a little more "off-road-ish" if that's important to you. It really isn't to me and so since I've been driving on 99.9% of the time on the highway I'm probably going to put Defenders on my truck this fall. Yes, they are expensive but as they say "the pain of high price goes away much faster than the pain of lower quality".

 

when something sounds too good to be true, usually its not true, seems like the reviews aren't long term ownership just immediate response after installing them.

 

YUP TRUST ME I KNOW! This thread would of not been created if Michelin was producing the NON LT in the 265/75R16 ... im actually contemplating just going back to a stock 265/70R16 or even skinny to a 245/75R16 ... but with a lift it wouldnt look right.

 

Yeah thats what im noticing, lots of relatively new users to the tires no long term reviews.

 

Cooper evolution h/t, falken wildpeak h/t, general grabber h/t, Pirelli scorpion Atr, yokohama geolander h/t, cooper discoverer srx, (my personal favorite road tire)> toyo open country h/t

 

I've purchased from Discount Tire for years. They may not list a specific brand/size as carried, but in the past they've been able to order them for me if the mfg makes them.

I got the Defenders this winter and no looking back. Only down side is that 245/75-17 only comes in an LT, but they aren't overly heaving and do have increased tread depth. They ride much better than my prior Toyo AT2's in P rating.

 

Yeah americas tire / discount tire, does not have ANY stock nation wide of the 116T 265/75R16 Defender.

 

my research keeps coming back to General Grabber HTS60 as a tire that gets above average reviews by professional tire testers and the general public, ive personally asked about these tires to a few Tacoma owners that have them and are all very positive on their overall performance and cost factors.https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=209

 

Looks similar to the Defender, But UTQG of 640AB ... eh, also weighs a big more than a defender from what i can find.

 

A good chunk heavier than the Defender in the same 265/75R16. Im staying at 40 lbs or under for my next tire.... going up to the Cooper AT3 in an LT 265/75R16 load range C @ 47 lbs per tire was a drop of about 1-1.2MPG.... no bueno.