All-Season Tire HELP

[salenks]

I was seriously considering the General Grabber HTS but I think I will go with the Bridgestone H/L Alenza. I currently have the Goodyear Wrangler HP which are pretty bad on the dry road. Does anyone know if they are good off road?

[anerbe]

the alenza's have a more road tuned tread look. what kind of off road do you expect? if you want more mud, you will probably want a more aggressive pattern with more voids in the shoulder/center area. for dirt/gravel, you should be alright. it does has a lot of sipes for bite in wet and snow, but definitely not for rock crawling/mud bogging.

[salenks]

I meant how good are the Goodyear Wrangler HP for off road.

[zigzag]

I had Michelin Latitude HP... Sold them... they do a good job on wet surface, for summer they are a little bit "heavy"... Did poor job on a snow, almost got my X out of highway.... I tried Michelin latitude Alpin for winter- great handling... feels secure

[anerbe]

Originally Posted by salenks

I meant how good are the Goodyear Wrangler HP for off road.

you can get a general idea by looking at the tread (similar design features as the alenza). i'm sure people will say they worked well off road, but i'm sure it wasn't crazy off road.

[salenks]

I just wanted to thank everybody for the help. I purchased the General Grabber HTS from Just Tires because they didn't have them in stock at tire rack. I wanted to go to tire rack in South Bend but since they only had the Alenzas in stock, I decided not to go. That would have been a 2 1/2 hour drive, each way for me.

Anyway, I just wanted to say a one thing about the Generals. They are about 3-4 times quieter then the Goodyear Wrangler HP tires. I can hardly hear them.

They did put the pressure to 35 psi for each tire. I think it should be 32. The tire is a little noisy when you go over the bumps. Maybe because it is overinflated.

[anerbe]

glad you like them

they were worlds quieter than my Wrangler SR-A's.

you may feel/hear a bit more on bumps from the Generals vs. the HP, as they are probably stiffer than the HP's. I don't think the HP's come with XL load ratings (only in 255/55R18), but most, if not all, of the HTS do.

[KKim]

Thinking of replacing my 315/35 20 275/40 20 Diamiaris with Vredistine sessanta any views? My dealer says they are not recommended by BMW

[RedRockin]

Hi All,
Thought I'd try to give this discussion a shot. EDIT: just realized this is the E53 thread and I've ordered e70 but I doubt that matters for this post

I am "in bodyshop" stage of order for my 1st BMW (X5). I live in AZ rural mountains and just verified that I can replace the runflats (RFs) that come on the vehicle. I will do so because of the replacement cost and the assumption of wear need replacement by lease end (3yr/30kmi). I assume my vehicle will have the stock 30i rims with 255/55/18 tires. My intent is to buy the non-RFs and use for most of the lease duration and then put the RFs back on at lease end. This is based on my analysis of RF tire replacement costs and the convenience of being able to use my local tire center rather than have to go to BMW dealership 110 miles away.

After reading this thread, I looked at the tirerack link of tire ratings: Consumer Survey Results By Category
From that list, and this thread, looks like I should be considering:
General Grabber HTS or
Michelin Latitude Tour or
Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza.

My driving considerations:
Most of the year, AZ mountains are hot to moderate, summers can easily see 100+ degree days. Winters are not bad but we do get snow that doesn't last too long as the ground does not have opportunity to freeze solid (days pretty much always over freezing). But, I do live in a hilly area. Most hills are not lengthy but some get steep and if the rare snow (let's just say I do not drive my Infiniti G35S if there is snow on the ground). Pretty much all AZ highways repaved in the last 6 or 7 years were repaved cheaply resulting in excessive surface chipping/flaking which causes excessive tire wear. I don't plan on off-roading with my new X5, can rent an off-road for that if I want to go, but may occasionally have to drive on gravel or dirt roads.

So, my three highest priorities are >30,000 miles of dependable life, quiet/smooth ride that doesn't kill mpg, and reasonable in some snow (4 or 5 times each year) on hilly roads. Some of you posting in this thread seem extremely knowledgeable and I know squat about tires. Recommendations most welcomed and appreciated! T.I.A.

Edit2: some more Tirerack research indicates Bridgestone H/L 400 RFT (runflats - highway all season) run $229. How do these (and stock RFs) compare, for my environment and miles life, to the tires above? At this price (CA had implied >$400 per tire replacement cost), I am beginning to wonder if I should re-consider replacing the tires as indicated above. Advice? Again - T.I.A.

[salenks]

An update after driving the General Grabber HTS for some time.

Great tires for summer and winter. However, I wish I bought Michelin Latitude X-Ice Xi2 for winter and Michelin Energy MXV4 for summer. People rate Michelin tires very poorly but I am currently driving a used set (low thread) and the tires are great. Quiet and handle exceptionally on the curvy and bumpy roads of Serbia. Before I got the used Michelin's, I purchased new General Grabber UHP which are very good but I think Michelin's are better, although a lot more expensive.

Recommendation to everybody. If you get a lot of snow where you live, get summer AND winter tires, not all season tires. They will last you longer and you will have good grip.