STX-550 tyre replacement

[the_bluester]

I am looking at tyres for my wifes 550 in the very near future and I am looking to stick with the stock size.

By distance the car spends 95%+ of its time on bitumen however there are a couple of KM of dirt road traveled twice a day weekdays taking the young fella to school. That road turns to rubbish in the winter with what feels like a soft clay base that has cars squirming around a lot.

I am looking for a mostly road biased AT to put on the car, I have not been happy with the stock tyres for a long time, they are just OK to me except that the tread has been flaking off them for the last 20,000KM or so (Across the whole tyre at both ends so not alignment related, and a previous car with that tyre did the same)

I want to stick with the standard size, speed and load rating but about all I can find are the Pirelli ATR in a relatively tamely treaded AT that should still be good on bitumen but improve things on the clay.

Anyone running the Pirelli or something similar?

 

[cassgazz]

I am using the Mickey Thompson ATZ on mine. They came with the car when I purchased it 2nd hand. Normally I would have gone with BFG's, but have found these tyres great. They are slightly wider also, at 275.

 

[the_bluester]

To get through the WAT (Wife acceptance test) I reckon only stuff in the stock size will fly.

One thing I have not sorted through is the legality of going under the speed rating on the tyre placard. They did not exactly do us any favours by specifying a minimum 190KMH rated tyre for Australia! That said, a lower rated tyre that turns out to shimmy and shake on hard surfaces like some more aggressive tyres I have driven on would get me a firm kick up the arse.

Our default regular trips are 7 minutes each way to school or into town and around an hour each way to everywhere else. While I want to improve its manners on the crap road to school, compromising it too much on the highway will get me shot.

 

[Adam777]

My stock goodyear wranglers also started flaking off across the width of the tread, i replaced mine with michelin latitude cross but had to go to 265/65/17 and i have to say i would happily buy them again, they give a slightly harder ride than the standard wranglers did so must have a stronger sidewall but the difference in road noise from them is chalk and cheese the michelin's are so much quieter, they are wearing really well and whether you're driving in heavy rain or the dry are just a much superior tyre to the goodyears.

 

[the_bluester]

No rubbing anywhere? I would consider going +1 on the width if it does not foul anything.

A mate had a set of what I am pretty sure was the previous generation of these on a RAV4 and they have retained good grip and still have legal tread depth after over 100,000km. And he pedals along like he means to get where he is going.

 

[Adam777]

no, no rubbing at all

 

[Gcg7861]

Im running 275/65/17 Federal AT 115T - definitely not a stock size I got them for $150 each and they lasted 53,000 with rotation probably good for another 20,000 before replacement. Not the best if you compare to BFG or MT, but a cheap alternative and definitetly better than stock. Have used them offroad on forest trails and beach, they are average but then again, cheap and better than stock.

 

[the_bluester]

I ended up going with Yokohama Geolandar AT G015 in the stock size. So far so good, quiet enough on road, better behavior on the back road than the stock tyre ever had, $310 each.

Can't know obviously how they will stack up durability wise by way of life and resistance to chipping on the gravel. Time will tell.