Sprinter Tires

[raynchk]

At 45,000 miles, I see I'm going to have to plan for some new tires on my '07 2500. I'm not impressed by the Continental's, I rotate them about every 15,000 and they're not wearing well at all. I've even had nitrogen in them for the past 25,000 and I can't see that's its helped any.

I'm leaning toward a set Michelin LTX "E" series, and so far the best price I've come up with is $775 at Sam's Club. Its a special order, and they tell me it takes about 5 days to get them in-store. The first I heard about these tires, the guy at NTB was telling me he had customers bragging they got 200,000 on the tires. I doubt that, though.

Are there better tires around for the Sprinter? Because of expedited driving conditions, they have to be mud and snow tread.

 

[DAN]

I have 133,346 miles with the original Michelin LTX E on my 2006 Sprinter and I hope to put 50,000 more.Very good tires,expensive, but in my opinion the best for Sprinter.

 

[Moot]

raynchk, before you put new tires on have the front end alignment checked. You should be doing better than 45,000 miles no matter what the brand tire.

I don't rotate my tires even though my tire guy does it for free. I do once at about 60-70,000 miles when I buy new rears and bring the old rears up front. I average 115 to 120,000 miles a tire. I could push it further because there is still decent tread when I scrap them but why push it. This is on a Chevy van.

I only got 60,000 out of my original steers on my 2004 due to out of spec alignment from the factory.

I understand the principle behind tire rotation but find the inconvenience of scheduling an appointment with my locally owned independent tire dealer to be a hassle. Also regular tire rotation can often make it difficult to pinpoint a problem due to alignment. This method has served me well over the years, but hey that's just me.

 

[terryandrene]

I've had several sets of the 245/75R16 Mich LTX on Chev and Ford vans. My last set was retired at 180,000 and had an average 4/32" when I did so. I could easily have matched your friend at 200K miles. COSTCO sells the E rated LTX for $755.46, out the door.

 

[dhalltoyo]

The Michelin LTX is a very good tire. My only concern is the price. The Michelin is about $200 per tire.

The Transforce HT out-the-door price for the same truck is $116. Drivers are getting 150K miles+ out of these tires.

The Transforce HT is packed with features to make it a driving force for light truck and commercial vehicles. UNI-T technology along with deep shoulder slots and circumferential grooves gives traction in wet conditions. The polyester and steel construction plus a high modulus tread compound help resist the rigors of heavy-duty work. With a modern, all-season tread design and noise reduction technology, the Transforce HT also provides a comfortable ride.


Innovative Tire Design - A Comprehensive Tire Design Method

This method improves handling in wet or dry conditions and reduces irregular treadwear by combining an ideal tread design, casing shape, materials and construction.

Innovative Roundness - Rounder Is Better

Rounder overall tire shape provides better balance for wet or dry handling.


Innovative Compound - Longer Is Stronger

L.L. Carbon utilizes a special form of molecular re-engineered carbon black, a key factor in improving tire wear while enhancing wet performance.


Spiral Wrap

Spiral Wrap is a continuous nylon wrap that encircles the whole tire, helping the tire hold its original shape to improve high speed capability.


5 Degree Noise Reduction

Produces noise-canceling sound waves to significantly reduce tire noise on road surfaces.


Traction in rain and dry

Circumferential grooves and deep shoulder slots work together to provide extra traction in wet conditions.


Chip and Tear resistance

Polyester and steel construction and the advanced high modulus tread compound help prevent damage and promote long wear.


Comfortable ride

Computer-designed shape and body add to driving comfort.


Warranty Summary:
Gold Pledge Limited Warranty
Buy & Try 30 Day Guarantee
Standard Limited Warranty

 

[terryandrene]

The Michelin LTX will easily last 180,000 miles at the COSTCO price of $755. This price includes mounting, valve stems, balance and lifetime rotate and balance at any Costco tire store.

180,000 miles worth of David's Firestone Transforce HT tires would cost $556. A saving of $50 per tire. They appear to be a good value if all the services and supplies provided by Costco are included in the sale.

Does anyone else have an E rated Cargo Van tire to add to the comparison?

 

[Moot]

I have always run Bridgestone V steel until they quit making them. I put 2 Firestone Transforce tires on the rear about 34,000 miles ago. Cost was $138 per tire plus $12 per tire to mount and balance for a grand total of $300. With only 34,000 on the Transforce the jury is still out. I have a Costco membership so next set of tires I will check out their prices.

 

[geo]

my 07 sprinter don't like the cont, have almost 20,000 on them and might have to change
to goodyear

 

[Turtle]

Never had a problem with a Michelin tire, never had a Firestone tire that I didn't have a problem with. YMMV

 

[vipra]

My '04 Sprinter came with Michelin LTX A/S. They went 200K miles. I replaced them with an identical set at a Dodge dealer for $750 installed. That set now has 130K and I'm sure they'll go 200K also. The high price is worth it when they last that long. If your tires only got 50K they must have been very poor quality.

 

[60MPH]

I am a Firestone guy on the fourth set, I love the transforce HT. The first set was the geforce HT then they stopped making them and came out with the Transforce HT. I change my tires every 120-130k which is every oct-nov so I have good traction in the snow and what have you. I have never had a problem out of firestone's. In my few years of expediting "around 7 years" I have tried many tires and I like the michilien but @ 200.00 a pop it is expensive if you replace them once a year like I do. When I get rid of my tires I still have anywhere between 6/32 and 4/32 of tread left, I know I can go futher on them but I run about 90% above I-64 and east of the Mississsippi so I know I am going to need the traction so I just replace them. I pay just about 115-120 a tire and that includes mount and balance and lifetime rotation, my shop orders them from Tirerack.com and they get a discount and pass it on to me. I rotate front to back every 30k and get a alignment at that time "I paid the 200.00 for lifetime alignment" so it's a good deal I think. I would not suggest uni-royal's to anyone and I did not care for the goodyear wrangles either they wore way to quickly and the uni-royal's Laredo's are just junk. I have a 06 chevy 3500 and it came with factory Bridgestone V-steel's they are a ok tire but I do not like the way they handle in wet weather conditions and when I replaced them @ 121k they still had atlest 4/32 on 3 of the tires and 6/32 on the other so they were holding up to the milage. I think you getting 45k out of tires just means that you got a bad set I would think that any commercial tire would hold up to atleast 100k with no problems, buts thats just my .02

 

[ebsprintin]

Same thing here. 07 Sprinter with Conti tires. Almost the exact same wear you mention. Continental tires of old that I've known had excellent traction, but the compound was soft. Maybe Chrysler thinks installing a high wear tire will bring me back to their shops more often? Uh-huh.

eb

 

[raynchk]

Thanks for all replys. Its nice to get a consensus.

 

[ross]

In my opinion, the LTX are terrible in the snow but other than that it is a good one.

 

[OntarioVanMan]

My 99 Dodge van (pre-Sprinter) came with LTX's as well....2 inches of snow on a slight upgrade it just pushed the snow ahead of them...garbage BUT good summer tire.

For those of you Sprinter drivers that go into Canada..thinking of Turtle
You may not have this link:
https://www.fleet.daimlerchrysler.c...-DODGE-SPRINTER-DEALER_LOCATOR,.html#hamilton

 

[FIS53]

FOr the most part I use the Michelins LTX M/S although the sprinter came with the A/S. I didn't like the wet handling of the a/s so replaced with m/s. Otherwise for you guys running in snow there is something to putting on snows. I've had a hard time getting around in the sprinter in deep snow this year. Now Bridgestone and Toyo both make snows in 225/75-16 E for the sprinters. The Blizzak is a top rated snow. Only know one guy using the toyos but he loves them.

So next year I'm buying a set of snows for the rear anyways.

And for firestones i ran the steeltex for over 130,000 miles and they took a beating (on GM). Not the best for winter but not too bad with a load.

Rob

 

[PinballWizard]

My 2007 Sprinter has just a little over 50,000 Miles and the original Continental Tires are almost gone. My Dealer is actually replacing them for me at no charge because of the terrible wear. JUNK !!! Love the new sprinter still , Its been performing perfectly.

 

[kg]

I'am not one to set records with tire wear, I believe in having plenty of tread.

My last Ford van came with HANKOOK DYNA PRO AS tires from the factory, and they wear like iron! 90,000 miles and little noticeable wear.

However in the rear I always run a high traction tire, and can heartily recommend the BRIDGESTONE DUELER A/T. Absolutely the best traction in rain or snow I've ever experienced.

just my opinion

 

[geo]

just replace tires on my 07 and only got 24,000 out of them they were cont
and service manager where i have my service done said cont don't last long
bought 4 firestones on base for $503, and asked ahead of time if they could mount them
and when got there to put on , they said person that know how to do van's is out
so had to take to a different place to get them mount and remount, for 71.00
still not bad and no tax on tires

 

[tblount]

I've had several sets of the 245/75R16 Mich LTX on Chev and Ford vans. My last set was retired at 180,000 and had an average 4/32" when I did so. I could easily have matched your friend at 200K miles. COSTCO sells the E rated LTX for $755.46, out the door.

They have them here on closeout for $130 each
Michelin LTX A/T

Of course you would have to pay shipping and mounting... but $520 is a substantial difference.