Goodyear Wrangler Silent Armor

[BigO]

Any body running these tires yet. They sound and look interesting. Just wondering if they really are quiet or not. I currently run the Wrangler RTS and might want to try a newer technology tire.

[mcmonroe]

I was looking at them too. Maybe someone that has them can comment.

ttt

Mark

[BigO]

I went ahead and got them. They look great on the truck, I stayed with the stock size. They are quiet and aggressive looking.

[mcmonroe]

Keep us posted on them.

:)

Mark

[Stubby]

We had a set of 265R75/16 load range E installed on our '02 D/A. We have about 800 miles on them empty, and are inpressed with how quiet they are. We leave for Alaska on Tues. from Ohio, towing a 9500 lb 5th wheel, and hope to be very satisfied with the tires.

[OC_DMAX]

I need a new set of tires too. The two posts here have caught my attention.

A couple of questions if I may:

How is the handling relative to stock? Do you feel the sidewall stiffness is sufficient to handle the demands of a large 5th wheel trailer?

Also, you both indicate the tires are relatively quiet. I currently have the original OEM Firestone Steeltex A/T tires on the truck. Are these new Goodyear tires about the same noise level?

Thanks,
Alan

[jbplock]

Alan,

I can

[OC_DMAX]

Bill,

Thanks for the reply. My truck came with the Firestone Steeltex A/T tires. At 27k miles, they are shot.

I had thought about going with the Michelin LTX M/S load range E tire. I understand that this tire has a long thread life. This tire would work for 60% of my needs, but in the winter I use the truck to pull the 5th wheel off-road in the CA Desert. So in search of a more aggressive off-road thread design I was going with the Michelin LTX A/T tire (similar to what is on the truck). Then I read this post on the Goodyear Wrangler A/T (new design) and went to their website. If one can believe the advertising, it looks like a good design. I have always bought Michelin tires to replace the originals on all the vehicles the family owns and have had good luck with them. I have three more weeks before I need to make a decision, so still pondering,,,,,

Alan

[BigO]

Alan:

I will be towing for the first time with the tires this weekend, I will give you a response on Monday or Tuesday. Based on the information that I was given from the GYR Dealer, that the tire may be little more stiffer but not enough to feel. I will be towing a 9,000 pound 5th wheel.

The old Wranglers hummed when you went down the road, these do not. With the new sidwall technology they are made to go off roading and be some what aggressive and less resistant to sidewall punctures. We go out on the forest roads alot in the mountains with the camper.

As for comparing noise to the Firestone Tires I can not, I had Wrangler put on mine truck at a 1,000 miles. I have an 01 2500,

[OC_DMAX]

BigO,

Thanks for the reply and I await your evaluation. I need to pick up a set of new tires in the next couple of weeks. I have a 5th Wheel trailer that has a GVWR of 10.5K pounds (very similar to yours). So your observations should be directly applicable to my situation.

Alan

[olehoss]

BigO, where did you buy your tires? How are they working after your trip? tongue.gif

[BigO]

Sorry for the delay.

We towed about 450 miles with the camper this weekend. We went back roads on the way there and Interstate 10 on the way back. Tires are really great and you do not hear any road noise. The tires are a little stiffer and you may posibbly feel a few more bumps, however I did install new shocks a month ago. It could be a combination of both shocks and tires.

WE have always had load range E on our truck, if you have not, you may feel a big difference pertaining to stiffness of tire and bumps in the road.

Purchased my tires from a company owned Goodyear Gemini Store.

THE BEST PART is 30 DAY TRIAL NO OBLIGATION per Goodyear.

[ 06-18-2005, 08:55 AM: Message edited by: BigO ]

[OC_DMAX]

Big O,

Bought the Goodyear Wrangler Silent Armor LT245-75R16 Load Range E tires this morning (Sunday). I concur partially with your comments. Previously, I had the Firestone OEM tires with the A/T tread. These Goodyears have a much more aggressive tread design and they are definetly quit. Probably quieter than the stock tires. My personal feeling is that these tires have a softer ride than the OEM tires. It may just be me, but on the Freeway expansion joints here in SoCal, the Goodyears handle them much better than the Firestones. So my initial impression is very favorable. If I had not seen this post, I probably would have gone with the Michelin A/T tires. So thanks for taking the time to start this thread. At this point in time, I feel the Goodyears are a better tire than the Michelins (which I had on a previous truck).

If you compare these Wrangler Silent Armor tires to the Wrangler A/T tires, the tread design is more aggressive for off-road duties. Going just on my initial impressions, it would appear as if Goodyear has an excellent new tire design on their hands. I guess we will have to wait a couple a years to see what the conclusion to this observation is. I also need to pull the 5th Wheel trailer, but given your post, I expect this to be positive also. The real test will be towards October when the SoCal desert motorcycling season begins!

Thanks again,
Alan

[ 06-20-2005, 03:49 AM: Message edited by: OC_DMAX ]

[LittleBigRig]

I've got the E-rated Michelin LTX. They do ride phenomenally better than the OEM tires, but I wouldn't classify them as "handlers" - in fact the Firestone's I removed probably handled a bit better.

Regarding the tire mileage, I've run the cheap ones and I've run the expensive ones. The key to longevity is tire pressure. I have determined that on my 4WD D/A, 52lbs in the front, 40lbs in the rear gives me the optimal unloaded wear / ride. My original Steeltex tires gave me 50,000 miles before the wearbars matched the tread depth. The Michelins will give me about 60,000.

[Driveshaft]

I JUST REPLACED MY FIRESTONES W/BRIDGESTONE DUELER A/T'S (LT265/75R16) AT 53100 MILES. ALTHOUGH, ONE OF THEM PROBABLY DIDN'T HAVE BUT 30000 MILES. I WAS DOING A 5 TIRE ROTATION, TO GET RID OF ALL FIVE WHEN WORE OUT. NONE OF THEM HAD THE 53000 MILES, A COUPLE HAD APPROX 44000, I WAS KEEPING UP WITH THEM, BUT AFTER BLOWING ONE OUT AT ONLY 35000 I KNEW I WASN'T GOING TO TRY TO GET MUCH OUT OF THEM. I RAN 50 PSI IN REARS, 60 IN FRONTS, EMPTY AND 70 ALL 4 WHEN PULLING ANY KIND OF LOADS. WITH LESS THAN 200 ON BRIDGESTONES, I AM VERY HAPPY WITH RIDE AND FEEL OF THESE TIRES. I HAVE RUN BRIDGESTONES BEFORE AND I KNOW MOST OF THEIR PLANTS ARE IN SAME FENCES WITH FIRESTONES, BUT HAVE NEVER HAD ANY GOOD LUCK OUT OF FIRESTONES.

[Driveshaft]

FORGOT TO ADD THAT I HAD 2 MORE ABOUT TO BLOWOUT IS THE REASON I REPLACED WITH 4 NEW ONES.