What brand and size tire for 1998 Concourse

[Flame]

My tires still have great tread and still drives good but the tires are over 5 years old. We want the best ride possible. Right now I am running Mastercraft (Cooper) LT 225/75/R16 and it really rides pretty good but this is my first rv and don't have anything to compare it to. I am carrying right at 10,000 pounds. What brand and size is everyone running and who thinks one is a smoother ride than another. I will do no offroading. Highway only. Thanks I settled on 65 psi in front and 60 psi in rear. So far so good. Planning a trip from Texas to New York, DC, and back by way of the coast so want to replace tires before we go.

[Blue~Go]

I put on the tried and true Michelin LTX MS/2 when I got my Concourse in 2014. No complaints. These are a very popular tire for our type of RV (i.e. one that uses our diameter of tires). I believe now they are the Michelin Defender something something (they update them every few years).

The other tire I considered was another popular choice which was, if I remember the name correctly, the Michelin XP RIB. But upon researching, these seemed like much heavier tires that would be great for something like a fully loaded E-450 (in fact my buddy did get these once, but he also had to run tires at the full 80psi to to the weight on his larger RV). I decided against them.

I don't know how many of us have run two or more sets of new-but-different tires to compare them? When I get new tires (most likely this coming spring), I'll likely get the Michelin Defender (new version of LTX MS/2) because they have worked well for me.

BTW, 95% of my miles are highway. I do drive quite often on gravel or dirt roads, but since a typical bout of that is something like a half mile at 5mph, it's a very small part of my driving percentage-wise. I've been limited from further travel many times, but it was never tire related (width, departure angle, or sometimes height, is what does it). So I wanted first and foremost a high quality quietish highway tire. I don't drive in snow, so that didn't really figure in.

[markatherton]

I agree Mechelin defender series.

[Flame]

I priced the Cooper tires like I have on it now. Drive out for 6 tires is $970. Drive out for the Michelins is $1552. Roughly $100 more per tire!! With my present tires still "looking" like new I wonder how much I could resale them for. Would keep one for my spare but could sell 5 good tires to someone for truck tires. Would help recoup cost of new ones.

[Xatlatc]

When I bought my Chinook it came Michelin tires. They looked great and provided a safe ride, but I don’t recall if they were quiet or smooth or not. The Michelins turned out to be over ten years old ( but looked great due to lack of use ) so I replaced them with General Grabbers, figuring it would save a few bucks plus I probably wouldn’t put more than 15-20k on them while I own the Chinook. Well, about 15k later on the Generals, the only thing I’ve noticed is the ‘grinding ‘ noise I hear while turning slowly and going slowly on certain types of pavement. I don’t recall if I heard this with the Michelin tires or not.
Overall I’m happy with the General tires, but I wish I could remember if the Michelin’s were quieter or not.

[SMan]

Have Cooper Discoverer HT3's on my 04 Premier and am very happy with them. For me tires will be replaced by the years and never wear out by mileage.

[Chinnin-about]

Have Cooper Discoverer HT3's on my 04 Premier and am very happy with them. For me tires will be replaced by the years and never wear out by mileage.

Just put 2 Cooper Discover tires on the front of my Chinook. Couldn't justify the difference in price between the Coopers and the Michelins, since they will wear out from age way before they wear out the tread, as with most RV's. I'm happy with them.

[Chinnin-about]

Flame, I forgot to mention. I replaced my two front tires because of their age. The date code on them was 2000, so they were 18 years old and had cracked sidewall. Two in the rear on the inside are 2009, and the two outer rear tires are 2014. Both Michelin's. I figured, as long as I don't have a blowout in the front drive tires, which is why I replaced them, I could live with a rear tire failing for now. I have AAA roadside assistance. They still have excellent tread. The outside rear tires are showing some sun damage, and the guy at the tire shop said they weren't too bad. I'm going to keep them covered while in the direct sun for now and try and run them for awhile longer.

[Blue~Go]

Two in the rear on the inside are 2009... I figured, as long as I don't have a blowout in the front drive tires... I could live with a rear tire failing for now.

You may already have considered this in your plan and be fine with it, but I just thought I would mention it in case you haven't thought about it: That is that although a rear blowout or tread separation may not cause a loss of control, it can do quite a bit of damage to the coach body and/or wheelwell. That can be expensive and/or inconvenient.

I do have bias here, as I am happy to pay for new tires for additional peace of mind (or if something happens, at least I know I did what I could). OTOH I wasn't sure if you had thought of the possible collateral damage vs only the road handling aspect of a problem with a rear tire.

[BobW9]

I can't be certain, as it was there when I bought my Concourse, but I believe the damage to the passenger-side rear wheel well is from a tire blowout.