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Ford Freestyle Tires
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Comments
For warm climates, I'd recomend the Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza in 225/65-17 due to its 600AA rating in an HR tire, and Bridgestone has a good reputation.
Has anyone tried Hankook Optimo H727 tires? They have a 98T 700AB rating and low price from Pepboys. I haven't been able to find any winter reports on this tire. I am leaning toward Yokohama Avid TRZ as they have almost as good winter rating as the Goodyear TripleTred and better than Michelin HydroEdge at TireRack and are less expensive than both.
Has anyone experienced any change in gas mileage after switching to the wider 225/65R17 tires?
Not having been satisfied with the 30,000 miles I got out of the original Continentals I tried to go the mid-range route on my Freestyle with a set of Yokohama YK520s a couple of years ago, which were more expensive than the Contis but $25 per tire less than the Goodyear Assurance Triple Treads I really wanted. The Yokos disappointed. They wore very quickly, rode harshly, and got noisy as they aged. They were 60,000 mile rated tires but once again after 30,000 miles they were shot.
This time I paid the extra and got the Goodyear Assurance Triple Treads. I know these will be great tires because I've been running them on my Saab station wagon and with over 40,000 miles they still have more than half their tread left. They are rated for 80,000 miles so even if they wear faster on the Freestyle than on my Saab they will still last longer than the previous sets ultimately saving money. Lastly, they have a winter oriented all-season tread that does great in ice/snow. I can attest to this. Since you live in upstate New York where I know it snows a lot, I'd definitely go with the Triple Treads. They will not disappoint.
I suspect that any tire that lasts a long time is going to be more likely to develop some irregularity in balance simply because they've been around a lot longer than a lesser tire that has already worn out and been replaced. Just a thought. Also, to help a tire last a long time and remain round it does need to be rotated regularly, which I suspect most people don't do.
- Chad
The Forteras are truck tires, meaning they are designed for higher loads and light off-road duty, where as the Assurance tires are passenger vehicle tires designed for mostly paved road use. While it might sound appealing to have the truck tires just in case, they come at the cost of a thicker and heavier tire carcass that the Freestyles suspension was not designed for. Ride quality would likely suffer and the shocks likely wouldn't be up to dealing with the extra unsprung mass. At the very least you'd likely get lower gas mileage as a truck tire is going to have higher rolling resistance.
- Chad
According to tirerack.com,
215/65-17:
All are car tires in this size, and have a 1650 or 1700 lb load rating:
Original Equipment Continentals:26 lbs
Continental ContiProContacts: 23 lbs
Bridgestone Turanza Serenity: 30 lbs
Goodyear Assurance TripleTred: 30 lbs
Michelin HydroEdge: 27 lbs
bigger 225/65-17 (adds 1/4 inch to ride height):
Every tire listed in this size has an 1800 lb load rating:
Continental 4x4 Contact: 27 lbs (truck)
Michelin Energy LX4: 28 lbs (car tire)
Michelin CrossTerrain SUV: 29 lbs (truck)
Goodyear Integrity: 27 lbs (car tire)
Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza: 32 lbs (truck)
Goodyear Fortera TripleTred: 32 lbs (truck)
If mass is an issue, the real choice seems to be the ContiProContacts in the smaller 215 size, which are a light 23 lbs each. Lighter tires do improve the ride though the reduction in unsprung mass.
Note that some of the truck tires in the larger 225 size are actually lighter than some of the passenger tires in the smaller 215 size!
I doubt if there would be much difference in rolling resistance getting the Forteras over the Assurance tripletreds.
Thanks.
For those conditions, I'd get the BF Goodrich Traction T/A, as they got a "AA" traction rating (temperature was "A"). Two A's for traction aren't that common, and it means they are very grippy. Reference tire rack's web page -- click here
(for 215/65-17 original size)
Lightest: OZ Ultraleggera wheel with ContiProContacts would be 40 lbs total.
Heaviest: Sport Edition TK1 wheel with Goodyear Assurance Tripletred would be 60 lbs!
Stock: I think is about 53 lbs
The variation is substantial. The lighter the wheel/tire, the smoother the ride, through less unsprung mass. There is a 20 lb per tire/wheel spread in possibilites. Makes you think.
I know this is the kind of thing that racers pay attention to, but there are ride quality consequences for we Freestyle owners. Thinking of the physics of this, it would mean a more massive tire/wheel would not stick to a bumpy/wavy road as well, meaning you could lose traction sooner. Also, braking/acceleration would be worse in the highest mass case.
Highly recommended. TR speed rated, so they are tough enough to withstand 118 mph sustained speeds. I'm going to leave them on year around, even though they are snow/ice rated. Recommended for any northern state & Canada. The 225 width fits better than the 215 stock tires.
There has been a class action lawsuit on tires similar to the 215/65-17 Continental ContiTouring tires original equipment on Freestyles. The same tire with the anti-puncture (ContiSeal) version was the subject of the lawsuit for fast tread wear. Those were fast wearing tires for most people!
Thanks,
freestylephil
freestylephil
freestylephil
I have the stock tires which I knew would be OK at best and they looking like they might need to be replaced fairly soon. I am looking at buying new tires sooner rather than later.
I have seen some posts for the Firestone FR710s, and haven't found any ratings for them. Are they new? Are they OK on Ice? My Cooper CS4's were decent on my old car, but were not good on ice. I am also considering the TripleTreads and maybe the Yoko TRZ's as well.
I live in Wisconsin, and we get alot of snow/nasty weather.
Thanks!
I really think people up north like you (and I'm in Colorado) should put on Pirelli Scorpion Ice & Snow (click here for info on that tire). Its a high-speed (TR rated to 118 mph) snow tire, very tough, that can be used year-around, as its got thick tread and will last. I love'em on my Freestyle, wet, dry, or snow. They do have the snowflake-on-the-mountain rating, which means they get traction.
Be sure to fit the 225/65-17 size, as I think they fit better than the 215 mm width ones the Freestyle/500 came with. (For 18" wheels, stick with the stock size tires.) I wouldn't run them year around if you live where it gets very hot, but this is one tough high-speed rated tire, so you could.
I'd get the BF Goodrich Traction TA -- click here.
Its got a double-A traction rating, bad-[non-permissible content removed]. H-speed rated. Not bad.
Just my 5 cents......
Not a good choice.
First of all, the max PSI on that tire is 35 PSI, way too close to the Freestyle's placard 34 PSI. That should be 41 or 44 PSI like the Ford engineers specified.
Secondly, the LX4 has a lower speed rating, which means sidewall stiffness and heat resistance strength is below Ford engineer's specs as well. Its an SR tire, and a TR or HR is the recommended.
Many installers will catch those mistakes, although I guess not all are paying attention.
Never underestimate the willingness of people to test safety margins.
tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper
Rule Number 1: Never put weaker speed rating tires than OEM on your vehicle.
Rule Number 2: Never put a lower max pressure tire on your vehicle than OEM.
Since some people will put that LX4 on the vehicle, you should be fine as long as you keep no more than 35 psi (and don't go below 32 psi all around, narrow range), don't load the vehicle up with people and/or cargo past around 75% of max payload weight capacity, and when carrying more than just a driver and one passenger, keep your speed below about 70 on a hot day, and 80 on a cold day. Following those guidelines should provide the approximate original amount of safety margin. To me, it would simply be easier to put correct tires on and go right to the limits of the machine as tested and designed for by Ford engineers. Recommended.
1. Ultimate speed is not really the issue here. Ford specified a TR tire because of sidewall stiffness and stress/durability issues. It ties into the handling. When we deviate from Ford engineer's specs, then handling degrades.
2. The fact that Ford recommends 34 psi, and your LX4 has a max pressure rating of 35 psi is just way too close. Many gauges aren't even that accurate, so you might think you're putting in 34 psi one day and you're actually at or above the max psi pressure rating on the tire sidewall. Not wise. Ford OEM tires have a max psi rating of 44 psi, the normal safety margin.
And one more point: The OEM Conti tires are very strong, stiff, and get good traction. The only problem they have is Conti didn't put enough rubber on the tread, making them wear out very fast. And I think the tread compound they used also causes fast wear.
For 18" wheels on Limited models, Barnstormer's choice is a good one.
Actually, if you don't have to worry about ice/snow, you could go with whatever the cheapest tire is you can find that still has a 44 psi max sidewall pressure and TR speed rating.
Discount Tire has a short deal for $70 off 4 Michelins. (link)
Continental is doing a $75 rebate deal.
BJs is doing $60 off Michelins if you have one in your area.
The 35% Firestone deal looks pretty hot, if you find a model you like.
The Tire Rack has customer reviews (and some tires on sale too, but their current offerings seem to be pricey high performance tires).
Wrong. We automotive engineers know that a tire with a recommended placard operating pressure of 34 psi on the Freestyle is not compatible with a 35 psi max sidewall replacement tire. Thats only a 1 psi margin. Its obvious. Thats why Ford engineers put 44 psi max sidewall pressure tires OEM on the vehicle. That was no accident its 44 psi.
"Since the max speed of the Freestyle is a governed 110, any tire with at least an S rating is fine."
As I've said before, the critical parameter is lateral stiffness, something a TR tire (OEM style) has more than an SR tire. Max speed is not the important factor, although a TR tire would be more tolerant of low pressure / high temp conditions before blowing out, a greater safety margin. Safety margin and ruggedness is important to some people; possibly not you, bruneau. Greater lateral stiffness allows better "L" obstacle avoidance maneuvers compatible with the suspension dynamics and CG position on the Freestyle, a problem seen in some SUVs in the past and corrected in more modern cars like the Freestyle, if you stick to the Ford specs of a TR tire. (See Toyota 4Runner as a bad L-maneuver vehicle, for one example.)