Kia Sportage Tires

illimey

Here's the deal:

It seems to me that auto manufacturers can often be completely stupid when it comes to the tires they slap on their new vehicles. The '05 Honda Element I just traded in for my new '07 I4 5spd 4x4 Sportage came with a set of tires [Goodyear Wranglers] so unsuited to the truck that I gave up on them after only 10,000 miles. For some vehicles tire choice is not so important, but for an SUV style car, it really has to be right.

I've already read plenty of moans about the BF Goodrich rubber Kia puts on some Sportages, so I was happy to see that neither of the trucks I bought last week [yes, I bought 2 [TWO] Sportages last week - see other thread] have BF's on....

The 4x4 I have has Kumho Ecsta HP4 716 tires, and
the 4x2 has Hankook Optimo H418

So far, the Kumhos have performed well in the slush and snow, which is a nice surprise considering that they have some pretty poor ratings for winter weather at tirerack.com.

My wife is driving the 4x2 with the Hankooks, so can't comment on those tires yet - but tirerack reviewers seem positive for the most part.

Anyone here got any thoughts? Should I expect any problems with these tires on my new trucks?

Have a blessed and happy Christmas, and drive safe!

:shades:

crazedcommuter

I just put new tires on the 2006 V6 Sportage LX AWD at 22,000 miles. OEM tires were the BF Goodrich Traction TA Spec but did not last long. They were down past the wear bars. I put on 4 Michelin Hydroedge in size 235 65 16. As you all know, replacement tires for the Sportage are tough to find and all the tire shops are eager to throw on a passenger car tire. I researched the Yokohama Geo ATS and the Kumho but could not find them stocked anywhere, so I opted for the Hydoedges. They're a 90,000 mile tire so I hope to do better than the OEM Goodrich's. I'll report back on performance after I get a few thousand miles on them. Anybody else switch tire sizes or types??

crazedcommuter

The Michelin Hyrdoedges performed well through the winter. Dry traction is very good and the stiff sidewall makes handling in the Sportage much better. Wet traction is amazing with these hyrdos. No hydroplaing, lots of grip around wet curves, and no slips @ 80 mph on interstate driving. Treadwear looks almost new with 4,000 miles on them now. I found if I run the tire pressure @ 36lbs it is right for this vehicle. It was a very mild winter here in the eastern W Va/DC metro this year but the Kia plowed right on through and held the road fine during the one 7" snowfall this year.

So far the tires were a great investment and made the Sportage handle much better than the stock BF Goodrich TA's, and I recommend them as replacements.

crazedcommuter

The Michelin Hydroedges are still performing quite well on our 06 Sportage. No issues with traction issues or hydroplaning, and handling is greatly improved over the stock BFG's. I had them rotated during the summer at Sears and tread wear has been minimal.

tidester

Thanks for the update!

tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper

mtnbiker4life

Mine's a '99 2 door/soft top,but I have run BFG Mud Terrain KM's (31x10.50) for 3 years (well,ok...I just got the thing from my Dad,he ran them,and now I do as well),and aside from being a tight fit,and the road noise,I love them. But then again,my last 4x4 was an '06 Silverado Z71 with lift and 35" KM's.

I won't be trying to go 4 wheeling with this 'ute,but if you're gonna buy a 4x4 SUV,why be a wus and run car-type tires? No offense intended,just my 2 cents.

crazedcommuter

Update on the Michelin Hydroedge tires @ 15,000 miles. Very low treadwear so far. Wet traction is amazing and dry is very good. We made it thru the 2 east coast blizzards pretty well. The Hydroedges are not great in the snow and ice, but we never got stuck in the 60+ inches either. The 4x4 kept us moving so that we could make those trips for food stocks when other cars were still buried.

The only trouble I had with their traction was with 1-2 inches of snow on the our steep uphill driveway as the 1st storm began. I couldn't make it up so I backed down, scattered some rock salt then made it up. I'm sure a more agressive tread design would have made it up but then they wouldn't have the wet traction that these tires have.