1995 Dodge Caravan - Question on tread depth

Maintenance/Repairs
1

Bought Michelin Premier LTX Ttires a few years ago. Loved the ride. Question, when they were new they had maybe half the tread depth of regular passenger tires. WHY?

2

That was their design choice.

Deep tread cause heat and can cause noise or wiggly handling. Shallow with more grooves channels as much water as the deeper grooves and is more stable and cooler.

If the tire wears a long time, works well and is quiet, why does it matter?

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3

I installed Michelin Defender LTX’s on my truck a few years ago. Very thick tread. No complaints at all, but these tires do have the minor problems noted by @Mustangman above, a little noisy and wiggly, wiggly part is esp noticeable when turning at slow speeds. Not enough to detract from the ride, but noticeable to the driver. I wouldn’t especially like them for a modern low-slung sports car, but for a 50 year old truck they work great.

Now I think about it, maybe mine are “LT” rather than “LTX”, can’t remember. They are definitely Defenders though.

4

Primacy ltx or premier?

5

I ha Micheline Premier tire new on my 2012 Camry, good ride,handling and fuel mileage but worn out at .29000 miles. They were at 3-4/32 and winter was coming so I bought a set of 90,000 rated Goodyear’s.

6

OEM tires aren’t necessarily the same the same model of tire sold at retail. It’s very possible that the OEM tire had less tread depth than the retail tire in an effort from the car’s manufacturer to hit production costs, weight targets, or CAFE standards. It’s possible for the OEM tire to wear out at 29k, but the retail version of the same tire to last for 45k-50k miles.

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7

You mean “not necessarily” right? That is how the rest of your answer reads…and I agree.

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8

Good catch, I’ll have to go back and edit that

1 Like
10

When I checked out replacement tires the Premiers had the same specs as my original equipment ones. I would have purchased Michelin Defenders but they were not made in my size, which is why I went with the Goodyears ,which had a good sale price from a local tire chain plus a big rebate from Goodyear. I have been happy with them.