Factory Tires

Sounds like an absolutely great set of tires! From discount tire:

They absolutely are one of the best tires out there, and if I was putting one thing on and not looking back it would be these....

But the very vast majority of people who run tires like this have never experienced true Blizzak grade winter tires... And if I was protecting an 80k vehicle in bad winter, I'd have 2 sets.
I have them now on a Jaguar F Pace, and the difference at stop signs and black ice is the difference between sliding thru and an accident...or not.
The cold weather rubber formulation and the siping are 2 of the keys of success. I didn't want to believe it either, but after having a fragile alum bodied vehicle, that no body shop will touch, it was the easiest 1K I've ever spent and well worth it... Watch the tire rack video on winter tires, it is eye opening...

I've had Michelin Defenders on my truck for a while, and I have not had any issues driving in the NH winters. The tires have long mileage, and they are quiet, so for me, I use them year round.

Stbentoak said:

They absolutely are one of the best tires out there, and if I was putting one thing on and not looking back it would be these....

But the very vast majority of people who run tires like this have never experienced true Blizzak grade winter tires...

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Agreed, I've never had dedicated winter tires so I don't know what I'm missing. Size/storage space concerns, along with the $ for the extra set of rims has kept me in the "1-set of wheels/tires" group. So I'm glad to see to positive opinions on the LTX Defenders - I had a set on my '04 Suburban and loved them (265/70/R17's), wasn't sure how they would scale up to a 285/45/R22. Looks like Joseph Garcia is enjoying them even at 305/50/R20 too!

Anyone have any experience with the Continental CrossContact LX25's? They have solid reviews on Tirerack

GM_fan97 said:

Agreed, I've never had dedicated winter tires so I don't know what I'm missing. Size/storage space concerns, along with the $ for the extra set of rims has kept me in the "1-set of wheels/tires" group. So I'm glad to see to positive opinions on the LTX Defenders - I had a set on my '04 Suburban and loved them (265/70/R17's), wasn't sure how they would scale up to a 285/45/R22. Looks like Joseph Garcia is enjoying them even at 305/50/R20 too!

Anyone have any experience with the Continental CrossContact LX25's? They have solid reviews on Tirerack

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So far, the Michelin Defenders have handled everything that the NH winter can throw at them. Just to be clear, I run these tires virtually 100% on paved roads, so I cannot advise you on off-road environments.

Joseph Garcia said:

So far, the Michelin Defenders have handled everything that the NH winter can throw at them. Just to be clear, I run these tires virtually 100% on paved roads, so I cannot advise you on off-road environments.

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My BIL has them on his Tundra and while he is happy with the snow and on road performance it doesn’t take much for them to leave something to be desired if things get slick off road.

Had the 20" Michelin Defender LTX M/S installed last Monday. We got enough snow in SW PA on Christmas Eve and Christmas day for me to give them a good test. In a word, outstanding! I can now stop my Tahoe on heavy snow roads and it turns when it should. Huge improvement in snow over the factory Continental Eco's. I could not be more pleased.

Stbentoak said:

But the very vast majority of people who run tires like this have never experienced true Blizzak grade winter tires... And if I was protecting an 80k vehicle in bad winter, I'd have 2 sets.
I have them now on a Jaguar F Pace, and the difference at stop signs and black ice is the difference between sliding thru and an accident...or not.
The cold weather rubber formulation and the siping are 2 of the keys of success. I didn't want to believe it either, but after having a fragile alum bodied vehicle, that no body shop will touch, it was the easiest 1K I've ever spent and well worth it... Watch the tire rack video on winter tires, it is eye opening...

Click to expand...

I agree...we have the Blizzaks on my wife’s Yukon and will always run dedicated winter tires in winter.

It’s all perspective I guess...my dad runs just the stock tires on his Yukon and he thinks it’s great. Going from his to ours is night and day.

scott53 said:

Had the 20" Michelin Defender LTX M/S installed last Monday. We got enough snow in SW PA on Christmas Eve and Christmas day for me to give them a good test. In a word, outstanding! I can now stop my Tahoe on heavy snow roads and it turns when it should. Huge improvement in snow over the factory Continental Eco's. I could not be more pleased.

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So...any pictures yet? We gotta see ‘em!

scott53 said:

Had the 20" Michelin Defender LTX M/S installed last Monday. We got enough snow in SW PA on Christmas Eve and Christmas day for me to give them a good test. In a word, outstanding! I can now stop my Tahoe on heavy snow roads and it turns when it should. Huge improvement in snow over the factory Continental Eco's. I could not be more pleased.

Click to expand...

Glad to read. My Defenders have not let me down in the NH winters.