[Lukeskywalker]

Yokohama Geolander A/T. The best traction you can get for a Safari on and off the road. I especially love the onroad performance - super sticky grip and awesome ride.

Jayant, I currently have Michelins on my Safari, and i find the traction quite adequate, I have done about 37k kms on these tyres currently. I have friends who swear by Yokos, have you used any other tyre on your safari other than the stock Bridgestone and the Geolandars to reccomend the Geolandar?
Pls note that it is not my intention to question your opinion, but an honest query as even I would be required to change my tyres soon and wanted to know which among the two (i.e Yokos or Michelins) are better.
My tyre dealer here suggested that I go in for BFGoodrich AT KA TO next. That leaves me slightly confused.
Regards,
Hari.

[jaysmokesleaves]

Ur right. After the terrible stock Bridgestones, I switched to Yokos, and im totally happy.
To the best of my limited knowledge Michelins are the softest compound tires followed by Yokos & Bridgestones. The Yokos provide the best balance between traction and ride IMHO. A lot of folks swear by Michelin grip and I wont dispute that given the soft compound. But given Indian road conditions, Ive felt that a semi soft rubber compound is what offers the most pliant ride and decent levels of grip too, hence my suggestion for Yoko's.
I have never used Michelins. And I will NEVER use Bridgestones. BFG's are good tires. But remember , they are hard compound tires and the ride isnt a patch on the Yoko's and they make too much noise(ive used them on my Prado) and I have no idea about Hankooks, etc.

Make your tire choice depending on the type of roads you drive on, followed by ride comfort levels.
If you are happy with Michelins, stick to them. But ive heard they wear pretty quick.

[tsk1979]

Any AT tire will be harder than its non AT counterpart.
So unless you really need AT, go for a Long Trail LT type of tire.
As for BFG All Terrain, that is indeed a hard and tough tire. As hard and tough as the continental cross contact AT.

[Lukeskywalker]

Thanks for the reply Jayant, I agree about the softness part, but I was told the Michelin LTX AT was not all that soft and it had tougher sidewalls, I switched my decision at the last minute (had gone to buy Geolandars), like I mentioned earlier, I have done about 37.5k kms currently and the tyres look good for at least another 10-12k as per my current usage, my usage is predominantly on good roads with a few kms of village tracks everyday.
How many kms have your Geolandars lasted you?

Tanveer, do Michelins and Yokos come in Long Trail versions?

[jaysmokesleaves]

My Yokos have done about 15k kms and look good for atleast about 40k more, if they dont blowout before that

[rjstyles69]

Originally Posted by jaysmokesleaves

My Yokos have done about 15k kms and look good for atleast about 40k more, if they dont blowout before that

jay the Yoko AT tires are definitely good on dry surfaces, one major area of concern has been aquaplaning. About a month back I hit a big puddle of water at 3 digit speeds and the Scorp' simply had no traction. In a few secs I was facing sideways and this was on the bangalore-mysore highway. Luck was on my side coz there were no vehicles tailing me.

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by Lukeskywalker

Tanveer, do Michelins and Yokos come in Long Trail versions?

In India for michelin, Yoko or Continental you can either buy the HT or AT.
Long Trail type of trail driving tire comes only in BF Goodrich.
Its a really nice tire if you look at the reviews online. Great for trail driving, but not made for offroading like the AT tires.

[jaysmokesleaves]

Originally Posted by rjstyles69

jay the Yoko AT tires are definitely good on dry surfaces, one major area of concern has been aquaplaning. About a month back I hit a big puddle of water at 3 digit speeds and the Scorp' simply had no traction. In a few secs I was facing sideways and this was on the bangalore-mysore highway. Luck was on my side coz there were no vehicles tailing me.

Quite on the contrary, I do 3 digit speeds with much more confidence on the Yokos. Traction in wet and dry are far superior to the Bridgestone H/T's, I feel so.
Note, when you hit big puddles at 3 digit speeds, depending upon the depth of the standing water in that puddle and your tread depth, almost all tires are prone to losing traction.

[rjstyles69]

Originally Posted by jaysmokesleaves

Quite on the contrary, I do 3 digit speeds with much more confidence on the Yokos. Traction in wet and dry are far superior to the Bridgestone H/T's, I feel so.

I would bet my bottom dollar when compared to the BS H/T's. The Yoko's are any-day better, what took me by surprise was the way the Scorp' aquaplaned that particular day. The puddle wasnt too deep either and tires have run only 15k as yet.

[jealousdiamond]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

BF GoodRich Long Trail is a light trail driving tire. It has excellent highway manners, and is good for bad roads. Remember, what is called a Trail in the west, is actually the condition many roads over here are in.
So if you do not have to pay anything, go make the change!

Finally I took the delivery of the vehicle with Apollo Hawkz , the pattern was aggresive , but changed them immeadiately to BFG Long Trail .
Ended up paying 1600 INR for a set of 5 ,as the stock fitments were not Bridgestone Deuller HT .

Its late but please suggest if that was a good / bad / ugly deal ?

[jaysmokesleaves]

Do post your initial feedback about the BFG Long trail with tread pics. Please update your feedback post 10k kms on the BFG's.
Thanks.
Jay

[bantejas]

Hey tsk/jay and others!

I am planning on upgrading the tyres for the truck some time soon. It has run 39k on stock duellers and I am finding it difficult some times to handle at 3 digits now. Based on the reviews, I am planning on going for Yoko Geo A/T. Off late, we have started driving again (and to remote places) I thought of going for A/Ts. However I am still in a dilemma over the size of the tyres. What best can I go with? 235/245/255?

Thanks!
Tejas

[jkdas]

Originally Posted by bantejas

Hey tsk/jay and others!

I am planning on upgrading the tyres for the truck some time soon. It has run 39k on stock duellers and I am finding it difficult some times to handle at 3 digits now. Based on the reviews, I am planning on going for Yoko Geo A/T. Off late, we have started driving again (and to remote places) I thought of going for A/Ts. However I am still in a dilemma over the size of the tyres. What best can I go with? 235/245/255?

Thanks!
Tejas

Get 235. 255 if you have wider alloy else I was told its of no use and balloon effect will scare you at high speeds.

[ACM]

With 255s on the Safari your steering effect will increase and the load on the power steering too will increase, it is a component which does require servicing / replacing at later kms and this will prepone it.

Besides your FE will drop with the 255s, and you will also be touching the wheel wells while turning.

Sticking to 235s is recommended for the Safari. the only +ve on going wider is the disputable improvements in the looks department.

[bantejas]

Originally Posted by jkdas

Get 235. 255 if you have wider alloy else I was told its of no use and balloon effect will scare you at high speeds.

Originally Posted by ACM

With 255s on the Safari your steering effect will increase and the load on the power steering too will increase, it is a component which does require servicing / replacing at later kms and this will prepone it.

Besides your FE will drop with the 255s, and you will also be touching the wheel wells while turning.

Sticking to 235s is recommended for the Safari. the only +ve on going wider is the disputable improvements in the looks department.

Thanks JK/ACM! Even I was thinking the same: 235 makes sense to me. I am not interested in the wider alloys as I don't want to change the setup of the car. I am not sure how the steering would be if I do so. Also, I am still wondering for the skiddish nature of the Duellers HT at 39k! One time I took a turn rather at a decent speed, then wow! the car skid like crazy! Just before that I had been through a patch of water but didn't expect the truck to go crazy like that! Also as I said before 3 digits are becoming difficult for me. What is the average life of the Duellers H/T?

Anyways I am getting a deal of 6.6k per tyre for the yoko geo AT at Sai Iyengar tyres Indiranagar. Is the price ok?

Thanks again,
Tejas