Community Forums

al koffman · 05-13-2008, 02:07 PM

I'm very happy with that decision. And I even got rid of a squeak.

The front tires are 245-70R-19.5, they were XRV and are now XZE. The original tires are only 4.5 years old and the fronts were cracking pretty bad. The rear ones are not cracked at all. I decided to go with the XZE on the front because of what I read on the forums and doing some research and finding the XZE are truck tires, and it appears the only difference between the two are the sidewalls. The XZE has ribs on the sides and the Michelein web site indicates it is to protect against scrubbing on curbs and are stiffer. I attribute the excessive cracking due to what I consider excessive sidewall flexing. I also used beads for balancing. Went on a 800 mile trip and was impressed with the handling, its hard to describe but the best definition is that it had a firmer feel, and it felt bumps more, but not enough to make a difference. And I couldn't ask for better balancing, really smooth.

From day one there has always been an intermitant squeak coming from the lower right front. My wife heard it quite often. After about 200 miles into the trip, she remarked "I don't hear that squeak anymore". I believe the answer to this is that the old tires would reach a resonant frequency that at certain times amplified the squeak. I think the stiffness of the new tires is the reason.

Anyhow, I'm a happy camper all the way around, except for gas prices.

al koffman · 05-13-2008, 02:07 PM

I'm very happy with that decision. And I even got rid of a squeak.

The front tires are 245-70R-19.5, they were XRV and are now XZE. The original tires are only 4.5 years old and the fronts were cracking pretty bad. The rear ones are not cracked at all. I decided to go with the XZE on the front because of what I read on the forums and doing some research and finding the XZE are truck tires, and it appears the only difference between the two are the sidewalls. The XZE has ribs on the sides and the Michelein web site indicates it is to protect against scrubbing on curbs and are stiffer. I attribute the excessive cracking due to what I consider excessive sidewall flexing. I also used beads for balancing. Went on a 800 mile trip and was impressed with the handling, its hard to describe but the best definition is that it had a firmer feel, and it felt bumps more, but not enough to make a difference. And I couldn't ask for better balancing, really smooth.

From day one there has always been an intermitant squeak coming from the lower right front. My wife heard it quite often. After about 200 miles into the trip, she remarked "I don't hear that squeak anymore". I believe the answer to this is that the old tires would reach a resonant frequency that at certain times amplified the squeak. I think the stiffness of the new tires is the reason.

Anyhow, I'm a happy camper all the way around, except for gas prices.

knebrdr · 05-13-2008, 03:42 PM

Al,
Isn't it amazing how tire choice can completely change the personality of a vehicle. I recently replaced the B rated tires on my utility trailer with C rated, run them at the same pressure and the empty hop disappeared. We have concluded that the increased sidewall stiffness keeps the tire from flexing and bouncing the trailer.
Glad you are happy.
Randy

bruceh · 05-13-2008, 06:54 PM

I did the same, but not from cleverness. I had asked for XRVs but the only ones they had were old date codes. The tech mentioned the XZEs and I have been very happy with them.

I am about to get 4 more for the rears. I am seeing more sidewall cracks than I like.

They do have a thicker tread than the XRVs by 4/32.

**Petro** · 05-14-2008, 04:11 AM

Upon the recommendation of my tire dealer I replaced 6 XRVs with 6 XZEs. So far I have been happy with them.

Don

CoastieSCPO · 05-15-2008, 02:44 PM

Al;

Thanks for the post. I have the same unit and year as you do and I'm just now getting ready to start replacing my tires. Now, I can consider the XZE's as well as the XRV's.

Bob

cannon man · 05-15-2008, 05:26 PM

where do you find the date code n how does it read? thanks dave

bruceh · 05-17-2008, 08:25 AM

I tried to order some XZEs yesterday at Sam's and was told that the warehouse (not sure if it was Sam or Michelin) had no tires, try again later. A local truck tire outlet also has no tires.

The date code has been beat to death in various forums. It is the last digits after DOTXXXXX. A 'find' should get you there.

DriVer · 05-17-2008, 10:05 AM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by cannon man:
where do you find the date code n how does it read? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>Dave, The DOT date code on modern tires is 4 digits. The first 2 are the week of manufacturer. First 2 digits can be from 01 to 52. The second 2 digits are going to be the year of manufacture. XX08 would mean the tire was made in 2008.

Therefore: DOT 3407 means the tire was manufactured during the 34th week, sometime in the end of August in the year, 2007.