'00 XJ - Tire recommendations?

[gw204]

Well, the time has come to put tires on the '00 XJ, 4.0, auto, 4x4. We at 55K on the original Goodyear Wrangler RTS. These have been the worst tires I have ever run!

My wife drives this Jeep most of the time so it doesn't see any wheeling but I would like to get an all-terrain tire just cause they look so much better. I also wanted to up the size to 235s from 225s. What A/T tirest would you guys recommend that I can get another 50K out of without breaking the bank?

I wanted to get the Kirkland Radial A/Ts from Costco but they stopped making them. Those tires were awesome for the little $ they cost.

It's a shame Goodyear stopped making the old Wrangler Radials. I really liked those.

I will probably order from tirerack.com. I've been looking at the various reviews of what they carry and everything seems to get a mix of good/bad feedback.


Thanks.

Brian

[martin]

GW,

If you are a costoco member then take a look at the BFG AT tires. I think they were selling for $108 last time I was at my local Costco and that the LT235/75R15. Since you have a 2000 I am not sure what size rims you run 15 vs 16.

I like these tires, they were more quiet than the cooper car tires they replaced also when these wear out I'll buy another set. I do go off road with mine, drive down old logging roads to access my 80 acres, and drive 500 miles on the interstate to get to the property.

According to the Factory shop manual for my 88 XJ if you have the automatic with 3.54 gears, which all the 4.0 came with, then you do not need to change the speedo gear. So on my 88 XJ I could run P235/75R15 or P225/75R15 tires with a 33 tooth gear.

My XJ came with P205/75R15 tires so I had to buy a new speedo gear regardless what size tire I upgraded to.

Martin

[Eagle]

Cooper Discoverer LT (NOT the A/T). Reasonable price, good traction is a variety of conditions, lasts forever.

No tire I can think of comes close on an overall practicality basis. (IMHO, of course)

[btl_fed_xj]

I would say that you should go with the Michelin LTX ATs. You will NOT find another All Terrain Tire that lasts as long as one of those. They are pretty expensive though. The stock sizes will run you around $160 but they will last about 1.5 times that of a normal tire.

[old88xj]

I got BFG All-Terrians and have not had a lick of problem with them not getting me where i want to go. I have 30's on the XJ and 235r15 on my Ranger. Little to no noise at highway speeds and if you are anal about tire care like me they will last you well over 55K if you treat em right.....got 25K on the ranger set and they almost look new

[GSequoia]

I kinda backup btl fed there. I got a set of Michelin LTX M/S (not the AT's though) and they have lasted and lasted and lasted! They're not very aggressive looking (THe M/S's, I don't know abou the AT's), but they work very well out in the dirt too!

[Townie]

I've had the Cooper A/T's for over a year now-- Love 'em.

Eagle, why don't you like the A/T's?

[Eagle]

Originally posted by Townie
Eagle, why don't you like the A/T's?

Because the Discoverer LTs are sooooo good and last sooooo long, and the A/T is a lower cost replacement for it, so I just figure it can't be as good. However, now that you've slammed me back against the wall, I will admit that I haven't tried the A/Ts.

[seanR]

Hey, I have run NOTHING but BFG T/A s for many many years I strongly recomend them. They are the best all around tires you can buy! 30x9.50 s will fit very nicely.

[sidriptide]

i replaced the junk RT/S's on my wrangler with wrangler AT/S's... and plan to get another set of them when i wear out the junk mastercraft (dont laugh) on my 99 XJ..... tirerack has a good price on them too... first hand info here..... 30's are not a perfect fit.... unless there is something about the MT/R's.... they DO rub in the rear on my 99 when flexing and when i take a good bounce on the highway... but it is slight and only the flares....
mike

[Erik the Red]

I just replaced my old BFG A/T 235s on my Comanche and incredibly they lasted 90k, yup, 90,000 miles. Amazing. Not surprisingly, I slapped on a new set of BFG 235 A/T KO's. I bought these at Costco for around $104 fully installed.

Erik
88 Comanche

[gw204]

Thanks guys.

Eagle/Townie, what did you guys pay for those Cooper tires if you dont' mind me asking?

I called Costco yesterday and they don't have the BFG A/T, just the rugged trails, which don't look to be any better than my current Goodyear RT/S crap tires. I guess I'll call them again to see if they could order a set.

I always heard great things about Michelin, but damn they are expensive!!!!

While looking at Sears' webiste, I ran across their Guardsman Trailhandler AP in the 235 size on sale for $67. I realize these aren't top 'o the line but for 95% highway use, should I consider them.

30x9.50 are out of the question. This XJ tow a 4000 lb. boat pretty much every weekend and I don't want to kill all my pullling power, and regearing is not in the plan.

Keep the recommendations coming.

Brian

[martin]

GW,

My local Costco has BFG AT in the store. I am sure they can order you in a set if you want the BFG AT.

My buddy was in Costco and got a quote for new tires for his Deville, he has Michelin MXV4 plus P235/55R17 tires, they don't stock that size but were more than willing to order them.

Martin

[Eagle]

Originally posted by gw204
Thanks guys.

Eagle/Townie, what did you guys pay for those Cooper tires if you dont' mind me

Last time I bought a set I think they were $89 per tire. That was a few years ago (I did say they last forever). I'm looking for a set now and hope to have prices in a couple of days. I think I recall seeing them for around $99/tire.

[gw204]

Never mind on the Trailhandler APs, they're different than what is pictured on Sears' website. A glorified street tire to say the least.....:(

[Boatwrench]

The very best Tires I ever owned were Michelins bought at Costco and installed on my 77 3/4 ton Suburban. With that experience I have purchased Michelins for just about everything since. The CJ, the new Suburban and soon the '00 XJ when my Bridgestones wear out. I am hard on tires.

[Townie]

I paid $99 each for the Discoverer A/T's; for the price, ya can't beat Coop's. Not a bit of wear on 'em, they were installed last spring. Also, chewed up all the snow we had this winter... great tire

[Kejtar]

BFG AT's all the way..... it's my second set of BFG's on this XJ, my previous one had the BFG AT's as well.

Anyways, they behave great in sand, on rocks in snow (yeah I'm in SoCal but I take it up to the mountians when I go skiing... and I have never had to wear chains). They also run fine for me in water (believe it or not, but it actually rains here... and when it rains... it RAINS). The tread life is also amazing. My set of 235's woulnd't die on me even when I wanted them to! I actually ended up replacing the tires a bit early as I really really wanted to get 31's on :)

Also my dad runs BFG AT's on his van conversion and he has taken that as far as Calgary and almost all the way out to Chicago, got close to Florida and never had any problems. He is on his second set and says that he will not run anything else and coming from him that means a lot as he ussually buys the first cheap replacement part that he can find (unlike me LOL).....

Kejtar

[Mike from Chile]

Fully agree with Eagle.
Cooper LT design has a good on road performance and still good looking.

[dodgeb1b]

I am running a set of Hitec retreads, the were CHEAP and are holding up great! i know this may not be a good rout for you but i do a lot of hiway and wheeling, i got the muds for about $40 each (shiped) and they have been wearing great. they use Michelin tires, so they have good sidewalls (at least mine do) my boss/hunting buddy has a set of cooper discoverys on his f250 that have about 55K on them. they wear good, but he had over 5 flats in one week of deer hunting! there is a lot of field driving involved, but still 5! he had to replace 2 with used ones. They also dont do to well off road, my XJ had to pull out his 250 a few time in the late season! thats just my 2 cents

[gw204]

COSTCO sucks!!!!!

I sent the wife there w/ specific instructions to get the 235 BFG All-Terrain T/As over the weekend and the bonehead told here there is no way they would fit!!! I ended up stopping there just to make sure they didn't over-torque the lug nuts and ended up arguing w/ the guy for like five minutes. Does he honestly think a 235 will rub where a 225 didn't on non-sagged suspension????

So, I'm going to give it another shot this afternoon and try to get him to call the dealer to verify the 235 is A-OK (which I just did). What a pain in the you know what.......

[Kejtar]

in all honesty.... 235's will rub...... (a weeeee bit) but they will on most older XJ's.... and you can't blame him for looking at company presented bible which tells him what is good and what is bad and sticking to his guns. For all he knows he will sell you the tires, they will not work right, and you will come back and chew him out and get him in trouble claiming that noone ever told you that they will not fit right.... And on top of everything, the 235's never came stock, whereas the 225's did...

Kejtar

[gw204]

Huh, and I thought I had talked to enough people that said 235s won't rub. If they do on the older ones, what about this XJ, which is an '00?

I guess the main reason I'm upset is because I got them to install 30x9.50s on a 2 wheel drive Ranger w/ a 3" lift a few years ago and that certainly wasn't in their "bible" as Kejtar calls it! :) And my parents had them put 235/75/R15s on a '96 Grand Cherokee when they weren't listed as an optional tire in the "bible" either.

I dont' really want to go back to the 225s since they don't have anything in a LT tire. I do quite a bit of towing on "questionable" boat ramps so I don't want to take the chance on just a regular tire. I want something that is going to stand up to some abuse. Maybe I should be looking elsewhere.....

Brian

[Kejtar]

at full lock you will probably rub a bit at the lca... but it's nothing bad. I had them before I lifted my 98 and it was all good.

In regards to the bible following and not... it all depends on who's behind the counter, whether they have been recently burned, what mood they are in and so on....

Kejtar

[martin]

GW204

I had tire rub with BFG AT 235/75R15 tires. I lost about 1/2 turn to the left once I had the tires installed. My solution was to install the Grand Cherokee LCAs as described on madxj.com.

You will not need to change speedo gears but you could rub. The Lower Control Arms are the problem. That "C" section with ears outboard, if they were bent in then you may not catch on the ears.

I will say the 99 Grand Cherokee LCAs is a very elegant solution to the problem.

Martin

[Dlip]

I think that 235's are optional on the newest XJ's... standard with the Upcountry suspension package, I believe.

My '00 Sport (NOT Upcountry) got a HUGE upgrade from the stock 225 RT/S's to a nifty set of 235 Pirelli Scorpion AT's last fall. They seem stiffer in the sidewall... which makes 'em ride a touch rougher... but they also steer much more positively. It feels much better at highway speeds. And they turned the Jeep into a TANK in the harsher-than-normal winter we had here.

$75 a pop from TireRack.com... plus shipping. Totalled, I think, about $375 for 4. Plus mounting and balancing at the local garage.

Just to pile on... I'll ALSO say that the RT/S's SUCK, and were possibly the worst tires I've ever owned. (Although BFG Euro T/A's on a rental car were the worst tires I've ever DRIVEN ON!)

Den

[Kejtar]

ummmm 235's on newest XJ's? There is/was no newest XJ for a while and I beileive that through the end they offered 225's as biggest size... btw... where is here for you?

Kejtar

[gw204]

Got shot down the second time as well. No 235s from Costco for me. I just went ahead and had them install a set of 225 Michelin X Radial LTs. They weren't my first choice but I am expecting to get long life from them. Besides, the wife drives this XJ most of the time and I was tired of hearing her complain about the RTS tires wobbling cause they were unbalanced, squealing on turns, etc.

Thanks for all the feedback guys.

[RINGKONG]

Originally posted by gw204
Got shot down the second time as well. No 235s from Costco for me. I just went ahead and had them install a set of 225 Michelin X Radial LTs. They weren't my first choice but I am expecting to get long life from them. Besides, the wife drives this XJ most of the time and I was tired of hearing her complain about the RTS tires wobbling cause they were unbalanced, squealing on turns, etc.

Thanks for all the feedback guys.

What you need is a 6llb hand sledge, a tire spoon and about 2 hrs of fun. and install the tires yourself.. :D

I don't think I have ever taken my vehicles in to install tires, but all I drive is old crap anyway.. so it doesn't matter. plus I am a cheap person.. :D

but I get the tires I want :D

[Dlip]

*sigh*

First off... I updated my profile. I'm from Pittsburgh PA... home of the world-class Pirates baseball team.

As for the 235 as a factory size.... I *swear* that was the case. Maybe I'm thinking of Wranglers! But all the "documentation" I would have been working from is LONG GONE...

At any rate, I have not had any rubbing with the 235 Pirellis...

Den

[Judd W. VA]

I went through this with Costco too when buying Michelin LTX AT's for my '98. They said "for insurance reasons" they will only install a tire size the vehicle originally came with. I still got the 235's (in an XL capacity for higher load rating and still retaining the 'S' speed rating) by removing the wheels and running them down there. Year before last i paid $110 ea for the XL's. I believe i recall the non-XL's were ~$8 cheaper. Have 40k miles on them so far and don't see any real wear as of yet. They did not rub on anything at all even before the Up Country mods. 950's WILL rub.

[XJFREK]

I put 235 Dunlop RT's on my 94 before I lifted it. And they did not rub. I could have sworn when I bought the jeep that when checking the dealer brochure there was one model of cherokee that came equipped with 235's as stock. That's why I decided to put 235's on after I bought it because I knew they would fit. The Liberty is available with 2 different sizes of tires depending on whether you get the sport or limited model. I believe it was the same with the Cherokee, but I'm afraid those brochures are long gone.