Looking at new tire types and costs..

[G0ldengirl68]

..for my 94 Mazda Pickup, and found a difference of $30 dollars less between my, local Les Schwab (CA, hah!), and Pahrump NV's Walmart, same, exact tire.  I wanted to look at that because I am shooting for a stay in AZ in the Fall and figure my tires I have will get me to Pahrump, and further actually, but want the new ones put on anyway because I'll have more of a load.  They only had (at this time) one tire for my specs tire of 195-70R14 91s.

Anyone have any thoughts on tires, are welcome to give me some advice since I don't know about some off-road driving.  I don't mean the really rough stuff since my truck is 2-wd, V6, but maybe I need to look for something more sturdy in a tire?  Also, with some weight added for a truck-shell bed and shelves.  I don't know how much extra that will be, but my truck without a shell weighs about 2900.  That size is what the truck came with originally, Denise

 

[highdesertranger]

So I always recommend an "E" rated tire. "E" means 10 ply rating. I also recommend tires made in the USA by one of the well known manufacturers, Michelin, BFGoodrich, Goodyear, Cooper. As a side note you may have a hard time finding "E" rated tires for you truck. What size are your tires?

Walmart is a good place to buy because they are pretty much everywhere In case you have a problem.

Highdesertranger

 

[G0ldengirl68]

Ok, good info, my tire size is my OP but they are 195-70R14- 90s HDR, thanks for your info, I'll check out and see if I can get the Es

Yep, no E for my truck, and I do like the idea of getting tires at Walmart. Especially since Les Schwab sells the exact same one. Looks like Pahrump's actually puts them on your rig too, which our Supercenter does not.

 

[highdesertranger]

OH stupid me I totally missed that. yeah i doubt you will find an E rated tire in that size. Highdesertranger

 

[G0ldengirl68]

OH stupid me I totally missed that.  yeah i doubt you will find an E rated tire in that size.  Highdesertranger

I'm not finding one, but I did see Pahrump is out of stock, and might have them later when I plan to travel.  I can get them right away in Oregon for 70 a piece, no tax.  California adds tax.  I will have them checked to see how many miles Les's think I have left on these.  I did find Goodyear, and Cooper at oregon Walmart.  Is firestone US Made?  Guess I can look that up.

No biggie not seeing the tire-size, I miss things in everything I read.  Not stupid HDR, you're not stupid

PS I still don't know the tire-rating on those so I'll have to look for that again I did google for the E-rating and they don't exist me thinks ;(

 

[bullfrog]

In looking I didn't see any 14" LT(light truck) rated tires. Even 15" tires are getting hard to find. There are very few trucks that run 14" 0r 15" tires any more. I bought new 16" wheels just because of this. I like the Cooper and Goodyear tires but they tend to be expensive. Most trucks today run at least 16" wheels. My Suzuki Samurai runs 15" specialty tires (Super Swampers) and weighs a little less than your truck at between 2200 to 2800 pounds depending on how I'm loaded. They are rated 10 ply but I would not recommend them for highway use although I did drive them from the Mexican border to Utah. All this to say you will probably be forced to buy a passenger car tire as that seems to be the only thing for sale that fits a 14" wheel. Get a plug kit and a tire inflator and buy the highest quality tire you can afford. Go slow when off pavement.

 

[tx2sturgis]

Maybe Discount Tire has something that will fit:

https://www.discounttire.com/fitmentresult/tires?q=:recommended&sort=recommended

I've had good luck with Discount Tire in the past, calling the nearest store, they ordered what I needed, and they mounted the new tires and installed them.

 

[G0ldengirl68]

Get a plug kit and a tire inflator and buy the highest quality tire you can afford. Go slow when off pavement.

I don't have the tire-kit but I have an AC/DC tire inflator.  Yes, I didn't see many, but found the ones I mention above.  Spendy but I can't find ratings.  You meant they didn't rate, or tell the ply for the 14-15s?  I think I got that right.  Yes, regular car tires are what I can afford, I think anyway.  I am pretty sure the ones I found in Oregon's Walmart (Grants Pass) were regular car tires, I'll look again.  I've bought 2 sets of tires since it was new, and one set was studded as I lived and worked in Montana and Wyoming.  I don't know it that was smart or not, I just did.  Can't remember who helped me figure it out at the time either

Thanks for your help too Bulldog!

 

[G0ldengirl68]

I've had good luck with Discount Tire in the past, calling the nearest store, they ordered what I needed, and they mounted the new tires and installed them.

Ok, I'll check them out, sounds familiar, and there may be one here in town, or Oregon.  Thanks Tx!

 

[G0ldengirl68]

Geesh!!

Even some of the best brands aren't totally made in the US, according to this article, which true or false, I don't know. I'm not going to sweat it, I'll just shoot for a good brand, name as I haven't seen any I recognize that are strictly made in the USA, argggg ;( What I'm riding on now are excellent, knock on wood, but I haven't traveled much since getting them put on in 2013. No laughing, I can just hear you guys. I didn't have anyplace I wanted to go! LOL!! Yes, I did have them rotated again recently and Schwab said I had a lot of mileage left on these. But, I will be checking again, real soon

 

[highdesertranger]

As far as made in the USA it is molded into the sidewall. If it doesn't say online, ask. Highdesertranger

 

[kklowell]

it's amazing that your truck is basically an older version of my Ford Ranger and there's such a difference in tire size. Mine are something like 255/55/16.
I doubt that you truly want an off-road tire as it seems to me that almost all of your driving will be on pavement. Off-road tires are noisy and will drive ya nuts.

 

[WanderingRose]

My husband always liked Firestone’s, so that’s what I have stayed with and have never had any problem.

Get the best tires you can, have pressure checked and them rotated faithfully.

 

[tx2sturgis]

A good compromise are M+S tires... 'mud and snow'...they are slightly more aggressive than normal car tires or 'highway' tires, but still give a good ride and long tread life. They will be suitable for light duty off-pavement travel...hard packed dirt and maybe some gravel, etc. 

A typical M+S tire will have a closed shoulder, meaning, it won't be aggressive like an AT or ATX (all terrain) tire, which will typically have open or lug shoulders, and will be noisy and not really suitable for a 2WD unless you just want it to 'look cool'.

 

[G0ldengirl68]

As far as made in the USA it is molded into the sidewall.  If it doesn't say online,  ask.  Highdesertranger

Did you see that article HDR?  So you're saying that wherever they're actually made will be molded on the tire?  Ok, and you mean ask the store, not you guys right?

 

[G0ldengirl68]

My husband always liked Firestone’s, so that’s what I have stayed with and have never had any problem.

Get the best tires you can, have pressure checked and them rotated faithfully.

Thanks Rose

 

[G0ldengirl68]

A good compromise are M+S tires... 'mud and snow'...they are slightly more aggressive than normal car tires or 'highway' tires, but still give a good ride and long tread life. They will be suitable for light duty off-pavement travel...hard packed dirt and maybe some gravel, etc. 

A typical M+S tire will have a closed shoulder, meaning, it won't be aggressive like an AT or ATX (all terrain) tire, which will typically have open or lug shoulders, and will be noisy and not really suitable for a 2WD unless you just want it to 'look cool'.

Shoot, I really was hoping to look cool but I don't like noisy anything, so I'll settle for mediocre!  I don't understand about the M&S, only part of that, I'll just get the ones I'm used to.  I don't even know what I've got on it, I've forgotten or didn't really care, they were affordable   But, I'm going to look because they've lasted me a long time as I mentioned.

 

[brollins]

I'm running Nitto ridge grappler (C rated) on my truck. They have an aggressive tread design but still, they are much comfy and quieter than the other offroad tires (with load range E) I've tried.

 

[sneaks]

Those are a size that many in the VW Bus world seek for tires, with an 8 ply sidewall (Commercial) rating due to the loads (minimum tire load rating of 1540lbs). The selection is slim in 14", but they are out there. The most popular are:

General Grabber AT
Hankook Optimo & RA08
Achilles Desert Hawk
Cooper Weather Masters
Goodyear Wranglers

The BFG is NLA. I had the BFGs for a long time on my bus and liked them a lot - as long as it wasn't wet out - but since they have been NLA for almost a decade in 14", I went with the Achilles. So far I like them, though they are a bit louder than the BFG. Many like the Grabbers and the Hankooks.
If you get them through Walmart, your mounting and balancing ranges between 0-10$ tires, even if you order online, as long as you have them delivered to the store. If you are doing a lot of traveling around the country, they might be a better option since you first choice in vendors isn't found outside of the west.

This thread over on the Samba is updated often with what is available and what people like in a 14", high load tire.
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=162278

Or, you could see if you can source 15" or 16" rims and open up your options.

 

[MrNoodly]

I needed new tires at a time when I was short on money, so I got the cheapest off-brand tires Big O had. They turned out to be total crap, out of round, impossible to balance, and quick wearing. What a waste of money.

About how much per tire do you want to pay, G0ldengirl68?