Yokohama vs Michelin

[methil]

My toyo A23 are almost gone and it is the time to get a new set

After a lot of reading, searching, prices check etc it is Yoko vs Bibendum.

First thing first, could not care less about winter aspect as i live in Quebec city and winter tires are mandatory.
Spirited driver, heavy foot, high speed cornering and a lot of speedy highway
my commute is 6km asphalt country road, 32km highway and 5 km city mainly blvd

Yokohama YK740 GTX or Michelin Premier LTX
price wise, same bracket, i can get michelin from costco in quebec city or order the yoko from discount direct, we dont have any discount stores Closest one is in Oshawa Ont. 7.5hrs drive pfff)
Thread pattern of yoko look sportier to me, great shoulder block, cornering must be great with thoses, 3 big rain grove and a smaller one
Michelin thread look less sportier, similar shoulder block, 4 big rain grove, usualy michelin tires are quieter which is not a bad thing for CX5 bad sound proofing.
Yoko are heavier than toyo, ~1lbs, while michelin are about a half lbs lighter. Minnisotaart told me that their is a minor lost in acceleration because of the extra weight.
When i switch from my winter tires to summer i do feel the same lost, i get used to it (can we get that new 2.5 turbo like the new M6?). My winter are 17" michelin xice2, a tad lighter.
both warrantied at 100K km, far better than the Toyos
Michelin 70$ mail in rebate, costco is actualy taking care of it and applying the rebate at check out. Discount Direct is including a visa prepaid if i'm not wrong.

I'm not in a hurry, my toyos are good for another 2000KM, a month of driving grosso modo
so what it gonna be?

 

[Unobtanium]

Maybe nokian wrg3 suv? That's what I'm using. Meets your legal requirements, I believe. If not, I'd go Michelin. They are better than Yokohama as a brand imo

 

[methil]

Maybe nokian wrg3 suv? That's what I'm using. Meets your legal requirements, I believe. If not, I'd go Michelin. They are better than Yokohama as a brand imo

2 workmates have theses on a Subaru and a Ford Escape and all they have to say is : Great tire but very noisy.
Since model 2016.5 sound proofing is better but still not that great i'm not going to take the chance on theses.

I know michelin might be quieter but, usualy michelin are a bit squishy.
I was told the yokos are a tad harder and road noise a little less than toyos OE.
That why i'm on the fence at the moment.
Wish i could get both at Costco. That way i could use Costco no hassle return

I'll wait a few days in case someone else bring something else to the table.

 

[Natey]

You're choosing between Chocolate vs Vanilla ice cream.
Either way new tires are going to be sweet.

If they get noisy, that usually means that it's time to rotate em. My old BFG KDWs would get pretty loud too. If I were you I'd pick the less expensive one. If they're both really close on price, I'd probably go with the Costco ones and get a giant bag of cookies while I was there. (yes)

 

[yrwei52]

Between 2 brands I have no preference as it really depends on the model you choose. Michelin usually is more expensive and Yokohama is hit and miss.

Between 2 models of tires you mentioned I'd consider neither as Michelin Premier LTX is the most expensive tire for the 225/55R19 size、less tread depth than usual (8.5/32")、low maximum inflation pressure (44 psi)、and heavy (27.34 lbs.).

Yokohama YK740 GTX is less popular (harder to find)、even heavier (29.1 lbs.)、and doesn't have too much info on reviews. I believe there's $50~$75 cash back for a set of Yoko tires right now though.

I personally still prefer General AltiMAX RT43 as it's the lightest for the size at 24.4 lbs. The reviews from TireRack and here are excellent too. Unfortunately $50 rebate from General Tire on Altimax RT43 just expired on 4/15.

225/55R19 Tire Comparison Table for CX-5 GT - Many to Choose From

 

[methil]

Went to Costco on my lunch break and did not like the Michelin after close inspection.
After a quick chat with customer service at Discount Tires Direct, great peoples by the way, Yoko it is.
Will report back once installed.

 

[Tccox]

And I'm having the Michelins installed on mine Friday morning.

 

[yrwei52]

Went to Costco on my lunch break and did not like the Michelin after close inspection.
After a quick chat with customer service at Discount Tires Direct, great peoples by the way, Yoko it is.
Will report back once installed.

Please do report back your experience as Yokohama YK740 GTX is a private model made only for Discount Tire and there's not much user experience been reported.

It seems that you like Yokohama as a brand, have you checked Geolandar G055 which has very similar specs as YK740 GTX but is designed for SUV and cheaper?

And do you mind to share your opinion on why you dislike Michelin Premier LTX after close inspection?

 

[stupidngenius]

I got Michelin defender ltx 225/65/17 installed on my 2013 sports awd around 53k and now at 130k it still has approx 8/12. I am no expert but I do like the feel, quietness and grip on the road way better than the oem geolanders.

 

[yrwei52]

I got Michelin defender ltx 225/65/17 installed on my 2013 sports awd around 53k and now at 130k it still has approx 8/12. I am no expert but I do like the feel, quietness and grip on the road way better than the oem geolanders.

OE Yokohama Geolandar G91A 225/65R17 100H is a totally different tire from Yokohama Geolandar G055 mentioned above. Just look at "280 B A" UTQG on OE Geolandar G91A and "740 A A" on Geolandar G055 (225/55R19). Yep any 225/65R17 tires will be much better than OE's Yokohama Geolandar G91A!

 

[methil]

Please do report back your experience as Yokohama YK740 GTX™ is a private model made only for Discount Tire and there's not much user experience been reported.

It seems that you like Yokohama as a brand, have you checked Geolandar G055™ which has very similar specs as YK740 GTX™ but is designed for SUV and cheaper?

And do you mind to share your opinion on why you dislike Michelin Premier LTX after close inspection?

I'll report for sure about thoses. Actually i'll start a new thread like unobtanium did for the nokian wrg3. That way we can keep all data related to that specific tire inside a single thread for future reference for others.

I dont have a preference for yoko or any other brand. If the toyo A23 had a version with better UTQG i would have probably bought thoses instead.
I do have a lot of Michelin tires, wife Mazda Tribute is rolling on Michelin latitude tour on summer and XICE2 in winter. Same winter tires for my CX5.

Tried Yoko GO55 on my first CX5 and it was ok, nothing much to say about it really. Not to noisy, ok on wet road.
Also that first CX5 car was always fully loaded with passengers because of carpooling.
So i did not really test tires capability. Testing with a full load of passengers aint the greatest idea hehe.
Trade that CX5 after a year for the GT 2.5 so i cant say anything about the thread wear.

As for the Michelin Premier. Well i did "played" with it in store. Sidewall are kinda soft ( i know once inflated it will get harder). I was able to easily bend the sidewall with 2 fingers and the thread blocks wont stay quiet on the long run. after a full year i'm expecting theses to be really noisy. That expanding center grooves technology and the additional grooves on the side wall that will appear as the tires wear down will raise the noise (additional zones of compression/decompression). Also ask the tech if he had one mounted on wheel and he had a set about to get installed so we went into the garage area and "played" with it again. Sidewall are not that hard, also another tech on site told me they are like all Michelin tires, balloon effect, meaning softer overall. That the only thing i can point a finger at for Michelin. Squishy balloon tires. Everything else is fine/great.
I do prefer hard tires in summer. It mean harsher ride but that the price to pay to get a little more cornering support and less rollover.
Also rubber thread was really soft, usually really soft rubber either wear fast or get very hard after a few year and tire noise get very loud.

Tires are supposed to be delivered by Monday 30th if UPS dont mess up is schedule time.

 

[methil]

And I'm having the Michelins installed on mine Friday morning.

That would be nice if you could start a thread about an ongoing review like unobtanium is doing at the moment for the nokian.

Once we get a few tires reviewed we might be able to get the chart of tires and proper review sticky as quick reference for others.

 

[mazdman]

Continental True Contacts are my favorites.

Continental True Contacts are the best IMO for our CX5. Great wet/dry performance, very even wearing, long life and very quiet. P225/55R19. Just bought 4 new ones yesterday, but no fault of the tires. Got a puncture right on the edge and was not repairable. Discount tire could replace it for $60 with road force balancing, tires retail for over $190 each and the remaining 3 all were 8/32" across the tire, which is only 3/32" from the new depth of 11/32" after 43,000 miles, but I worked a good deal on 4 new tires, road forced out the door for $430. Not willing to risk TPMS, but more importantly AWD xfer and tranny problems over $400.

I own several AWD cars, 05 STi, 95 GSX, 12 CX-9 and always replace all 4 tires, but throwing away 3 basically brand new tires really sucked, but the peace of mind is worth it.

Use 16" steel wheels with Blizzak DM-V2's for winter.

 

[ColoradoDriver]

I'll report for sure about thoses. Actually i'll start a new thread like unobtanium did for the nokian wrg3. That way we can keep all data related to that specific tire inside a single thread for future reference for others.

I dont have a preference for yoko or any other brand. If the toyo A23 had a version with better UTQG i would have probably bought thoses instead.
I do have a lot of Michelin tires, wife Mazda Tribute is rolling on Michelin latitude tour on summer and XICE2 in winter. Same winter tires for my CX5.

Tried Yoko GO55 on my first CX5 and it was ok, nothing much to say about it really. Not to noisy, ok on wet road.
Also that first CX5 car was always fully loaded with passengers because of carpooling.
So i did not really test tires capability. Testing with a full load of passengers aint the greatest idea hehe.
Trade that CX5 after a year for the GT 2.5 so i cant say anything about the thread wear.

As for the Michelin Premier. Well i did "played" with it in store. Sidewall are kinda soft ( i know once inflated it will get harder). I was able to easily bend the sidewall with 2 fingers and the thread blocks wont stay quiet on the long run. after a full year i'm expecting theses to be really noisy. That expanding center grooves technology and the additional grooves on the side wall that will appear as the tires wear down will raise the noise (additional zones of compression/decompression). Also ask the tech if he had one mounted on wheel and he had a set about to get installed so we went into the garage area and "played" with it again. Sidewall are not that hard, also another tech on site told me they are like all Michelin tires, balloon effect, meaning softer overall. That the only thing i can point a finger at for Michelin. Squishy balloon tires. Everything else is fine/great.
I do prefer hard tires in summer. It mean harsher ride but that the price to pay to get a little more cornering support and less rollover.
Also rubber thread was really soft, usually really soft rubber either wear fast or get very hard after a few year and tire noise get very loud.

Tires are supposed to be delivered by Monday 30th if UPS dont mess up is schedule time.

I ruled the Michelin Premier LTX tires out for one simple reason. Brand new starting tread depth is only 8.5/32nd! That just seems bad to me.

Plus is it just me or has Michelin tires just ballooned in price too? Around here you won't find one for less than $150/tire. Back when I got my Latitude Tours, they were only around $120/tire. They have one season left and still not sure what I'll be replacing them with at this point.

 

[sergeyv]

, Not willing to risk TPMS, but more importantly AWD xfer and tranny problems over $400.

I own several AWD cars, 05 STi, 95 GSX, 12 CX-9 and always replace all 4 tires, but throwing away 3 basically brand new tires really sucked, but the peace of mind is worth it.

Sorry what is wrong with putting a different brand with similar tread pattern? How can you damage your tranny?
So if you were to damage another tyre on the sidewall which is not repairable you’re gonna waste more money on buying 4 new tyres?

 

[yrwei52]

⋯ Not willing to risk TPMS, but more importantly AWD xfer and tranny problems over $400.

I own several AWD cars, 05 STi, 95 GSX, 12 CX-9 and always replace all 4 tires, but throwing away 3 basically brand new tires really sucked, but the peace of mind is worth it.

Sorry what is wrong with putting a different brand with similar tread pattern? How can you damage your tranny?
So if you were to damage another tyre on the sidewall which is not repairable youre gonna waste more money on buying 4 new tyres?

I believe mazdman was saying he bought another set of Continental TrueContact tires replacing his original TrueContact's due to an unrepairable puncture on a tire. The theory is all road tires should have very similar overall diameter for an AWD vehicle or the AWD system may get damaged due to the overwork of traction control system (brakes) and clutch pack in the rear diffenertial trying to handle different revolutions of each tire.

When we have an unrepairable puncture with 8/32" tread left which is really in a tough situation. But for $430 getting a brand new set of Continental TrueContact should be a wise decision as he basically paid $430 for 43,000 miles of past satisfactory service from his old TrueContact which is not a bad deal at all. Added another benefit that he now has brand new tires with new mileage and year warranty comparing to several year old tires on three. Tires will age and become unsafe even with a lot of tread left as tires now last a lot longer. That's why tire companies now offer both mileage and year warranty.

Instead of getting a new set of tires, a cheaper way under this situation is to shave the new tire down matching the tread depth of the old tires for an AWD vehicle. Many tire installers and TireRack provide such service. But consider spending about $200 for such alternative, I'd spend $430 for a new set like mazdman did unless I plan to get rid of the vehicle very soon.

 

[mazdman]

I believe mazdman was saying he bought another set of Continental TrueContact tires replacing his original TrueContact's due to an unrepairable puncture on a tire. The theory is all road tires should have very similar overall diameter for an AWD vehicle or the AWD system may get damaged due to the overwork of traction control system (brakes) and clutch pack in the rear diffenertial trying to handle different revolutions of each tire.

When we have an unrepairable puncture with 8/32" tread left which is really in a tough situation. But for $430 getting a brand new set of Continental TrueContact should be a wise decision as he basically paid $430 for 43,000 miles of past satisfactory service from his old TrueContact which is not a bad deal at all. Added another benefit that he now has brand new tires with new mileage and year warranty comparing to several year old tires on three. Tires will age and become unsafe even with a lot of tread left as tires now last a lot longer. That's why tire companies now offer both mileage and year warranty.

Instead of getting a new set of tires, a cheaper way under this situation is to shave the new tire down matching the tread depth of the old tires for an AWD vehicle. Many tire installers and TireRack provide such service. But consider spending about $200 for such alternative, I'd spend $430 for a new set like mazdman did unless I plan to get rid of the vehicle very soon.

 

[mazdman]

Exactly...... Differences in tire circumference and therefore tire speed will destroy the center and rear diffs in short order. Subaru's are the most sensitive with just a 2/32" difference being enough to cause mechanical failures but that is a true symmetrical AWD system.

Also, it's bad enough to add a brand new identical tire, but adding another brand with similar tire tread pattern, as suggested by the poster is completely incorrect, as all tire manufacturers have different tire dimensions for the same size tire, it's called tolerances!

 

[sergeyv]

Ok gotcha. Mileage was almost halfway thru. But what if you get a puncture on a sidewall and your tyres are only 10-20000km old, I wouldn’t buy a new set. If the puncture is on the rear just put a new tyre on the rear because mazda’s awd is 95% front and 5% rear. If it was on the front, swap a rear tyre with the front and put a new on the rear.

 

[yrwei52]

Ok gotcha. Mileage was almost halfway thru. But what if you get a puncture on a sidewall and your tyres are only 10-20000km old, I wouldnt buy a new set. If the puncture is on the rear just put a new tyre on the rear because mazdas awd is 95% front and 5% rear. If it was on the front, swap a rear tyre with the front and put a new on the rear.

If an unrepairable puncture happened on a newer tire, you can do the way you described if the difference on tread depth is less than 2/32". But the problem is the rear tire wears slower and the difference on tread depth will be getting worse. If you put replacement tire at right front (or left front in your country) which normally is the location wearing the most, you're going to overwork your front differential even if it's a FWD vehicle. For long-term I believe the best way is to shave some tread off on the replacement tire matching the rest.

BTW, I'd add mixing a different brand of tire for replacement not only creates differences in tire circumference but also in performance characteristics. Not recommended.

Also, our CX-5 doesn't have center differential on the AWD. It has front differential within the transaxle、front transfer case、and rear differential with clutch pack.