Tire life?????
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Joined: Aug 2006
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From: bagdad
gl 450
Tire life?????
Has anyone worn out a set of factory tires?
I have about 15K on the Continentals and tread is close to the wear indicators. Am I wrong to expect these tires to last longer?
I have about 15K on the Continentals and tread is close to the wear indicators. Am I wrong to expect these tires to last longer?
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From: Colorado Rocky Mtns.
'06 A6 & '08 GL550
I don't know how long they're supposed to last on the GL, but the Conti's on our '06 A6 lasted all of 17,000 miles and I was probably pushing it. Very disappointing to say the least. 
I've had really good luck with Michelin brands and currently have the Pilots on the A6 and BFGoodrich on Chevy Trailblazer. The first set of Goodrich's had 55K on them before needing replaced.
I've had really good luck with Michelin brands and currently have the Pilots on the A6 and BFGoodrich on Chevy Trailblazer. The first set of Goodrich's had 55K on them before needing replaced.
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From: Central Pa.
2013 GL450 (traded for 2015 Escalade), 2012 Corvette, 2014 Ford Fusion, Previous: 2007 GL450, 2011
Unfortunately I think you are wrong
I had a VW Touareg with the same Continentals on and they got 18K before I got rid of them! They are decent tires when new.......but quickly go the other way!
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From: Colorado Rocky Mtns.
'06 A6 & '08 GL550
So Dirtslinger, it looks like you've got around another 3,000 miles before the treads are gone. Don't know how long 3,000 miles will last you, but from what I remember, it seems Michelin runs a rebate promotion mid-summer.
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From: The OC
Depends where I'm going.
Interesting to hear. I have 12k miles on the 20" Michelin Diamaris on my Premier Edition and they have LOTS of tread left. If I had to guess, I have at least 12k miles before I hit the wear indicators. On the flipside, I have cupping on all 4 tires so the tires have gotten a bit noisy.
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From: NorCal
3/30/07: B/B GL450 01 319 323 324 334 396 550
The Conti tires are soft sticky tires - they wear quickly. I have a set on my Boxster and I've replaced the rears twice and the fronts once and have a bit over 30,000 miles on a '00.
You can get longer lasting tires - but the manufacturers didn't sell a special tire to MBZ to last forever - they want them to perform and be bought again, and again and again.
You can get longer lasting tires - but the manufacturers didn't sell a special tire to MBZ to last forever - they want them to perform and be bought again, and again and again.
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Joined: Mar 2007
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From: Central Pa.
2013 GL450 (traded for 2015 Escalade), 2012 Corvette, 2014 Ford Fusion, Previous: 2007 GL450, 2011
The Conti tires are soft sticky tires - they wear quickly. I have a set on my Boxster and I've replaced the rears twice and the fronts once and have a bit over 30,000 miles on a '00.
You can get longer lasting tires - but the manufacturers didn't sell a special tire to MBZ to last forever - they want them to perform and be bought again, and again and again.
You can get longer lasting tires - but the manufacturers didn't sell a special tire to MBZ to last forever - they want them to perform and be bought again, and again and again.
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From: LA LA Land
'07 GL 450, '02 S 80 T6
Originally Posted by Jack450
Can anyone rotate the tires? Have 6k miles and live over 100 miles from the dealer.
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From: Las Vegas, NV
2011 E350 Cabriolet..White and Almond Mocha
As part of your Welcome Service they will rotate your tires free up to 6500 miles. This does not apply if the vehicle has different size tires on the front and rear.
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From: www.Traben-Trarbach.de
MPG+ ROLFCOPTER
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From: Colorado Rocky Mtns.
'06 A6 & '08 GL550
Good Luck!
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From: Central Pa.
2013 GL450 (traded for 2015 Escalade), 2012 Corvette, 2014 Ford Fusion, Previous: 2007 GL450, 2011
Matters not ........ if you have the 18's, Michelin currently does not have a tire for the GL.
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From: Howard Co MD
'13 ML350 Bluetec for work, E550 for pleasure, & ML350 for my wife
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From: Central Pa.
2013 GL450 (traded for 2015 Escalade), 2012 Corvette, 2014 Ford Fusion, Previous: 2007 GL450, 2011
I thought so.......until I talked with Tirerack and they said the specs for the GL require a load rating of 110 and the Mich. tire has a rating of 109. They said many installers will not install a tire with a lower load rating than specified for the vehicle because there is too much potential liability. Therefore.....Tirerack said they could not recomend the tire or any tire with a lesser load or speed rating.
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From: Howard Co MD
'13 ML350 Bluetec for work, E550 for pleasure, & ML350 for my wife
Bummer. I did not read the weight carrying spec. I had planned on getting these tires installed in late fall, and saving the factory Conti's for when I end my lease. My wife's ML500 has the linked Michelins, and they are great all around tires.
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Joined: Apr 2007
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From: Southern California
2014 GL 450
My GL came with Dunlops so it'll be interesting to see if there is any wear difference from the Conti's. I had Conti's on my Expedition and had 25K on that vehicle when I traded it for the GL and the tires still had a lot of wear left in them.
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Joined: Oct 2005
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From: fl
1992 500E, 2006 E500, 2007 GL 450
I have standard 18" wheels with Michelin Latitudes. Neighbors experience with same tire on MDX indicates 40,000+ miles. Same was true of my X5 with Michelin Energy with same tread wear index. I probably won't keep GL for 40000 miles but I would expect 40000 miles+.
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From: Toronto
2006 E320 CDi, 2008 3/4 Ton Suburban, 2007 "rice rickshaw" Accord 5 speed
big tires are superflous for SUVs
Actually, it's not that easy as far as the GL standard 18in tires are concerned. I've searched on Tirerack and there are very few available in that size that meet the requirements for the vehicle. Those that do are no better than the Conti. Some of the best SUV tires by Michelin, etc. do not come in that size. That said.....Yokohama IS comining out with a tire around July that will meet the performance and load specs. and have more durability plus more aggressive tread for winter and/or off road.
There really should not be any need for MB to specify high dollar rubber in SUVs. If buyers want faster vehicles they can go AMG or Porsche.
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From: Colorado Rocky Mtns.
'06 A6 & '08 GL550
One other kicker from Michelin is the fact you can drive them for a 30 day free trial period. I don't know if other manufacturers offer this, but it's a nice peace of mind thing if you don't like them after riding on them for 4 weeks.
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From: Central Pa.
2013 GL450 (traded for 2015 Escalade), 2012 Corvette, 2014 Ford Fusion, Previous: 2007 GL450, 2011
Blittle... I'm pretty sure the Michelin Latitude Tour HP in 18's will work fine on the 450.
One other kicker from Michelin is the fact you can drive them for a 30 day free trial period. I don't know if other manufacturers offer this, but it's a nice peace of mind thing if you don't like them after riding on them for 4 weeks.
One other kicker from Michelin is the fact you can drive them for a 30 day free trial period. I don't know if other manufacturers offer this, but it's a nice peace of mind thing if you don't like them after riding on them for 4 weeks.
You guys are right! That's the value of a forum.......you can find out stuff you can't seem to find anyplace else!
Interestingly, however, when you plug the GL into the Tirerack search function, the Latitude tire does not come up. The only Mich. tire that does is the Cross Terrain and it has the wrong load rating. If I wanted a direct replacement for the standard Contis, I think I would go with the Lattitudes, but because of where I occassionally drive, I want a more aggressieve tread like the Cross Terrains or something of that nature can handle some mud and deeper snow. That being the case.....TR said there will be some available in the near future.
