Tires for the W-164: Michelin LTX vs Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza
12-07-2018, 10:28 PM
#1
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Thread Starter
Tires for the W-164: Michelin LTX vs Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza
It's tires buying time: new shoes for my 2010 ML350 4MATIC
I have been researching and came out with two top contenders for 255/50/R19:
a. Michelin LTX premier
b. Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza
Before I looked up the consumer ratings and talked to a sales professional at Tire Rack, I wouldn't have considered a Bridgestone, and would have gone straight for the Michelin.
But the sales man recommended it warmly, and in customer surveys it is above the Michelin in ratings (but not by much)
The downside of the Michelin: quite a few people reported to only get 30 000 miles out of it. I just wonder why.
I found test ratings on the track by Tirerack for the Michelin, but no tests anywhere on the Bridgestone. Also, the Bridgestone is not cheaper, actually, with a special right now, the Michelin is 50$ less for the set of 4.
For me it's key to have great traction on dray and wet (don't get much snow here in California) and little noise and good driving comfort.
Are you driving on one of these tires? What's your take? Do you like them, and why (or why not) and would you buy them again?
I have been researching and came out with two top contenders for 255/50/R19:
a. Michelin LTX premier
b. Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza
Before I looked up the consumer ratings and talked to a sales professional at Tire Rack, I wouldn't have considered a Bridgestone, and would have gone straight for the Michelin.
But the sales man recommended it warmly, and in customer surveys it is above the Michelin in ratings (but not by much)
The downside of the Michelin: quite a few people reported to only get 30 000 miles out of it. I just wonder why.
I found test ratings on the track by Tirerack for the Michelin, but no tests anywhere on the Bridgestone. Also, the Bridgestone is not cheaper, actually, with a special right now, the Michelin is 50$ less for the set of 4.
For me it's key to have great traction on dray and wet (don't get much snow here in California) and little noise and good driving comfort.
Are you driving on one of these tires? What's your take? Do you like them, and why (or why not) and would you buy them again?
12-08-2018, 04:13 PM
#2
Member
I love the Michelin LTX tires!
Have bought 3 sets in the past number of years. Wear great, very quiet. Avoid Bridgestone or those infernal Continential temporary rim covers that are sold as tires....
12-08-2018, 06:05 PM
#3
Member
Thread Starter
The Bridgestone is strange. It gets recommended like crazy on Tirerack, but then they don't test it. Maybe they make more money on them than on the Michelins.
What did you hear or experience about the Bridgestones that made you turn away?
12-08-2018, 07:00 PM
#4
Member
Have had my Michelin LTX Premiers for over a year now and they are the best tires I have ever had on my ML. One thing I noticed right off the bat was increased diesel mileage of about 10%. The owner of my MB Indy shop also has them on his ML and is also receiving the mileage dividend.
Wear seems to be OK, but I only have 10,000 miles on them.
When I replaced the Michelins on my wife's C350 (not the LTX Premier) they were about 50% less than the expected mileage. Our tire shop discounted the new ones by 50% so I'm not too concerned about getting the full 60,000 miles on the LTX Premiers.
Wear seems to be OK, but I only have 10,000 miles on them.
When I replaced the Michelins on my wife's C350 (not the LTX Premier) they were about 50% less than the expected mileage. Our tire shop discounted the new ones by 50% so I'm not too concerned about getting the full 60,000 miles on the LTX Premiers.
12-09-2018, 06:29 AM
#6
Member
I looked at the Bridgestones and they were about the price of the Michelins. I had read good and bad about the Bridgestones...I recollect something about the noise being higher.
Could not be happier w the LTX as Im 100% on road and like the ride and noise level...
Boo on Continentials...
Could not be happier w the LTX as Im 100% on road and like the ride and noise level...
Boo on Continentials...
12-14-2018, 11:55 PM
#7
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08 GL320cdi, 08 ML320cdi, '10 ML350 Bluetec
I have 2 ML’s (08 and ‘10) and a 08 GL all with the Michelin Premier LTZ’s. Like the others here, I will say they are the best I’ve had on all three vehicles. I just had the ones replaced on the GL at 28k miles. Driving in the rain on a trip last month at highway speeds, things got squirrelly at 65mph. When I got back home took it to Discount Tire (where I purchased them all) and told the story. They checked tread depth and they were down to 4/32. Michelin calls them at minimum at 2/32. This tire only starts out at 8.5/32 new. Other LTX’s (the “other” version - not Premier’s) on my pick-up start at 11/32. They calculated I’d be at 2/32 in another 6-8K miles. Since the warranty would only kick in at 2/32, they used 36k for the price/mileage credit. I could have driven them to 2/32 and gotten the same amount of credit but it wasn’t worth the safety chance (to me). I received about a 40% credit toward the new ones and honestly was happy with the outcome. Essentially only paid for the part of the tires I used (with exception of the 8k I electively gave up). I bought them for all the vehicles when the tire first came out and couldn’t believe they would offer a written 65k warranty. I’d not made it to 30k with any of the others I’d had (Bridgestone, Continentals or Toyos). My last set of Michelin Latitudes didn’t even make it to 20k. So other than “assuming” �� the tires would last to 65k, I now know they won’t. As is widely noted, the major complaint is wear. I certainly can’t find another product offering anything better (or even close to ride, noise and handling). So for me, it’s about $165/$170 (after adjustment) a tire and the best thing out there for our vehicles. Plus there is nothing better than the feel of brand new quality tires. Most brands (these included) start getting noisy as they near end of life and I’ve never wanted to be the guy bragging about tire mileage just before facing the wrong way on the Interstate �� We drive heavy vehicles at relatively high speeds on mostly less than favorable roads. Something has to give.....
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12-17-2018, 11:58 AM
#8
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GL320 / R350
I have an R and a GL. The Duellers are junky tires. They will do the job but the ride really suffers. Those LTX are fantastic, but a large premium on them. I run General Grabber HTS60's. They are very quiet and comfortable. They are a significant improvement over the dueller at a better more manageable price.
Dan
Dan
