Can you rate these tires for me...

[kmJeepPA]

Hi all,

I am new to your forum. Nice to see a diverse group of people come together over a common vehicle. Just picked up my Dad's 2002 Jeep Liberty Limited yesterday with, wait for it, 28,844 miles on it, garage kept! Other than a few minor dings and the need for new rubber, and the fact that my dad smoked (a lot!) and I need to have the interior thoroughly cleaned and de-funked, it is like a nearly new car, or a 1 year off lease. Very excited. I will say this, with one day of driving it around town that I "get it"... with "it" being the Jeep thing. Cool

Anyway, I am new to Jeeps but the OEM tires are shot and I plan to put some rubber on that will allow me to occasionally take this beast off road where it apparently belongs. That said it will be a daily driver 98 of the time, at least for the short term.

I have read all the ratings and reviews on the Tire sites and a few off-roading forums, and there seem to be many, many good options to choose from. I figured I'd take a poll. Please rank or give me your thoughts on the following tires according to your experience with them actually on your Liberty:

Mickey Thompson Baja STZ
General Grabber AT2
BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO2
Goodyear Wrangler Silent Armour
Nexen Roadian A/T ProR8
Firestone Destination A/T

PS: I am looking for the typical unobtanium, great road manners, grip, wet weather handling, snow and ice handling, and some decent off-road capabilities. Would also like lower noise floor as reasonable as well.
PSS: Think it would be cool to have a beefy, fierce off-road sort of look that has solid road capabilities.

Thanks!

PS: I know you folks have debated tires endlessly, but opinions evolve over usage as do the tires from year to year. I plan to order a set tomorrow.

 

[RenKJ]

If wet grip and ice grip are very important look up "dueler revo 2s"

 

[kmJeepPA]

If wet grip and ice grip are very important look up "dueler revo 2s"

Thanks for the tip! I hope to balance safety on the road (cuz I'll be driving my wife and kids around in this regularly) with the option to get this beast into the dirt. I'm a long time mountain biker and rode dirt bikes as a teenager, so I think I will take to off-roading, and I want to plan for that as well

 

[RenKJ]

Thanks for the tip! I hope to balance safety on the road (cuz I'll be driving my wife and kids around in this regularly) with the option to get this beast into the dirt. I'm a long time mountain biker and rode dirt bikes as a teenager, so I think I will take to off-roading, and I want to plan for that as well

They never let me down offroad and are particularly good for floating on sand without losing traction /momentum

 

[tommudd]

Hi all,

I am new to your forum. Nice to see a diverse group of people come together over a common vehicle. Just picked up my Dad's 2002 Jeep Liberty Limited yesterday with, wait for it, 28,844 miles on it, garage kept! Other than a few minor dings and the need for new rubber, and the fact that my dad smoked (a lot!) and I need to have the interior thoroughly cleaned and de-funked, it is like a nearly new car, or a 1 year off lease. Very excited. I will say this, with one day of driving it around town that I "get it"... with "it" being the Jeep thing. Cool

Anyway, I am new to Jeeps but the OEM tires are shot and I plan to put some rubber on that will allow me to occasionally take this beast off road where it apparently belongs. That said it will be a daily driver 98 of the time, at least for the short term.

I have read all the ratings and reviews on the Tire sites and a few off-roading forums, and there seem to be many, many good options to choose from. I figured I'd take a poll. Please rank or give me your thoughts on the following tires according to your experience with them actually on your Liberty:

Mickey Thompson Baja STZ
General Grabber AT2
BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO2
Goodyear Wrangler Silent Armour
Nexen Roadian A/T ProR8
Firestone Destination A/T

PS: I am looking for the typical unobtanium, great road manners, grip, wet weather handling, snow and ice handling, and some decent off-road capabilities. Would also like lower noise floor as reasonable as well.
PSS: Think it would be cool to have a beefy, fierce off-road sort of look that has solid road capabilities.

Thanks!

PS: I know you folks have debated tires endlessly, but opinions evolve over usage as do the tires from year to year. I plan to order a set tomorrow.

Out of that list for something without much noise, works well all seasons , either the Goodyear Silent Armour or well none of the rest
You'll have some come on saying the General Grabber AT2s are the best thing since sliced bread but....
There are some other good tires out there as well Cooper has some really good tires that will fit your needs as well that I would look at
Best tire I have ran in the past 15-18 years has been the Goodyear Duratracs, while make a little bit of low hum, they do great on and off road. Hardly ever locked mine in when going through snow

 

[tommudd]

Also move up to a 245-70-16 in size

 

[kmJeepPA]

Also move up to a 245-70-16 in size

Thank you for the tip. SO you do not think I will experience any rubbing with 245/70r16's with a stock Liberty? I see folks commenting about the rub factor. Just curious. Thanks!

Peace...

 

[tommudd]

Thank you for the tip. SO you do not think I will experience any rubbing with 245/70r16's with a stock Liberty? I see folks commenting about the rub factor. Just curious. Thanks!

Peace...

IF, you are at the height you say you are then you'll be fine, rubbing occurs when you are say 18-18.5 ( below new stock height ) which most are

 

[kmJeepPA]

IF, you are at the height you say you are then you'll be fine, rubbing occurs when you are say 18-18.5 ( below new stock height ) which most are

Yes, I measured it a couple of times to be sure, it measures 20" from center of rear hub to the bottom of the fender flare, and 19 3/4" up front. I have to assume that is at or close to factory/new. My Dad did take it off-road frequently at his gun club but that is just rolling, dirt/gravel roads, pretty smooth actually.

Thanks again for the info.

 

[JasonJ]

For what it's worth, I'm running 245/70R16 AT's on a stock suspension 2003. I'm sagged a good inch, more on the front left. I have no rubbing on 3 wheels, only a small amount on full lock turns in that front left.

I think you'll be fine using that size tire.

 

[tommudd]

Yes, I measured it a couple of times to be sure, it measures 20" from center of rear hub to the bottom of the fender flare, and 19 3/4" up front. I have to assume that is at or close to factory/new. My Dad did take it off-road frequently at his gun club but that is just rolling, dirt/gravel roads, pretty smooth actually.

Thanks again for the info.

Early 02 built before April 12th 2002 were at 19.75 in front
But after 14 years you'd think it would of sagged some
I mean I grabbed an 03 last fall with 79,000 and it was sagged almost 1.5 inches

 

[tommudd]

For what it's worth, I'm running 245/70R16 AT's on a stock suspension 2003. I'm sagged a good inch, more on the front left. I have no rubbing on 3 wheels, only a small amount on full lock turns in that front left.

I think you'll be fine using that size tire.

Depends a lot on the tires, what brand, what tread pattern etc
if they are going to rub or not

 

[kmJeepPA]

Thanks for the info. I was looking last night and I think I measured from the outside of the wheel well, not realizing that piece slants downward a good inch or so. It's at the dealer today getting the recalls done but will check again when it gets back.

I do hope to go 245/70r16, so will shout with my tire decision and get your weigh in Tom, thanks!

BTW, Tom, I saw your post on another thread about colors, mine is Woodland Brown Satin Glow, which appears to only have been made in 2002. Will post some pics once I get her cleaned up and get some new shoes on her.

Peace,
Kenny

 

[tommudd]

Thanks for the info. I was looking last night and I think I measured from the outside of the wheel well, not realizing that piece slants downward a good inch or so. It's at the dealer today getting the recalls done but will check again when it gets back.

I do hope to go 245/70r16, so will shout with my tire decision and get your weigh in Tom, thanks!

BTW, Tom, I saw your post on another thread about colors, mine is Woodland Brown Satin Glow, which appears to only have been made in 2002. Will post some pics once I get her cleaned up and get some new shoes on her.

Peace,
Kenny

Pretty rare color as well

 

[renegade 04]

I am running General Grabber AT2's and they are great, The old set has about 85,000 miles on them when I got the new tires. Keep in mind that is with a 5 tire rotation.

 

[jeeplib05]

I am running General Grabber AT2's and they are great, The old set has about 85,000 miles on them when I got the new tires. Keep in mind that is with a 5 tire rotation.

I was very tempted to get those but I'm going to try out some Goodyear Wrangler Authority's
Way more agressive looking and I KNOW Goodyear is a good tire so I won't have to gamble my $600-$700 on tires I'm unsure about
Glad to hear how many miles you got out of those though!
Hopefully I get close to that whenever I get my set

 

[renegade 04]

Just remember to rotate the tires every 3000 miles and you will be good to go.

 

[tommudd]

Just remember to rotate the tires every 3000 miles and you will be good to go.

Thats how I got so many miles out of the Duratracs I think, rotating them every 3000 miles

 

[kmJeepPA]

Okay, so here's some more info to fuel the conversation.
Build date August 2001 (very early, eh?)
Sag measures, from center of wheel to the very bottom of the rounded outside edge of fender.
LF - 19 1/4"
RF - 19 1/4"
LR - 20"
RR - 20 1/4"

So the key question for me is, what does this mean in terms of tire size options assuming I won't be able to afford to lift for a year or so. And, another key question, with only 29,000 miles on it, can I expect it to sag more with daily use? I do work from home but will put 5-7K on it this year. I would think a certain amount of sag should have already occurred due to the weight of the vehicle over 14 years.

Happy to hear your thoughts.

Also, on the General Grabber topic, curious why it is such a divisive tire. My only experience with General Tires to date is on my 2004 Honda CRV. I put General Altimax's on it two seasons ago and they are hands down the best all-season tires I have ever had on it, and I have had a number of sets. Fantastic handling wet, dry, and moderately deep snow. Not too shabby on ice either, and with about 25,000 miles on them they look great. On that alone I would try the Grabbers, and because my budget is tight and I want to buy 5 so I can do a 5 tire rotation. Anyway, curious to hear any specific gripes on these because they are a nice price point. But I am by no means locked in yet.

Have a great day everyone. I need to order some rubber this weekend, so looking for any input on size and future sag expectations that I can get, given the mileage, age and driving circumstances. What I do not want to end us is with rubbing, or to have to bash/bend anything, or no rubbing at first with rubbing to follow due to sag coming along with increased usage. I figure worst case I am going with the stock 235/70-16, which are still pretty substantial, but would love to go 245/70-16, 235/75-16 or 245/75-16 if I can get away with it.

Peace out....

 

[profdlp]

Those early Jeeps were an inch higher than the later models. That right there might let you bump up a size, especially if you plan on lifting it.

I'd wait for a more informed opinion than my own, though.