what tire?

[feb]

I have a 2003 trailblazer with 40,000 miles on it. The tires on my TB are the original tires, still look new and they still have good tread. I noticed this weekend that there were some cracks on the side of the treads and also some small cracks on the sidewall. They are bfgoodrich open trail t/a. What would be a good replacement? I drive nostly in town and go out of town about 3 times a year. Thanks

[MagicRat]

Find a decent specialized tire retailer (not Walmart, a place that only sells tires!!!) and talk to them about what you need.

Some considerations:
Obviously, you want a light truck (not a passenger car tire) in the same size as original. However, since you do not go off road and do not get much snow, you could go for a mild street-type tread pattern. These run quieter, more smoothly and last longer that an all-terrain or off-road type tire.

As for brand or truck tire........ Michelin, Bridgestone, Dunlop, Yokohama are premium brands. They cost more than average but are more likely to provide best performance and longevity.
Good Year, Firestone and BFGoodrich are generall less expensive tires but still reliable performaers.
There are several discount tire brands which, while still good, do not last as long but are still acceptable, such as General and Cooper.

Finally, the retailer will likely have a variety of off-brand tires, with names that you have never heard of. These tend to be cheap; some are good, some are not, so use caution.
Also have the tire guy explain tread wear ratings. Tires that are rated to last longer than others often are (but not always) less 'grippy' on dry pavement. So its a trade-off..... long life vs maximum traction in case of an emergency stop. You may never notice a difference, but again, its a consideration.

[Twin1]

Firestone Destination LE. I've put 60k on these tires with 5k rotation intervals.

[zxc123]

Originally Posted by feb

I have a 2003 trailblazer with 40,000 miles on it. The tires on my TB are the original tires, still look new and they still have good tread. I noticed this weekend that there were some cracks on the side of the treads and also some small cracks on the sidewall. They are bfgoodrich open trail t/a. What would be a good replacement? I drive nostly in town and go out of town about 3 times a year. Thanks

I replaced my oems first with yokohamas from discount tire-but they were Noisy!
Had them switch to michelins, much better.
No more annoying slight vibration between 60-64 mph either,which I had from the oems.
Had em rebalanced and rotated,did no good. Discount found there was a recall of some kind on them, so that helped on the price.

Had them on about 6 months now, very good tires. Never had michelins before.

[Jethro1]

You will not like the michelin lts becausee they will fell softer that the goodrich open trail. I ended up getting new all terain goodriches same ply rating but with a more agressive tread. Im sure those 245/70/16 all trails used 50psi for a more possitive grip on the road.