imported_truzoom
New member
I'm proud to say I'm the happy owner of a set of Kumho Road Venture HT tires on my Ford F-150. :spot
It has been a bit of a struggle up until now, and I have learned a lot from the initial set of Goodyear Eagle GTII tires that really helped me realize what to look for when buying tires.
My odometer is just about to pass the 45K mile mark, so I suppose the Goodyears have lasted quite a while, despite the fact that they became unbearable to drive on at around 35K miles.
Here are the original Eagle GTIIs sitting on my truck after a good cleaning and dressing.
They obviously aren't swampers, and I obviously don't have upgraded wheels, but I think they filled up the space decently and left a (relatively speaking) aggressive stance. But upon close observation, it is easy to see some problems that have come across them.
I don't think I need to explain, as anyone with any common sense can see they are NOT wearing normally. This came up to be a problem when I went to a family member who actually works at a tire plant to see if they could find me any decent deals on a new set. Their response was that the tires were fine and still had at least 10K miles left on them. This later became a problem because everyone seemed to believe him over me concerning just how much 'ride time' I had left on the Eagles.
Well, I'm no fool and the fact that the wear bars were exposed was a pretty clear indication that it was time to get some new shoes. Anyway I did some shopping on TireRack to see what I could match in terms of style and price and performance. Well, with gas at $3/gal right now and no sign of it going down, I put serious consideration into sensibility and price.
I was originally planning on getting a set of Kumho Ecsta STX tires in 265/55/16 since they seemed to rate well and they just looked killer.
But then I realized how "well" these Eagles performed in the ice and snow (apparently it is categorized as a sporty tire like the Ecsta), so they got marked off the list right away. The last thing I want is to spend a couple hundred on some tires and then find out they are jack squat when bad weather rolls in.
So back to searching. With the Eagles being 285mm in width, I was hoping to find something equivalent because I had become accustomed to the wide stance. Well, I had no luck-- but it was a good thing because the idea of bad weather hit me and I realized that wide tires probably can't "cut" into snow as well.
With style no longer a criteria for my search, I looked up tires in the OEM size of 235/70/16. Right away, the Kumho Road Venture HTs seemed to be a great value with GREAT reviews when it comes to treadwear, noise and handling. So after a few restless nights, I jumped in and made the purchase. During the checkout, I was given an option to ship the tires to a local shop to have them mounted and balanced, so I had them shipped to a Big-O Tires about 10 miles away. (This factors in later)
After anxiously watching the UPS tracking website, it finally showed this afternoon that the tires were delivered. I called Big-O and made sure, and headed off. The staff was incredibly helpful and did not hesitate to get the job done. They used a Hunter TC3500 to mount and a Hunter DSP9000 to balance, which are supposedly some of the better machines available. The total cost of mount+balance+valve stems+disposal was exactly $70, which, when added onto the $334 that it cost to buy and ship the tires, brings the grand total to $404. Not bad! :getdown
I am glad to say that Kumho has won my heart with these Road Ventures. I used to dread driving with the Goodyear Eagles because they were just so LOUD. At speeds greater than 10MPH, they would make a horrible glug,glug,glug,woosh,woosh,woosh sound that could not be drowned out with closed windows or the radio on at ear-splitting volumes. They also vibrated like mad at speeds above 30MPH, but I think they were more out of balance than anything. Well, the Kumhos are a pleasure to be riding on because they literally make NO NOISE. Even at 75MPH, all I am able to hear is the wind and the engine, which actually makes me want to drive without the gas pedal depressed because it is just so quiet. There is no vibration, but of course I think that is attributed more to the balancing. On the way back home on the interstate, I passed through a random torrential downpour, and the Kumhos gripped like it was dry pavement on a 100* day. The Goodyears would not have been able to do much in rainfall like that.
Anyway, here are some pics I took after I got home. Even with the drastic change from a 285/60/16 to a 235/70/16, the stance isn't altered much, except for the sidewalls that do not bulge out like the Eagles. For what it's worth, I'll lose the look if I get comfort and performance in return. I opted for the blackwalls because honestly, it is a MAJOR PITA to clean RWLs!
I suppose now all I need to do is clean up the residue from the old wheel weights and dress 'em up. Thanks for reading. :usa
It has been a bit of a struggle up until now, and I have learned a lot from the initial set of Goodyear Eagle GTII tires that really helped me realize what to look for when buying tires.
My odometer is just about to pass the 45K mile mark, so I suppose the Goodyears have lasted quite a while, despite the fact that they became unbearable to drive on at around 35K miles.
Here are the original Eagle GTIIs sitting on my truck after a good cleaning and dressing.
They obviously aren't swampers, and I obviously don't have upgraded wheels, but I think they filled up the space decently and left a (relatively speaking) aggressive stance. But upon close observation, it is easy to see some problems that have come across them.
I don't think I need to explain, as anyone with any common sense can see they are NOT wearing normally. This came up to be a problem when I went to a family member who actually works at a tire plant to see if they could find me any decent deals on a new set. Their response was that the tires were fine and still had at least 10K miles left on them. This later became a problem because everyone seemed to believe him over me concerning just how much 'ride time' I had left on the Eagles.
Well, I'm no fool and the fact that the wear bars were exposed was a pretty clear indication that it was time to get some new shoes. Anyway I did some shopping on TireRack to see what I could match in terms of style and price and performance. Well, with gas at $3/gal right now and no sign of it going down, I put serious consideration into sensibility and price.
I was originally planning on getting a set of Kumho Ecsta STX tires in 265/55/16 since they seemed to rate well and they just looked killer.
But then I realized how "well" these Eagles performed in the ice and snow (apparently it is categorized as a sporty tire like the Ecsta), so they got marked off the list right away. The last thing I want is to spend a couple hundred on some tires and then find out they are jack squat when bad weather rolls in.
So back to searching. With the Eagles being 285mm in width, I was hoping to find something equivalent because I had become accustomed to the wide stance. Well, I had no luck-- but it was a good thing because the idea of bad weather hit me and I realized that wide tires probably can't "cut" into snow as well.
With style no longer a criteria for my search, I looked up tires in the OEM size of 235/70/16. Right away, the Kumho Road Venture HTs seemed to be a great value with GREAT reviews when it comes to treadwear, noise and handling. So after a few restless nights, I jumped in and made the purchase. During the checkout, I was given an option to ship the tires to a local shop to have them mounted and balanced, so I had them shipped to a Big-O Tires about 10 miles away. (This factors in later)
After anxiously watching the UPS tracking website, it finally showed this afternoon that the tires were delivered. I called Big-O and made sure, and headed off. The staff was incredibly helpful and did not hesitate to get the job done. They used a Hunter TC3500 to mount and a Hunter DSP9000 to balance, which are supposedly some of the better machines available. The total cost of mount+balance+valve stems+disposal was exactly $70, which, when added onto the $334 that it cost to buy and ship the tires, brings the grand total to $404. Not bad! :getdown
I am glad to say that Kumho has won my heart with these Road Ventures. I used to dread driving with the Goodyear Eagles because they were just so LOUD. At speeds greater than 10MPH, they would make a horrible glug,glug,glug,woosh,woosh,woosh sound that could not be drowned out with closed windows or the radio on at ear-splitting volumes. They also vibrated like mad at speeds above 30MPH, but I think they were more out of balance than anything. Well, the Kumhos are a pleasure to be riding on because they literally make NO NOISE. Even at 75MPH, all I am able to hear is the wind and the engine, which actually makes me want to drive without the gas pedal depressed because it is just so quiet. There is no vibration, but of course I think that is attributed more to the balancing. On the way back home on the interstate, I passed through a random torrential downpour, and the Kumhos gripped like it was dry pavement on a 100* day. The Goodyears would not have been able to do much in rainfall like that.
Anyway, here are some pics I took after I got home. Even with the drastic change from a 285/60/16 to a 235/70/16, the stance isn't altered much, except for the sidewalls that do not bulge out like the Eagles. For what it's worth, I'll lose the look if I get comfort and performance in return. I opted for the blackwalls because honestly, it is a MAJOR PITA to clean RWLs!
I suppose now all I need to do is clean up the residue from the old wheel weights and dress 'em up. Thanks for reading. :usa
