Revo vs. Revo 2's

[piste]

'97 SE OR...due up for tires...was going to do Gen'l Grabbers but can't seem to get a hold of them. Rethinking going with the Revos since I've read so much good stuff about them. Have 15" wheels and originally 265/70-15's..but just finishing up Michelin LTX M/s 31s..the Revos don't come in 265/70-15so figure I'll do the 31"x10.5s....but I'm trying to figure out...Are the Revo 2 the successor to the Revo? Seems there's very few size options in the Revo and none that will fit my Pathy. But Revo 2's are avail in the 31". This is my daily driver but I need it to get me around the mountains for camping and especially skiing so need good snow performance. Should I not worry about difference between the REvo and REvo 2?? Basically the same thing?

Edited July 24, 2010 by piste

[MY1PATH]

the revo2 is the new tire. (Dueler AT) they are for the same use but it has a little more bite on the trail and if your in a wet climate it also pushes out water better while maintaining the same quiet comfortable ride as the revo.

Edited July 24, 2010 by MY1PATH

[02silverpathy]

From talking to an online discount tire rep, the revo 2 was developed because the original had BAAAD treadwear issues. the issue was that they didn't make it to 50K in good shape. So they re-did the tire, nearly the same but made the compund more able to reach past 50K miles.

 

I have an original set, they have about 45K and pretty good wear on them, I don't drive my rig much and pretty much never off road...45K miles for over $700 is bad. But given the performance I will rebuy another set. I would buy Firestone M/T's but I would have then officially made myself a poser!

[MY1PATH]

the fire stone MT's are terrrible!

ok, not their not, the tread is good for deep snow mud, loam, gravel & hardpack.

they are terrible on roots, light snow, ice and wet roads and for the price I'd think it could be designed to @ least work better on wet roads.

[esy]

you'll have better options in the standard 31" sizing compared to the stock 265/70/15s.

 

Revo2s are the successor/better version of the Revos as others have mentioned.

 

if you don't need an AT tire, stick with the LTX MS or X Radial LT (found at club shops like Costco). those are more highway tread style tires that give a more comfortable ride compared to the ATs. not to mention, the LTX MS2 and X Radial LT2s that are now out are backed with 70k warranties from Michelin.

 

i've seen Revos get in the 70k range, but it's all dependent on what the driver is using them in. what kinds of conditions, driving styles, etc. most of the highway driven, and little to no offroading AT tires should be getting at least 60k, and i've seen Revos come back with about that much.

 

the Revo2s would be one of the very few Bridgestone tires that i'd ever buy, but i'm a Michelin/BFG person myself and comparing what is offered from BFS and Michelin/BFG, i'll take Michelin/BFG any day of the week. my own personal opinion though.

[piste]

Thanks for the input and opinions. I'm kinda settled on the Revos (more on that in a bit)...and was curious on the branding/positioning on the Revo 2s....wasn't sure if they were a companion to the Revo in the product line or more like a successor...sounds like a successor. And on that front...sometimes companies will mess with a good think in an attempt to improve it but in the end only F it up big time (think New Coke). So hoping the Revo 2's are truly as good or better than the Revo.

 

As I had said I was set on the Gen'l Grabbers after many months of research but local tire guy I like to use says he can't find any in the pipeline til October...suppose I could go tirerack.com....but honestly had read so much about Revos I did a bit more research and deciding on them. The first 40K on my '97 SE were on some cheapo OEM Duelers. Being as I ski and camp a lot I wanted to trade off a bit of highway comfort for snow performance in the LTX M/S 31s. Have to say those were VERY unimpressive. Not a great ride on the highway but didn't get the snow performance I was hoping for. And they are slip all over the place in any rain..can get the rear LSD slipping like crazy on the slightest of inclines. Reason they are so bad in the rain is they are so hard rubber...which is the good news....I have 100K miles on them and still rolling. Best snow tire I ever had was BFG All Terrain's on my old '84 Bronco. Considered going with them but don't think I wanna go that aggressive unless I make them a dedicated winter/offroad set up as my Pathy is my daily driver 35 minutes each way to/from work...live in PA. So have read these Revo's are very well mannered on the highway for an AT tire. And that's where I'm at..for now.

 

Thanks again for the edumacashun!!!

Edited July 26, 2010 by piste

[petespath]

Generals are cheap but I don't think they last very long.

[MY1PATH]

the revo2's are better I know ppl who had both. the guy with the originals is already wore out the other well I kew him longer and they porlly still on there...

[piste]

the revo2's are better I know ppl who had both. the guy with the originals is already wore out the other well I kew him longer and they porlly still on there...

 

Thanks man. Kind of begs the question why they still making the originals?

[esy]

as much as i love Michelin/BFG, something needs to be clarified here.

 

the LTX M/S is NOT meant for offroading, super heavy snow conditions, etc. think of them as the "Jack of All Trades, master of none". they do offer a great, smooth, comfortable ride, and i'll explain why yours may not have been.

 

the LTX M/S and X Radial LT are all around tires like i was saying. M/S standing for "Multi-Surface". they're a highway style tire that can handle some lightweight offroading (i.e. dirt, and small rocks), some snow, and should be gripping very well in any other conditions. now, as to why you may not have gotten the ride that you were expecting....

 

stepping from a 265/70/15, which is a passenger loaded tire and design, and stepping to a LRC/6-ply tire makes a HUGE difference. your load carrying capacity is increased since you're stepping from a 4-ply passenger tire to a 6-ply LT tire. this will, in turn, alter how you should be modifying your air pressures as well. hopefully this will make sense, and i'll try to make this as easily understood as possible.

 

if you were to take a quarter of an 8 1/2" x 11" piece of paper, that will show you approximately how much tread of your tire is on the ground at any given time. granted, the contact patch will change as the tire gets skinnier and taller, or wider and shorter, but it stays approximately the same (this is taking into consideration that your tires are PROPERLY inflated). the pathy's typical air pressure is somewhere in the range of 26-30 psi all around depending on year/model, etc (i know mine is 30psi all around with a P255/65/16 tire). let's say that yours is supposed to be at 26psi with a P265/70/15 tire. that air pressure with that tire will give you the largest possible contact patch on the ground where the tires will wear evenly, you'll get optimized vehicle performance, fuel consumption, etc., etc. (as you can see, A LOT is affected by tires and air pressures alone).

 

so, when you switch from a P265/70/15 to an LT31x10.5x15 LRC, your air pressures MUST be adjusted accordingly or the truck won't behave the same. say you inflate the tires to the recommended 26psi. since that tire has more load carrying capacity, it won't be putting the same contact patch on the ground as a P265/70/15 does at 26 psi. thus, affecting how much traction that the tire has on the road (which will account for your traction, or lack thereof, in the rain), the harsher ride (not to mention anytime you step from a passenger rated tire to an LT tire, ride comfort MUST be sacrificed), and a host of other issues.

 

what should you have inflated the tires to? well, i'd have to double check my Michelin load tables to be able to accurately tell you, but it would've obviously had to have been LESS than the recommend 26psi. i can almost guarantee that the majority of members on this forum probably don't run the proper PSI in their tires, nor do they adjust their PSI when they oversize their tires. not that that's a bad thing, but just saying. hell, even i run 1-2 PSI more than my recommended 30psi because i drive my truck a bit harder through corners and such and i prefer a little bit more stiffness through a corner. lots of things to take into consideration.

 

on a side note, i can say that the LTX MS and X Radial LT are smoother rides than any of the AT tires out (BFG AT KO, Michelin LTX AT2, Bridgestone AT Revo2, etc., etc.), and that's just going off of my own personal experiences with them, as well as testing them on road courses through my work. of course this is all my own personal opinion, but i have yet to meet someone who felt an AT tire was a smoother ride when comparing it to the same exact size, spec, etc. to a HT or MS tire like the LTX MS or Dueler HT 684s, etc.

 

i think i'll stop now. that's a lot of typing. haha.

[esy]

Thanks man. Kind of begs the question why they still making the originals?

 

the Revos are slowly getting phased out. they're still making some of the Revos in some sizes for people that are still on them. let's say for 5 years, there are 100,000 Revos sold all with some kind of replacement/road hazard warranty. then in the 6th year, the Revo2s are introduced and the Revos are completely discontinued and unavailable. well, when the Revo owners have a problem with their tires, they're going to need a replacement, but they're no longer available. so, they'll have to get the Revo2s, but the Revo2s are a different tread design (slightly, but still different), and 4x4 vehicles will typically always need 4 tires at any given time. consumers will not be happy if they had bought four Revos in year 4, and will have to buy four new Revo2s (at a higher price too since they're new and have new tech), even though their Revos probably still have like 75% tread left or what not.

 

it will benefit you, as a consumer, to go with the Revo2s for future purposes because the Revos are getting phased out. it's just that some sizes are so much more popular which don't allow the manufacturers the ability to cease all production of the tires.

[laxman0324]

As an owner of both the Revos (winter wheels 255/70R16) and the Revo 2 (summer wheels 255/70R17) I would have to say I love both of them. They are both wearing evenly like little rolls of steel rather than rubber. They both offer great traction in rain, more traction in dry weather than a lifted truck can handle, respectable traction in the slippery stuff, etc. I honestly don't notice much a difference between the two but I would say that the tread on the original Revos has a more aggressive tread design, but I don't know if the looks translate into actual performance here.

 

Bottom line, I have had great experiences with both, but it sounds like some people have had bad experiences with the original (which I was NOT aware of with years of reading/researching about tires until this thread) so it might be a good idea just to drop the extra dough on the Revo 2's.

 

Or go with Michelin LTX A/T 2's like I wish I could afford for the winter wheels at some point.

[piste]

Thanks to all...some good insights here.

 

Laxman...curious why you'd go with a dual summer/winter setup and use essentially the same tire being an A/T for both? I'm contemplating moving to a dual setup myself.

 

Edwinsyip, thanks a ton for all that detail. You know it amazes me that "M/S" stands for multisurface....I think Michelin intends consumers to believe it is a mud and snow setup...nowhere that I can find on their website does it state what M/S stands for. My dissatisfaction with the Michelins could very well likely be atributed to the fact that I learned about load force balancing just this year....after 9 years of riding on the Michelins!! The michelins had the steering wheel wobble from day one. It also may be due to struts. I replaced the OEM struts in October of 2003 after putting close to 40K miles on the Michelins...but at that time did not replace the any part of the strut mounts. When I put my new KYB struts on last month myself I replaced the entire original strut mounts which at that point were 13 years old...which were quite tired and the struts were so warn the strut rod just sank down into the strut on gravity alone.

 

Anywho..fast forward to today. I hate the whole tire code system despite understanding it well. I do have the option of going to a dual setup with say some Revo 2's for the winter....then pick up something the Gen'l Grabber or whatever for my summer/on-road setup. So right now I can put Revo 2s on my OEM wheels or on some new wheels and go with like a 16" if that'll give me better size options with the Revo 2's. But I don't necessarily have to decide that now...meaning I could put the Revo 2's on my OEM wheels...which I guess only option is the 31's...then if I don't like the highway ride I can get myself a whole new summer setup next spring...tires and wheels. Load carrying capacity means nothing to me...all I care about is sizes that fit..which I don't know why I have to go to an LT to get something that fits...great snow performance. There's no one tire that does it all...which is why I'm contemplating a dual setup. Anyone running a dual setup that they love?

 

It's always a saga buying tires isn't it..thus so many threads about the process. It's virtually impossible to do too much research. But at some point ya gotta say no mas. I'll say this...reason I want Revos is...if you go to say tirerack.com....for pretty much any tire you can find many positive and negative reviews...but with the Revos there are very few negative reviews and so many people RAVE about them. And one recent review I read said they are very well behaved on the higheay for an A/T design...thus my thinking that I might be happy with them 12 months a year.

 

Edit to add: Another reason to go with the dual setup is that with the 16" or even 17" wheel I could possibly get into the Revo 2's without having to get a light truck tire that I neither want nor need.....as I believe the LT 31s are my only option on my OEM 15" wheels?

Edited July 29, 2010 by piste

[esy]

The LTX M/S is a mud and snow tire. Pretty much any and all tire that is made nowadays are mud and snow, hence the M+S rating. That rating really doesn't mean much to be honest. It's more or less a standard and something that you shouldn't allow help you decide which tire to buy. The difference is the style of tire. The ltx ms is comparable to bridgestone's dueler 684 ht. Michelin's ltx at2 is comparable to the revo2s and the obviously the bfg at ko.

 

Load carrying capacity is actually very important. Not only is it helping to carry the weight of the truck through turns, braking, etc. Load carrying capacity also helps you determine the proper air to run in your tires especially when upsizing to larger wheels or what have you.

[piste]

The LTX M/S is a mud and snow tire. Pretty much any and all tire that is made nowadays are mud and snow, hence the M+S rating. That rating really doesn't mean much to be honest. It's more or less a standard and something that you shouldn't allow help you decide which tire to buy. The difference is the style of tire. The ltx ms is comparable to bridgestone's dueler 684 ht. Michelin's ltx at2 is comparable to the revo2s and the obviously the bfg at ko.

 

Load carrying capacity is actually very important. Not only is it helping to carry the weight of the truck through turns, braking, etc. Load carrying capacity also helps you determine the proper air to run in your tires especially when upsizing to larger wheels or what have you.

 

You had said the M/S in "LTX M/S" stood for multi-surface...so is it multi-surface? or mud + snow? or both?

 

What I meant by "not caring about load carrying capacity" was....my understanding is that the whole purpose of light truck designated tires is that they have greater load carrying capacity than passenger designated tires. Being as my '97 SE is my daily driver most often carrying me and me alone ...I have no need for greater load carrying capacity. And if a trade off of the greater load carrying capacity of an LT tire is that is not as smooth a ride as a passenger tire....then it seems to me I want to avoid an LT tire if at all possible.

 

If all the above it true and accurate....being as my OEM tires are 265/70-15's....which translates to overall diameter of 29.6" and width of 10.43"...wouldn't I be better off getting some 16" rims so I can stick with a passenger flavor of the Revo 2 in a P265/70-16 which is 30.1" H x 10.2" W??? rather than go with an LT in 31"??

 

ETA: BTW...WTF is up with 50K miles warranty on passenger Revo 2's and zippo for warranty on LT Revo 2 tires? Why the heck is that??

Edited July 29, 2010 by piste

[esy]

In all the michelin classes i've been to, the "M/S" in the name stands for multi-surface, however all tires that are made nowadays are m+s rated meaning they're mud and snow rated. Two different things that confuse people all the time.

 

If the revo2s in the 265/70/16 are passenger rated, go for it. Not certain if they are, i'd have to double check my order catalog when igo back to work. Many times the AT tires are at least an LRC/D tire though. Just remember that when ypu do size up to the 16" wheel, you'll still have to do a little bit of math to make sure that ypu've got the correct pressure settings for that tire.

 

Usually when successors of tires are brought out, they'll come with a mileage warranty to sweeten the deal. It's mostly a marketing ploy to make the consumer truly believe that tue new tire is a better version of the old, whi h it usually is.

[piste]

as much as i love Michelin/BFG, something needs to be clarified here.

 

the LTX M/S is NOT meant for offroading, super heavy snow conditions, etc. think of them as the "Jack of All Trades, master of none". they do offer a great, smooth, comfortable ride, and i'll explain why yours may not have been.

 

the LTX M/S and X Radial LT are all around tires like i was saying. M/S standing for "Multi-Surface". they're a highway style tire that can handle some lightweight offroading (i.e. dirt, and small rocks), some snow, and should be gripping very well in any other conditions. now, as to why you may not have gotten the ride that you were expecting....

 

stepping from a 265/70/15, which is a passenger loaded tire and design, and stepping to a LRC/6-ply tire makes a HUGE difference. your load carrying capacity is increased since you're stepping from a 4-ply passenger tire to a 6-ply LT tire. this will, in turn, alter how you should be modifying your air pressures as well. hopefully this will make sense, and i'll try to make this as easily understood as possible.

 

if you were to take a quarter of an 8 1/2" x 11" piece of paper, that will show you approximately how much tread of your tire is on the ground at any given time. granted, the contact patch will change as the tire gets skinnier and taller, or wider and shorter, but it stays approximately the same (this is taking into consideration that your tires are PROPERLY inflated). the pathy's typical air pressure is somewhere in the range of 26-30 psi all around depending on year/model, etc (i know mine is 30psi all around with a P255/65/16 tire). let's say that yours is supposed to be at 26psi with a P265/70/15 tire. that air pressure with that tire will give you the largest possible contact patch on the ground where the tires will wear evenly, you'll get optimized vehicle performance, fuel consumption, etc., etc. (as you can see, A LOT is affected by tires and air pressures alone).

 

so, when you switch from a P265/70/15 to an LT31x10.5x15 LRC, your air pressures MUST be adjusted accordingly or the truck won't behave the same. say you inflate the tires to the recommended 26psi. since that tire has more load carrying capacity, it won't be putting the same contact patch on the ground as a P265/70/15 does at 26 psi. thus, affecting how much traction that the tire has on the road (which will account for your traction, or lack thereof, in the rain), the harsher ride (not to mention anytime you step from a passenger rated tire to an LT tire, ride comfort MUST be sacrificed), and a host of other issues.

 

what should you have inflated the tires to? well, i'd have to double check my Michelin load tables to be able to accurately tell you, but it would've obviously had to have been LESS than the recommend 26psi. i can almost guarantee that the majority of members on this forum probably don't run the proper PSI in their tires, nor do they adjust their PSI when they oversize their tires. not that that's a bad thing, but just saying. hell, even i run 1-2 PSI more than my recommended 30psi because i drive my truck a bit harder through corners and such and i prefer a little bit more stiffness through a corner. lots of things to take into consideration.

 

on a side note, i can say that the LTX MS and X Radial LT are smoother rides than any of the AT tires out (BFG AT KO, Michelin LTX AT2, Bridgestone AT Revo2, etc., etc.), and that's just going off of my own personal experiences with them, as well as testing them on road courses through my work. of course this is all my own personal opinion, but i have yet to meet someone who felt an AT tire was a smoother ride when comparing it to the same exact size, spec, etc. to a HT or MS tire like the LTX MS or Dueler HT 684s, etc.

 

i think i'll stop now. that's a lot of typing. haha.

 

I genuinely appreciate your efforts to assist here...but I have to say I've re-read this post about 4 or 5 times and despite an expensive and under utilized engineering degree and 5 decades stumbling around this planet....I cannot for the life of me translate all of this into what exactly one should do. Here's what I know...The Michelen LTX M/S's I've had on my '97 SE OR for the past 9 years and 100,000 miles indicate on sidewall "max load 2250 lbs at 50 PSI". There is no "recommended" pressure on the sidewall. There is no "recommended" pressure in my owners manual. I checked the pressure today and all tires are right at 34 PSI. After 100,000 miles on these puppies I'm down to and moving past the wear bars and, more importantly, I've never seen such even wear on all four tires...especially not with this kind of total miles. Given the even wear....I guess 34 psi is the "right" pressure...at least from an evenness of wear perspective. Lastly, my dissatisfaction with these tires was road vibration which I'm chocking up to lack of road force balance....and terrible traction in most any kind of condition. Modifying pressure to improve traction I think would likely have resulted in less even wear and/or accelerated wear. But who knows.

 

With respect to where I am on the purchase...It's time to pull the trigger and quit the analysis paralysis so I'm gonna put REvo 2's in 31x10.5 on my 15" rims...and if need be get a second set of tires/rims come spring if I'm not likely the highway manners of the Revo 2's. Figure it's best to have my winter/offroad setup on the 15" rims and my 3 season commuter setup on something like 16" rims. Thanks to all for the guidance and opinions.

[esy]

Recmemded factory pressure is easily found on the driver side door placard. Open up the driver door andthere should be a sticker on the door jamb.

 

If not, call up any local tire shop and they can easily tell you. Better yet, have the nissan dealership tell you. Remember, an owner's manual covers a broad range of the same vehicle for sometimes more than one year.

 

Also, you never go by what the sidewall of the tire says. That tells you nothing about what a tire should be inflated to.

[piste]

Recmemded factory pressure is easily found on the driver side door placard. Open up the driver door andthere should be a sticker on the door jamb.

 

If not, call up any local tire shop and they can easily tell you. Better yet, have the nissan dealership tell you. Remember, an owner's manual covers a broad range of the same vehicle for sometimes more than one year.

 

Also, you never go by what the sidewall of the tire says. That tells you nothing about what a tire should be inflated to.

 

Just checked inside the door....says 26 psi for OEM 265/70-15s....Nissan dealer has always set my 31 LTX's at 34...tire sidewall for them states maxload at 50 psi.....clear as mud. Sorry but I'm still clueless on exactly what it is you trying to convey.

[esy]

Again, tire sidewall means nothing to how much a tire should be set at for a vehicle. All michelin and bfg passenger tires have a max psi of 44. Other brands will vary slightly.

 

I'll try to use another example to explain this. A 265/70/15 set at 26psi will put down a contact patch about the size of a 1/4 size of an 8 1/2 x 11" paper, roughly of course. When you put the larger 31" LT tire on there and set it at 26psi, let's say that that new 31" tire will only put down a contact patch about 1/2 the normal contact patch size because that tire is stiffer and doesn't displace as much of the loaded tire onto the pavement.

 

Not sure if that made sense. Let's think of a stock spring compared to a stiffer aftermarket spring. If you put 100lbs of pressure on the stock spring, it displaces, say 2". You put that same 100lbs on the stiffer aftermarket spring, it only displaces maybe 3/4" because that spring is inherently stiffer tuan the other. Same concept applies to tires. Unless your truck is normally overloaded with weight and random things that you may haul, 34psi is overinflated for you (even moreso when the tires get hot if you're using regular compressed air, but that's a whole other topic).

 

Hope this is making more sense. If not, not sure what to tell you.

[piste]

edwinsyp, First...sorry if I was a bit "short" in my last post...was really tired last night. I now totally get the CONCEPTS that you are talking about. My only remaining question is HOW to apply them. Meaning..given I know that for my OEM 265/70-15 tires my door placard indicates 26 psi and that I'm now using at 31x10.5R15...HOW do I calculate/convert the recommended pressure for OEM passenger tires to its equivalent psi recommendation for the light truck 31s? You mentioned something before about load tables? And lastly...will that calculation/conversion for 31" tires be the same for ALL 31" tires or is it tire specific? Thanks for staying with me on this!

[ahardb0dy]

You should never inflate your tires to the pressure on the sidewall first of all, if you look at the pressure rating on the tire it will say for example 35 psi AT a certain weight, if the tire says 35 psi at 4500 lbs you would take the 4500 times 4 to get 18,000 lbs, you know the truck doesn't weigh 18K lbs so you don't run them at 35 PSI, having worked in a 4 x 4 shop for a few years and mounting every size tire you could think of we always put about 28 psi in the tires going on any of the mini trucks and I always ran about 28 PSI in the tires on my Nissan.

 

As for tires, Michelin is usually top, they are very straight tires, wear great ride great but you pay the most for that, BRG all terrains are a great tire also, they will go very high mileage if taken care of and rotated, a buddy of mine has a set of 33's on his Toyota 4x4 with well over 60K on them and they still look like new.

 

I've had:

firestone ATX's (came on my 87 D21) they sucked

Kelly Safari's - lasted about 15K miles also sucked would never recommend ANY Kelly tire

BFG all terrains - (old style) had these in 33's and 35's - see previous note

BFG Mud Terrains (old style) my favorite tire used on and off road, work extremely well in sand no problems in the mud, not very noisy either, excellent tires

Bridgestone mud duelers (think they are called), almost the same as the BFG Mt's great tire also

Yokohama mud diggers (may be a newer style out now) - these tires in sand just wanted to dig in I could feel the strain they put on the truck, the rubber was very soft, didn't last long

 

Michelin cross terrains ( from my 4x4 dakota) - a street looking tire, excellent ride and wear, smooth, quiet tremendous traction, hard to break them loose even with the V8

 

Goodyear wrangler RTS (stock on the dakota) - street all terrain type tread, rode fairly smooth didn't last long

Goodyear SRa (stock on the titan) - same as the RTS's

[esy]

edwinsyp, First...sorry if I was a bit "short" in my last post...was really tired last night. I now totally get the CONCEPTS that you are talking about. My only remaining question is HOW to apply them. Meaning..given I know that for my OEM 265/70-15 tires my door placard indicates 26 psi and that I'm now using at 31x10.5R15...HOW do I calculate/convert the recommended pressure for OEM passenger tires to its equivalent psi recommendation for the light truck 31s? You mentioned something before about load tables? And lastly...will that calculation/conversion for 31" tires be the same for ALL 31" tires or is it tire specific? Thanks for staying with me on this!

 

nah, i didn't take it as that. sometimes they're difficult concepts to grasp. tires play a huge role in all vehicles and it's quite a bit more intensive than some like to think it is.

 

anyways, yes, the load tables is where you need to look at. i'll do some of the math for you, but it's not as hard as some make it to be.

 

so, you'd look up your factory size (265/70/15) and go to the factory PSI that your vehicle is supposed to be set at (26psi), and that would give you the weight, in lbs, that the tire can handle when properly inflated. for yours with the factory size and recommended psi, it lists it at 2017 lbs.

 

when you go with alternate sizing, you go to that size and check the weights that the tire can handle. so, we'll go to the 31x10.5x15, and look for the psi that will be just a hair over that 2017lbs or exactly it (never under). here's where it gets a little tricky, usually you'll have to do some math, but it looks like Bridgestone listed it so that won't be the case here.

 

surprisingly, your tires should be inflated to quite a bit more than factory according to the Bridgestone load tables. with the 31" tire, it states that your tires should be inflated to 45psi since at 45 psi, it will handle 2100lbs. this is more than likely because the flotation sizing of these tires. again, this gets into more stuff that is somewhat of a tangent to our current discussion, but still somewhat applies.

 

if you're looking to have the truck handle relatively the same and be a highway only type of driver, then 45psi should be what you set it at. if you do any wheeling, the flotation sizing (standard size tires like the 31x10.5x15) will help that because it will allow the ability to "air-down" the tire to increase your contact patch on the surface. airing it down will increase the length, not the width, of the contact patch but the tire's sidewall will still remain relatively intact because of the higher ply rating.

 

can you air down the tires more for everyday driving? of course, you can. again, this is where you come into a bit of a crossroads. what are you willing to sacrifice? ride quality? tire wear? if you were to air the tires at 30psi or 35psi, even, you'll get more contact patch on the road (always a plus), you may wear the shoulders a bit more depending on your driving, then again you may not. all depends on your driving style. you will also be decreasing the load carrying capacity of the truck.

 

remember the 2100lbs and 2017lbs for the respective tires at the proper inflations? here's where it comes into effect. as someone already mentioned, those weights are for EACH tire, and obviously our trucks don't weigh 8000-9000lbs. what those weights play into are during driving situations. when you straight-line brake (no matter how hard, but especially during harder braking) where does the weight of the truck go to? front, obviously. the two tires in the front have to be able to handle the shift of the weight during straight-line braking. same goes for hard accelerations. same would go for braking through a turn. if you were to brake while turning, where does the weight of the vehicle go to? it would go mostly to the front inside tire.

 

having said that, your tires won't automatically explode if you aired down to 35psi with the 31" flotation tires. you should get a little better traction since you're getting more contact patch on the road, but it will alter how the vehicle handles in braking, acceleration, turning, etc. either way you choose to slice it, you'll have to give one thing up for another, and unfortunately there's really no happy medium when changing from passenger rated tires to flotation sizing.

 

lots of typing. lots of info to digest. i'm sure you'll be very confused because even i got a little confused in there a few times.

 

EDIT:

my recommendation? i'd stick with the factory size. Nissan did the 1G R50 owners a little dirty with the use of the 265/70/15 because there aren't many options available in that size as i'm sure you've come to find out. and again, nothing wrong with going to the flotation sizing, but you'll have to figure some of those factors will play into your overall experience with your new set of tires. or, as you said, it might be a little better for you to even get a new set of wheels if your budget calls for it. if you got some 16" wheels, just rolling with a 255/70/16 or the stock 2G R50 size of 255/65/16. as far as Michelin/BFG is concerned, there's more options open for those two sizes, especially the 255/70/16, and they'll still be passenger rated so the transition will be a little better/easier.

Edited August 2, 2010 by edwinsyip

[Rick13]

1st of all, you've got a lot of really good tire information on here already, so I don't want to clutter it (much).

 

Going from my OEM Bridgestone Dueler H/T (P) to the Bridgestone Dueler Revo (LT) was the best tire decision I think I've ever made. I was wanting to get a tire that was decent on the street, but could get me up skiing in the winter and camping in the summer. These tires were perfect for 40K miles. The ride comfort change was almost unnoticable (wife couldn't tell the difference).

 

Since then, my R50 has become a much more off-road worthy vehicle, and the BFG A/T KO's (Load D) are my current choice but that is primarily because I was very concerned with sidewall protection. These BFG's are good off-road, great in deep snow, and compliant on-road. In saying all that, I still miss the Revo's - I just really enjoyed them on my rig...and I bet you would also.

 

Now for the clutter - I haven't studied the tire spec's in depth (pun intended), but for some reason I think Bridgestone has reduced the tread depth in some sizes of the new Revo 2 (compared to the original Revo in the exact same tire size). That is only concerning to me now because instead of dealing with random snow events when heading to ski in the Sierra Nevadas, I now need a tire that can "paddle" through up to (and sometimes over) 2 feet of heavy/wet snow (Denver).

 

So sorry, just had to through my tread depth thought in there...good luck with your decision!!! I'm just glad there are other folks out there that "over think" their tire purchase - I say that in jest because I do the EXACT same thing!!!

[piste]

Edwinsyip, NOW you tell me to stay with orginal sizing!??! jk...I just ordered my Revo 2's in 31s yesterday...can always back out but gonna stay with it I think. I'll decide in the spring if I want a second, fair weather setup in which case I'd rather my winter setup on 15"s and summer on 16s...15s for better deflation options if/when needed ...and 16's for somewhat better handling in the good weather.

 

Rick13, Thanks for the info. I don't live in nearly the target rich skiing environment as you do...but being an avid fellow skiier/camper you know that the deeper the snowfall the more important to have a rig to make it to the mountain!! Best setup I ever had for that was my '84 Bronco with 32" BFG ATs....

 

Lastly, regarding tire research/purchasing. Yeah, I feel bad for folks who aren't auto enthusiasts ...and/or aren't willing/able to spend a boatload of time doing research...as it's a very difficult decision to make. The cryptic metric sizing is just the beginning. And once you make your choice and put em on...you are stuck with them. And if you don't like them you could get "unlucky" like me and have them last 9 years and 100K miles!! It's impossible to find objective information. Tirerack is the best thing that I know of coupled with Consumer Reports. But even then on Tirerack you get people saying they love a tire and got 70K miles out of it and others saying that same tire wore out at 15K! And the other reason the decision is so challenging is that most of the tires on market are disappointing...at least to an auto enthusiast...so the odds are against you. I'm feeling good about the Revo 2's though. Originally was set on General Grabber HTS's but went to pull the trigger and tire shop sez the pipeline is dry til October...so flipped back to something a bit more aggressive. Another strong contender was the Yoko Geolander.

 

BTW....since this thread got started Bridgestone pulled the Revo spec sheet from their website. But I did find other info sources to confirm that you are correct that they did shave anywhere from 1/32 to 4/32 off the passenger versions of Revo 2 vs Revo. Light truck flavors seemed to keep the same depth though. Also, the Revo LT versions had the 50 mileage warranty but in the Revo 2's only the passenger flavors have that...LT got nada.

Edited August 3, 2010 by piste