Tire replacement recommendation (current generation CX-9)

Horton

Member
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Mazda CX-9
I'm going to need to replace the tires on my 2017 CX-9 (have about 45K, will need to replace around 50K).

What do people recommend? I need an all-season tire. a few trips into the snow each year, but mostly on city and highway.
 
https://www.tirerack.com/content/tirerack/desktop/en/tire_decision_guide.html

Some tires are made for very long tread life. That gives up some grip. Some are made for max grip, and that gives up life. Some all-seasons are decent in snow and some are scary. Some are really great on wet roads, and some are mediocre. Some have softer compounds and softer sidewalls for smoother quieter ride, and some give crisper steering but may have a more harsh ride. There is no industry standard for what constitutes a low rolling resistance tire (better gas mileage) but expect less traction and perhaps a lighter casing (maybe less durable). Every tire design is a compromise...the choice is yours.

Goodyear Assurance WeatherReady offers great wet and snow grip, but not the tautest handling. Michelin Premier is also excellent in rain and snow, not the longest tread life. Both those have 60k tread life warranty (but I wouldn't drive in snow with anywhere close to that mileage on them.) Michelin Defender has very long tread life and not the best wet road traction. I'm not familiar with the Continental choices. The BFGoodrich (a Michelin brand) Advantage T/A Sport LT is getting some interesting reviews. Some all-season tires are now meeting the winter severe service test on snow and have the snowflake on mountain logo. These will be better on snow than an ordinary all-season tire and not as good as a real winter tire. The BFG and GY tires here passed that test.
 
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I was scouring the options for tires too. We have a '16 with 22,100 and the OEM Yokohama were still showing some gap to the wear bars but almost unlivable noise and loss of ride compliance. Also, too much loss of traction to be worth anything in the last few late snows or slushy stuff.
I moved forward on tires just 2 days ago and had previous experience with Pirelli Scorpion Verde All Season Plus. I had them on our 08 CX-7 and found them to be a good all-rounder for 4 seasons in Colorado Springs. I remember reading they come OEM on Volvo SUV's and were mentioned in good light. Probably a Car & Driver write up or test review.

We get the oddball big snows or icy conditions a few times a year but overall , the media hype of winter here really hits home in the upper regions well above our 6500 feet. The Pirelli Verde were a nice mix of smooth rolling, quiet comfort and still getting through some winter conditions without drama. I think they are eco rated too.
*I do place some onus on driving experience or winter ability to contend with it all as best if as in my case, too lazy to go about winter specific tires and changing them out.
I did the same my older rwd sports car as an all year tire choice BUT, I did hedge my bets going with the Conti DWS extreme tires.
I'll tell you, if you really want the bite and confidence for wintery stuff and convenience of A/S tires that perform well year round and really don't have much of a downside, those are a 5 star tire IMO. Dry streets, they still track well and are not noisy or wandering.

I wanted to ask about tire sizing before going shopping and was pleasantly guided to just the point I had in mind at the tire shop. If you think the tires / wheel well sizing is a bit out of proportion as I did with our Touring model 18's, consider going from the 255/60/18 to the 265/60/18.
That's what the guy recommended before I even asked about bumping up size. They look nice and just a bit beefier all around taking up some of the fender gap. I've only got a few miles and days on them but they did well on our CX-7 and I ran them a few seasons to get the full weather experience at the time.

- Remember my perspective though as we really only get a handful of really slick or snowy days here. In winter, 26 days of the month can be nearly dry pavement. It melts fast too. I consider tires a critical safety feature when it comes to extremes like heavy rains, snow , icy roads and off camber or high country issues that magnify risks. A cheap half baked tire design or the wrong choice isn't worth the worst case situation it may cause. Get the tires that'll do the job for the weakest link in the driver group that'll use the vehicle they go on. A $200 upgrade in price for four better or best tires costs fractions of a penny per mile on a 35,000 mile tire.
 
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255/60-18 is not a widely used size. 265/60-18 has many more brands & models available. Any chance that tire shop didn't have a 255 in stock???
 
Good point, they like to sell what's in stock. I had researched sizes and that Pirelli is available in that odd OEM size but maybe not locally handy. I was happy if talked into the up size in this case and it saved me from having to ask. I wouldn't argue a heavier plus size might wash the eco benefit but that thing is amazing for power speed and mpg when you factor it all in. We had mostly 28 to 33 in the highlands of Durango and Telluride.
 
Costco has a special on Bridgestone Alenza Plus -- I may jump on that, or hold on until they have a sale on Michelin Defender or Premier LTX. Reports on which one of the three is better vary quite a bit.
 
Sometimes, a tire is just a good match to specific cars. I think you can still shop opinions and driver experience for tires by the car make and model on tirerack.com. If on the fence about a few tires, look at climate and state reporting driver resides, is it a sporty car and driving style, touring and long trips? Factor in the traits fitting your situation and others experiences may prove helpful. By default, I'll always add that query to my reading before ultimately spending.
 
Defender gains tread life by giving up some traction. Premier gains on traction by giving up some tread life. Which is better for your situation?

Here's Tirerack's tire rating chart for our size; that (Michelin) BFGoodrich looks very interesting especially in the regions with snow:
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/surveydisplay.jsp?type=CSTAS&width=255/&ratio=50&diameter=20&rearWidth=255/&rearRatio=40&rearDiameter=17

The amount of miles logged on BFGoodrich is still relatively small. I'm in Florida, so snow is less of a concern.

Looking at thread life reviews on Premier, I probably will skip it. So it is between Defender and Alenza Plus.
 
I have had the Defender for the last 20000 miles. I like them. They are quiet (compared to the OEM), they are fine towing the PUP, they are good on curvy roads, in the rain I have yet to have any problems.
 
I have had the Defender for the last 20000 miles. I like them. They are quiet (compared to the OEM), they are fine towing the PUP, they are good on curvy roads, in the rain I have yet to have any problems.

Ah, good to know. The dealership said today the OEMs are good for a little while longer (not bad, with 45.5k miles on them!), so will skip the Bridgestone's and wait till Costco has a Michelin sale.
 
A tire tread depth gauge is about $3-$6 and easy to use. In most states the legal minimum is 2/32", and a prudent minimum is twice that.

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Swapped the factory Falken Ziex CT50 to Michelin Defender LTX thru Discount Tires recently due to unpatchable nail near the sidewall. So far, I like them, they feel more quiet and more stable on the freeway. They seem to absorb bumps/potholes better than the factory set. However the steering feels like it takes a little more effort to turn. Had a small rain shower last weekend and these tires handled wet pavement very well.
 
I just swapped to Continental TerrainContact H/T: https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tire...eModel=TerrainContact+H/T&partnum=55HR0TCHTXL

Discount Tire had a good rebate deal going on over Labor Day weekend (10% rebate on total cost + any manufacturer rebates, I should be getting ~$200 total back) so I decided to make the change early in anticipation of winter weather coming in the next few months. I wanted to make sure to ditch the Bridgestone Ecopias which were awful this past winter. I've complained plenty about them in other threads here, so I won't say more than that for now.

Tires are good so far, but I've only had them a day. Biggest difference I can tell right now is that they're a bit louder than the Ecopias, but that's to be expected because of the blockier tread pattern. We'll be getting some rain this weekend so that'll be a good opportunity to test traction on wet roads and then snow will inevitably be tested in the next several months. I'm otherwise not concerned about any fuel mileage differences as the reviews I've read show eco tires get you maybe an extra MPG or so. I'd rather have better grip and control than a small increase in gas mileage.

I plan to post a new thread with a more complete review eventually, but I figure I should drive on the tires for at least a few more days and in more than just dry conditions.
 
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