20" Michelin Defender LTX Platinum Tires review -- For all of you thinking about a 20" tire! Your wait is over!

[J-Flo]

Looks like a great tire - thanks for sharing! My wait was over the day after I brought my truck home and I put a set of BFG KO2 on it, but that's just me. These Michelin will be a great option for many folks out there.

Hey Mike813, curious what your experience has been with the BHG AT/KO2. I’ve used and loved those tires for many years on my string of Land Cruisers but didn’t think they could handle the EV pressure and other requirements (or so I was told). Do you pay a range penalty with the KO2?

Regarding weight: I‘m not much of a car tire expert but I know way too much about MTB tires. In that area tire weight makes a huge difference in ability to accelerate and climb. For XC racing (which requires constant acceleration and braking) I would swap tires to save 100 grams and could tell the difference both in feel and empirically on the clock. This likely doesn’t translate over to trucks, but generally the burlier tires that are more durable and much better for gnarly riding also make a bike less quick. Heavier tires also require more effort to turn at speed, and both add-high speed stability while reducing maneuverability. And that‘s all just talking about weight; the other pieces of the puzzle (durability, rolling resistance, traction and tread-pattern specifics) usually get more attention. This is all a long way of saying I would suspect tire weight also affects handling, not just acceleration.

Sponsored

 

[pnwr1s]

B

I’ve used and loved those tires for many years on my string of Land Cruisers but didn’t think they could handle the EV pressure and other requirements (or so I was told)

You have been misinformed my friend

 

[Riviot]

I’ve ordered a set of the Platinums and can’t wait to get the noisy Pirellis off the stock 20s and on to a set of Ram wheels. 26k on the OEM tires and still quite a bit of life left in them. Interested to see if there are efficiency gains but I’ll be happy with status quo & better tires. FWIW I’m at ~2.1 mi/kW lifetime, typically in AP mode & no attempts to be efficient other than switching to conserve mode for road trip highway miles.

Ram wheels, do you say? What size are you eyeing?

 

[EVTrukHog]

This is me exactly! The stock 20” pirellis at 25k miles have a lot of life left, but sound like super swampers. I just want them gone and something quiet like the rest of the truck. If I get better efficiency that’ll be a bonus.

same here at 17K miles

 

[rodhx]

Ram wheels, do you say? What size are you eyeing?

The 2363 model that has it’s own thread here.

 

[Riviot]

The 2363 model that has it’s own thread here.

I meant what size tire? 275/65? 60?

 

[rodhx]

I meant what size tire? 275/65? 60?

Sorry! I moved the stock 275/65-20s to the Dodge wheels and new LT275/65-20 Michelins on the stock wheels

 

[Meltdwn]

What pressure are folks running on these Platinum tires? I got mine put on and Discount tire inflated to 50psi. I wonder if we can go higher to get even lower rolling resistance...

 

[No_moab]

I recently bought a set of EV Sportline 20" wheels. I started looking for a tire that would look good and ride good. I opted for a cheap set of 285/60/20 tires from China, no doubt. Cost me all of about $800, and they looked great!

Come to find they were noisy. I realized that a big knobbly tire might be noisy, and they were. Much more than the factory 21" Pirelli's.

I started some research, and found that Michelin was about to launch a whole new tire for trucks and large SUV's, called the Michelin Defender LTX Platinum.

These were just released in November 2023! Michelin is actively producing this tire and many sizes aren't available yet! Like a 275/60R20, the Rivian recommended size.

Seeing that I already had a 285/60/20 tire on my truck with no rubbing or any issues whatsoever, I went for them again, and they were available.

Costco's website still shows these tires as "unavailable, temporarily out of stock".

I only had them for a day now. Driving out of the Costco parking lot I could tell, even at these low speeds, that this was a great tire.

They're as quiet as my factory 21's.

On the freeway at speed these were just awsome! By the way the speed rating is "S", 112 mph.

I must say, they don't look as good as some All terrain tires out there, but they have a 70,000 mile warranty!

I never intend to take my truck off road, and these weren't made for rock crawling.

If you're looking for a comfortable great tire that's gonna last a while, these are the one's.

The first picture is of my original "knobbly" tires. The last three are the Michelin's.

What tire pressure are you running the Platinum at? I believe it is speced at max psi of 80.

 

[AbhorViolence]

Can anyone confirm that if I order tires from Costco (need to order them to the store for install), of a different size than stock, that they will indeed install them?

I still thankfully have quite a bit of tread on my stock ATs (13k miles in 6 months) but I'm looking at the new Michelin Defender LTX M/S2 in 275/60/20 or possibly even try 275/55/20 because I'm so curious about the efficiency (and 117 load rating vs 116).

 

[usofrob]

What pressure are folks running on these Platinum tires? I got mine put on and Discount tire inflated to 50psi. I wonder if we can go higher to get even lower rolling resistance...

I haven't calculated it for these tires, but you'll likely need more than 50 PSI to reach the safe load rating
See my explanation here: https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/...h-48mm-offset-from-tirerack.19135/post-421686

 

[Shoey008]

I just changed out the Pirelli to the Michelin Defender Platinum (275/65/R20) LTX based on recommendation from this thread. Had Discount Tires price matched what Costco had (basically installation fee waived). DT set the tire pressure at 48psi, I'm pretty sure I should increase the tire pressure but not sure what to set it at yet... the Pirellis lasted only 23k miles for me. with these ones rated for 70k, i'm hoping i get half my money back as credit when i'm ready to get new ones again

 

[Meltdwn]

I haven't calculated it for these tires, but you'll likely need more than 50 PSI to reach the safe load rating
See my explanation here: https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/ordered-new-20”-wheel-with-48mm-offset-from-tirerack.19135/post-421686

So, based on that equation and a new tire load index of 126, the pressure at which the tire can take the same maxload as the 116 rated tire would be 59 psi.
New psi=80*2756/3748

what is your reference for this formula? Do we know that there is a linear relationship between tire pressure and load bearing? Or, is it a reasonable to assume it is linear and any non-linearity is not material for this calculation?

 

[R1Sky Business]

I just changed out the Pirelli to the Michelin Defender Platinum (275/65/R20) LTX based on recommendation from this thread. Had Discount Tires price matched what Costco had (basically installation fee waived). DT set the tire pressure at 48psi, I'm pretty sure I should increase the tire pressure but not sure what to set it at yet... the Pirellis lasted only 23k miles for me. with these ones rated for 70k, i'm hoping i get half my money back as credit when i'm ready to get new ones again

Can we see pics of entire vehicle please?

 

[R1Sky Business]

I just changed out the Pirelli to the Michelin Defender Platinum (275/65/R20) LTX based on recommendation from this thread. Had Discount Tires price matched what Costco had (basically installation fee waived). DT set the tire pressure at 48psi, I'm pretty sure I should increase the tire pressure but not sure what to set it at yet... the Pirellis lasted only 23k miles for me. with these ones rated for 70k, i'm hoping i get half my money back as credit when i'm ready to get new ones again

What's the expected return on efficiency vs stock ATs? Is there a need for RIVIAN to reset anything for speed accuracy?

Sponsored