[Salvor]

I do mostly highway driving and bought my FJ because of the highway ride.

After 55K miles it came time for new tires. My first concern was keeping the relatively quiet and smooth ride I had experienced with the stock tires. However these tires also caused me concerns due to traction. On snow I felt they were slippery and on wet highway surfaces it seemed they hydrplaned pretty easily. Also the handling wasn't the best and they didn't seem to track very well.

I started looking for a tire with a more agressive tread and after considerable research I settled on the Goodyear Wrangler Silent Armors. These tires are constructed with a Kevlar belt that is advertised to quiet the ride and be pretty much puncture proof.

I just put the first 600 miles on these tires about half of which was on a highway in a rainstorm.

The ride is nearly as quiet as the much less aggressive stock tires (DUNLOPS) and just a little rougher. Traction is much better and handling is greatly improved as well; on the highway it feels like I am on tracks. The minimal loss of quiet and smoothness is a great trade for the betterment in traction and handling.

They also look a lot better.

I would recommend these tires to anyone looking for additional traction and stability.

 

[Teikas Dad]

I've got Goodyear Wrangler SAs on my "company car", 2004 Ford Expedition. They are replacements that were put on after I wore out the stock tires. I've put about 30k miles on the tires and they still look almost new, so they get an A+ for longevity. They are a bit noisier then the stock tires and ride a little rougher. The past two years we have had some serious snowstorms and the SAs really grab the road in the snow. The only thing I found negative with them is that they seem to flat spot when it gets really cold (below freezing). They will smooth out after a couple of miles, but they will bump and thump until then. I noticed too that I don't seem to get the same gas mileage as before, seems to be less. I don't know if the tires have more rolling resistance over the soccer mom tires that were standard.

Personally I like Goodyear tires....been an LEO for 33 yrs and all the Ford LTDs and Crown Vics....and now my assigned Expedition have always run Goodyears. I, along with a lot of other LEOs driving "company cars" trust our lives to Goodyear every day.

 

[Woodsman]

I have never been a fan of Goodyear tires as the Wranglers I have had always seem to develop a thump, thump, thump as they age. However, I have heard that the Silent Armors are very good tires.

 

[kokopelli]

Everyone seems to like the GY SA's. The GY MTR's also suffer the cold weather flat spotting, but don't share the good wet pavement handling. Ron

I've got Goodyear Wrangler SAs on my "company car", 2004 Ford Expedition. They are replacements that were put on after I wore out the stock tires. I've put about 30k miles on the tires and they still look almost new, so they get an A+ for longevity. They are a bit noisier then the stock tires and ride a little rougher. The past two years we have had some serious snowstorms and the SAs really grab the road in the snow. The only thing I found negative with them is that they seem to flat spot when it gets really cold (below freezing). They will smooth out after a couple of miles, but they will bump and thump until then. I noticed too that I don't seem to get the same gas mileage as before, seems to be less. I don't know if the tires have more rolling resistance over the soccer mom tires that were standard.

Personally I like Goodyear tires....been an LEO for 33 yrs and all the Ford LTDs and Crown Vics....and now my assigned Expedition have always run Goodyears. I, along with a lot of other LEOs driving "company cars" trust our lives to Goodyear every day.

 

[rons8888]

I agree with your analysis of the GY SA's 100%. Haven't had weather cold enough to observe the flat spotting.

I felt they lost about 1 mpg (not scientifically determined). After boosting the pressure to 36#, that feeling went away. On a recent highway trip, got the same 23 mpg average as the Dunlop GT20's. The SA's installed were the exact same size as stock 265/70 R17.

PS

 

[jferg]

I have the Silent Armors and I'm very pleased with their performance. I have not noticed the flat spot that many of you speak of during the cold weather. I do believe my mileage is down somewhat although I've never measured it exactly but the trade off is more than worth it. The traction in snow, and we get a lot of it, is just super.

 

[Old.Ski.Bum]

I had them on my avalanche. Granted they were good in snow but, I couldn't get used to the noise. Good God they were loud. And a bit rough! After 20 days, I gave them back to the Goodyear store.

 

[Wintermoon]

I am just waiting to find a price I can't turn down for a set. They will be my winter/off road tires (I have no need for mud tires or anything real aggressive). I am going with 255/75R17 for size.

Since winter driving is a priority, these seem to be a great choice.

 

[NBFJCruz]

I am leaning toward Bridgestones myself....Revos or AT's....We have real winter up here so I have to have a semi decent tread....I still have a few months to shop. New shoes should be on by November....

Economically speaking I have even been eyeing these since they regularly go on sale for 25% off.....makes them quite appealing

Canadian Tire

 

[Wintermoon]

I am leaning toward Bridgestones myself....Revos or AT's....We have real winter up here so I have to have a semi decent tread....I still have a few months to shop. New shoes should be on by November....

Economically speaking I have even been eyeing these since they regularly go on sale for 25% off.....makes them quite appealing

Canadian Tire

I know it's not the be all end all, but on the Tirerack.com survey of AT tires, the Goodyears score higher than the Revo's in all winter categories.

Consumer Survey Results By Category

 

[Woodsman]

Firestone Destination AT is a very good tire.
Geolanders aren't bead either, but not as good.
I have no experience with the Revos although the Bridestones that came new on my Silverado were good tires.
I now have Nitto Terra Grapplers on the Silverado and the FJ and so far, so good. They're smooth, quiet, and get good traction regardless of the weather.

 

[mikey]

I had the Silent Armors on my Z71 and loved them, I was impressed with their winter performance.

Noise wise they were pretty quiet, no where near as loud as my old Hankook RT01's.

I will by these again once the Dunlops are worn out.

 

[Athena]

EEEk I will never buy these tires again... they began too peel off the sidewall.. we ended up returning them after 15,000 due to how awful they looked..and how torn up they were. Of course we didn't get full return amount but we did get enough to compensate for our other tires.

 

[Teikas Dad]

EEEk I will never buy these tires again... they began too peel off the sidewall.. we ended up returning them after 15,000 due to how awful they looked..and how torn up they were. Of course we didn't get full return amount but we did get enough to compensate for our other tires.

If you are looking for hardcore off road tires....these ain't them...but for every day drivers that want good snow traction and some decent grip off road they should stand up. I don't go rock climbing iwth the company car but I do get off pavement with it in places that give the tires a workout.

 

[Athena]

no, the lamination started coming off before we started taking it off road.

 

[Teikas Dad]

no, the lamination started coming off before we started taking it off road.

Wow! That's strange for Goodyear.... I am less then gentle on the ones I have and haven't had a problem.

 

[SonicFJ]

I have a set of each for Sonic.

It only makes sense. The MTRs are great offroad, but provide poor mileage, and do not wear well on road.

The S/A s are great on road, sand, and light offroading, but will shred with alot of heavy rock crawling.

 

[Athena]

our's shredded before we were taking the fj rock crawling.... I live on a dirt road and have a driveway that's pretty rugged but not enough reason for them to shred

 

[SonicFJ]

It is truly a shame yours came apart, but there could be any number of causes.

In general, these are a quality tire, built by a solid company with years of offroading experience. This tire represents the best they can build.

Get them warrantied, and go forward.

 

[Athena]

I think I already mentioned that I did get them warranteed.... just have to let people know different opinions. I know alot of people search these threads for as much information whether negative or positive. I've stated my opinion. I would not recommend these tires.