I’ve been doing some research and was about to tell you to look into the Cooper Discoverer ATW’s then I saw you were in Houston. Guess we have different priorities on what we need in a tire. Having said that, the AT3’s may fit the bill!

That’s what I put on mine the cooper AT/w and so far I’m loving them so far they move water like crazy.. my other choice was gonna be the continental terrain contact A/T I put those on the wife’s highlander and they perform great...

Leaning towards the Continental ALL TerrainContacts. The Michelin Defenders get great reviews. I compared them side by side at Costco with the Michelin M/S, the Defenders definitely have a narrower tire patch compared to the sidewalls. I am sure they are great tires, but, just have a hard time seeing them on my TRD.

Yeah the looks are definitely not the greatest, I was into the looks more so at one point as well, but I chose function over looks this time around and went with a tire that’s gonna work well for my driving habits.. on my old taco I ran cooper ST MAX tires which were great but just a bit too heavy for the tacos fuel consumption lol... but definitely a great tire..

I had ‘em and did not like them one bit. Super loud. I swapped them out for a set Of Continental TerrainContacts and was much happier.


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Thanks! I will have to research more regarding noise. Also looking at the newer Pirelli Scorpion A/T Plus. Seems to be getting great reviews.

Any issues with road noise?

There’s hardly any really IMHO, the wife said they were a tad louder than the stock tires but nothing overly loud or annoying, I’m very happy with them ..

Thanks. Going to see if I can find any more info.

Function over form is a prudent choice when it comes to a safety item like tires. I’ve run Michelin tires for many years and was always satisfied with the ride, and most important to me wet weather driving performance.

My TRD has about 32.5K miles and running OEM Nitto Terra Grapplers (I think they are called). I think these tires would have been better for someone that spends more time off-roading. I will make a few trips to Big Bend and go off-road, but nothing technically challenging . The majority of my driving is city and highway. The Nitto tires are really aggressive , and thus I think pretty noisy on the highway . My guess is a less aggressive M/S tire mights be quieter and might improve the MPG (?).

So I think I’ve narrowed down my choices to:

1. Continental AT Terrain Contact
2. Michelin LTX A/T 2 ( these look better visually than the Defenders)
3. Michelin Defender LTX ( wonderful reviews - but having a hard time with the narrower tire patch than sidewall )

The Continentals are the most economical at about $155 per tire at Discount Tires. But I learned a very long time ago that tires aren’t where I want to save money. It’s totally about performance , which in this it hole of Houston is wet and dry weather (emphasis on wet).

I really appreciate everyone’s input !!!

Michelin LTX Defenders......hands down!. I took my stock tires off at 7K miles to put on the Michelin. Excellent ride and handling. I have an ORP premium.

According to the Tirerack spec charts, and both using an 8" rim...

Defender has a section width of 10.7" and a tread width of 8.3".

LTX A/T2 has a section width of 10.7" and a tread width of 8.1".

Beats me, but the Defenders look wide and I don't need anything any knobbier. And I'm loving the Defenders both on the Interstate and on muddy riverbanks pulling my boat out. I imagine I'll be just as pleased in the deep sugar sand on the Outer Banks.

Update to my original post-

I decided on the Continental TerrainContact A/T 's for my 2015 4Runner TRD.

I had narrowed my choices down to the following in 265/70/17 OEM size :

1) Michelin Defender LTX M/S
2) Michelin LTX A/T2
3) Continental TerrainContact

My driving is predominantly city and freeway , with very infrequent off road ventures. So my priorities were excellent wet and dry handling /braking; smooth ride; quiet ride ; and A/T capabilities . Based on TireRack's ratings and their test, the Continentals are first rate. It's a good compromise for my stile driving. If you are a serious off road person , these are most likely not the tires for you.

Very satisfied with the Continentals , they look right on the TRD and the ride is excellent. The Michelin Defenders were a close second, but I just could not visualize a pure street tire on my rugged looking TRD. The Michelin LTX A/T2's really look nice, but with so-so reviews and ratings and $70 more per tire I could not justify. That said, I am a Michelin fan for the most part.

They look like a nice tire. I hope they work out well.

And interesting side note comparing the tire you bought with the Michelin Defender LTX M/S. They both have the same tread depth - 12/32".

Thanks, I hadn't looked at the tread depths. The Michelin Defender tires seem like awesome tires , especially for a non TRD 4Runner driven mainly on the streets. I nearly pulled the trigger on them, but very pleased so far with the Conti's.