Empty Notebook

My Avon Ranger TSE’s went over the 10000 mile mark recently.  What are my thoughts now that these guys have been on the car that long?

You get more than what you pay for in some ways, and in others you get exactly what you pay for.

Wear - I continue to run them at 36psi in the front and 38psi in the rear.  Tread wear is no longer minimal. In fact, it looks like the Ranger will only last about 25000 miles, with regular rotation on my Element. The tread wear is typical for a Honda Element, the front is pretty even and the back wear on the inside a little more thanks to the camber. I am disappointed, that the 520 rating doesn’t mean a whole lot at this point. I was hoping for 45,000 to 50,000 miles but I won’t get it. For what I paid for the tires, I’m not going to be too upset about it though.

Performance - The tires continue to perform admirably in wet weather, even at interstate speed.  The Ranger TSE continues to be stable at 70 mph.  On dry pavement they’re grippy, and I can hardly tell a difference between wet and dry traction with them.

Value - These tires are a good value (down from great). They perform well, but unless something drastic changes I will only get 25,000 miles out of them. I’d rather not have to put tires on the Element every two years, so I will consider looking into an upgrade the next time I buy.

I’ll see you at again if something drastic changes, or when I replace the tires!

My Avon Ranger TSE’s went over the 5000 mile mark on a long drive over the holidays.  What can I say? The tires continue to impress me more the longer I have them.

I continue to run them at 36psi in the front and 38psi in the rear.  Tread wear is minimal, which is should be after 5000 miles. The tread appears to be wearing evenly, and I’ll be rotating the tires in another 2500 miles. The tires continue to perform admirably in wet weather, even at interstate speed.  I hit a heavy patch of rain on I-75, and the Ranger TSE proved to be stable at 70 mph.  I’ve said it many times at this point, but I’ll say it again I can hardly tell a difference in the tires on wet vs. dry, and I’ve never experienced that before.

These tires are a great value, and I look forward to getting close to 50,000 mile on them, if not more. Although, if I don’t hit the 50,000 mark it’s because I’ll pull the tires off after 6 years regardless of remaining tread life.  For the money I paid, the tires can’t be beat.

I’ll see you at 10,000 miles for Part 5!

I continue to think highly of my Avon Ranger TSE tires, especially for the value.  After 2500 miles, the Avon Ranger TSEs are performing like new.  I continue to run them at 36 psi in the front and 38 psi in the back, although if you’d like a slightly smoother ride and about 0.3mpg reduction in gas mileage let them go down to 34 / 36.  Either way, you can’t really lose.

These are the best tires that I’ve owned in wet weather.  I rarely feel a difference between the way the car drives on dry pavement vs. wet. They tear through puddles, and are very stable through those middle-of-the-road ruts that love to hold water in heavy rains.

The Ranger TSE’s are a bit sluggish, but not enough to bother me.

The tires remain very quiet, even on the Interstate, although the rest of E tends to be loud at those speed (I guess that’s what we get for driving a box on wheels at 70mph).

Treadwear is next to nothing, and wear pattern is identical to that of my old Wrangler HPs.  It will be interesting to see how long they hold up, these certainly look like they’ll go 50,000 easily between the slow wear and the sheer depth of the tread.

I remain extremely happy with these tires, especially at half the price of the top end Bridgestone’s, Goodyear’s or Michelin’s.

I thought it would be prudent to repost my post over at the Element Owners Club about the new tires that I purchase for my 2005 Honda Element EX. I ordered from TireRack.com and had them installed at Tire Kingdom. So far I’m impressed with the value that I’m getting with my new Avon Ranger TSE’s.

This is my initial report, I’ll check back at 500 miles, 2500 miles and 5000 miles I’m thinking, and then every 5k after that.

Initial Thoughts:

1. I love that they are blackwall. OWL would look nice, but I don’t want to have to keep it clean, and finding tires that I like for the E that weren’t OWL was tough.

2. The price was worth the shot. Out the door they were under $400 for a 520 treadwear tire. If they’re awful, I’ll change them out for a set of Alenzas or Forteras, but for now I’m happy to try the Ranger’s for $200+ less.

3. The tread pattern is aggressive for a Highway All-Season. Basically I just like how it looks. But the tires have deep channels, and look like they’ll be good in the rain. For the few minutes they were in a heavy downpour they seemed to stick nicely. (Of course my Wranglers had 25k+ on them, and maybe 3/32 left on the tread, so ANYTHING might feel better to me.)

4. They feel a little slushy to me on the response. That could be the difference in the tread depth though. I’ll comment more on that as they break in.

5. Quiet, quiet, quiet! They’ve considerably reduced the road noise that I had with the original Wranglers.

500 miles:

Well, I’m over 600 miles after a long road trip down to St. Petersburg. The tires were fantastic on the interstate, much, much quieter than my old HPs. And, overall, quiet in general.

I really like the grip I get at 36 psi in the front and 38 psi in the back (my preferred psi combo).

In wet conditions I could hardly tell a difference in traction from dry. We’re talking heavy, heavy rain at 45mph and Interstate speeds (70+).

The response is better now that they are broken in more, and I need my alignment adjusted (they over corrected a bit imho and I want it checked again.)

They smooth out a lot of the bumps in the road even at my tire pressures. My “E” is still a bit bouncy, but a lot less Jeep like than with the Wranglers at the same psi combo.

I’m immensely happy with these tires for the price! See ya again at 2500+

My creativity is a bit low lately and I don’t have a lot to talk about today. However, I did come across the Honda Accord Concept over at Edmunds.com. That is one sweet looking coupe. I might have to consider it if I ever give up my Honda Element.