Michelin Defenders and warranty

[CANCERDOC]

Wait, there is some confusion here...

OP, you said Costco doesn't have the defenders in the "HL" rating. What rating are you talking about?

There used to be the 119 load rating for heavy trucks and there used to bet he 115 load rating. Then last February Michelin came out with the 116 load rated tires. The 116 are the correct match for the Rivian. Costco are very strict about load ratings and likely won't install the 115. Some have gotten the 119, but they are heavier and don't perform quite the same.

it is a different load rating for different sizes. There is a 116H for the 20 or 21” size. For 22, we only have 115 or 119.

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[Redline]

When I replace my 22's, I will probably go with 115s. The difference in weight of each tire between the 115 and 119 is substantial.

A lot of the first Rivian's came with 115s.

 

[mkg3]

it is a different load rating for different sizes. There is a 116H for the 20 or 21” size. For 22, we only have 115 or 119.

Michelin makes 116 load index 22" now. Go directly to the Michelin website and specify 116, for the 275/50/22 and there are two options. LTX M/S2 and PS S5.

 

[Redline]

I do not see a 116 LTX

 

[mkg3]

I do not see a 116 LTX

https://www.michelinman.com/auto/browse-tires/by-dimension/275/50/22/116

 

[Redline]

https://www.michelinman.com/auto/browse-tires/by-dimension/275/50/22/116

I did it 3 times, and it isn't a 116.

 

[Redline]

 

[Greg Chick]

My experience is the OEM Scorpion Verdes wore out fast! I was using the low setting and 2WD and high Regen, also new to EV, I was a bit hyper on the single pedal causing tire wear.

Changed settings and pedal use and tire wear reduced. Then, got Defenders! Wow, the biggest difference between 2 different tire models I have ever known. The Defenders are amazing in every way. The Pirelli tires are soft rubber and were made to perform in snow and fast braking. I will never buy another Pirelli .

 

[BTOR]

I've had alignment issues since the day I received it, Literally. I think its strange too, and when I spoke to Rivian, they said its because its on EV and is heavy plus my regen was on high and so that was it. I think its the alignment though. They've aligned it 4 times now. Part of the reason I didn't want to buy the pirellis again. No one has said it was plain not normal, so thanks @VSG !

I have the 22" Pirellis Scorpion M/S on my 2025 R1S. I have 10k on them and still 8+mm. I can share an experience that I had with Pirellis on an Acura MDX that might apply to your "alignment" issue. It was pulling to the right. I had an alignment done just after installing them. The person who did the alignment was extremely knowledgeable and said when he test drove the car, he could feel a slight vibration @ ~ 40 mph which he said is indicative of belt separation. He said that is unusual for brand new tires but not unheard of. When I drove it, I couldn't feel the vibration. Everything seemed normal to me so I continued to drive it on the new tires. A few thousand miles later, I started to notice a very slight pull to the right. So slight, I couldn't tell if it was drift due to road crown or an alignment issue. It progressively got worse so I had an alignment rechecked by my same alignment expert and it was spot on. He said he thought it was the belts. He suggested I talk with Discount Tires (DT). So I had DT rotate the front to the rear and the pull went away. I then had them rotate them back but put the left on the right, and visa versa. The car then had a slight pull the other way. DT agreed it was was likely due to belt separation on one tire causing the pull. The tread didn't show any unusual wear but the pull was really annoying. The tires had a 60k milage rating and I had less than 7.5k on them so I got a hefty credit towards a new set of tires. I applied it to a set of Michelin Defenders .

 

[mkg3]

Not sure what's going on. Maybe its regional???

 

[Mellowyellow]

Just got the Michelin’s installed 116h 275/60/20 and much smoother and quieter ride! I rode out my stock 21” to 43k they performed fine. Replaced with a set of 20’s from another owner and the AT’s were noticeably worse all the way around… Got them w/20k and put 20k on them… So glad I’m back on all seasons!

You took your 21” to 43k miles? How the hell did you manage that? I just replaced mine at 25k and thought that was pretty good considering all the threads that had people replacing them with less than 20k miles on them.

 

[mblist]

You took your 21” to 43k miles? How the hell did you manage that? I just replaced mine at 25k and thought that was pretty good considering all the threads that had people replacing them with less than 20k miles on them.

I have 45k on my 21” OEM tires. I will be replacing soon with the Michelins. At least 10k of those miles was towing an Airstream trailer. I live near a freeway so most of my driving is at freeway speeds.

 

[Redline]

Not sure what's going on. Maybe its regional???

That says 119 on the tire in the item listing. That's not a 116. Not sure why they have 116s listed after the 119. What a mess of a site to be honest.

 

[mkg3]

That says 119 on the tire in the item listing. That's not a 116. Not sure why they have 116s listed after the 119. What a mess of a site to be honest.

So its a Michelin marketing ploy...

It comes up as 116 but it's their 119 tire? Clearly if one can meet 119 load, then can satisfy 116's.

The unfortunate thing is the significant increase in the rotation unsprung mass due to much heavier tire....

 

[Redline]

So its a Michelin marketing ploy...

It comes up as 116 but it's their 119 tire? Clearly if one can meet 119 load, then can satisfy 116's.

The unfortunate thing is the significant increase in the rotation unsprung mass due to much heavier tire....

At this point I'm just going to get the 115 because I know many others here have, and the first Rivians had them. The 119s are substantially heavier.

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