Hoping more people get into this thread. I too am interested in getting this tire in this size, but on a wheel with 40mm offset. Anybody else have that combo yet?

 

I am also surprised there are not more people getting this tire. It is rated as the best tire on the market in it's class, from what I have seen.

 

Michelin equals snob tires. lol.

All kidding aside, great super expensive tires. I don't need em.

 

How did your tire store handle a credit for the tires you already had? Or did you just eat the cost of a whole new set of tires? I'm in the process of dealing on an RTL-E but I don't really want the stock tires and was hoping to work replacements into the deal somehow. If I can't I'll probably head to Discount Tire and see what they will do but I'm really hoping it's not like 25$ per tire credit for tires with under 100 miles on them or something insane.

 

Local Discount Tire offered $50 per tire for the Firestones on trade in (about 5000 miles on them).

 

At $50, I'd Post them in the Trading Post....

 

Answering the questions...

Love the tires still.

Tire store offered $50/ea, sold them on craigslist for $100/ea.

The "compact" spots are the same length and width as the non compact spots. There is no rhyme or reason to the labeling. Thank you for the analysis

 

Did you ever get around to getting your speedometer re-calibrated? Looks like you've had the tires for a full year now, hopefully they are holding up.

 

I know this is an old thread, but I just had the tires installed Monday. $800 out the door at Costco.

They look good and ride even better! I bought the truck used, but the quiet smooth ride is night and day over the Firestones with 40,000+ miles on them.

I do not have any lift/leveling kit installed.

Did a rub test by backing out of my driveway, on the curb, wheel turned as far as it would go. It's very close on the high side, within an 1/8", plenty of room low side 1+". The truck was empty, may get a little rub when loaded down, but I don't typically back out at such an angle.

 

Man, that is about as close as you can get! I wonder if the snow and ice "warts" that build up in that area is going to cause issues?

 

You could safely rule out any tire cable/chain use.

 

I have all Michelin tires on company and personal vehicles, best tire hands down. Not sure what there is to gain going from 245-265 ( 20mm ) but they look close to rubbing.

Maybe he has snow tires then it will be no issue of rubbing.

 

One of the reasons that I was horrified my first glimpse of the G2 RL, were the donut looking street tires and pedestrian rims. This 265 change looks amazing in comparison.

 

Looks can be deceiving. Have you driven on a fat wide tire in snow? 245/60-R18 is a pretty standard size tire that is available in many vehicles and the G2 is a regular passenger vehicle and the size is a good compromise on road comfort and fuel economy.

 

I just tried to buy these tires at my local Costco (and they now offer a $70 discount). They are refusing to put these tires on my BE because they have a 3% limit on up-sizing from stock tires. How did you get around this rule that Costco has?

Edit-paid a visit to Costco and talked to the manager. I ended up ordering the 265/6-/18 Michelins.

 

I have those tire on too. I parked at a resturant next to an identical RL and these tires just make the RL look like a truck. The visual height different is stunning. Wish I thought to take a picuture.

 

How about width in relation to filling wheel well and meeting edge of fender evenly?

 

Baby got her new shoes today. The look has changed dramatically and a smoother ride. I think I'm going to be in love.

 

Just picked up my 2019 RTL-E on Friday, and tires is the first thing I want to upgrade. I stopped at my discount tire today, they said the 265 / 60/ 18 aren't 'rated' for the RL. They said they'd be willing to put them on to try it though.

Has anyone had issues with rubbing when the truck is full or with snow build up?

Also, would a 1.5 level do anything for the rubbing proximity? Or are those unrelated?

Discount Tire recommended these tires, in both 245 and 265, said they were the best you can get. They weren't too complimentary about the Firestone's.

Anyway, I'm leaning toward trying the 265's but I live in Colorado and want to make sure I'm not getting build up between the wheel wells.

On another note, has anyone had any experience with 255's? Tire store guys said it's such a minimal difference between the 245's and 255's, that it's not really worth it.

 

I don't find the OEM tires are poor enough to want to change them right off the bat. To me they seem fine....

 

I believe others have mentioned that snow buildup is an issue with 265s.

As for whether it rubs or not depends on the combination of what wheels you got (and their offset), whether your truck is lifted and the type/brand of 265 tire you got -- if you read the 265'' club thread, you'll find that opinion is all over the place on what rubs/doesn't rub; some even say that it only rubs when driving in reverse.

There's a new tire on the market, the Dynapro AT2 RTF11, which is an upgrade on the old ATM RT10. The only problem is that not all sizes are available yet, but you're expected to see more and more sizes available as the year goes by, with supposedly all sizes available by the end of the year. I'm gonna go with these in 255s simply because I don't want to deal with tire rubbing. I mean, I wish these were available on 255s cuz I'd prolly get the Defender LTX over the new AT2s, but without many offerings for 255s... c'est la vie~

 

Just installed! 265/60/18s. I went to my local discount tire store and they were great. They test fit some 255/65/18’s along with the Michelin 265/60/18’s. The overall recommendation was to go with the 265s because of the ratio (60 vs 65 sidewall ratio). Surprisingly, the rubbing was nonexistent on either size, however it was closer with the 255 then the 265‘s. I think that’s because of the overall diameter. I love the way they look so far and will post pics as well as a driving report as soon as I have some feedback. I do have a question about the weight. Each tire is about 6 pounds heavier than OEM. Is that considered a lot? I definitely can feel the weight a little bit as I drive but 6 pounds per tire doesn’t seem like a whole lot in terms of rolling resistance. If anyone knows how 6 pounds of additional weight might affect the drive or brakes etc. it would be helpful to know. The guys at discount tire didn’t seem to think it would have much impact on the overall wear and tear of the truck,but I’m curious if anyone has any feedback. Thanks!

 

Tires are rotational unsprung weight. They are also the farthest out rotational weight (wheels and rotors are closer to the axle) so weight differences in tires will have a greater impact than with wheels. . . .As you have noticed, adding 6lbs of rotational weight is enough to impact the feel of the truck. Its a pretty modest weight gain however. Expect only mildly diminished handling, suspension performance, acceleration, braking performance and fuel economy from the weight change alone.

Your change is mild compared to what many have done. There are a number of forum members who have put on 265 series AT tires like the BFK02s that weigh an honest 20lbs more per tire than the stock setup. If you can notice 6lbs on your Ridge, just imagine the negative effects of "upgrading" with those boat anchors. All the driving dynamics are severely impacted as is the fuel economy, particularly with the rolling resistance of the AT tires. . .

Basically you have paid a small performance price for the look of a larger tire. Only you can decide if it is worth it.

Here's a thread where there was much discussion on impacts of unsprung / rotational weight. Have at it . . .
https://www.ridgelineownersclub.com....com/forums/193-2g-tires-wheels-suspension/217618-looking-lightweight-rims.html

 

Thanks for that info. I agree with you that this was a mostly cosmetic decision, but I wanted to upgrade the Firestones anyway, and was going to get the 245 Defenders, but then ended up with the 265's. I like the way they look, and I get a slight increase in ground clearance. I don't plan on doing a level kit or anything, not yet at least.

So, a couple follow up questions: I probably should have looked into this first, but I'm assuming the warranty will not be voided by changing out wheel sizes? I just checked, and the plus size is only 3% which seems to be what a lot of manufacturers limit it at. I wasn't sure about Honda.

Also, at this slight increase, do I need to worry about excessively faster wear on other parts (transmission, joints, suspension, etc?)

 

I put 265/60/18 Michelin Premier LTX (not Defender’s) on my ‘19 RTL-E shortly after taking delivery as I took a bolt through the sidewall of the OEM Firestone’s and decided just to replace the whole set. While I liked the look much better, I could tell drivability suffered. CG of the truck was higher, and you could feel it. Taller sidewalls meant ride was bouncier and splashy at recommended inflation, but increased pressures to fix this lead to a rougher ride. Initial turn in suffered, and overall handling did too. The Premier’s also seemed busier on rough roads. Acceleration also suffered due to taller overall effective gearing.

Anyway, after about 8,000 miles of this I went to the tire shop yesterday and plead my case. They gave me a good trade in on my used Premier’s and I left with Defender’s in the OEM 245/60/18 size. I am happy to report that the drivability concerns mentioned above have been completely remedied and life is good. Truck handles great, acceleration improved, no more splashy ride. The Defender’s are seriously good tires.

This is just one man’s experience....take it for what it’s worth. I think the Honda engineers tuned the truck around the stock size for a reason.

 

Does anybody have any long term updates with these tires? I'm due for new tires now and I think I'm just deciding between Defenders in the stock size or Defenders in 265/60r18.

 

I have about 6000 miles on mine (265's) and love them. They are quiet and give me confidence on rainy roads based on owning 2 other G1's with Michelins. Looking forward to 70+ miles on them.

 

I just bought a 2017 Black Edition with 27,400 miles on it.Put the stock tire size (245/R18) MICHELIN LTX DEFENDERS on it.Didn't know about this thread until today.I wished the sidewalls were taller(65). But ,still, MICHELINs' are the tops !

 

Im on the fence too between 245 and 265 michelin defender LTX as I have a Truxxx 1.5 leveling kit. I am more concerned of rubbing on the 265s. But I want to upgrade from firestone to michelins.

 

Best thing I did was put Michelins' on mine when I bought mine.

 

What size did you get?

 

I stayed with the original size(245)Defenders. The 265 will give a little more height-one inch; and wider by same.Also issues of rubbing when turning the wheels on larger size.

 

I got the 265 Defenders and have NO rubbing. People that had a lift kit installed wound up with rubbing. Go figure.