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partsman_ba
Administrator
United States
377 Posts |
 Posted - 04/11/2012 : 5:01:34 PM
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We have been very happy with our Michelin tires on our buses - XZE2 fronts and XDN2 rears (when caps aren't available) on 11R22.5's, and XZE* fronts and XD2 rears (when caps aren't available, very rarely) on 255/70R22.5's. Well, our state contract expired March 31, and we are now buying under a WSCA contract which has increased tire costs about 25%.
My question is, what tires are you using? Are you happy with them? Nearby districts to me are using Bridgestone, Goodyear and Michelin. I know I can get a much better deal on Bridgestones (at least through September 30!) but I would like to know everyone's experiences.
One note I'd like to throw in - my Bluebird pushers came with Michelin XDE M/S from the factory, and we've had terrible shoulder block wear problems. They wear out like a ramp, and we have to cross-rotate them each oil change to even out the wear. |
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tigger2
Advanced Member
USA
470 Posts |
Posted - 04/12/2012 : 05:24:15 AM
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| We use the Bridgestone 295/75r22.5 with a closed outer rib and lugs in the center. This tire design does not need rotated as often as the block style, Which I am happy are almost all gone in our fleet. My tire guys say the Bridestone tires have a stiffer side wall than the Michelin and make better recaps. |
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Wolf0r
Top Member
USA
2181 Posts |
Posted - 04/12/2012 : 08:49:05 AM
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| Michelin XZE2 11r22.5 is all we run on the fleet. I been averaging 50k on a set and able to recap them for rears later. 100psi all 'round. I just keep rotating the ramped tires to the rear. It works out quite well. |
“The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it.”
Neil deGrasse Tyson |
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Cal Mc
Advanced Member
303 Posts |
Posted - 04/12/2012 : 10:51:35 AM
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| We are using Continental HSR2 for front tires. They have a fairly open tread design that does not hold stones like some other tires we have used. Rear tires were Continental HDW. Continental has change that tread design, so we are trying some different tires by other manufacturers to find something satisfactory. |
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bwest
Administrator
United States
3820 Posts |
Posted - 04/12/2012 : 12:05:01 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by tigger2
We use the Bridgestone 295/75r22.5 with a closed outer rib and lugs in the center. This tire design does not need rotated as often as the block style, Which I am happy are almost all gone in our fleet. My tire guys say the Bridestone tires have a stiffer side wall than the Michelin and make better recaps.
How many miles are you getting on your Bridgestones? I know route road condition has a lot to do with mileage but if you have some country mileage that would be what I'm interested in.
We currently run Michelin but they just took a very large increase and we are looking for another brand. It think Michelin is getting the big head if you ask me. I have been very satisfied with their tires but I refuse to pay a premium if there is a "as good as" tire out there. Michelin is made over seas so that won't be a factor in my decision making process either (sometimes I will give the USA stamp a little leeway on price) |
Bryan |
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Mechan1c
Top Member
USA
853 Posts |
Posted - 04/12/2012 : 12:06:46 PM
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| I've always used 12R22.5 and 11R22.5 Michelin XZU's, but the Michelin SAFE program has gone away and much like Partsman said, the WSCA contract put them too high to cost out. I've been running tests with several sets of Goodyear G661's and they seem to be doing well in both sizes. I've run Bridgestone R250's, they're pretty good as well. I like the curb protection and the sidewall indicators on the transit tires like the G661 and the ZXU-2, but Michelin may have priced themselves out of my fleet. |
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tigger2
Advanced Member
USA
470 Posts |
Posted - 04/13/2012 : 05:14:07 AM
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| We have a couple of the 07 buses that have around 65,000 mi. on them with the original Bridgestone tires still on them. We run R250's on front and the M720's on the drives. |
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Fastback
Top Member
1500 Posts |
Posted - 04/13/2012 : 08:22:42 AM
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| We get our tires from an independant dealer/Bandag retreader. I have used name and off brand tires made everywhere, can't say that any of them have dissappointed me. Because of our gravel roads I just ask that the steer tires do not have "decoupling" grooves around the outside edge of the tire as they pickup and throw too many stones. |
Why yes, the ORIGinal CHARGER is a Fastback |
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Cal Mc
Advanced Member
303 Posts |
Posted - 04/14/2012 : 11:49:01 PM
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The tires we are trying ar Bridgestone VSS. I hope they can stand the gravel.
We quit using recaps. We were using Bandag and Oliver for recaping.
Found that we were getting too much vibration for a passenger vehicle. You would never notice it on a gravel truck. We are now opting to send the old casings in for credit and spending a little extra for new tires. |
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matts4290
Advanced Member
224 Posts |
Posted - 04/15/2012 : 6:08:59 PM
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While I no longer drive school bus, I work at a tire shop dealing in particular with retreads for large fleet customers, as well as some school districts as well. Most districts I see run 10R22.5s and run Firestone FS560s as steers and bandag D4300 retreads or Marangoni (ringtread) TH25 drive caps. Personally, I think the bridgestone R260 would be an excellent steer tire for this application. It has the thick shoulder and better wear than the R250. It seems like every R250 that comes in whether truck or bus is worn unevenly across the tread.
My opinion on Michelin Tires- Michelins wear great, handle great, and ride excellent. The only downside is the cost and casing life. A Bridgestone in larger fleets can be capped usually twice or more. Michelins usually show signs of ozone or weather cracking in sidewalls even before the virgin tread wears off, so usually they can only be capped once.
I am a proponent for retreading not only because its my job; its cheaper to run retreads, its recycling your casings, it takes less fossil fuels to retread a tire than to make a whole new one.
As for the school buses; you couldn't get a better application. Generally local runs and low mileage and low heat (compared to semis running down the road for hours on end), and low speed too.
If it was up to me, to be safe, I would run up to virgin drives and/or first caps on buses used for trips and long runs.
-Matt |
We can't all be conventional!
http://www.youtube.com/user/matts4290 |
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partsman_ba
Administrator
United States
377 Posts |
Posted - 04/18/2012 : 5:50:28 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by matts4290
My opinion on Michelin Tires- Michelins wear great, handle great, and ride excellent. The only downside is the cost and casing life. A Bridgestone in larger fleets can be capped usually twice or more. Michelins usually show signs of ozone or weather cracking in sidewalls even before the virgin tread wears off, so usually they can only be capped once.
I am a proponent for retreading not only because its my job; its cheaper to run retreads, its recycling your casings, it takes less fossil fuels to retread a tire than to make a whole new one.
As for the school buses; you couldn't get a better application. Generally local runs and low mileage and low heat (compared to semis running down the road for hours on end), and low speed too.
If it was up to me, to be safe, I would run up to virgin drives and/or first caps on buses used for trips and long runs.
-Matt
Our state law requires us to only run first caps or better on drives (which we do) and virgin on steers. Haven't seen any evidence of sidewall problems in our Michelins; however, we don't get as much sun in Western Oregon as many places  |
"Growing old is mandatory. Growing up is optional." |
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partsman_ba
Administrator
United States
377 Posts |
Posted - 04/20/2012 : 1:07:31 PM
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| Has anyone had any experience with Yokohama tires? My current dealer has them available as an alternative to Michelin. |
"Growing old is mandatory. Growing up is optional." |
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willism
Advanced Member
United States
250 Posts |
Posted - 04/20/2012 : 1:25:31 PM
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| Running Goodyear 661 and 182 here. |
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Fastback
Top Member
1500 Posts |
Posted - 04/23/2012 : 04:26:43 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by partsman_ba
Has anyone had any experience with Yokohama tires? My current dealer has them available as an alternative to Michelin.
We never had any problem with our Yokohamas, some of the ones we had were made in the US. |
Why yes, the ORIGinal CHARGER is a Fastback |
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matts4290
Advanced Member
224 Posts |
Posted - 04/28/2012 : 1:01:20 PM
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| I did also mention that we run a retread on some city buses. It is Bandag BDRHG (bandag regional drive high grip). They have awesome wet and snow traction and treadwear. They also get high mileage on them. I'm personally trying them on my own bus to see what I get for mileage and wear. We do put these on a few school buses with 255/70R22.5s. |
We can't all be conventional!
http://www.youtube.com/user/matts4290 |
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What brand/model tires are you running?
