Michelin Defender XT, A Good Buy/Decent Tire?

PDJetta

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 6, 2003
Location
Northern Virginia
TDI
'04 Jetta GLS TDI Pumpe Duce Platinum Grey w/ Leather
Its time for new tires on the Jetta. I relly like Michelins and the current tires on it are Michelin Primacy MXV4. I was getting ready to order a set through Costco, but they also have available a new Michelin model, the Defender XT. It is about $5 less (no big deal), but it has a 90,000 mile tread wear warranty (the Primacy's tread wear warranty is 60,000 miles), so it probably will last a bit longer than the Primacy. Here is the marketing blurb for the Defender XT:

Michelin - Defender XT™


Item #: 665776
  • Michelin's best standard passenger car/minivan tire ever offering 90,000 miles* of confident driving through exceptional safety, longevity and a quiet, comfortable ride so that you can protect those you care about most. Look for the Defender tire line at retailers nationally and the Defender XT line at Wholesale Clubs.
  • Stops up to 31 feet shorter than a leading competitor**
  • Lasts up to 21,000 miles longer than a leading competitor†
  • Can save up to $250 in fuel @ $3.50 gallon††
I do see a difference in the speed ratings between the two tires. the Primacy is a H (130 MPH) and the Defender is a T (118 MPH). I assume this is not an issue, because the Defender is listed as a choice for my Jetta.

Any opinions about this tire over the Primacy? Thanks.

--Nate
 
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PDJetta

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 6, 2003
Location
Northern Virginia
TDI
'04 Jetta GLS TDI Pumpe Duce Platinum Grey w/ Leather
I just checked the Michelin web site for the Defender and did the "does this tire fit my vehicle" it said that it does not meet VW's specification for the '04 Jetta. Its the speed rating. Odd that Costco lists it for the Jetta. I know Costco won't install a tire that does not meet the vehicle manufacturer's specifications, such as the Michelin Hydro Edge (weight rating is too low).

--Nate
 

40X40

Experienced
Joined
Feb 12, 2006
Location
Kansas City area, MO
TDI
2013 Passat SEL Premium
Cool, I have found that rotating my tires each oil change make them last longer than they are rated for. As a tire reaches its' end of life, the wear rate seems to slow, but they are more likely to hydroplane. There comes a time when I have to buy new tires even though they have many miles of (by measurement)tread left. (for safeties sake)

Bill
 

fossill

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 22, 2008
Location
Canada
TDI
Golf
yes i agree with that. I replace mine when they are 70% wore out for my summers and 60% wore out for my winters. I find that at this point they hydroplane too easy and grip next to useless in extreme winter conditions.
 

truman

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May 18, 2000
Location
columbia,MO,usa
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'05 Passat Variant, Still miss the 03JW
yes i agree with that. I replace mine when they are 70% wore out for my summers and 60% wore out for my winters. I find that at this point they hydroplane too easy and grip next to useless in extreme winter conditions.
I think that is a pretty good rule of thumb. I had a set of Daytons at one time that were absolutely scarey in the rain at 50%. Driving tires down to the wear bars makes no sense to me. I pay attention to how my tires are behaving in the rain. Any hydroplaning and those tires will be gone.
 
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PDJetta

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 6, 2003
Location
Northern Virginia
TDI
'04 Jetta GLS TDI Pumpe Duce Platinum Grey w/ Leather
I just put a plug in the tire where I picked up a screw (this will be a good test of a $5 tire plug kit I bought years ago) so I can drive the car without using my steel rim spare (I have alloy wheels) and next week I'm going to buy the Primacys at Costco. That's when I can use their $70 off coupon for a set of Michelins. There is about 10,000 miles of life left (until the wear bars are reached) I estimate, but I got over 70,000 miles out of them anyway and I'll take others' advice about being safe by replacing tires before the wear bars are reached. I did rotate the plugged tire to the rear.

--Nate
 

y2kbird

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
Location
earth
TDI
'02 Black Jetta, '03 Blue Jetta
PDJetta, just curious why you are choosing the primacy's versus the defender xt's at Costco when they go on sale next week? T-119mph vs H-130mph speed rating? I've pushed my jetta alot but never got up to 119mph.

PS: Sams club may have the defenders in stock, and their Michelin $70 discount on 4 tires is already running now through 9/30. Sams club item #912905 for the defenders $117.12 each.
 
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wpeets

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Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
Chateaugay NY 12920
TDI
2014 TDI Wagen Hers
I bought the defenders a few weeks ago at Sams with the $70 discount they seem fine to me. Good ride and quiet. I will be happy with 40 to 50 thousand. Tires do loose traction before the wear bars show. They did mention something about the speed rating I wasn't paying much attention. I'm happy with the purchase. The old tires were getting noisy.
 

belome

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Joined
Apr 8, 2010
Location
Mid MI
TDI
2002 Jetta GLS TDI 5-speed
This thread is a good read regarding the defenders and the speed rating.

I was sort of bummed about this myself, they planned to be my next set of tires as well.
 

Clayslayer

Veteran Member
Joined
May 16, 2009
Location
Rapid City
TDI
2002 Jetta and a 1977 Ford F-150 with a 4BT Cummins
I bought a set of Defender XTs in 195/65R/15 from Sams Club on Sunday. Got them on the last day of the $70 discount. $488 out the door with 4 new tires, mounted, balanced, road hazard warranty, etc. Sams is a good place to buy tires.

So far they seem great. I have no complaints. Time will tell to see whether or not they will affect my mpg but if they do I doubt it'll be much. Given how lousy my last tires were it'll likely improve if anything.

Yes the speed rating is lower than what is recommended by VW. I was supposed to get the Primacy MXV4's according to the tire selector however the 118mph rating of the Defenders is greater than the max speed of the car sooooo why bother? Load rating is the same. I rarely (if ever) go faster than 80mph anyway.

The Defender costs less and lasts longer. And it's a Michelin. Win Win in my book.
 

belome

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 8, 2010
Location
Mid MI
TDI
2002 Jetta GLS TDI 5-speed
Yes the speed rating is lower than what is recommended by VW ... I was supposed to get the Primacy MXV4's according to the tire selector however the 118mph rating of the Defenders is greater than the max speed of the car sooooo why bother?
Becuase the speed rating incorporates a lot more things other than the max speed. There is a good thread in regards to this around here somewhere. It appears I meant to link to it awhile back and must have screwed it up.
 

powerfool

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Joined
May 25, 2012
Location
Indianapolis Metro Area
TDI
None anymore
I picked these up at Sam's Club yesterday, as well. I like the ride on them so far... I drove 25 miles home from Sam's (there is another one closer, but I was by that one) and then another 20 miles today. I asked if I could take it to Walmart for rotation since I live about 0.2 miles from one and they said that they can't. No biggie, I make a big trip to Sam's Club every month. This is the first time that I got tire there and it seemed fine.

Now, I am going to take advantage of the Monroe Shocktober deal and get my suspension in order so I don't tear these things up prematurely.
 

Clayslayer

Veteran Member
Joined
May 16, 2009
Location
Rapid City
TDI
2002 Jetta and a 1977 Ford F-150 with a 4BT Cummins
True. There's more to the speed rating than just top speed. Keep in mind that this is a 4 door grocery getter with a blistering 90 horsepower and an absolute top speed of just barely 100 mph. It's not a forumla 1 car.

I'll take my chances.
 

powerfool

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Joined
May 25, 2012
Location
Indianapolis Metro Area
TDI
None anymore
Also, keep in mind... Michelin is a good tire, period. Unless you have done extreme performance upgrades and plan on racing the thing, there is NOT going to be an issue related to the speed rating. These things have a HIGH safety rating, good traction, low resistance, and are a 90k mile tire... 60k miles is better than I get with other tires and if that is all you get with 'em, it is still a good thing.
 
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