I know that this is one of those "If I had a nickel for every time..." sort of threads. I have read through many of the tire recommendations on the site, and I am probably more confused now than before I started.

I want to put new tires on my recently purchased 96 XJ SE. It is a stock 2 door, 2WD model with the 4.0L I6. From the factory it had 215/75R15 tires. Right now it has 225/75R15. From what I have read, I could go with 235/75R15 and likely only have issues with rubbing the inside of the tire at full lock.

To me, the 215s seem too skinny, and there seem to be very few good options at 225, so I am inclined to go with 235/75R15. My son will be taking this Jeep to New York this winter, so I am looking for a good highway tire that performs well in snow. I am open to A/T tires, but I doubt that he will ever take this off road other than an occasional dirt road.

The Michelin Defender LTX M/S looks like a good, albeit expensive option. I have seen some good reviews of Hankook, Kumho and some Coopers, but I am not certain which versions people like for this purpose. And then there is the venerable BFG All Terrain T/A KO2 tires, but they seem more aggressive than needed.

Anyway, I would greatly appreciate some guidance on the best choices for highway and M/S.

 

Hi.. I just went through this and got some goodyear radial all season at 235/75r15's..we bought this cherokee sport new in 1994..1st new set used the orig 215 size,,then went to 225's for the next several changes.. This last new set found 225"s hard to find and was recomended on here to use 235's.. They fit fine and have no rub problems.. Forgot to say it is 4dr,4.0,4x4 with 234k miles on it at last change last month..wayne

 

Indeed, 235/75/R15's should work if your old springs aren't sagging. BFG KO2s are great tires - great on both pavement and trails which is why so many Overland rigs use them

 

Glad to hear that 235/75R15s should be no problem.

I love the look of the BFG KO2s, but we are also considering the Cooper Discoverer AT3 4S tires for all terrain. Either may be overkill, but I bet they'd look great on the XJ.

 

wanna save a ton of money and get a great tire? Discount Tire's Pathfinders.

 

Thanks, everyone, for your thoughts.

I took the XJ to Discount Tire, and the manager there owns an XJ and has had 2 others in the past. I discussed our goals with him, and he suggested 3 tires - the Michelin Defender LTX (which MAY go on sale on Black Friday), the Cooper Discoverer AT3 4S, and the Toyo Open Country A/T III. He said that the Michelin's would be the best for on-road only, but if we want to do any off-roading, he would suggest either of the other two. The Coopers were also on sale, so we went with those.

I absolutely LOVE the new Coopers driving around town and at highway speeds. They feel much better than the cheap, 225s that were on the XJ when I bought it, and the road noise is no worse than before. They also fill up the fenders even better and look great.

 

I've been running 235s on mine since the XJ joined the family 5 years ago... I'm on a mild 2.5" lift and never had any issues rubbing on LCAs or anything else.