Switched 20’s to 18’s Nokians

griso · Monday at 5:14 PM

Hated that I had to get 20 in rims and car tires so swapped out stock 20 in rims and the weird Camry-like car tires to 18’s. Put on Nokian Outpost NAT 265/70 18 SL rated and they drive great. Absolutely no added noise and they feel more planted and look better. Was tempted to get E load rated ones but aren’t going to be off road that much. Mostly gravel and dirt here in Colorado and lots of snow in winter.
Before and after

Altitude · Monday at 7:11 PM

I like the Nokians. I have Blizzaks for the winter, so I’m forcing myself to drive down the Dunlops before I buy another set of tires. Nokians might get the call.

It is a little strange they put a highway tire on these. The GX at least has an option for an all-terrain.

davet · Monday at 8:38 PM

I am looking for tires on new LC as well. I currently have the stock Michelin tires which drive great from a comfort standpoint. Would like to get something beefier looking, but not sacrifice ride if possible. So you did not feel much of a difference in ride quality with the knokin’s? Thanks for sharing.

griso · Monday at 9:12 PM

I had read the Nokian Outpost were pretty quiet compared to other tires and they are, plus they are 70 vs stock 60 tire. The vehicle feels more stable both on highway and in turns also re noise there was no difference. I have another truck with BFG KO2’s and you feel and hear everything….. like most E rated tires. Nokians have a real good rep for snow and are 3 peak. I decided to get the normal SL load rating vice E (fearing it would be more like the KO2) and stayed at 265 instead if going up to 275 since most mileage will be on pavement. There is a lot of gravel and embedded rock roads around here but don't plan to do any real challenging trails or rock crawling. Would definitely recommend.

davet · Monday at 9:43 PM

Thanks for the input! This definitely is what I have been looking for. I am going to talk to my tire guy and give them a serious look.

shinkle23 · Tuesday at 6:35 AM

I also switched to the Nokian nAT 18's from the stock 20's. I really like the look but I definitely think they're louder than the stock tires. What pressure are you running them at?

davet · Tuesday at 8:49 AM

How would you say the ride is with these tires? They look great on your rig!

griso · Tuesday at 9:39 AM

shinkle23 said:
I also switched to the Nokian nAT 18's from the stock 20's. I really like the look but I definitely think they're louder than the stock tires. What pressure are you running them at?

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Hmm, interesting. I didnt measure the noise precisely but both me and my wife did not notice any difference immediately after the switch. I was actually worried about this so brought my wife to see what she thought. There were slightly louder in a section of concrete road by the dealer but once on I-70 we really couldn’t tell any difference. Radio volume was same before and after. The tire pressure was set by Discount tire when they changed them and are at 33 psi right now. Haven't found any info re whether this is standard for these tires or not. The tires I have are 265/70 18 116S, but Nokian does make another tire at same size which is 265/70 18 121S, which has a higher load rating and I assume has more plys so maybe stiffer and louder?

shinkle23 · Tuesday at 11:50 AM

I have been running mine at 33 psi too. I think the ride is great, just noisier than the stock tires. I'm also at a disadvantage because my wife's car is a '23 GX and the noise level difference (as well as build quality/fit and finish) is light years better than my LC. Not a deal breaker for me and I'd still pick mine over hers.

Blue Sky · Tuesday at 1:31 PM

Adding a long term review on the Nokian Outpost AT tires. I ran the original Outpost AT tires that were manufactured in either Norway or Russia on a Grand Cherokee for ~2.5 years. (I don't believe the tires design has changed much other than sidewall aesthetics and a move to US manufacturing)

The short answer is, yes, I would absolutely buy this tire again if you are looking for a lighter SL rated tire option.

My experience with about 12k per year:

1st year:
1) Quietest AT tire I have owned (purchased Autumn 2022).
2) Very comfortable ride on the highway.
3) Outstanding in the snow. Still very competent on the ice, only a dedicated winter tire would have been better.
4) Very capable in mild off-roading/blown-out gravel fire roads.
5) Mileage penalty was only about 1-2 mpg versus GCs stock michelin premier LTX, and similar to Pirelli Scorpion all terrain plus.

2nd year:
No complaints. Very even wear. The wear bar percentage indicator was nice. Really didn't notice them that much, which is a good thing.

3rd year:

The tires started to show there wear and performance degradation around 24K.
1) They did get audibly louder around this mark, but better than all of the other AT tires I have owned. Not a deal breaker.
2) They still drove quite well on the highway in dry weather and never had issues on the nearby fire roads.
3) Tires held up extremely well to 2+ years of highway potholes. No tire chunking or deformations.
4) But, they substantially lost their winter performance around 24-30K (~50% wear, 3rd winter). They weren't the worst tire I've had in the snow at this point but let's just say I wouldn't call these 3 peak rated anymore.

At the end of the day, if I had kept the Grand Cherokee for another year. I would have gotten dedicated snow tires for the winter and run down the Outpost ATs in the summer for another 10-15k.

The Outposts have a 50k warranty and I would say they lived up to that claim, minus the obvious and expected decline in snow and ice performance at 50% tire life.

I'll seriously consider these again next spring when I pull the winter setup. If they'd make a D rated 255/75 R18, I wouldn't think twice.