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I have Continental tires on my 2023 Defender 130 and find they don’t work well for me in wet conditions and want to hydroplane. I have factory 22 inch wheels. In looking for different tires, I am unable to find a manufacturer which makes tires that meet the specifications needed as a high load capacity tire. I was able to ascertain that the side walls need to be multi-ply tires, I presume to hold the weight of the car. Has anyone found suitable tires that actually work for the Defender 130 which will not cause a safety hazard due to the potential of the sidewall blowing out?
The actual tire size is HL 275/45 R22 115W. So it’s very specific when reading the continental tire stamping and when going to tire manufacturer websites to see if they have replacements. When searching by car make and model, they all say they do not.
Thank you for the recommendation on changing out the wheels via ebay. I had been looking at those Michelin tires so happy to see that as a recommendation as well. Turns out there’s a OEM wheel reseller not far from me (found through ebay) that sells the wheels and tires as a complete set for a fair price.
I have Continental tires on my 2023 Defender 130 and find they don’t work well for me in wet conditions and want to hydroplane. I have factory 22 inch wheels. In looking for different tires, I am unable to find a manufacturer which makes tires that meet the specifications needed as a high load capacity tire. I was able to ascertain that the side walls need to be multi-ply tires, I presume to hold the weight of the car. Has anyone found suitable tires that actually work for the Defender 130 which will not cause a safety hazard due to the potential of the sidewall blowing out?
The actual tire size is HL 275/45 R22 115W. So it’s very specific when reading the continental tire stamping and when going to tire manufacturer websites to see if they have replacements. When searching by car make and model, they all say they do not.
OEM tires on all trims and models are XL load rating. Any tire that meets this criteria in the applicable size will work. There are oodles of options from which to choose.
OEM tires on all trims and models are XL load rating. Any tire that meets this criteria in the applicable size will work. There are oodles of options from which to choose.
Thank you. This is what I had thought as well but the more I looked into the specifics of the tire, the load ratings differ between HL and XL. See article here from Continental (https://www.continental.com/en/press...ad-index-code/).
Based on the load capacity of the vehicle, it can carry 1,320 pounds of passenger and cargo. This is noted on the sticker in the driver’s side door jamb where tire specs and inflation information is contained. The reason I explain this is that if I go lower to the XL, the tires won’t meet the vehicle specs and the 1,320 lbs goes down by almost 800 pounds. The 130 defender also requires 50 PSI and the XL is not rated for this. XLs appear only rated for load at up to 42 PSI.
I’ve tried to find workarounds but to no avail. While I’m not sure of the credibility of this site (https://tiresize.com/pressure-calculator/) if I input my current tire (HL) and ask for suggested new tire pressure using XL, it kicks back the following warning which appears consistent with all the other information,
The max load capacity of the NEW tire (2469 lbs. @ 42 psi) is below the OEM tire load capacity at 50 psi.
This means that the new tire's load rating is not high enough to match or exceed the original engineered specification for load capacity and is not recommended for use.”
So I was at the Land Rover dealership this morning and asked their tire and wheel guy about this. He did confirm that for the 22 inch wheels, they would only put on the continental tires which meet the vehicle specs. He said that if I am OK with the potential safety hazard, I could probably find an installer that would put other tires on but I should keep in mind the lower passenger and cargo capacity with different tires. The GAWR sticker in the door jam actually says the acceptable tires based on wheel size which I hadn’t noticed previously. To use a different type of tire, including offroad tires, it needs smaller wheels. This is from a floor model 130 at the dealership.
I suffered through the supply-chain issue of not getting the truck tires I ordered for my 2023.5 and kept the "touring tires" until 32k miles. In one foot of snow up in Mad River Glen, VT last season on Palm Sunday 2024, those tires left me stranded in the parking lot! Fortunately, my kids saw the value of good samaritans and we got out, tow straps, shovels, and an old Ford F150!
...but, here's what I did for tires this past Fall 2024:
Wrangler DuraTec DLR 50k (255/60R20) - after a lot of research (and BTW using a local shop, not the dealership)
I have been wildly impressed even driving normally on the highway, as the truck even seems more stable at higher speeds even in windy conditions (>15kts.) They also look really nice too. We got through >12" of snow this past Thanksgiving (2024) up in Killington, VT and never thought about getting stuck again.
PS: snow shovel and tow straps are necessary regardless!!
2023 Defender 130 Tires
