Best tires for the Ford Explorer
Top picks across four categories for the Ford Explorer, anchored to the current-generation OEM size 255/65R18. Every recommendation is selected from our 22,000-tire catalog by ranking on UTQG treadwear, mileage warranty, cabin-noise rating, and season class; no commission-weighted reordering.
Daily driver
Best all-season touring
Long warranty, low noise, balanced ride. The one-tire compromise that works for 80% of owners.
Toyo
Celsius CUV
Reinforced sidewall all-weather compound; balanced ride, grip, and tread life for everyday driving.
Michelin
CrossClimate 2
UTQG 640 with a 60,000-mile warranty; long-wear all-season compound built for the daily-driver mileage profile typical for Ford Explorer owners.
Michelin
Defender 2
UTQG 800 with a 80,000-mile warranty; long-wear all-season compound built for the daily-driver mileage profile typical for Ford Explorer owners.
Cooper
CS5 ultra touring
UTQG 800 with a 80,000-mile warranty; long-wear all-season compound built for the daily-driver mileage profile typical for Ford Explorer owners.
Lowest cost per mile
Best budget
Best price-per-warranty-mile in this size. Trade-off is shorter warranty vs premium options, not safety.
Cooper
CS5 ultra touring
800 UTQG with a 80,000-mile warranty works out to roughly 0.00¢ per 100 miles before install. Best price-per-mile in this size; no premium-brand markup.
Michelin
Defender 2
800 UTQG with a 80,000-mile warranty works out to roughly 0.00¢ per 100 miles before install. Best price-per-mile in this size; no premium-brand markup.
Michelin
Defender LTX M/S
Lowest sticker price in this size that still meets the OEM load index. Trade-off is shorter warranty vs premium options.
BFGoodrich
Advantage T/A sport LT
Lowest sticker price in this size that still meets the OEM load index. Trade-off is shorter warranty vs premium options.
Lowest cabin noise
Best quiet
Tread patterns engineered to break up the harmonic peaks that cause highway droning. Pick this if you commute long highway distances daily.
Michelin
Defender 2
68 dB cabin-noise rating per the EU tire label; library-quiet. Tread pattern engineered to break up the harmonic peaks that cause highway droning.
Cooper
CS5 ultra touring
70 dB cabin-noise rating per the EU tire label; library-quiet. Tread pattern engineered to break up the harmonic peaks that cause highway droning.
Michelin
CrossClimate 2
70 dB cabin-noise rating per the EU tire label; library-quiet. Tread pattern engineered to break up the harmonic peaks that cause highway droning.
Cold-weather grip
Best winter
Dedicated winter or all-weather compounds that stay pliable below 7 °C. Necessary for >5 snow days a year.
Side-by-side
Pick the trade-off that matches your driving
| All-season Toyo Celsius CUV | Best budget Cooper CS5 Ultra Touring | Best quiet Michelin Defender 2 |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| UTQG treadwear | 520 | 800 | 800 |
| Mileage warranty | - | 80,000 mi | 80,000 mi |
| Cabin noise | - | 70 dB | 68 dB |
| Season class | all-weather | all-season | all-season |
| Type | truck-suv | touring | touring |
OEM tire sizes by year
What size does the ford explorer use?
Recommendations on this page are anchored to the latest model-year's OEM size. Confirm yours against the driver-door placard before purchase.
| Year | OEM size | |
|---|---|---|
| 1991–2000 | 225/70R15 | Year-specific fitment → |
| 2001 | 235/75R15 | Year-specific fitment → |
| 2002–2003 | 235/70R16 | Year-specific fitment → |
| 2004 | 245/65R17 | Year-specific fitment → |
| 2005–2007 | 235/70R16 | Year-specific fitment → |
| 2008–2010 | 255/50R20 | Year-specific fitment → |
| 2011–2019 | 245/60R18 | Year-specific fitment → |
| 2020–2024 | 255/65R18 | Year-specific fitment → |
| 2025 | 255/55R20 | Year-specific fitment → |
| 2026 | 265/65R18 | Year-specific fitment → |
How we ranked these tires for the ford explorer
We started with the latest model-year's OEM tire size; 255/65R18; and filtered our catalog of 22,000+ tires to those offered in that exact size. From there, four parallel rankings:
- Best all-season ranks on a weighted score: tire type matches SUV segment, season is "all-season", premium brand bonus (Michelin / Continental / Bridgestone / Pirelli / Goodyear / Nokian).
- Best budget ranks on cost-per-warranty-mile; the lower the better. Premium brands get no bonus here.
- Best quiet ranks on the EU tire-label dB rating; lower is quieter.
- Best winter filters to tires marked 3PMSF severe-snow rated or all-weather class, with a small premium-brand bonus because winter-compound R&D is capital-intensive.
SUV-specific tire models (CrossClimate, CrossContact, Defender LTX) have reinforced sidewalls designed for the chassis mass and often a wider tread for better wet traction at higher curb weight. Use the side-by-side comparison above to weigh the trade-offs against your specific driving; highway-heavy, winter-state, performance-oriented, or budget-constrained.
NHTSA-reported issues for ford explorer
Top issue category: Tread / Belt
Most reported: Tread / Belt (2139) · Tires (General) (1958) · Sidewall (133) · Spare Tire (49) · TPMS (26)
Reported across: 1977 – 2022 (34 years)
What owners described
Tread or belt separation is the most common description, in 20% of these reports. Percentages are shares of the 2,774 reports covering every model year of the Ford Explorer that include a written account; a single report can describe more than one problem, so they do not total 100%.
| Reported problem | This subject | All tire complaints | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tread or belt separation | 20% | 13% | 1.5× |
| Loss of control, rollover or collision | 16% | 8% | 1.9× |
| Blowout or sudden deflation | 15% | 20% | 0.8× |
| Cracking or dry rot | 13% | 9% | 1.4× |
| Sidewall failure | 10% | 15% | 0.7× |
| Bubble or bulge in the tire | 3% | 6% | 0.5× |
Mileage at failure
459 of these reports state an odometer reading. The middle report is at 27,000 miles, with 8 in 10 falling between 5,000 and 74,960 miles.
In owners' own words
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA about Ford Explorer. Reports are published by NHTSA as filed and are lightly cleaned here only to remove intake codes.
THE CONTACT OWNS A 1997 FORD EXPLORER WITH WINSTON WIN WINNER AT TIRES, SIZE: 255/70R16. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE SIDE WALL OF THE FRONT PASSENGER'S SIDE WAS LEAKING AND THE OTHER THREE TIRES HAD DEVELOPED CRACKS THROUGHOUT THE TIRES. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED AND THE TIRES WERE REPLACED BY THE CONTACT. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE OF THE VEHICLE AND TIRES WAS 170,000. THE DOT NUMBER WAS NOT AVAILABLE.
APRIL, 1996 I, MY EX WIFE, AND MY DAUGHTER WERE COMING BACK FROM PALMDALE, LA COUNTY, TRAVELING EAST ON 138 HIGHWAY BACK TO ONTARIO, SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY, WHERE I USED TO RESIDE. WHILE I WAS PASSING SLOW TRUCK IN TWO HIGHWAY TRYING TO GET BACK IN THE FRONT OF THE TRUCK ONE OF THE FRONT TIRES EXPLODED I LOST CONTROL OF THE 1994 FORD EXPLORER GOT ON THE DIRT THE CAR WAS AIRBORNE LANDED TURN GOD KNOWS HOW MANY TIMES AND LANDED ON THE SIDE.
THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 FORD EXPLORER EQUIPPED WITH CAPITOL PRECISION TRAC II TIRES, SIZE: 245/65R17. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 55 MPH, THE CONTACT WAS ALERTED BY ANOTHER DRIVER THAT THERE WAS A BULGE IN THE REAR PASSENGER SIDE TIRE. THE CONTACT DISCOVERED THAT THE TIRE HAD A BULGE ON THE OUTSIDE WALL. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14T013000 (TIRES). THE VIN WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE APPROXIMATE VEHICLE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 147,000 AND APPROXIMATE TIRE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 3,500. THE DOT NUMBER AND VIN WERE NOT AVAILABLE.
THE CONTACT OWNED A 2002 FORD EXPLORER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT 35 MPH IN THE RAIN, THE REAR PASSENGER SIDE TIRE BLEW OUT AND CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO FLIP OVER THREE TIMES. THE CONTACT SUFFERED INJURIES TO THE BACK AND NECK, BUT DID REQUIRE MEDICAL ATTENTION. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS DESTROYED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE AND STATED THAT THE VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 01V171000 (TIRES: SIDEWALL). THE FAILURE MILEAGE AND TIRE INFORMATION WERE UNKNOWN. MA 08/11/15
Complaints are voluntarily submitted to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation and are not verified by NHTSA; they represent owner-reported problems, not proven defects. Counts can be useful as a relative quality signal across comparable tires or vehicles.
Tire recalls & safety complaints for the Ford Explorer →
FAQ
What's the best all-season tire for the Ford Explorer?
Should I get a cheaper tire for my Ford Explorer?
Does the Ford Explorer need winter tires?
Can I run a different tire size on my Ford Explorer?
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Last verified 2026-10-07.