Purchasing the most durable tire possible is a choice that is both excellent for your budget and the environment. The longer the tire’s life, the more you are getting out of your money, and the less trash is piling up in dump sites. The Michelin Defender 2 vs Goodyear Assurance Maxlife models have both made durability a priority.
Which one is best for you? Find out more in this comparison or take a look at our tire purchasing guide for even more advice.
How do the Michelin Defender 2 vs Goodyear Assurance Maxlife tires compare?
In both cases, life span is at the very heart of the manufacturer’s concerns. Other than this common focal point, what are the similarities between the Goodyear Assurance Maxlife vs the Michelin Defender?
On the one hand, they are both all-season tires that are not winter certified. This means you can use them safely from spring to fall, or even yearlong in areas where temperatures are warmer during the winter season.
On the other hand, they both offer the same type of tread profile, which is a symmetrical design. Amongst the different types of tires, this is in fact a type of tire that is well known for its durability; it offers a good level of comfort and solidity as well.
Both models are suited for:
- Sedans
- Coupes
- SUVs
- Minivans
The Goodyear tire also adds light trucks to the lot. This tire is offered in a total of 47 dimensions ranging from 15- to 20- inches, and with an H or V speed rating.
As for the Defender 2, it is actually an all-new model that is replacing both the Defender T+H and the Defender LTX M/S, each specifically designed for different vehicle categories. The Defender 2 is presently offered in 21 different dimensions, according to the manufacturer’s website, which vary between 16- to 20- inches and have an H speed rating. These available dimensions will be more numerous for 2023, especially those for SUVs.
Let’s also mention that this new Defender is an excellent option for electric vehicles.
Michelin Defender 2: Specifications
The Michelin Defender 2 tire has be redesigned and optimized, with the main objective being a longer life span. There are several points in common with the previous generation, as well as several novelties.
For example, the tread design runs deeper, and with deeper grooves, the tread is sure to last longer. This is also the reason why Michelin has been able to offer a longer guarantee on tread life. The Evertread rubber compound also adds to the tire’s durability.
The life span has also been optimized thanks to an efficient technology called the MaxTouch 2.0. Just as its name indicates, this technology maximises the tire’s contact surface with the road and spreads out the pressure more evenly between the tire sculpture and the road surface. This also means that the tread will wear more evenly.
It is not the only change that has been brought to the sculpture, which has also become more rigid. As we have mentioned, Michelin wanted to also make a tire that answers to electric vehicle’s needs. This is one of the reasons the structure has been made more rigid.
In fact, a more rigid tire supports more weight and more torque, which are both common factors to electric cars. They also apply, generally speaking, to more performant and voluminous vehicles as well.
Durability is not everything: Michelin also ensures to be offering good overall performance. In fact, the 3-D SipeLock technology increases grip levels on slippery surfaces thanks to gripping edges.
As for the comfort the tire offers, the PIANO technology helps immensely by reducing vibrations inside the tire, making your drive more quiet and pleasurable.
All in all, the new generation Defender tire is specially made for excellent traction and optimal durability, more now than ever before.
Goodyear Assurance Maxlife: specifications
With a name like “Maxlife”, we can expect durability to be at the very heart of the tire’s design. It also aims at offering a safe and comfortable driving experience in all conditions, of course. Here are some of the features it offers:
- TredLife technology
- A Tread Wear Indicator
- Comfortflex technology
- A continuous central rib
- Deep circumferential grooves
The TredLife technology utilizes both a durable rubber compound and grooves of a significant depth in order to offer an optimal life span. Its design allows to limit irregular tire wear. In fact, this tire is specially designed to last 30 % longer than the average tire.
And when it comes to wear, Goodyear adds a very practical feature to its tire, allowing you to keep an eye on things: a Tread Wear Indicator. It will allow you to easily read where you are in terms of the depth of your tread.
An even tread wear depends, amongst other things, on an even contact with the road surface, and this tire definitely delivers. Moreover, the central rib is specially designed to maximise the contact surface so as to provide you with optimal traction levels.
Goodyear also ensures the tire’s stability with semi-closed shoulder blocks and intermediate notched ribs. These features make it easy as pie for you to follow a straight line.
Safety on wet roads is also a great concern that every tire must address, and the Assurance MaxLife achieves this with circumferential grooves. Lined up on the entirety of the tread, they allow for quick and efficient water evacuation.
Finally, Assurance tires have been specially designed for a comfortable driving experience with technologies that contribute to noise reduction. With the Goodyear Assurance Maxlife, you will enjoy a comfortable, durable and reliable tire.
Choosing between the Michelin Defender 2 and the Goodyear Assurance Maxlife tires
To better help you make your decision, here is how the Michelin Defender 2 vs Goodyear Assurance Maxlife compare.
While reading up on the specifications for each, you have probably noticed that some features show up in both of the tires’ design, like:
- A deep tread
- Optimal contact surface with the road
- Even pressure
- A symmetrical tread
With tires that offer these types of features, you are sure to be purchasing one of the most durable tires on the market. Let’s not forget that both Michelin and Goodyear are well known for the quality of their tires, which means that you can also expect reliability with both!
Moreover, the evenly spread tire pressure and the maximised contact surface allows for optimal traction as well. Whether it is the MaxTouch 2.0 technology offered by the Michelin or the central rib on the Goodyear, both tires provide you with good grip levels.
Since the Defender 2 has just been revealed, not many test drives have allowed for it to be evaluated compared to its competitors. However, the previous generation had been compared to the Goodyear Assurance Maxlife by the TireRack experts.
They had concluded –amongst other things- that the Michelin tire offered superior maneuverability on dry surfaces while the Goodyear tire was more performant on wet roads. This is a strength that is partly due to the circumferential groove design. However, both models offered excellent braking distances.
As is often the case with the Michelin, the tire offered more reactivity in its direction and handling. The Goodyear also offers a firm driving experience, though less sporty; it was however, smoother.
Finally, this new generation of the Michelin tire is even more rigid so as to be better suited to electric cars. The Assurance Maxlife tire does not mention this; in fact, there is another model more specifically suited to this in the Goodyear family: the ElectricDrive.
A safe driving experience and –above all- durability is the main quality that both tires haves in common. For those looking for a sportier feel and more traction on dry surfaces, then the Michelin might be a better fit; and for those looking for a tire that is more performant on wet roads, the Goodyear is a great choice.
Comparing warranties
Earlier, we have mentioned the fact that Michelin has prolonged the guarantee on the Defender. But how do the Goodyear Assurance Maxlife vs Michelin Defender compare in terms of coverage?
On the one side, the Defender 2 now offers a 130,000 km warranty, which previously was 115,000 km on certain dimensions. The standard limited warranty is 6 years, and the satisfaction is 60 days.
With Goodyear, the satisfaction guarantee is not as long: you will have 30 days to exchange your tires in the event that you are not satisfied. On the other hand, the tread life warranty reaches up to 140,000 km, which is 10,000 km more than the for the Michelin tire. Limited warranty is also 6 years, period during which materials and workmanship is covered.
No matter what tires you have your heart set on, blackcircles Canada has the expertise to properly guide you in your selection. Shop our Michelin and Goodyear tires, or any other of the renowned brands we hold in inventory, all offered at the best possible price!
