I’m Trying New Tires – Kenda Klever RT

For the last 5 years, I've very much enjoyed the wheel-and-tire combination I've been running. Not only did the 3rd gen 4Runner 5-star wheels look great - especially after I went to all the trouble to paint them - but they fit the larger calipers I installed as part of the Tundra Brake Upgrade and are the lightest OEM wheel manufactured by Toyota! Likewise, while I felt that the Cooper S/T Maxx were a little stiff and heavy - largely because they are only available in a 10-ply, E-range rating - they have been a great tire from a performance perspective. I've had four sets and have never gotten a flat or felt like I was lacking in traction on the trail. They also seemed reasonably quiet - especially given their hybrid tread - on the pavement.

But there has been one major downside: I'd like to have more choice in tires. I'm a fan of skinny tires - something in the 10-10.5" range - since they are generally lighter and incur less rubbing in the wheel well than wider tires of the same diameter. The 255/85 R16 S/T Maxx have fit that bill nicely, but they are one of the only tall, skinny, hybrid tires out there for 16" wheels.

So, hoping that I'd have more tire choice, I started looking into 17" wheels. There are lots of aftermarket options, but they all seem to be at least 8" wide and push the wheel further out of the wheel well, the exact problem that had provoked me to replace my SCS Stealth6s with the 3rd gen 4Runner 5-star wheels.

Then I discovered the 1st gen Sequoia Double 5-spoke wheels. Turns out that I'd probably known of these previously, given that they were already on my list of wheels that fit the Tundra brake upgrade, but I'd never really considered them at the time I added them, since my 4Runner wheels were great. The Sequioa wheels are slightly wider at 17x7.5", and they weigh significantly more at 27.5 lbs each (the 4Runner wheels were 22 lbs each).

So, I headed over to Craigslist, and with the help of a couple buddies who ferried wheels to me from around Washington state, I soon found myself with eight wheels, five of which I'd be putting to use. First though, I needed to paint them. Luckily, I knew that with Extreme Labor, the result would be a Totally Non-Functional Mod.

Sandblasting five wheels took about 10-hours and reminded me that I really hate sandblasting. Or at least, I hate my janky setup which entails a cheap nozzle, play sand, and a big tarp in the driveway.

I did learn one thing the last time I'd done this - it would have been much easier to paint the wheels off the ground. So, I built a jig that would hold them in the perfect position.

I really like the flat-army-green color of the primer. If the Tacoma weren't green itself, I think I'd keep them this color.

Ahh, bronze. Or, as Monte @Blackdawg would call it, "shit poop brown."

One thing about Craigslist wheels are that they rarely come with center caps. New OEM Toyota center caps are expensive, so I was on the hunt again for an alternative. Amazon had some without a Toyota logo, but eventually I found caps - likely unlicensed - on eBay for $10/cap which seemed pretty good to me!

The caps looked pretty good, except for the color!

After more work sanding, etching, and painting, I had the caps looking passable from a distance.

With the wheels sorted, it was time to find tires. Thinking I'd have tons of choices, I set off to find something great - and significantly less expensive - than the Coopers that I've been running. I figured that one of the following sizes - in this order - would be where I'd end up:

255/80 R17 - my ideal size, since I'd maintain a 10" wide tire @ 33.1" diameter.
33x10.5 R17 - close to the ideal size
34x10.5 R17 - I wouldn't mind a slightly larger diameter, though I'd likely need to do some firewall modification (tubbing) to make it fit.
285/75 R17 - similar to the 34x10.5, but even wider

Given those sizes, the tires I considered were:

Size	Deets (Theoretical)	Tire
255/80 R17	Diameter : 33.1" Width : 10.0" Wheel : 17" x 6.5-8.5" Sidewall : 8.0" Circum. : 103.8" Revs/Mile : 610	Falken Wildpeak R/T Cooper Discoverer S/T Maxx Nitto Ridge Grappler Toyo Open Country R/T Trail
33x10.5 R17	Diameter : 33.0" Width : 10.5" Wheel : 17" x 7-9" Sidewall : 8.0" Circum. : 103.6" Revs/Mile : 611	Kenda Klever RT
34x10.5 R17	Diameter : 34.0" Width : 10.5" Wheel : 17" x 7-9" Sidewall : 8.5" Circum. : 106.8" Revs/Mile : 593	Toyo Open Country A/T III
255/85 R17	Diameter : 34.1" Width : 10.0" Wheel : 17" Sidewall : 8.5" Circum. : 107.0" Revs/Mile : 59	Mickey Thompson Baja Boss A/T
285/75 R17	Diameter : 33.8" Width : 11.2" Wheel : 17" x 7.5-9.5" Sidewall : 8.4" Circum. : 106.2" Revs/Mile : 596	Nitto Ridge Grappler (C load) Nitto Ridge Grappler (E load) Toyo Open Country R/T Trail Falken Wildpeak R/T (C load) Falken Wildpeak R/T (E load) Cooper Discoverer S/T Maxx

Unfortunately, this really had me wanting to choose the S/T Maxx again, since it came in my ideal 255/80 R17 size, but I'd heard a lot of good feedback on the Kenda Klever RT, not the least of which included:

Very quiet [on the highway]. Much quieter than the S/T Maxx. And still are quite quiet with some wear on them. They've been some of my favorite tires I've ever had. I don't think you'd be disappointed. They perform better than the S/T Maxx in every way. Quieter, better grip on all surfaces including snow, and are a tall 33. They were noticeably taller than my 255/85s.

"Might be the best tires I've owned."

@Blackdawg

Not only that, but the price - at $1,420 for a set of five tires installed - wasn't cheap but was significantly less than the $1,834 that a set of S/T Maxx would cost.

I had a bit of trouble finding a place where I could purchase these tires with installation - DiscountTire doesn't sell Kenda tires at all, SimpleTire won't sell installation, and Amazon doesn't have an installation option - but ultimately, I was able to buy them on eBay, and use eBay's installation service to get them installed at my local Firestone.

That new tire smell.

Once my tires showed up, it was off to the installer!

Turns out that my local Firestone was undergoing renovations, so the two-hour appointment - which I already considered to be one hour longer than necessary - turned into a 24-hour affair. Luckily, I wasn't in a huge rush, and my favorite burger joint - Wibbley's Hamburgers - is nearby, so I was able to drown my disappointment in charbroiled goodness, fries, and a chocolate shake.

A full day later, the tires were on the truck, and they looked good.

Driving home, I put 11 miles on the tires. They felt significantly softer than the S/T Maxx and seemed quiet enough on the highway, so hopefully they will live up to expectations. I will say - they are definitely more aggressive-looking than the S/T Maxx, something that I'll have to get used to, and that has me a bit worried.