Relative Score (0–100): the weighted average of the categories below, each 60% road tests and 40% owner reviews (comfort 40/60). Based on 0 + 1 road tests and 990 + 11 owner reviews. How we score
Defender LTX M/S is ahead, 79–58
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Tests – · none yet Owners 52 · 990 reviews
“Yeah Michelin's are out of my price range. Went to sears today to see about getting either the Falkens are another set of Grabber HTS's installed and apparently their online pricing leaves out a ~$25 shipping/handling charge they assess to each tire so I left.”
Tests – · 1 test Owners 83 · 11 reviews
Best test result: #2 of 13 in 2022 Consumer Reports All Season Truck Tires (tested tread life (miles))
Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.
| Source | Grabber HTS | Defender LTX M/S |
|---|---|---|
| Professional tests (TWG score) | ≈ 62 (est.) | ≈ 75 (est.) |
| Reviews found online | 53 | 84 |
Grabber HTS: 60% × 61.8 (est.) + 40% × 52.9 = 58
Defender LTX M/S: 60% × 74.7 (est.) + 40% × 84.3 = 79
No road tests of dry for Grabber HTS. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.41).
No road tests of dry for Defender LTX M/S. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.41).
| Source | Grabber HTS | Defender LTX M/S |
|---|---|---|
| Professional tests (TWG score) | ≈ 63 (est.) | ≈ 79 (est.) |
| Reviews found online | 57 | 86 |
Grabber HTS: 60% × 63.4 (est.) + 40% × 57.3 = 61
Defender LTX M/S: 60% × 78.8 (est.) + 40% × 85.6 = 82
No road tests of wet for Grabber HTS. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.55).
No road tests of wet for Defender LTX M/S. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.55).
| Source | Grabber HTS | Defender LTX M/S |
|---|---|---|
| Professional tests (TWG score) | ≈ 64 (est.) | ≈ 72 (est.) |
| Reviews found online | 49 | 77 |
Grabber HTS: 60% × 63.6 (est.) + 40% × 48.9 = 58
Defender LTX M/S: 60% × 72.5 (est.) + 40% × 76.6 = 74
No road tests of snow for Grabber HTS. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.32).
No road tests of snow for Defender LTX M/S. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.32).
| Source | Grabber HTS | Defender LTX M/S |
|---|---|---|
| Professional tests (TWG score) | ≈ 65 (est.) | ≈ 70 (est.) |
| Reviews found online | 48 | 78 |
Grabber HTS: 40% × 64.5 (est.) + 60% × 48.2 = 55
Defender LTX M/S: 40% × 70.5 (est.) + 60% × 77.7 = 75
No road tests of comfort for Grabber HTS. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.20).
No road tests of comfort for Defender LTX M/S. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.20).
| Source | Grabber HTS | Defender LTX M/S |
|---|---|---|
| Professional tests (TWG score) | ≈ 66 (est.) | – |
| Reviews found online | 55 | – |
Grabber HTS: 60% × 66.4 (est.) + 40% × 55.3 = 62
No road tests of noise for Grabber HTS. The test half is the tested tires’ average (66): owners’ noise ratings barely follow the road tests.
| Source | Grabber HTS | Defender LTX M/S |
|---|---|---|
| Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 1 tests | ≈ 59 (est.) | 75 |
| Reviews found online | 46 | 86 |
Grabber HTS: 60% × 59.2 (est.) + 40% × 46.3 = 54
Defender LTX M/S: 60% × 75.4 + 40% × 86.3 = 80
No road tests of treadwear for Grabber HTS. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.36).
| Source | Grabber HTS | Defender LTX M/S |
|---|---|---|
| Reviews found online | 54 | 82 |
| Category | General Grabber HTS | Michelin Defender LTX M/S |
|---|---|---|
| Relative Score | 58 | 79 |
| Dry | 58 | 79 |
| Wet | 61 | 82 |
| Snow | 58 | 74 |
| Comfort | 55 | 75 |
| Noise | 62 | – |
| Treadwear | 54 | 80 |
| Handling (owners) | 54 | 82 |
Higher is better. The Relative Score follows your weights below; category scores do not change.
Wet grip starts at “Important”. Treadwear starts at “Neutral” here: road tests measured it for at most one of the two tires, so it rests on owner reviews. Move the sliders and the scores update instantly.
Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.
Grabber HTS
Defender LTX M/S
Only categories both tires have data for count toward the headline score.
Themes extracted from owner reviews found online — not the opinion of TireWheelGuide.
From Reddit, forums and review threads. Not part of our score
Community opinion on the General Grabber HTS is largely favorable, with drivers frequently praising its quiet ride, comfortable highway cruising, wet traction, and affordable price point. The most prevalent complaints focus on faster-than-advertised treadwear and occasional squirm or handling instability in heavy-load applications. Several users also note that while it handles moderate conditions well, dedicated snow tires are preferable in severe winter weather.
“I honestly think the Grabber HTS tires are weak to punctures Just spent $320 at Firestone I was not expecting to pay after only 5400 miles. The stock Grabber HTS tires are supposedly good for up to 50,000 miles IIRC. I barely made it 10% on one of them. This wasn’t the first time the tire picked up a small screw either. First time I got lucky and Discount Tire extracted it without needing repair because it didn’t make it deep into the tread. But last week I wasn’t lucky. Passenger front tire picked up a screw and sure enough, it went in. And it was only about 1.5” from the sidewall so they wouldn’t repair it. I went to Firestone and picked up a Bridgestone Alenza AS Ultra. Not a “great” tire but at least I have a road hazard warranty, something the General Grabber tires don’t have. I’m sure someone will chime in about having zero issues after a million miles with their Grabber HTS but honestly, I haven’t had a legit puncture since 2007 and at that time I was poor so my car always had recycled/used/mismatched tires. I also noticed the tires on my Lightning ALWAYS have gravel and small rocks wedged in between the treads even though the truck is on city streets mainly. I never see that on my other cars.”
“Well , I have them on my 2003 Chevy Silverado 4x4. Put them on at 42k and now at 52k they look like they are 1/2 gone!! Good riding tire , low noise, great in rain and snow ,even wear pattern ,( ran at 39lbs air pressure / 35 psi in winter) but they are gonna be "iffy" for this coming winter by the looks of them.....geeeeesh. I rotated them at 6 k miles too. Nope....I would not buy the HTS Grabbers again. BOB in PA.”
“General Grabbers I found a guy on marketplace who bought some general grabber HTS for his truck and they didn’t fit so he’s selling them. They’re 11/32 tread life and he’ll take $350 for them. They’re my size but I’ve never heard of the brand. I have a 4Runner in Florida so no snow but is this a good deal for that brand? Read more”
Based on 50 community posts
We haven't collected enough community discussion about this tire yet.
| Attribute | A · General Grabber HTS | B · Michelin Defender LTX M/S |
|---|---|---|
| Category | All-Season tire | All Season |
| Vehicle type | SUV and 4x4 | SUV and 4x4 |
| Sizes available | 9 | — |
| Rim diameters | 15″ – 20″ | — |
| Tread depth | 11 - 13/32″ | — |
| UTQG | 640 A B | 720 - 800 B A |
| Sidewall | Black Side Wall - Raised Outline White Lettering | — |
| Max pressure | 44 - 80 psi | — |
General Grabber HTS
Michelin Defender LTX M/S
Winner: Michelin Defender LTX M/S — better handling, treadwear and dry. It leads or ties in every category we score. Michelin Defender LTX M/S rests on little evidence so far (1 test, 11 reviews), so read this result as provisional.
Michelin Defender LTX M/S scores 82 vs 54 on handling.
Michelin Defender LTX M/S scores 80 vs 54 on treadwear.
Michelin Defender LTX M/S scores 79 vs 58 on dry.
Michelin Defender LTX M/S scores 82 vs 61 on wet.
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Michelin Defender LTX M/S, 82 vs 61 on our wet score.
Michelin Defender LTX M/S, 79 vs 58 on our dry score.
Michelin Defender LTX M/S, 74 vs 58 on our snow score.
Michelin Defender LTX M/S, 75 vs 55 on our comfort score.
Michelin Defender LTX M/S, 80 vs 54 on our treadwear score.
Every category score blends two independent signals. 60% comes from professional tire tests (braking distances, lap times, noise measurements), each result compared with every other tire in the same test and newer tests counting more. 40% comes from owner reviews found online, adjusted for how generously each site rates. Both use one scale: the average tested tire gets 70, the best 100. When a tire has only one of the two, the missing half is estimated from the other and the score stays closer to average; with no road test and fewer than five owner reviews it gets no score yet.
Handling is the exception: road tests measure it inside the dry and wet scores, so its own row comes from owner ratings only and starts as less important.
Community buzz from Reddit and forums is shown for context only — it never changes the score. Full methodology
