Okay, make fun of my tow vehicle, but it's all I've got.
Trailer is steel (1250 lbs), car is 2600 partially fueled, and I carry about 400 lbs of extra stuff: Total trailer weight = 4300 lbs.
First set of tires were Michelin Cross Terrain, which are discontinued, and I had zero issues.
Current tires are Bridgestone Dueler H/P Sport. They wore very quickly and swiftly became outright dangerous in rain. Worst tire I have ever had, given I've never hydroplaned while trailering before using these bad boys.
Options appear to be everything from:
General Grabber HTS (beat Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza and Pirelli Scorpions on tire rack test using a Cayenne 6 cyl in every category)
Goodyear Fortera Triple Tred
Michelin Latitude Tour HP
Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza (apparently very different than my H/P Sports)
blah, blah...
Any and all recommendations welcomed.
Bottom-line, all I really care about is good rain performance (who can afford bad wet performance while trailering?), reasonable ride and noise (cause who can tolerate a drone from the tires on long drives), and some tolerable wear performance.
Thanks in advance for any advice.
Local dealers have no clue about actual tire performance or load ratings, just what they can sell.
Dave C

Seems like you have done most of the research via Tirerack. I would just do a comparison of the General, Goodyear and Michelin options you listed there to see which is better. Can't help otherwise because I haven't owned a similar vehicle to the ML.

Dave, I tow a similar rig to yours. Here's my experience:

Goodyear Fortera Triple Tread - just removed a set of Fortera Silent Armors from my 2002 Tahoe Z71 4x4. Would not purchase again based on comfort/ride. Wet grip near the end of the tire life (30K) was not good. These are a different tread pattern than what you are considering, but they are in the Fortera line and I can't imagine the ride quality in your MB would be acceptable to you. Replaced with Toyo Open County H/T - night and day difference.

Michelin Latitude Tour HP - just put them on my 2003 BMW X5 4.4i but have not towed with the X5 yet with these tires. Excellent riding tire and no problems in rain. Towed with the previous OE Michelins (lasted 45K miles) on the X5 and they were great - no wet weather problems. I've never had issues (other than $$$) with Michelins be it on a 911, sedan or SUV.

Good luck.
Stacy

Thanks Stacy for the comments. greatly appreciated

The Goodyears have consistently gotten very poor marks from users for road noise, which while it isn't a top criteria, on long trailering runs can become headache inducing if too miserable. So consistent with your remarks on ride quality. Thanks.

Sadly, I too have the same remarks about Michelin. My Cross Terrains were great on the ML, and both Pilot Sport and Cups have been enjoyable on P-cars. Their only downside I can see, is $$$.

I've been concerned trying a General, as they are a long standing joke for a tire. However, while one can't completely put faith in Tire Rack tests, they whipped both the Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza and Pirelli Scorpion Zero Assimmetrico in every category. That said, it could be a trumped up test in terms of finding specific tires they could whip, versus comparing with others like the Michelin Latitude or Goodyear Fortera. Then again, at their price, perhaps the Generals aren't a total risk. Hmmm..... Maybe the German parents are helping General build better tires these days. Maybe....

I have been in the tire business for close to 30 years, and I would not tow with a General product on a dare.... When you overload the tow vehicle as you are doing here, ( yes, I know that Porsche, VW and MB all claim 7,000lb plus towing capacities) the tires become more critical in determining the safety, durability and performance of the whole package. Michelin is hard to beat as far as overall quality, safety, etc. They would always be my first choice, followed by Bridgestone, Continental, and Yokohama. The difficulty for you here is that no one really designs an appropriate tire for that vehicle for this usage. Try to get the best, ( stiffest) sidewall design by looking at the load ratings for each choice and determine which one will have the highest load carrying capacity and tire pressure. Greg F

Well darn...

I was just about to save myself the money and try the Generals, given the holidays surely stretch one out & the Tire Rack test made them look so darn good in rain, dry and handling. I had hoped the Continental/German ownership had resulted in a completely different tire than the old crap Generals that existed years ago when we all dismissed them as any sort of contender for any vehicle we might own. Maybe it has a bit, but no one still says anything nice about them (other than ratings on Tire Rack).

Sadly load indexes weren't any help (though a great idea) as every single tire made in 275/55/17 is rated 109 (on a scale of 75 to 110); not one exception. I hadn't really thought through the notion that appropriate tires really aren't made for the vehicle, but you're absolutely correct in that there are no high load tires available, as they are in light truck sizes (e.g., E-load, etc). And unfortunately, max tire pressures seem nearly impossible to get unless you can physically see the tire and most dealers all have to order them, making the comparison difficult. I couldn't even find max tire pressure ratings on the manufacturers' web sites.

And so, with tears in my eyes & a hole in my wallet, you have swayed my decision to buy the General Grabber HTS and instead go with the tried and true Michelin Lattitudes. While the extra money sucks, I admit safety in trailering is No. 1, and I had very good experiences with previous Michelin Cross Terrains on the vehicle.

But how do I tell my family we can't afford to go out to dinner tonight...........

Thanks for the help. It is greatly appreciated and, for all we know, may have saved me from an accident. Have a great New Year!