Bridgestone Americas has launched the Firestone Destination LE4, a new highway touring tire for CUVs, SUVs and light trucks that succeeds the company’s Destination LE3.

The Destination LE4 is available now in 65 sizes covering 15- to 22-inch rim diameters. Firestone says the lineup offers broad vehicle coverage, with popular fitments including the Ford F-150, Ram 1500, Chevrolet Trailblazer, Mazda CX-5 and Nissan Armada.

The tire is designed with a deeper initial tread depth than its predecessor, an advanced compound and a non-directional tread pattern. Firestone says those changes are intended to improve tread life while providing wet-weather and light-snow performance.

Firestone also is positioning longer wear as one of the LE4’s primary selling points. In external testing cited by the company, the Destination LE4 was projected to wear 16% longer than the Destination LE3, 9% longer than the General Grabber H/T and 43% longer than the BFGoodrich Advantage Control HT. The wear evaluation was performed using 2020 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 vehicles fitted with 265/70R17 tires. Actual on-road results may vary.

Firestone says the LE4 also demonstrated shorter stopping distances in company testing at 55 mph.

Compared with the Toyo Open Country H/T II, the LE4 stopped eight feet shorter in both wet and dry conditions. Against the BFGoodrich Advantage Control HT, it stopped four feet shorter in wet conditions and two feet shorter in dry conditions. The LE4 also stopped two feet shorter in dry conditions than the Destination LE3. The comparisons were conducted in size 265/70R17, according to Firestone.

The Destination LE4 carries a 70,000-mile limited mileage warranty. Firestone says thinner 3D sipes throughout the tread help improve traction and handling in wet and light-snow conditions, although the company notes that the LE4 is an all-season highway tire and is not intended to replace a dedicated winter tire.

The tire also introduces two manufacturing and material technologies that Firestone says are new to the brand. A high-strength, lightweight carcass architecture uses lighter structural plies and steel cords to maintain low rolling resistance despite the tire’s deeper tread. Firestone also is using a new compound-mixing process designed to create more consistent ingredient distribution throughout the rubber, which the company says contributes to tread wear, handling and wet-surface grip.

Jeremy Norwood, chief engineer of new product engineering for Bridgestone Americas, says the LE4 was developed to build on the Destination LE3’s ride and all-season performance while extending wear life and improving wet-weather handling.