I bought a Solis. Don't judge

Hey there, I am Will and I recently bought a Winnebago Solis to live out of while I travel for work. I am entering month 6 in March and have to say I am thrilled with my choice, although I am making significant mods to it already. The Solis was an economical choice, but so far, I am pleased with the performance of MOST of the van and it’s features.

The Promaster is a nice ride. Not luxurious, but reasonable on fuel for a 3500 chassis and the ride if smooth. I am lifting the van next month to gain clearance for the axles and generator. Also putting new K02’s on it for better traction in snow and dirt.

Winnebago packs a lot into these models. Some of the finish is not the best (cauling in shower, roof solar panel, wood trim) but considering all that you do get, I am not complaining too much.

I made some minor mods already, adding MOLLE panels from Super Pacific USA (the 1810 offset fits perfect on the rear door) and I made my own window shades that are insulated. The Winnebago shades are not great, so I built new right away. I am fortunate to be a soft goods designer and fabricator, so that helps…

I plan on continuing to live in this 60% of the time, splitting time on the coast and inland as work dictates. So far, so good…

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Forget the KO2’s, They will cup quickly, especially if not rotated every 2k miles or so on a promaster. I am going to try the Falken Wild Peaks as there are a lot more options out there these days. With a lift you have even more options. Another good thing about he Falkens is they are rated 121/120R as opposed to the 115/112S that you normally see with KO2’s. Hoping this will keep the cupping down. (This will be a thing if you choose either light truck or euro commercial when selecting tire sizes). For some reason when sold as a cargo van they want 121/120R but as a passenger it’s ok for 115/112? Doesn’t make a lot of sense at all.

I am on my second set of KO2’s and they cupped bad enough the first time that I was sure my wheel bearings were bad.

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Good to learn on the K02’s. I haven’t heard much at all about this issue. Will dig deeper on that!

What is cupping? I’m looking at getting tires that are good on highway and snow for my Promaster… is that even possible?

You will get a better explanation from a mechanic or possibly even by googling it, but it is essentially uneven tread wear on your tires. This causes them to be loud and also for not all parts of the tire to be in contact with the road at all times.

The KO2’s are good tires just not great for vans. My opinion based on experience. There was a time when that was literally the only option so that is why you see it as peoples #1 choice. That’s all there was even a year or two ago in the standard size for the promaster if you wanted an on road off road tire.

There are a ton of choices today like general grabber, wild peak, etc. You may have better luck with one of the other options over the KO2’s and also a less expensive option as well. I just ordered the wild peaks (https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Falken&tireModel=WildPeak+A%2FT3W&partnum=275R6WPAT3W&i1_Qty=4&autoMake=RAM&autoModel=ProMaster%202500&autoYear=2019&autoModClar=LT225/75-16%20Light%20Truck&vehicleSearch=true) and they will be here Friday. Time will tell if they are any better or not.

Regardless with getting on road/ off road tires, they are going to be more noisy than a standard tire.

I went with the Wildpeaks after multiple people suggested them as well. Drove through a good snowstorm last week and felt more confident overall in their grip than the stock tires. Thanks for the tip!