Kenda still might not be a real well-known tire manufacturer for a lot of drivers (in fact, they’re often associated more with motorcycle and bicycle tires), but here at the SimpleTire team, we’ve been pretty impressed with just about everything we’ve seen from them. The Kenda Klever A/P KR05 is no exception; it’s a highway-terrain tire for light trucks and SUVs that’s robust enough for commercial applications. If you’re unfamiliar with the highway-terrain designation for truck tires, it’s a fair analogy to think of them as the light truck equivalent of all-season tires for passenger cars. In other words, highway-terrain tires are designed for year-round performance in about every kind of condition other than heavy snow, with a tread pitch that’s tuned to cancel certain frequencies and resonances and ensure a muted ride. Highway-terrain tires deliver a refined ride and handling that’s capable and predictable, with good stability and road manners along with excellent wear properties. In other words, they’re a lot like all-season tires but are beefed up to be able to easily handle the added weight, horsepower, and torque of a light truck or SUV.

The Kenda Klever A/P KR05 is a good example of what a highway-terrain tire for light trucks should be about. Let’s get in there and take a closer look at it with this Kenda Klever A/P KR05 tire review.

Features and Benefits

Here are some of the design features, construction, and innovations that make the Kenda Klever A/P KR05 a standout performer and a great value in a highway-terrain tire for light trucks and SUVs:

• Symmetric all-season tread design with four circumferential grooves resist hydroplaning in wet weather by routing water away from the tire’s contact patch
• Large outer tread blocks, high-angle shoulder grooves, and reinforced shoulders help to deliver predictable and capable handling and cornering, reducing tread squirm and deformation as you enter a turn
• Tread pitch is randomized and computer-tuned to help reduce road noise and deliver a muted ride, by neutralizing certain frequencies and overtones
• Continuous center rib is designed for good straight-line stability and road manners as well as direct steering response
• Select sizes of the Kenda Klever A/P KR05 feature an outlined white letter sidewall that looks great on a variety of trucks and SUVs
• Advanced tread formulation is designed for long wear and enhanced grip on wet pavement
• Reduced rolling resistance helps contribute to fuel efficiency
• Internal construction details include a polyester casing with a high-tensile steel belt package and nylon cap ply layer
• Dense network of sipes multiplies the tread’s surface area and traction on wet or snowy roads with hundreds of hair-thin biting edges that slice through standing water or snow
• Initial tread depth of 14/32” ensures long wear and offers dependable traction

Pros and Cons

PROS:

• Affordable price point
• Surprisingly comfortable and accommodating ride quality
• Handling is predictable and precise
• Durable construction and long-wearing tread compound

CONS:

• Not good for off-road use
• Not good in heavier snow
• Can generate pattern noise on some pavement surfaces
• No limited manufacturer’s tread life warranty is offered

SimpleTire’s view on Kenda Klever A/P KR05 tires

Are you familiar with SimpleScore? SimpleScore is the proprietary rating system that was developed by the team here at SimpleTire to give you a quick, at-a-glance idea of any tire’s strengths and weaknesses. We take into account manufacturer info, the tire’s specs, customer reviews, technical details, and other data points, and then we distill that all to a 1-10 numerical value for the categories of traction, handling, and durability, along with an overall average SimpleScore number. In the case of the Kenda Klever A/P KR05, the SimpleScore numbers look like this:

Kenda Klever A/P KR05:

• Traction: 7.5
• Handling: 7.6
• Longevity: 7.1
• Overall average SimpleScore: 7.4

Those are some pretty solid SimpleScore numbers, and they look even better when you bear in mind that SimpleTire’s price on the Kenda Klever A/P KR05 starts at $125.96 per tire.

The Klever A/P KR05’s ride quality is surprisingly refined, with a muted ride at highway speed and road manners that are secure and stable without being numb or sluggish. Thanks to that continuous center rib, the steering response is quick and light but never overly touchy or sensitive. Cornering is predictable and consistent, with little evidence of understeer or oversteer as you make your way around a curve, right up to the limits of your vehicle’s handling properties. One of the biggest factors in the cornering dynamics of any tire is its rigidity; as you enter a turn, the vehicle’s weight and inertia try to keep you moving forward, putting a lot of stress on the shoulder and sidewall. Those stresses can lead to tread squirm or deformation, sometimes with the inboard side of the tire actually leaving the pavement altogether. The internal construction and reinforced shoulder blocks of the Kenda Klever A/P KR05 give it a very capable cornering ability without hurting ride quality.

Traction on wet or dry roads is confident, with the circumferential groove design and sipes doing a great job of routing water away from the tire’s footprint to resist hydroplaning. Indeed, the Kenda Klever A/P KR05 doesn’t perform well in tough off-road use or in heavier snow, but then again that’s not what a tire like this was designed for. It’s also notable that the Klever A/P KR05 isn’t covered by a traditional limited manufacturer’s tread life warranty; however, Kenda does offer comprehensive warranty coverage against defects in manufacturing and workmanship.

The robust design of the Kenda Klever A/P KR05 gives it excellent load capacity, making it a good fit for hauling heavy loads or towing duties, and it would be suitable for light-duty commercial use with lots of stop-and-start driving. All in all, it’s our take here at the SimpleTire team that the Kenda Klever A/P KR05 is an excellent replacement tire for a variety of light trucks, vans, and SUVs, with dependable year-round performance and long wear.

Vehicles the Kenda Klever A/P KR05 is a good replacement tire for

The Kenda Klever A/P KR05 would be a great fit for trucks, vans, and SUVs such as:

• Ford F150/F250
• Chevrolet Silverado 1500/2500
• RAM 1500/2500
• Chevrolet Tahoe
• Chevrolet Suburban
• Ford Expedition
• Ford Transit
• Ford Econoline
• Ford Excursion
• Ford Explorer
• Dodge Durango
• Nissan N1500
• Nissan Titan
• Nissan Pathfinder
• Toyota 4Runner
• Toyota Tacoma
• Toyota Tundra
• Honda Ridgeline
• Honda Pilot
• Chevrolet Express