depending on the size,you can buy a hankook 8 ply tire,but,they are more expensive than the 10 ply.
as far as ride quality, on my dakota 4×4 and grand cherokee it depends on what pressure I run them at and what load I am putting on them.
for example,I haul about seven hundred pounds of tools with me all summer in my cherokee and run the pressures at around sixty pounds and have a good ride without sacrificing the sidewalls.
when I take out all of my tools for the winter time and lose those seven hundred pounds of weight,I run them at 55 pounds of pressure and the ride is still great.
I have yet to have any side wall problems doing it this way and I have done this for the last seven years or so of owning hankooks.
your ride and wear may differ than mine depending on what you do with your vehicle.
I have no problem getting 55 thousand miles out of my tires on the dakota or cherokee,well,except for this summer when I took out a side wall with a piece of steel this spring early.
that stinks as it is all wheel drive and you cant replace just one tire on those.