Cheap tires for a beater Subaru?

[nthach]

A friend has a 2009 Subaru Forester they’re nursing along - it has a BHG(K-Seal or Blue Devil somehow stopped it, their mechanic who owns a shop in town that’s a mutual friend of ours said it’s not worth pulling the engine out to fix it and I don’t have the time either). It’s their roundabout car, her husband drives it and they have other cars - a Sienna and a Tacoma on the way. The tires are shot on it. Usually, I have a no-Chinesium tire policy. But in this case, I’m breaking it. I told them they can get Sentury from America’s Tire. They do have a relationship with their shop, and I recommended they can order a Sailun SH408 or WestLake Foray RP18 off Amazon or the Armstrong Blu-Trac PC from Simple Tire and have them shipped to their shop or their in-law’s business next door. I told them the Sailun is the cheapest tire Big O has, and it’s also the mystery “entry-level” tire America’s Tire uses. There’s certainly worse like LingLong.

Anything wrong with these choices? They know these are cheap tires and can be scary in the rain but they also know this car won’t get getting too much invested in.

 

[dishdude]

Can they wait it out until the Tacoma arrives and then junk the Subaru?

 

[Kira]

Sure sounds like they have a few vehicles at their disposal....which is good.
I bet they've been nursing the Subaru along for a while and might not want to get rid of it.
How anyone prioritizes their stable is a complex story.

 

[nthach]

Can they wait it out until the Tacoma arrives and then junk the Subaru?

Her husband needs the Subaru for errands and to get to the family business about two miles down the road. The Tacoma will be their camping/Costco car, the Sienna is her DD and soccer hauler.

 

[supton]

Might want to take a quick look at CL or FB and see if there might just be a deal. Someone's half or 3/4 worn might be good enough, no? Otherwise, I'd go with the cheapest option.

 

[71Chevyguy]

I have Sentury tires on one car, no issues even in bad weather. Those go for nothing used on eBay as well although they seem to wear quickly.
Sailun, I have heard from others are pretty bad, just poor traction and ride like wooden wheels. Have heard from people here that the Westlake tires are fine and great for a beater.
As for the Armstrong, don't know how they are but I have a set coming for one of my cars since the latest walmart prices were hard to beat (I got them for $43 each 205/55/16 XL 94H with 85k treadwear warranty). I would suggest maybe looking on eBay to see how they are doing used, some really good deals on there sometimes.

 

[LZ0 Bob]

205/55/16

I buy nearly ALL my tires off F/B market place. Most are "0" mile takeoffs.. from someone upfitting a new car.

Look at these Dunlops.... Say NO to Chinesium tires......

 

[skaughtz]

A friend has a 2009 Subaru Forester they’re nursing along - it has a BHG(K-Seal or Blue Devil somehow stopped it, their mechanic who owns a shop in town that’s a mutual friend of ours said it’s not worth pulling the engine out to fix it and I don’t have the time either). It’s their roundabout car, her husband drives it and they have other cars - a Sienna and a Tacoma on the way. The tires are shot on it. Usually, I have a no-Chinesium tire policy. But in this case, I’m breaking it. I told them they can get Sentury from America’s Tire. They do have a relationship with their shop, and I recommended they can order a Sailun SH408 or WestLake Foray RP18 off Amazon or the Armstrong Blu-Trac PC from Simple Tire and have them shipped to their shop or their in-law’s business next door. I told them the Sailun is the cheapest tire Big O has, and it’s also the mystery “entry-level” tire America’s Tire uses. There’s certainly worse like LingLong.

Anything wrong with these choices? They know these are cheap tires and can be scary in the rain but they also know this car won’t get getting too much invested in.

I have Sentury tires on one car, no issues even in bad weather. Those go for nothing used on eBay as well although they seem to wear quickly.
Sailun, I have heard from others are pretty bad, just poor traction and ride like wooden wheels. Have heard from people here that the Westlake tires are fine and great for a beater.
As for the Armstrong, don't know how they are but I have a set coming for one of my cars since the latest walmart prices were hard to beat (I got them for $43 each 205/55/16 XL 94H with 85k treadwear warranty). I would suggest maybe looking on eBay to see how they are doing used, some really good deals on there sometimes.

I have had a set of Armstrong Blu-Trac PC's on my 2007 Camry since last October for 3k or 4k miles. I have zero negative things to say about them given the price. They are made in Thailand, handle great, ride smooth, have a treadware rating of 700AA and an 85k mile warranty. If those specs are accurate they are very hard to beat for the price. They also handled just fine for sedan tires during this past nasty winter we had here in Maryland.

Honestly, if I was tire shopping for my other cars right now and the Blu-Tracs were an option I wouldn't hesitate to buy another set based on my experience so far. But time will ultimately tell.

 

[crashz]

After a surprisingly good interaction buying used take-offs, I would highly recommend going that route. A decent used set can be had for cheap and is likely better than the no-name brands. Sounds as if the car won't wear out either set.

 

[nwjones18]

To me this is a good case for a set of used tires... That said I did have a pair of Sailun's on my Mazda and had no complaints.. Personally I've had great luck with no-name tires as long as they have some decent reviews. GT Radial's are another china tire I've used with success.

 

[AKhan87]

After a surprisingly good interaction buying used take-offs, I would highly recommend going that route. A decent used set can be had for cheap and is likely better than the no-name brands. Sounds as if the car won't wear out either set.

I sell my used take-offs on Facebook whenever I get a car that is "new" to me. They are good to great tires.

I have been using All Weather tires on all my cars since 2019, tires are a safety item and it is not worth it to buy used tires unless you have a vehicle that is used only in the city during good weather I guess.

 

[k1xv]

Unless the car never exceeds 15 mph, "cheap", poor performing tires makes about as much sense as not using seat bets on short trips. I support the idea of looking for some used tire take offs.

 

[GSCJR]

To me this is a good case for a set of used tires

+1

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Head gasket sealer is awesome
The good head gasket sealers can last over 3 years (Blue Devil, Bars Leaks HG-1, etc)

Is the Forester's tire size 225/55-17?

Since Subaru is known for AWD, and that AWD is the reason people put up with their head gasket problems, consider all-weather tires.
Here is the Summit Ultramax 4S for only $70 each.
The Lexani Quattro Tempo Tour is $80 each.

If you still prefer name brand tires, they have the Hankook Kinergy 4S2 for only $99 each, so you won't have to violate your no Chinese tire policy

This is actually a good time to buy tires, since there should be some 4th of July sales.

 

[Pew]

I buy nearly ALL my tires off F/B market place. Most are "0" mile takeoffs.. from someone upfitting a new car.

Look at these Dunlops.... Say NO to Chinesium tires......

View attachment 345780

That's what I would do for cheap tires. Buying used tires is frowned upon here but it's not like we're buying it unseen. I've bought a few sets of used but great tires in take-off or very slightly used condition for half the price of new.

 

[GSCJR]

The used tires I bought for my Legacy have been on there for more than 5 years now.

 

[DannyM]

To me this is a good case for a set of used tires... That said I did have a pair of Sailun's on my Mazda and had no complaints.. Personally I've had great luck with no-name tires as long as they have some decent reviews. GT Radial's are another china tire I've used with success.

Most of what I see of Sailun's are stellar reviews. .. not even just "ok" or decent .. but much higher than that.

 

[The_Jeff]

Armstrong Blu-tracs are something of a highway tire, pretty much all the tread is circumferential.

Could also look for Starfire Solarus in your size.

 

[nickaluch]

Kuhmo LX platinum from Walmart online best price budget tire out there with out chasing rebates n sales

 

[nthach]

Head gasket sealer is awesome
The good head gasket sealers can last over 3 years (Blue Devil, Bars Leaks HG-1, etc)

Is the Forester's tire size 225/55-17?

Since Subaru is known for AWD, and that AWD is the reason people put up with their head gasket problems, consider all-weather tires.
Here is the Summit Ultramax 4S for only $70 each.
The Lexani Quattro Tempo Tour is $80 each.

If you still prefer name brand tires, they have the Hankook Kinergy 4S2 for only $99 each, so you won't have to violate your no Chinese tire policy

This is actually a good time to buy tires, since there should be some 4th of July sales.

215/65R16. Same size as the second generation Toyota Sienna 16” option, second generations CR-Vs and base Mustangs with the 4.0L Cologne/3.7L Cyclone V6s. I checked for a set of used tires off eBay in that size. It’s almost a wash.

I think the shop used Blue Devil or Bar’s Leak. It’s one of those that doesn’t require draining out all the glycol/water mix.