What happened to cheap tires for a cheap car?

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faramir9

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Part rant, part honest question. Recent thread at Sales and Rebates on this week's crummy DTD sale made clear I am not the only one in this boat.

Milady's Taurus got totaled by Bambi. We need a new ride, soon, for not much $$$. We might get a well-preserved '92 Corolla for her to drive the rest of this year, while we save up. I know the guy who drives the Corolla, and he takes care of it. He was upfront that it needs new tires, and my eyes and tread gauge agree.

What happened to cheap tires, for folks in just our boat? Note that the Corolla has 13-inch wheels: now so rare it works against us, rather than helps, it seems. The least expensive (OTD) semi-name brand tire I can find is the GT Champiro, which I could order from DTD, install locally and pay right around $200 total, after rebates.

Yes, a cheapo Chinese 13-incher, with a 40k tread warranty---and after two rebates---costs $200....and everything else costs more. Maybe I am stuck in the last century in re tire prices, but oy.

For fun, here is a list of the limited options we have. Some online plus local install, some local B+M. I figured $60 for installation: might be optimistic by a few bucks. 175/70-13 preferred; 155/80-13 will work. (All prices OTD after shipping, tax, installation, fees and rebates)

$197: GT Champiro VP1

$220: Primewell PS 830/850

$225: Falken Sincera SN-828

$265: Kumho Solus KR-21

$273: Kumho Sense

$285: General Altimax RT-43 (would be first choice for a 'real' car we planned to keep for years)

I know the Cooper Lifeliner is available in 13" but the only place I found it online, tires-easy, the price was comical.

Ugh.
 
Geez. A couple years ago 185/80R13 was the size they would advertise for $18 in big numbers with the larger sizes progressing up in price. You could get 4 13" tires mounted and balanced for $100 otd!

And I'm not talking back in the 80's or 90's either, this was 10 years ago or so.
 
You're getting a tire, mounted and balance, the old tire disposed of, the taxes paid on the tire, shipping of the tire to your house,, for 50 bucks each and you're complaining?

Maybe a bicycle is more in line with your expectations.
 
I dunno brother. I hear you on the price for new shoes today, especially with some of today's econo cars having 17" wheels and larger. Thing is, I recall paying more than $200 for a full set of 13"s, back in the early 1990s.
 
tirerack.com is my source for (fun) info and shopping:

Corrolla Tires - Click Here

They start at $44 each, shipping adds around $6 a tire, so figure on spending $200 for 4.
Thats pretty cheap. Mounting and balancing extra. I usually go to tires.com and then get them installed at my local Discount Tire store, the same parent company that runs tires.com
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: FowVay
You're getting a tire, mounted and balance, the old tire disposed of, the taxes paid on the tire, shipping of the tire to your house,, for 50 bucks each and you're complaining?

Maybe a bicycle is more in line with your expectations.


See what dishdude said. I "complain" because we do not want or need high-end, high-quality, long-lasting tires. We just need _decent_ rubber to get us through a year or so---on the smallest wheels you can find this side of an old Geo Metro. Was not that long ago you could find that for $120 OTD with careful shopping. Now, if we don't want Chinese cheapos it's twice that.
 
I think tire companies have been getting sued for defects so much that they won't offer super-cheap tires, liability cost concerns. Also, I refuse to buy any tire made in China based on news reports.
 
We have some places around here that sell the chinese tires pretty cheap.

They have DOT rating, look decent and some of them have 60,70K mile warranties.
 
Originally Posted By: FetchFar
I think tire companies have been getting sued for defects so much that they won't offer super-cheap tires, liability cost concerns. Also, I refuse to buy any tire made in China based on news reports.


I agree. I am surprised that nobody mentioned used tires, even though you won't find one that size either. Last time I needed tires for my beater I found ones that maybe had a thousand miles on them, were 3 years old, and were too cheap to pass up.
 
Just think how much you're saving still versus needing a larger size.
lol.gif

---
I agree though, as you said you could have gotten under $100 + mount and balance with clever stacking at the right sales.

FWIW, I had the KR21s and Primewells both in a 13" flavor and hated them both - they were round and rolled but that was about it for me.
 
Two things have happened. Oil has doubled in price since then and fewer cars take those smaller sizes. So the price is up!

I recall observing something with 13" tires the other day and the tires looked so small.

Twenty some years ago, when I had the 81 Rabbit Diesel it took 13" tires. They didn't look so small then. But today, even the 16" wheels on my 2003 are starting to look small compared to what is currently en vogue.
 
Originally Posted By: zzyzzx
Originally Posted By: FetchFar
I think tire companies have been getting sued for defects so much that they won't offer super-cheap tires, liability cost concerns. Also, I refuse to buy any tire made in China based on news reports.


I agree. I am surprised that nobody mentioned used tires, even though you won't find one that size either. Last time I needed tires for my beater I found ones that maybe had a thousand miles on them, were 3 years old, and were too cheap to pass up.


A shop 30 miles from me wants $180 to install these used Delta tires, allegedly with "at least three-quarters" tread depth left: http://poconos.craigslist.org/pts/4468677203.html
 
Originally Posted By: faramir9
Originally Posted By: zzyzzx
Originally Posted By: FetchFar
I think tire companies have been getting sued for defects so much that they won't offer super-cheap tires, liability cost concerns. Also, I refuse to buy any tire made in China based on news reports.


I agree. I am surprised that nobody mentioned used tires, even though you won't find one that size either. Last time I needed tires for my beater I found ones that maybe had a thousand miles on them, were 3 years old, and were too cheap to pass up.


A shop 30 miles from me wants $180 to install these used Delta tires, allegedly with "at least three-quarters" tread depth left: http://poconos.craigslist.org/pts/4468677203.html


"Like brand new" even though the middle two tires are clearly almost worn out ...
 
I have used 2 of the cheap tires mentioned. The GT Champiro and the Falken sincera 828.

The Champiro are serviceable tires but they don't last long at all. The starting tread depth is like 9/16 for my 14" tire. The Falken sincera is a step up, last longer and the grip is a little better than the champiro. Stay away from the primewell.
 
For the price, I believe those tires are decent and better than china-made tires. 50 bucks is cheap, compared with 100-150 dollars here, and the more you wait the more expensive it is in the US pretty soon
 
Go with the GT's. We put a set on my gf's Mustang a couple weeks ago at 50 bucks a pop. SMOOTH ride! They're great tires!
 
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