Originally Posted By: Hokiefyd
Originally Posted By: CapriRacer
The net effect is that while the mass retailer can offer a better price, the tire being supplied could be of lower quality.
What about tires that are store-specific, like the Viva line (no place other than Walmart sells that) and Michelin's X Radial line (nobody other than warehouse clubs sells that). If the mass retailers get the "seconds", then where to the "firsts" go, for these store-specific lines?
And then my other question would be...if Walmart for example now has a contract with ATD, who also supplies the "local guy" with tires, then it would have to be ATD who separates the "firsts" from the "seconds", and delivers the "good" tires to the "local guy" and the "bad" tires to the mass retailers, right?
Good question. I think it probably varies depending upon the manufacturer and the retailer.
Using the X Radial example, it appears that Michelin engineered their Harmony (and related tires) almost identically. For theory's sake, lets say the Harmony is the model the others are based off. Harmony is sent to the independent retailers. In order to differentiate the product for other mass market retailers, to protect pricing, warranties offered, etc, they made minor cosmetic changes that do not substantially change the engineering - tread pattern variations and of course the name on the sidewall. The result is 3 more "different" tires: X Radial DT, Destiny and WeatherWise II.
The same thing happens with other consumer goods. I shopped for a TV last year, and Costco had a Sony TV almost identical to ones sold elsewhere, with the only difference being a digit in the model number and a black trim strip instead of silver.
But these are examples where there isn't a significant difference. I am sure there are many instances where the products appear to be similar, but that is only on the appearance side. The engineering and/or quality control could be significantly different in order to meet a price point.
Trouble is, the only ones who know with 100% certainty in which of the two camps these products fall are the manufacturer.