Tire Selection Process

[RayCJ]

My wife's car will soon need new tires -and so begins the selection process. With 5 cars in the family, I go through this process a lot and often times, am not satisfied even after selecting what I assumed would be a quality tire.

All the cars are passenger vehicles, ranging from model year 2007 to 2018. All are Mazdas or Toyotas and are driven by good drivers. Mix of local and highway driving in Maryland where our winters are moderate. I usually purchase all-season, sized to the original replacement specs, have them delivered and get them installed locally. The old tires come off evenly worn and I always get the alignment checked/adjusted when replacing them. I'm well aware of how tires are sized, understand about UTOG ratings and how mileage/longevity tends to impact noise/handling characteristics.

I've purchased fairly costly, name-brands and ended-up with lackluster results. Often they develop a cyclic rumbling after 10-20k miles or, develop an out-of-balance noise/vibration at varying speeds etc.

Question: Is there such a thing as a brand or make of tires that you can count on to deliver decent to average performance throughout it's expected lifetime? It seems so darn hit-or-miss these days. Maybe I should buy the cheapest junk out there and see if I get lucky.

Ray

 

[JLTD]

I've gravitated to Michelin the last 8-10 years. IMO worth the investment, got 100k miles out of one set.

Also had some BFGoodrich on a pickup I had awhile back; they were Load Range E so probably won't compare for you, but they were solid tires under that HD truck. BFGs on the 4Runner from the factory. At 44k they are showing their age but still have enough tread for a Colorado winter and will be replaced before next winter.

Seems like everyone's had bad experiences with one manufacturer or another, guess manufacturing defects strike everywhere.

What did you use in the past and how did they do?

 

[Leo99]

I buy cheap tires. I've had expensive tires and, like you, didn't see any extra benefit.

 

[MParr]

Good question. I too have had similar problems with tires. I will buy a set and have good luck with that tire and replace them with an upgraded version that turns out to be junk. Two brand names where that has happened were Firestone and General. One thing I have noted is, I get better results with tires that are between 500 and 600 tread wear rating and H or V speed rated.

 

[RayCJ]

Originally Posted by JLTD
I've gravitated to Michelin the last 8-10 years. IMO worth the investment, got 100k miles out of one set.

Also had some BFGoodrich on a pickup I had awhile back; they were Load Range E so probably won't compare for you, but they were solid tires under that HD truck. BFGs on the 4Runner from the factory. At 44k they are showing their age but still have enough tread for a Colorado winter and will be replaced before next winter.

Seems like everyone's had bad experiences with one manufacturer or another, guess manufacturing defects strike everywhere.

What did you use in the past and how did they do?


Oh man... I won't be able to remember the model or specific type but, brand wise: Let see... Cooper, Hankook, Toyo, Kumho, Bridgestone, Yokohama, Goodyear, Michelin, Pirelli, -Just to name a few. As I recall, the ones I seemed to like were Yoyo and Yokohama but, when I went to purchase the same ones a year later, that model was no longer available. The worst I remember was Pirelli, Cooper and Bridgestone. We have OK roads here, not a lot of pot-holes and after a year, they all developed slight bulges and made a drumming, rhythmic sound at speed. Tire inflation is proper and checked regularly. I tried tweaking the pressure up/down by a couple PSI but still no improvement. By the way, I don't buy the cheapest ones listed. Wise with my money? yes. Cheapskate... No.

Ray
(PS: If you sense frustration, it's not directed at anyone here... I'm getting annoyed just thinking about this next set of tires).

 

[JLTD]

Originally Posted by RayCJ


Ray
(PS: If you sense frustration, it's not directed at anyone here... I'm getting annoyed just thinking about this next set of tires).


I feel your pain...at least you have similar vehicles so don't have to get various load ranges and purposes.....

 

[RayCJ]

Originally Posted by JLTD
Originally Posted by RayCJ


Ray
(PS: If you sense frustration, it's not directed at anyone here... I'm getting annoyed just thinking about this next set of tires).


I feel your pain...at least you have similar vehicles so don't have to get various load ranges and purposes.....


LOL: If there was enough room, the original thread title was going to be "Tire Selection Process. PO'd Before I Even Start".

But yes, all of the family cars are "normal" passenger vehicles; most having 16 or 17" wheels and 50 or 55 % profile. We're not talking 19" wheels with 35 or 40% profile here.

@MParr, yes, I usually look for UTOG 500 or so treadwear. As for speed rating, they all seem so high now. I only hit 80 MPH about once a year so, I don't look for really high speed ratings but, I have not based my decisions on that factor. I'll give that some thought.

....

So, I see there are some brands called Nokian, Achilles, Falkan and Fuzion that I'm not familiar with. As long as I'm tossing darts with my eyes closed, I might as well randomly select one of these.


Ray

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Walmart will rebalance the tires at no extra charge during the free rotations. So you may wish to consider getting tires at Walmart. They offer the same premium tires you always buy. And also, they use proper torque

Most tire shops will zip the lug nuts on with an air gun. This makes for excessive and uneven torque, which can cause vibrations and can even strip lug nuts and damage the studs

If winter performance is a concern, and you are not using dedicated winter tires, consider an "all weather tire" which is an all-season tire with the 3-peak sign, such as:
Vredestein Quatrac 5
Nokian WRG3 or WRG4
Toyo Celsius

 

[Jimzz]

Most major and mid-level brands make good and bad tires so please never buy by the brand name. For example many think Michelin can never make a bad tire but I had a set that were just awful and still had around 6-7/32 left on them before I junked them. I have some Dunlops on my car that are pure garbage as well. Brand spanking new and don;t work wet or dry in my V6 Sedan.

I have found Mid-level tires like the Cooper CS5, General RT43, Hankook H737, etc... offer the best bang for the buck, esp if you get them on sale with a rebate.

 

[wdn]

I now buy only Michelins and get long life out of them. Both from Sam's Club and Costco because the installation package at both includes free tire rotations and re-balancing for life. Bought two sets in the past tear. The newest sets are on the Tundra Michelin X LT A/S and on the Corolla the Michelin X Tour A/S T+H. The X LT have a UTQG rating of 800 A A while the X Tour are 820 A B. The set on the Corolla was just $347 out the door. Costco has 1 cent installation special on top of $70 instant rebate. They replaced a set of X Radials from Costco the Corolla went 70,000 miles and still had 4/32" but they were ten tears old.

Brands I owned in the past: Kumho, Multi Mile, Toyo, General Grabber, Bridgestone, BF Goodrich, Cooper, Dunlop, Yokohama, Firestone. Biggest disappointment was Toyo Open Country after all the hype they were junk and wore badly. Actually the no name Multi Mile Wild Country XTX were quite good. I literally went through ten other brands of tires.

 

[MParr]

Ray
@MParr, yes, I usually look for UTOG 500 or so treadwear. As for speed rating, they all seem so high now. I only hit 80 MPH about once a year so, I don't look for really high speed ratings but, I have not based my decisions on that factor. I'll give that some thought.

The reason why I try to stay away from any tire that is rated above 600 tread wear is that the tires are too hard. They don't respond well. Sure you can buy tires with a 700+ tread wear rating and they may give you many miles of wear. But, there are trade offs. The major trade off is your car will ride like the Flintmobile.
T speed rated tires are usually going to be your basic tire
H speed rated are becoming more common on CUVs and are generally a better all around tire than the T rated tires
V speed rated are more common in mid-sized sedans
W speed rated are going to be the truly high performance tires seen on sport sedans and sport coupes.

 

[2heeldrive]

I feel your pain. I hate buying tires... I would rather go to the dentist. I have traded for new cars just to avoid the tire buying process.

I have had very mixed results, even with OEM tires. I had a set of General Grabbers on a 2 wheel drive Silverado that were spectacular, they were like snow tires, that truck would go anywhere. I traded for another 2wd Silverado with General Grabber High Fuel Economy, and they were completely different. Absolutely worthless in snow. Another Silverado came with Goodyear SRA tires. Worthless in snow and wet roads... dangerous. I was happy to send that truck packing. My current truck has a set of Continental Cross Contact LX20 with Ecoplus tires that seem pretty good, esp. in wet weather. I am anxious to see how they do this winter. We don't get a lot of snow here, but we get enough to need good tires.

I have a Sequoia that needs tires. The OEM Bridgestones are shot. I'm thinking Michelin or Continental. Need to decide before the snow flys.

 

[FordBroncoVWJeta]

Originally Posted by twoheeldrive
I feel your pain. I hate buying tires... I would rather go to the dentist. I have traded for new cars just to avoid the tire buying process.




I'm probably the exact opposite. I love putting on my tires. Especially for shopping for them. Except I work for a tire shop, and its nice to work on your own stuff versus someone else.

 

[Danno]

Originally Posted by twoheeldrive
I feel your pain. I hate buying tires... I would rather go to the dentist. I have traded for new cars just to avoid the tire buying process.

I really like shopping for new tires. New tires almost makes a car feel new again - with the right choice.

 

[Gebo]

I buy MIchelins from a local dealer. If I can't find my size in a Michelin, I buy what my local dealer recommends. Remember....he wants me to come back. Walmart and Costco and Sams employees may not have the same desire to make things
right as that just causes them more work. Extra paperwork, phone calls, etc. If you don't come back to their big box, it just makes their job easier. The local dealer will go out of his way to make sure his customers are happy. If he doesn't maintain customer loyalty and repeat business, he may be out of business.


It seems a lot of people put a smackdown on Michelins. Between my local dealer and Michelin Corp I have ALWAYS been satisfied with how we have resolved any problems I have had. You can read my previous posts if you like.

 

[Randy_R]

New tires feel like new shoes for the car. I don't wait until I really need them. With winter on the way, I look at them and ask myself if I feel like going through another winter with these tires. Almost all brands have an OEM tire and another model better or best. Big name brands Michelin and Bridgestone do the same. I'll pay a little more for the better tire but not a lot more. You decide what that means. I've bought from Tire Rack and had them installed locally but you end up up paying about the same if you shop a little. Buy locally and you usually get free rotations. I prefer to do that myself but sometimes I don't feel like it or it's too cold out. I used to work near a good shop that sold Cooper and I bought a couple sets from them. I lived near a good Firestone shop and bought LE2's and Blizzaks for my Silverado. I bought Generals from Tire Rack and wished I bought local because I thought I had a problem with them. I'm still running them because they haven't worn out yet. Last tires I bought were Hankooks from a local shop. I liked them a lot but I sold the truck five months later. That was not the the plan but we bought another car and something had to go. Next year I plan to go to same shop and probably replace the Generals with another set of Hankooks. I like new tires. I read the reviews and shop a little and buy where I think I'll get good service. Good luck.

 

[ET16]

I don't consider T rated tires anymore.

 

[jjjxlr8]

Originally Posted by RayCJ
My wife's car will soon need new tires -and so begins the selection process. With 5 cars in the family, I go through this process a lot and often times, am not satisfied even after selecting what I assumed would be a quality tire.

All the cars are passenger vehicles, ranging from model year 2007 to 2018. All are Mazdas or Toyotas and are driven by good drivers. Mix of local and highway driving in Maryland where our winters are moderate. I usually purchase all-season, sized to the original replacement specs, have them delivered and get them installed locally. The old tires come off evenly worn and I always get the alignment checked/adjusted when replacing them. I'm well aware of how tires are sized, understand about UTOG ratings and how mileage/longevity tends to impact noise/handling characteristics.

I've purchased fairly costly, name-brands and ended-up with lackluster results. Often they develop a cyclic rumbling after 10-20k miles or, develop an out-of-balance noise/vibration at varying speeds etc.

Question: Is there such a thing as a brand or make of tires that you can count on to deliver decent to average performance throughout it's expected lifetime? It seems so darn hit-or-miss these days. Maybe I should buy the cheapest junk out there and see if I get lucky.

Ray

How often do you rotate your tires? This is critical in preventing the noise and vibration that you describe. Some tread patterns and vehicles are more forgiving than others, but most treaded tires benefit from heal-toe wear reduction by cross-rotation.

 

[RayCJ]

Originally Posted by jjjxlr8
How often do you rotate your tires? This is critical in preventing the noise and vibration that you describe. Some tread patterns and vehicles are more forgiving than others, but most treaded tires benefit from heal-toe wear reduction by cross-rotation.

Front to back rotation once a year. I know there are cross-rotation patterns but it greatly complicates the process when working with floor jacks.

Ray

 

[CapriRacer]

It appears your problem is that some of your tires developed some irregular wear - the rumbling and vibration (Same problem, just different frequencies)

First, irregular wear is driven by misalignment. All tires have some degree of sensitivity to this - high or low. But a consumer can't tell which by looking at the tire or anything that is published. So what's a consumer to do?

1) Stick to name brands. They are more likely to have done the research needed to find out what it takes to dial out sensitivity to irregular wear.

2) May sure the alignment is really close to perfect. My experience says that the published alignment tolerances (not the specs, but the allowable deviation from spec) are too wide by half. Tell the tech before he starts you want the values as close to the center as possible and want to verify it by the printout - and ask for the print out!!


Exception: You want to dial out ANY camber more than 1 degree. Yes, that is NOT what the specs may call for, but camber tends to aggravate irregular wear. This might require a camber plate or an eccentric bolt (additional cost). This may also result in a worse handling feel, but that is the price to pay for good tire wear.

3) Drive gently. Hard cornering causes rapid wear - and that tends to drive any irregular wear tendencies.

Hope this helps.