The tire / tyre thread

[Digger]

I put a set of cheap Chinese made tires on my Saab and they have so far exceeded my expectations, that at the very least I've got to mention them. They are Antares Ingens a1, a speed rated, directional tread, all season radial. They are quitter and ride better than the Tiger Paws the last owner put on the car and they handle about the same as Perrillis on dry pavement and in the rain, but they impressed the socks off of me the first time I had to change lanes through 2 inches of slush to get to an unplowed exit ramp.

Four years ago I put a set of Perelli's on my TC Maserati and I wanted to get the same tires for my Saab wagon, but for some reason all the tire stores in my area closed up, or got eaten up by the big chains and when I went out to buy tires I got so disgusted by the new tire store greeters, that either didn't know squat about tires, or they did and they were flat out lying and trying to sell me the tires they had in stock.

Long rant cut short, when I walked into a Walmart store to get soap and tooth paste, there was a stack of tires in the main entry, in the size that fit my car and they were on sale. So I bought a set of tires, mounted balanced, with extended road hazard warranty, for a third the price I was expecting to pay for a set of Perelli's and I was done shopping for tires.

If these tires go the 40,000 miles as advertised I'll buy them again. If they only go 30,000 miles, I'll probably still buy them again. As a performance tire they are so, so. As an all season radial, they are great.

[chalpkin]

Not interested in cheap Chinese tyres, had a set fitted to a Rover 75 a couple years ago, might as well have been on the rims in the wet! They were nothing short of dangerous! Never again. Those four pieces of rubber are the only things between you and a hospital bed, tyres and motor oil are the only things on or in a car that I won't do cheaply!

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[Digger]

Not interested in cheap Chinese tyres, had a set fitted to a Rover 75 a couple years ago, might as well have been on the rims in the wet! They were nothing short of dangerous! Never again. Those four pieces of rubber are the only things between you and a hospital bed, tyres and motor oil are the only things on or in a car that I won't do cheaply!

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Son; hate to break this to you, but if you are this serious about never again driving on cheep tires made in China you best park your car and walk to the nearest tire store.

Cheep tires made in Korea aren't any better or safer than cheep tires made in China and given the size you're riding your cheep Korean tires could have been made in their China plant.

[chalpkin]

Yes, I know that these Kuhmo's are Korean, that's why I'm replacing (my hand has been forced following a puncture in a front tyre),.them with Michelin Pilot Sport 4's, which as far as I know, aren't made in China or Korea! And unless we all suddenly turn communist overnight, aren't likely too!


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[Digger]

Yes, I know that these Kuhmo's are Korean, that's why I'm replacing (my hand has been forced following a puncture in a front tyre),.them with Michelin Pilot Sport 4's, which as far as I know, aren't made in China or Korea! And unless we all suddenly turn communist overnight, aren't likely too!


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Michelin has more plants in China than they do in France and a couple of years ago Pirelli opened their biggest plant in China. If you now decide to go with Dunlop because these companies make tires in China, you could still get a tire made in China. Like it or not, cheep tires, pricy tires, big name tires, no name tires, any tire you buy today could be made in China. I can't think of a big name tire manufacturer that doesn't have at least one plant in China and every big name tire manufacturer has at least one off brand name that they make on the same equipment that they use to make their big name tires. You can be pretty sure that they also make these in China, but when it comes to tires, the name pressed into the sidewall in the biggest lettering is the least important thing to read.

Where the tire was made is a dead second to least important thing to read. Size, speed and weight ratings are the important things to read. The important things to look at aren't the name on the sidewall and where it was made, you look at the tread for a design that best matches the way you drive and the roads you drive on. you look at the inner lining to see how it wraps the bead and meets the sidewall at the bead, and then you stick your hand inside the tire and feel all around for all the things between the lining, sidewall and tread that you can't see.

[chalpkin]

From all the latest reviews of tyres I've seen, the Michelin Pilot Sport 4's came out top, or near to it. They were not designed in China and they won't use cheap materials to keep cost's down and I'm dammed sure Michelin wouldn't let a substandard tyre leave ANY of their factories.
I know the cheaper tyre manufacturers are gaining ground on the big boy's, they just aren't there yet!

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[nordwulf]

I have always gone with the major brands and usually stay away from the newer Chinese brands. When you look at brands like Fuzion, reviews are often pretty poor.

Tirerack shows the country of origin in their tire specs and I would usually choose US over anything else. However, I am looking at the Sumitomo HTR A/S P02 as they have good reviews and priced very good ($100 less per set of 4 compared to the Dunlop's I have on now). I am not familiar with tires of this Japanese company and the tires are made in Thailand.

Sumitomo also makes Dunlop and Goodyear branded tires for some markets and it often is not transparant what brands belong to what company.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tire_companies

Does anyone have any experience with Sumitomo tires?
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....n&autoModClar=

[Digger]

From all the latest reviews of tyres I've seen, the Michelin Pilot Sport 4's came out top, or near to it. They were not designed in China and they won't use cheap materials to keep cost's down and I'm dammed sure Michelin wouldn't let a substandard tyre leave ANY of their factories.
I know the cheaper tyre manufacturers are gaining ground on the big boy's, they just aren't there yet!

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Though you solicited tire suggestions you certainly don't need to consider any of suggestion received, but you should be courteous. Bad tires slip out of every tire factory, sometimes just a few, a few hundred, a few thousand, or a million or two. "It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble. It's what you know for sure that just ain't so."

https://www.consumeraffairs.com/tire-recalls?page=2
Aug 31, 2015 - Michelin is issuing a safety recall for what it calls commercial light truck tires. The tires are commonly used on commercial light trucks, full-sized ...
Dec 16, 2013 - Michelin is recalling approximately 100,000 tires in order to retrieve an estimated 2,500 tires (about 2.5% of the recalled population). Affected ...
Dec 13, 2013 - Michelin issued a voluntary recall of 1.3 million defective tires sold to consumers with an increased risk of tread separation

I've got nothing against Michelin, or any other tire company, or any off brand name that by look and feel appears to be well constructed. Being able to recognize a well constructed tire or a flaw in the manufacturing can save you a lot of money and a lot of trouble. Whatever tire you buy inspect it before you have it mounted.

[chalpkin]

You pays your money, you take your choice!

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[Champ]

My 2007 Saab 9-3 Aero needs tires. Has nearly 90k miles and is usually driven spring to fall but garaged during winter when SUV taps in. Been running on Bridgestone Turanza W Serenity tires since Sept. 2013. Bridgestone salesman pushing the Primewell Valera Sport AS. Any recommendations or insights welcome. Always feel like I am flying blind when it comes to choosing the right tires. Thanks.