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TIRED OF TIRES
Over the last 20 years I have logged all maintenance on my vehicles. I have followed tire mileage closely as I usually keep a vehicle 8 years on adverage. I have a mini van that used a full set of tires every year untill I put on 4 Douglas touring tires from Walmart yes I said Walmart.
These tires gave me 3 yes 3 years of wear! Last spring I replaced them with Goodyear touring tires as Walmart doesn't carry the Douglas now. I will be shopping for tires again this spring as the Goodyears will be SHOT.
The counter person at Walmart told me that the Douglas tires were made by Kelly Springfield, I will start at a Kelly dealer this time.
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TIRED OF TIRES
There is a very great difference in the various components that go into making a tire today, that is why there is such a difference between different tires.
Hard tires roll better, with less friction, but also skid easier, slip more in wet, icy or snowy conditions, and give a harsher ride with more noise.
On the other hand, softer tires have much better grip and adhere better to in snowy icy or wet conditions, unfortunately they also cut easier, and wear much faster.
The key is to find a good balance between the required qualities and objectives.
Generally speaking, if they want to sell a tire for less money, they have to save money making it, that is usually a combination of spending less, or none, on marketing, but also spending less on making it. That is usually achieved by making it in a facility which has a lower production cost (read: cheap labour, old or out-dated equipment) and from less expensive materials.
Virgin rubber is an expensive ingredient, the less they have to put in, the cheaper it will be to make a tire, so they generally have more of the 'other' compounds in them.
The bottom line is to be sure you are comparing apples to apples. Federal law requires all tire manufacturers to produce 'tread life' statistics for tires made or sold in the US, they just don't have to advertise the information, but if you ask for it they must tell you. Often two different brands of tires will look a lot alike, but one may have as much as half of the 'tread life' of the other.
Best of luck.
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TIRED OF TIRES
OK; The tire thing, on the last several new cars and pickups I have bought the origial tires will always outlast the second set I replace them with, why? I always buy the best tires I can find and always have the alignment checked regularly, tires rotated on a regular scheduel, etc., etc. Frank.
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TIRED OF TIRES
Next time you are looking at tires, new or the skins on the ride out in your driveway, look at the sidewall, you will see the word "treadwear" it tells you a lot about the tire you are looking at.
The "treadwear" number is calculated by actually testing a sample of those tires and is a percentage of how it wears compared to a control tire which is arbitrarily rated as having a value of 100 points. Thus, a tire marked "200" means it lasts twice as long one marked "100."
Best of luck.
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TIRED OF TIRES
Many people only think brand, they do not realize many if not all tire companies offer a low quality or low price line that is nothing in quality like the line that made them famous.
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TIRED OF TIRES
I purchase all my tires from tirerack.com. They are delivered by UPS to my home within 2 days always. There are lots of user reviews and comparisons. This way I get to choose my tire based on customer statistics and then I pay the local mechanic to mount and balance them.
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TIRED OF TIRES
Crunch; Hope you get along well with the local mechanic. A rew years ago I happened to be in the local gas station when a fellow rolled in two new Farm Fleet tires and asked the guy to mount them. I never saw anyone get run out of a place any faster in my life. Frank.
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TIRED OF TIRES
Hello Frank, yes I was nervous when I went to my mechanic. But he had no problem with it at all. In fact he asked me where I got them, I told him, and he seemed very comfortable with it. I also had another local mechanic do it also. They charge about what any tire store would for mount and balance - so by the time you get done you pay about the same as you would if you went to a big tire place. But I get to choose my own tire from a wide selection with customer statistics from the comfort of my home. No waiting for an attendant to help for hours and no limitation on brand.
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TIRED OF TIRES
Crunch; Glad it worked out for you. The local guy I spoke of might have been having a bad day too. I used to do like you and buy tires as carry outs and mount them myself. Then since the cars all seem to have the high dollar alloy wheels anymore I didn't want to chance breaking a wheel, so I sold the tire machine. For a while when the alloy wheels first started to be the norm he had a sign posted that he would not be responsible if he broke one. This fellow I speak of also did lots of farm tire work including flats off of skid steers and manure spreaders that had the fresh from thw feedlot aroma to them. Enjoy your day. Frank.
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TIRED OF TIRES
1hillbilly, from my experience (and it appears it is yours also) there's a good reason the tires have GOODYEAR on the sidewall. A good year, that's about all anyone can expect out of a set.
Disclaimer: Your experience may vary, road conditions play a major role in the life of a tire, ...lawyer-speak, lawyer-speak, lalalalala
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