Bob

$100 a tyre? The cheapest, lowest rated tyres I could find for my car was $120 a piece and that was a discount deal.

There is something to slightly better tyre over a complete no brand.

Stopping distance can be quite a different, tyre noise too is the big one and the quality of the warranty. Our old Michelin tyres, well the ones that came with the car that didn't blow out did 40K miles, the Cooper tyres did 11.5K before they were on the metal rims and most of the others did about 25-30K. They're 17" low profile all season tyres, picked for slightly better rain and snow than dry performance though.

You drive a posh motor though don't you? So anything less than $200-300 a tyre has to be a deal.

Poppy girl

To be honest Bob I have no idea whats on there, will take a peek in the morning, but they have done getting on for 30,000 and yes its a Merc.

Edit I lied 20,000

Michael

Z speed rated tires are the most expensive but generally have the shortest life span even if you don't drive fast. Most of the time you want to stay with the same speed rated tire that was originally on the car since the car's suspension was built for that rated tire. Normally you can switch between tire brands with the same rating but they may have stiffer walls or have a different tread so they can be louder and possibly be poorer handling but they could also possibly last longer even if significantly cheaper. However dropping a Z rating by one or two ratings will generally produce significantly longer lasting tires. For example, dropping a ZRW rated tire to an H rated tire will likely last at least double the life span.

http://tires.about.com/od/understand...-Explained.htm

If you're looking to put inexpensive shoes on a minivan, you probably don't need V-rated tires, even if the manufacturer put them on as the OEM choice.

It's hard to understate how important knowing what the speed ratings really mean can be. If, for example, the manufacturer did put V-rated tires on that minivan, it can be difficult to convince many tire places to put an H-rated on as a replacement. This is less about selling more expensive tires, although that ends up being the functional consequence, and more about fears of liability. The “official line” that tire sellers generally get is “Don't ever put on a lower speed rating than what was already on the car.”

RICH

I've got Firestone FR710's on my Maxima. No clue what that means -I just had to go and look, but they were a brand I recognized and about the second cheapest available at Tires Plus, 2 years ago. About $500 for the set.

I like Tires Plus as they gave me a store credit card when I was a newbie!

GeoffM

We went for Futura which seemed not too cheap, average all-rounder. Maybe.

No idea what was on the car originally; we bought it used. And yes, we've gone through three tyres in a year. At least one was due to the wife testing the interference factor between wheel and right kerb. The kerb won.

Do CA road surfaces count as off-road?

SultanOfSwing

I've got Hankooks on mine, got them at Pep Boys (except one mismatched one I got at the dealer when they replaced a wheel for me). Usually I replace them two at a time, about $270.00 for a pair.

They do the job rightly, for my needs.

Sheepdip

Got a set of four for SWMBO's car from Sears as they were running a rebate program with Goodyear. Good tyre and very reasonably priced after the rebate.

DavidLemon

I went to town fair tyres and purchased a complete set for my t&c which is the same model as yours, and it cost me about $800. They were not the expensive ones but warranty of life for 50000 miles

Poppy girl

The BF checked my tires and they are fine plenty of life left, I was going to have the new ones fitted today, so Les Schwab never gonna use you guys again, they were the ones that told me I needed a new set, I wasn't gonna buy from them anyways...

SiKee

Not necessarily. Vehicle manufacturers often have trade agreements in place at the time a car is made, which are reflected in the tire choices recommended in the owner's manual.

As the car ages and tyre technology improves, newer models of those tires (and those from the OEM's competitors) supersede the originals and are, consequently, worth looking at.

Personally, I would make sure that the tires fit the rims, are fit for purpose and the fitters offer a good service and a decent guarantee.

scrubbedexpat099

I have just got Kumho ECSTA 4X for my summer tyres, I have the snow tires on now and will wait for it to stop snowing before trying them out.

I have separate wheels and use a small diameter wheel for the snow tires.

Yorkieabroad

We used to have a Durango - the tires it came with were abysmal. They either came with Pirellis and I switched to Michelin, or vice versa - can't remember. The originals would only last 10k miles or so and the shoulders would develop a saw tooth wear pattern so it felt like you were driving over cobbles. When the first pair went, the dealer said they were defective and replaced them for free. 2nd pair, they said it was my tracking, and I had to pay 50% of the replacement, but they fixed the tracking under warranty. 3rd pair (at less than 30k miles!) were about to be replaced when I bumped into a guy on a campsite who I caught checking out my tires (ooeerr missus). He also had a Durango and was checking to see if my tires were as bad as his used to be (they were) then told me he'd solved the problem by switching brands (see above) - I did the same and never had another problem.

GeoffM

First proper spin on the new tyres (remember we're talking a practical family car, not a fancy motor!) and I'm amazed at how different they feel. Even the wife came in and said "it's really smooth!" so I knew it wasn't just my imagination. Or maybe the tracking was so bad previously: could also have caused bad wear I guess.

Pulaski

Sounds like they might have been Pirelli's, they are notoriously soft, and often good for performance and sports cars, but I have no idea why they'd make sense on an SUV.

S Folinsky

I've used Discount Tire Centers, if they have a location near you. Also, once you are in their computer, they can really advise you.