http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=43958&item=2470340199

 

There are a few ppl selling them cheap on ebay. I was looking at getting a set of ES100s, but that price is so low Im curious how the tires are decent.

 

Thanks

Jason

They have a DOT rating of "A" for traction and temperature which is quite good. A 200 for treadwear means they won't last very long. You might have to buy two sets to get any meaningfull longevity out of them.

I learned something the last time I went tire shopping and this is not ultimately a bad thing either.

 

You can see two horizontal lines in the rubber, one just above the sticker and one at the top of the pic as the tire is rounding over. The are from the mold, which is made of probably 8 sections. Like I said not neccissarily bad, because their are major name brands that use this technique as well, but it does take a little more to balance the tire. Michelen for example uses a two piece mold that leaves one vertical line down the middle of the tire. It takes less to balance a tire that way.

 

I bought a chinese tire for my merc sable, it was an aggressive tread pattern and had a higher speed rating but had a tough compound, I forget the name. It was made the same way Michelen makes their tires. They had a good price, a good look and were recommended by the tire guy. I can't give you long term results because I traded the car off after a couple months. While I had them the performed well.

 

I'm not sure why but we are seeing alot more chinese made tires coming into the US, and they seem to be a good quality product at a good price for the most part.

Rule #1, never buy tires online. Too many things could be wrong.

 

2, The ratings that are on the dealership tags on the tires are entirely based on their own ratings scale. ie, a Goodyear Treadwear 200 may be better than a Michelin Treadwear rating of 600.

Yeah - I have chinese 28" Mud Terrains on my wagon right now - they have held up well, and the price was quite good.

 

GD

Cheapo Chinese tires.

 

I'd get something better. Two things I don't scrimp on with my cars. Brakes and tires.

 

 

~Howard

From the NHTSA of the D.O.T.,

"To help consumers compare a passenger car tire's treadwear rate, traction performance, and temperature resistance, the federal government requires tire manufacturers to grade tires in these three areas. This grading system, known as the Uniform Tire Quality Grading System, provides guidelines for making relative comparisons when purchasing new tires. You also can use this information to inquire about the quality of tires placed on new vehicles.

Although this rating system is very helpful when buying new tires, it is not a safety rating or guarantee of how well a tire will perform or how long it will last. Other factors such as personal driving style, type of car, quality of the roads, and tire maintenance habits have a significant influence on your tire's performance and longevity.

 

Treadwear grades are an indication of a tire's relative wear rate. The higher the treadwear number is, the longer it should take for the tread to wear down. For example, a tire grade of 400 should wear twice as long as a tire grade of 200."

 

I don't think tire manufacturers can make up their own grading criteria.

 

Tiny

i got my nitto's from www.discounttiredirect.com great price and no problems

From the NHTSA of the D.O.T.,

 

relative comparisons

Relative to what the manufacturers grades are. Remember, they grade their own tires so they can say how good or poor a tire is. But i'm only talking about treadwear. Temperature rating and speed rating are all on legally uniform grading scales.

Sorry GreenGod, but I don't buy that. I've purchased quite a few tires over the last 30-some years of driving, and I rely on that treadwear number. I've never had a set of tires wear out quicker than they should have, but maybe I've just been lucky.

 

For everyone's enjoyment...

http://www.eurotire.com/body_utqgs.html

Oh no! Not another test? Don't get the government involved or NCLB will take over.

The government does mandate and oversees the treadwear testing at a certified independent test facility. A manufacturer can not claim better performance than the tire yields against the control (100 level) tire, but can rate a particular tire line lower to satisfy a good, better, best, marketing scheme.

 

In the majority of cases, you can go by the UTQG ratings for treadwear and have a reasonable expectation of how the tire will wear vs another.

but can rate a particular tire line lower to satisfy a good, better, best, marketing scheme.

 

 

That's, more or less, what i was trying to say

thats good info.

I use www.tirerack.com for my comparisons. they have all the tire info and grades given by people who bought them. sure there are usually only like 5 or so for each tire, but at least it is from consumers rather then companies.

 

If you use that and you have a Sears Auto near you. they match prices on tirerack. so you can print it out and go there they will match that price add back in shipping then you can get the mounting and all there too. its just easier then having them shipped to you then balanced and mounted later.

thats good info.

I use www.tirerack.com for my comparisons. they have all the tire info and grades given by people who bought them. sure there are usually only like 5 or so for each tire, but at least it is from consumers rather then companies.

 

If you use that and you have a Sears Auto near you. they match prices on tirerack. so you can print it out and go there they will match that price add back in shipping then you can get the mounting and all there too. its just easier then having them shipped to you then balanced and mounted later.

But be carefull. Not everthing is what they seem. ie, Goodyear tires as Walmart and, as far as i know, Sears, are not real goodyear tires and aren't near the quality.

But be carefull. Not everthing is what they seem. ie, Goodyear tires as Walmart and, as far as i know, Sears, are not real goodyear tires and aren't near the quality.

 

You're going to have to explain what a real Goodyear tire is.

 

All tire companies, toaster companies, oil filter companies, etc make the same product and sell them to retailers with different names to satisfy marketing requirements.

 

The beauty with tires is that the goverment requires a DOT code that includes the manufacturer's identity, plant location, and week of production.

More meaninful to consumers are the UTQG quality ratings.

A tire from Sears or WalMart with the same manufacturer, plant code and UTQG rating is going to perform the same as the manufacturers flagship line.

It may just have a different name on it, a different warranty, etc.

You're going to have to explain what a real Goodyear tire is.

 

[\QUOTE]

 

Fake goodyear: Weather Handler

Real goodyear: Regatta 2

 

differenced: rubber compound = better and worse wear, though, extremely similar and confusable tread pattern.

 

 

 

(....ignore spelling......rum.)

There are a couple local WRX drivers running the Wanlis and seem to like them (especially for the price). From what I've seen and heard the tread pattern is identical to the Yokohama AVS Sport (not sure if they have an actual connection with Yokohama or if they are just knocking off the design, though).

 

Try asking "Templar" in the NASIOC SouthEast Forum and see what he says about them (he's one of the locals that's running those tires).

The treadwear number is a ballpark figure,(a very big ballpark). It's interesting to note that some companies,(Pirelli as one example), doesn't even put a treadwear number on a lot of their tires.

i got my nitto's from www.discounttiredirect.com great price and no problems

Same here. Ordered my Yokohama's on the phone. Five days later the UPS truck dropped off four new tires on the porch. Paid my buddies at the exhaust/tire shop $10 a piece to mount and balance 'em, and (even with shipping and mounting) saved almost $75 over what the local tire dealer was going to charge me for an equivalent tire. The tires have been great ever since.

What's your life worth? After shipping, you really aren't saving much over a quality tire. What happens if you blow one? I'm a firm believer in You Get What You Pay For. My experience with cheap tires has not been good.

What's your life worth? After shipping, you really aren't saving much over a quality tire. What happens if you blow one? I'm a firm believer in You Get What You Pay For. My experience with cheap tires has not been good.

Who said anything about cheap tires? If you go to the web pages for tiresdirect or tirerack you'll find out more about tires than you'll ever learn while fondling your credit card at the local Goodyear dealership. And the warranty coverages apply. I'm satisfied that I got a great set of tires at a reasonable price.

Who said anything about cheap tires? If you go to the web pages for tiresdirect or tirerack you'll find out more about tires than you'll ever learn while fondling your credit card at the local Goodyear dealership. And the warranty coverages apply. I'm satisfied that I got a great set of tires at a reasonable price.

The original post requested information on some $49 tires listed on e-bay. I'd call a $49 tire from China a cheap tire...just one man's opinion.

The original post requested information on some $49 tires listed on e-bay. I'd call a $49 tire from China a cheap tire...just one man's opinion.

Phillip-

Some interesting info can be found here.

 

http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/problems/Equipment/Tires/index.html

 

When you really get into it, you find that the Firestone/Goodyear/Bridgestone folks aren't doing well at all. The Asian (Korean, Japanese, Chinese) are cranking out some of the best tires on the road. The site above will get you to into NHTSA's recall database if you want to check specific tire recalls.