My wife's RAv4 needs new tires. in the past we've always bought Michelin all season but have paid a premium for them. I'd like at some different brand this time that are still decent quality but significantly cheaper. I was thinking Bridgestone, Firestone BF Goodrich...anything but Goodyear. Anyone like a particular brand?
Firestone Destinations is all I use on my trucks. Not sure for a small suv/car tire though, but would think Firestone would be just as good.
Thanks Tbone. I just started looking but it seems like the Bridgestones are almost as much as Michelin so I'm looking specifically at BF Goodrich and Firestones. They seem to have decent reputation for quality while not being overly expensive.
I always check on Tire Rack's website and compare the tires I'm looking at. Click on a tire you're looking at then click on the surveys tab as they have a number and color coded rating system which I find to be really nice feature.
I too really like TireRack.com They have always steered me right and their prices are very good. I would say don't get too hung up on any specific brand name. Most tire companies make a spectrum of tires for various price points. Some are good and some are not so good. I wish I had better advice specific to your car, but our Forester is 15 y.o. and so we just put the cheapest tires we can find on it. FWIW, I just put a set of Fuzion (Bridgestone's value brand) on my 1/2 ton pickup. They seem reasonable so far but I've only got a couple hundred miles on them.
Michelins are expensive, but I find that they flat out last longer so you break even or even come out ahead in the end. I got 85K on my first set on my truck and have 15K on the second set with a negligible amount of wear. They guys at work run Toyos and Coopers on their trucks and they just don't get much life out of them. 35K tops on a truck the same as mine. I had a set of Bridgstones on my wife's van and they cracked / dry rotted after a couple years.
The continental Extreme Contact or the new Pure Contact are both great tires if available in your size. Not cheap but WAYYYY better than the michelins. I cant figure why people pay so much for such terrible tires.
If you can get 80k out of a set of fire stones, I'll buy your next set for you. My Firestone destinations that came on my truck new were toast in 35k. Michelins are worth the money imo.
Thats generally what I do unless it's more of a special tire. For a rav4 I'd just buy the cheapest best reviewed tire. I've had good luck and bad from the same manufacturer. The last "all seasons" or summer tires we bought for a car were bf Goodrich advantage ta. Those were great tires. Good dry wet handling and traction quiet and a good ride. I don't remember the exact mileage(we switch to snows) but it was around 40k+
I looked at the Firestone Destination LE on Tirerack and they're only 398 for a set of four before shipping.
Some shops price match as they have accounts with tire rack. So basically you pay the price on tire rack before shipping if they are honest. But it can be more of a hassle calling around to get pricing.
I've had good luck with Kumho. I've got the Solus KR21 on three cars and Roadventure AT51 on the truck.
I typically go with the reviews on Tire Rack and pick one of the ones rated in the top 3 of whatever category I need. The last set I bought for my truck was Michelin's and I'll probably pay the premium for them next time. They're lasting a heck of a lot longer than any other A/T tire I've bought before. Although with my wife's CR-V I go with performance over longevity. She's much more likely to do something stupid in the rain or snow so I'm ok paying for tires more often to make sure her and the kids are safe.
Tire Rack has the Firestone Destination LE for 389.00 for a set of four before shipping and the Michelin Defender for 594.60 before shipping. I know Michelins are great tires because it's what I've always bought but that's a very large price difference. I think we're going to order the Firestones next week.
I'm a big firestone fan myself . Truck and cars just my 2 cents. Buying tires is like buying underwear such a pain in the a$$ but necessary. At least for me . Good luck.
Try tirebuyer.com. I needed new tyres for my Buick and I ordered them and had them shipped to my house for free. Then I took the tyres to a local installer and they installed and balanced them for a good price. I was able to get the tyres and installation cheaper than any place I tried including the evil empire.
I used to love that tire, I have a few pair sitting around. I have then on the front of my TB now. They wear really well for a snow. When they first came out they were the best budget tire you could get. Generals arctic max are better and cost just as much. Imo they are comparable or better in some aspects than hakapakita or blizzack. Don't know if I'd run them on a heavy truck as the winter force were originally intended.
I've had great luck with Cooper tires in the past. 80,000+ miles on two sets of them on the truck in my signature.
I use to buy Michelin 80K tyres for a Corolla I owned. I never got 80K out of them, more like around 40-50K. They would prorate the tyres; and the next set was the same, 40K or so out of an 80K tyre. I went back the second time and the company was gone; so the second time I lost money. I decided to just buy 40K tyres from then on. Tread wear can greatly depend on road surface and curves. Here the secondary roads are not smooth top and many are curvy roads so a lot of side forces on the tyres as one take the curves.
