Experience with General G-MAX AS-03 tires

[Vikas]

I have to decide between the OEM Michelin at close to $900 vs these at $500. If these are not round or need to be balanced often or have other shortcomings, I am willing to pay the Michelin/Costco 90% tax

The reviews of the General on internet are very favorable.

Thee are going on 2012 Acura TL 245/50-17

 

[CKN]

There is not a lot of subjectivity when it comes to Michelin on these boards......

 

[pbm]

I would go for the Generals and save $400.
I think General Tire is now part of Michelin but at any rate they are making some very good tires these days...

 

[Astro14]

I thought General was part of Continental now...

Regardless, have you looked at some of the Continental line?

I've got Continental Eco Contact on my T5 Volvo, Continental Contact on the Corolla, and General RT43 on my wife's XC. I've been very pleased with all three sets of tires and would happily recommend Continental or General as a brand...

 

[skyactiv]

Michelin owns BF Goodrich. I think you should look into the BF Goodrich G-FORCE COMP-2 A/S. I think General is owned by Continental, a German company.

 

[The Critic]

In that size, the Purecontact is probably your best option from a value standpoint.

If you're willing to give up some wet traction, the Pirelli P7 Plus is very very quiet.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

I've heard good things about the G-Max, but I don't like directional tires because you can't rotate them without flipping the tire and remounting, which isn't done as part of the free rotations, except at Walmart.

The Falken Ziex ZE950 is also worth considering.

 

[barkingspider]

I would get the generals and put $400 in your pocket

 

[Quattro Pete]

Dont expect much snow performance out of the gmax.

 

[krzyss]

What do you want from your tires?

Krzyś

 

[Vikas]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Dont expect much snow performance out of the gmax.
Why do you say that? AS-03 description and spec seems that it should be at least as good as OEM Michelin for winter condition.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Is the oem michelin an UHP tire? This gmax is and as such will be very mediocre in snow. Also, look at its tread pattern - do you see many sipes?

 

[Quattro Pete]

Possibly the only UHP AS tire with somewhat decent winter capabilities is the new conti dws 06, but even it has its limitations. In general, UHP AS tires are geared toward summer performance, at the expense of winter performance. There is always a trade off. Stay away from UHP category if you want decent winter performance.

This is why i run dedicated winter tires despite having UHP AS tires for the other 3 seasons.

 

[Vikas]

My biggest problem is that I can not read the current tire. I can read is the Michelin, size, tread-wear, build date, temp and traction. The tires were OK until last winter season but now with 40K on the clock, they must be done. The first snow storm was scary. Granted, the temperatures were in 32 and the conditions were icy but the traction control was working overtime.

 

[Trav]

My wife's car is running the General G-MAX AS-03 tires, good tires with no problems, they are made by Continental.
IMHO the Michelin is the most overrated tire on the market bar none. They are decent but no where near worth the price.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: Vikas
My biggest problem is that I can not read the current tire. I can read is the Michelin, size, tread-wear, build date, temp and traction.

According to tirerack, the oe tire was michelin pilot hx mxm4, which is a grand touring as tire.

 

[HTSS_TR]

Why 245/50-17 is so expensive ? I bought Cooper CS5 Ultra Touring 245/45-17 for my E430 few months at America's Tire for about $320 after rebates, and with $200 previous tire prorate my OTD cost was $120.

I think 45 series should be more expensive than 50 series.

 

[Sam_Julier]

Originally Posted By: Astro14
I thought General was part of Continental now...

Regardless, have you looked at some of the Continental line?

I've got Continental Eco Contact on my T5 Volvo, Continental Contact on the Corolla, and General RT43 on my wife's XC. I've been very pleased with all three sets of tires and would happily recommend Continental or General as a brand...


+1
I run the General Altimax RT43 on the 240 Volvo and My Mother's V70 Volvo. Excellent value.

 

[HTSS_TR]

General and Cooper are having some good tires at reasonable price the last 5-10 years, before that they didn't have many decent tires that I like.

I hope that they keep doing good job to fend off the Chinese brands.

 

[aquartlow]

I run 245-40-20 General G-max tires and have been very happy with them, they were my first ever online tire purchase along with a set of Boyd Coddington wheels. I have had them 3+ years and approx. 15K miles and they still give a smooth ride with no balance issues. At the time of purchase, these were one of the highest UTOG rated tires in the particular size I needed.