Originally Posted By: MC5W20
Walmart carries these in 235/75/15 for $65 a tire. I had them print me up a quote. It only shows balancing and valve stems as extra. I asked about tire disposal and anything else for hidden charges. She responded that those were already included in the tire price.
My question for those that have purchased tires from Walmart before, is this correct? Or will I get a surprise when I buy them, as far as tire disposal fee, etc...
Second question, who is using these tires now and what are you impression of them. Mostly concerned with ride quality, I have no issues with poor tread life as I need to save penny's right now.
There are 13 Wrangler series tires listed on the Goodyear web site. They range from Mud tires( MT ), to all terrains( AT ), to all seasons( AS ). None of those come up at Wal-Mart for $65. What comes up is a Goodyear Wrangler Radial. This one here...
There is very little ifo on this tire available even from Goodyear themselves. That is Red Flag #1 with me.
A few online discount tire places show it but they have very little info as well( Red Flag #2
). Goodyear doesn't even show it in their list of Truck/SUV tires with all the other Wrangler series tires on their web site. Red Flad #3.
You actually have to do a search to come up with any info on them at the Goodyear site( yet another Red Flag - not good having all the Red Flags
). They don't give much info even then. I find it odd they don't give a tread depth measurement and I really took notice when I saw they they don't provide the UTQG rating for the tire on the Goodyear site. I would say these are some really cheap discount tires made for places like Wal-Mart to sell to people as CHEAP junk tires that will last a year or get you through an inspection. ONly reason I would buy them. It should also be noted this tire is only available in the P235/75R-15 tire size.
Here is what info I could find on them...
UTQG = 300 A B( this is
NOT good - see below )
Service Description = 105S
Max Load = 2,028 @ 35
Mileage = 40,000( Wal-Mart claims 50K but the other places I found all said 40K - 40K matches up more realistically with the tire spec's )
* NOTE - That 300 treadwear rating on this tire is pretty low. You don't see a lot of tires for trcuks & suv's that are in the 200 range for treadwear. 300 is pretty bad. That means to me that they are not going to last long at all. You may not get that 2 years you are after but if you do I wager you won't get much more if any. Maybe 25-30K at best if you keep them rotated and properly inflated. I am assuming these will be used on a small truck or some type of SUV? They wear tires quicker than cars generally do so keeep that in mind. Oh, and the A in the UTQG is for traction. Only AA is better. The B is for heat resistance and is the middle rating a tire can get. So those are ok but that 300 treadwear rating is NOT good
Your 50 to 60K truck & suv tires, that actually last that long, are going to have tread ratings in the UTQG spec in the MINIMUM 460-500+ range. Many run to the 600-700 range. Even a 40K tire should have at least a 380-420 UTQG treadwear rating if you expect to get that many miles out of it. Here is a good example. I had some Goodyear Wrangler ST's on a Chevy Silverado. The UTQG on those for treadwear was 340. They were bald by 25K with proper care. Another infamous tire for lousy treadwear from Goodyear( actually they all pretty much have this issue - GY's are horrible tires in general )is the Wrangler HP's. They also have a 340 UTQG treadwear rating and they are infmaous for wearing out by 15-20K. So higher rated tires that wear out really fast. Something for you to consider as these tires only carry a 300 rating for treadwear.
The actual tread pattern on those tires doesn't look half bad if you had some winter driving to do. Not an issue for you in AZ I know but it is about all they have going for them IMO. Kind of an all season/all terrain hybrid that is called an all purpose tread( APT ). I have run some APT tires before and those hybrid treads do ok in bad weather. In AZ though a regular AS would be all you should need unless you off road. You will get longer tread life and better MPG with an AS vs an APT or an AT.
Just got to say that while $65 is cheap so is that tire. I wouldn't run those on my vehicle. I would wager if they were sold on Tirerack you would see 90%+ bad reviews, Mainly centering on premature treadwear. Hey, they could go 100K for you who knows?
Based on the data however I wouldn't do it. Not even to try and save money.
I understand your comments about wanting to be fiscally responsible BUT think of your safety( cheap tires are constructed CHEAP so I would be concerned with blow outs from a thin sidewall )and also I agree with the other poster that said you will spend more on 2 sets of these tires over 60K( I am being generous in how long I think 2 sets would last _ maybe 40K is more realistic for both )than you would 1 set of decent tires. Spend $80 and buy a good tire and your are all set for at least 40-50K( on paper anyway ). It shouldn't all be about about saving pennies today. Think about a year down the road when you have to do it again. Those tires are just not going to last so you are not saving anything by buying them "IF" you actually can afford to get a better tire but are just chosing not to.
Why spend $65 for a tire you might get 20-25K from when for just $15 more p/tire you can be assured of at least 40K if you get a good tire? Almost double the tread wear and service life for just a fraction of the cost more? I don't get it( with all due respect ).
Ultimately it is your call as you are paying for them and going to drive the vehicle they are on. I personally would not buy those tires. As I said, in my experience, Goodyear tires are some of the worst on the road. They wear out really fast( even the top of the line ones ). You are looking at some really cheap ones they made for places like Wal-Mart to sell as a discount tire. Does not bode well based on GY's reputation for poor wear. They might last 10K and be great( most do )but I would bet you around that point they will suddenly start going bald very raidly. They always seem to.
Good luck if you do it.