One Problem with Tire Rack Reviews

[Reggaemon]

One problem I have with Tire Rack owners reviews is that so many
reviewers don't know what tires they are reviewing.
Case in point, Firestone AS, a high performance all season that was
just released this year. This reviewer says that he a has over 76,000 miles
on the tires and they have been good in snow the last two winters.
Ok, this one is very obvious. Other owners will review a tire that they say was on the car
when they bought it new when you know that that model was never an original equipment tire.
Too often it is hard to tell if the review has any value or not.

 

[CharBaby]

Agreed!
Many reviewers also write..."To new to tell", or "Best tire I've ever owned". Without saying why, what conditions the tires were driven in.

Well then, why write anything!

I always look for reviews on the exact tire on same or like vehicle and climate condition. I overlook the reviews from CA, TX, FL etc.

I already know that ANY tire will perform well on a nice sunny day in July. What I am looking for is, how a tire performs in foul weather. And how confident and stable the tire makes me feel.

I want to know about highway tracking(or wandering), hydroplaning resistance in a downpour of rain or even snow/ice conditions(for an all season tire), and braking and cornering feel compared to their old tire. I'm not looking for measured braking/cornering results, just confidence.

 

[AirgunSavant]

I would notify Tire Rack and suggest that they review the customer reviews before going live.

 

[krzyss]

My favourite is reporting bad winter performance of summer tires.
Who would know?

Krzys

 

[JC1]

You'll get better tire feedback right here, where the majority of our members will provide what you need.

 

[leeharvey418]

I've also shaken my head a reviews that claim high mileage on a new tire model, as well as reviews that are obviously about the tire that the reviewer had previously, and replaced with the reviewed tire.

There is an easy solution, though - that button at the bottom that asks 'was this review helpful?' - just click 'no'.

 

[KingCake]

Yep. I quit looking at reviews a long time ago. Worthless on their site.

Now I just stick to brands I've had experience with. Kumho, Ohtso (Sumitomo), Cooper, etc.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

I like when I see a negative review for a tire that someone had on their 1992 Ford Taurus with 300000 miles. Then they complain about tread wear. Yeah ... you need an alignment once in a while.

I'm not sure if I can really write it down, or figure out away to describe it, but usually you can figure out which reviews are written by people who have somewhat of an idea what they are talking about.

I put a review of the OE tires on my Focus (H725 Hankook). Said they were a good tire but couldn't comment on tread life since the car left the factory with an alignment issue.

 

[DerbyDave]

if you think Tire reviews on Tire Rack at bad browse some at Wal-Mart's site. Reviews like I just had these put on yesterday, great in all conditions. Or a tire review that says Jimmy was great and installed my tires fast, ask for Jimmy when you get tires. Yeah those reviews are useless.

 

[bdcardinal]

I love the reviews that bash a tire because they kept getting flats. Like it is the tire's fault that the owner drove over nails.

 

[CKN]

Originally Posted By: JC1
You'll get better tire feedback right here, where the majority of our members will provide what you need.




Tire threads have gone to garbage here on BITOG. You get biased reviews for Michelin no matter what tire you are considering, what you drive, or how much money you wish to spend.

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: CKN
Originally Posted By: JC1
You'll get better tire feedback right here, where the majority of our members will provide what you need.




Tire threads have gone to garbage here on BITOG. You get biased reviews for Michelin no matter what tire you are considering, what you drive, or how much money you wish to spend.





And comments from some jaded guy who, for whatever reason, absolutely abhors Michelin and will decidedly discount every single positive review of any of their products not based on contrary experience but simply his own bias, which ironically, he does not see as simply the same thing he espouses exists, but in reverse.

 

[kschachn]

Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
And comments from some jaded guy who, for whatever reason, absolutely abhors Michelin and will decidedly discount every single positive review of any of their products not based on contrary experience but simply his own bias, which ironically, he does not see as simply the same thing he espouses exists, but in reverse.


Exactly. Every time tires come up I see the "anti" yapping more often than anything pro.

 

[Balrog006]

Originally Posted By: AirgunSavant
I would notify Tire Rack and suggest that they review the customer reviews before going live.


Not saying this isn't reasonable but if they vetted reviews prior to allowing them for anything but spam and restricted language they run the risk of being accused of only posting favorable reviews or picking and choosing the reviews that get posted.

Not worth the risk to their system as I'm sure they have a disclaimer somewhere that CYA for this type of misinformation.

IMHO most online reviews and ratings are similarly flawed and it's up to the person wanting advice to pick thru and determine if they want to take the review at face value or how to weigh it against their decision.

 

[Jetronic]

Originally Posted By: Reggaemon
One problem I have with Tire Rack owners reviews is that so many
reviewers don't know what tires they are reviewing.
Case in point, Firestone AS, a high performance all season that was
just released this year. This reviewer says that he a has over 76,000 miles
on the tires and they have been good in snow the last two winters.
Ok, this one is very obvious. Other owners will review a tire that they say was on the car
when they bought it new when you know that that model was never an original equipment tire.
Too often it is hard to tell if the review has any value or not.


I pay little attention to user reviews, as the rating depends on what tyres they used previously. If they had [censored] tyres before, a mediocre tyre will seem like they struck gold! And that's if they're actually talking about the tyre in question...

 

[CKN]

Originally Posted By: kschachn
Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
And comments from some jaded guy who, for whatever reason, absolutely abhors Michelin and will decidedly discount every single positive review of any of their products not based on contrary experience but simply his own bias, which ironically, he does not see as simply the same thing he espouses exists, but in reverse.


Exactly. Every time tires come up I see the "anti" yapping more often than anything pro.



The block feature works well if it really bothers you......

 

[Johnny2Bad]

Originally Posted By: Miller88
I like when I see a negative review for a tire that someone had on their 1992 Ford Taurus with 300000 miles. Then they complain about tread wear. Yeah ... you need an alignment once in a while.

I'm not sure if I can really write it down, or figure out away to describe it, but usually you can figure out which reviews are written by people who have somewhat of an idea what they are talking about.

I put a review of the OE tires on my Focus (H725 Hankook). Said they were a good tire but couldn't comment on tread life since the car left the factory with an alignment issue.


I took a test that consisted of online reviews where you were asked if they were genuine or fake. I scored 100% but it wasn't easy. Most reviews in the test were multiple paragraphs long, there were 20 questions.

I do use online reviews extensively, but you have to be very discriminating. Tire Rack has some of the better reviews available online (as does Amazon), but don't take that to mean you can rely on all of them, or even most of them. Many "review" sites are close to 100% fake or "salted" with reviews from the vendor or manufacturer, or those under their direction, and can't be relied upon for anything whatsoever except being fleeced of your money. I would say that an excellent review site might be good for 50% useful reviews (which means, let's not forget, 50% useless or misleading).

Note as well that Forums are just as likely to be salted with reviews from people with an agenda that is not, ahem, the same as your best interests. You should be judging what I'm saying in this post for example. I could be lying, you know. Hone your "Spidey Sense".

You have to judge the validity first, the conclusions second.

 

[Radman]

I did a Google search for the validity of TireRacks testing & this thread popped up. TireRack just gave the Cooper CS5's a very bad review. Either they are the worst tires in the world OR there is a significant bias in test results.

In my early days I was a salesman and pushed the highest profit pieces regardless of quality. Regardless, I am still planning on purchasing the made in the USA Coopers.

CS5 Spider Charts

 

[SevenBizzos]

LOL. Yeah. I love the detailed review of a tire they have 200 miles on. I also found people being negative about snow traction for a tire that is listed and marketed as a summer tire. As with all online reviews (like Yelp!) I look for trends, not what individual people say. When 50 people complain about the road noise of a tire, chances are that's true.

 

[krzyss]

The thread is about Tirerack reviews by users and you write about the test.
I have never had an issue with their tests. They are usually similar to other sources (like CR).

KrzyÅ›