Tires, bad gift but good sign.
This should be a study of some kind, but among the many guys I knew in the Navy, those who tended to give practical gifts, like tires, or a vacuum cleaner seemed to have more stable marriages. Now most of these guys, after giving such a gift would scramble and buy another gift to sooth the wound so to speak and try to do better the next time.
The guys that whose first tendency is to go straight for the flowers or jewelry also tended to be the romantic type, and they tended to be romantic with any woman available when the wife wasn’t around.
So to Patty, if you like this guy, then I think you have a keeper. You have a little training to do, but not too much training. You don’t want to train him for other women, just enough to satisfy your needs, but still keep him practical.
After 40+ years of matrimony I have learned that it is OK to buy tires for my kids as gifts, but a card and dinner is much much better than a brand new top of the line steam carpet cleaner. Don’t ask.