I am looking for advice on what kind of tires to get for my 1992 Honda Civic Hatchback. The last several years Discount Tire has sold me some Japanese brand that just seems to wear out really fast. I only drive about 12,000 miles a year and seem to need tires every couple years. I need them to be good in snow. Last time they did this tire slashing thing called stiping , I think, but that seems to be a rip off. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Chinese. They sold you Chinese tires that wea out really fast.
Visit
www.tirerack.com
and www.1010tires.com
Both sites have good consumer feedback/rating sections. They’re the best source of selection information I know of.
Siping is good for wet traction but not really snow or mud.
Siping is small slits in the thicker tread blocks.
Much the same as your boat shoes have a finer tread than your hiking boots.
It’s those little sipes that give them wet traction.
I think you’ve seen you don’t need the sipes so just say no.
After shopping the opinions shared at tirerack.com I’d stick with name brands like Goodyear , General etc.
Tire Rack also tests tires. Take a look at their comparisons to see which ones rate highest. Often the top two or three in a test of four tires rate close to each other. Then compare cost. You can buy your tires at Tire Rack or 1010tires, or just use the information and buy locally.
NEVER let anyone “sipe” you tires. It’s total BS. Tires are already “siped” by the manufacturer, and no further “siping” is necessary.
They are taking your money for nothing. You don’t need additional “siping.” It’s a rip-off, plain and simple.
Don’t fall for it.
Check out Douglas tires from a WalMart store. Douglas is a proprietary brand of WalMart. They have a very aggressive tread for snow use and my size is made in the USA by Goodyear.
As an example, 155/80 R13 tires are $37 each for my old small car; just got a price quote yesterday.
Unlike Tire Rack, WM can do the installation for you and warranty claims should be easy.
I’ve been very happy with the Pirellis, Michelins, and Yokohamas I bought at Discount Tire. You just need to reseach what tires to get, don’t get the cheapest ones. Or go to Sam’s or Costco and buy name brand tires there, such as Michelin.
I checked out Tire Rack and Discount for my old car that uses 155/80R13 tires. Tire Rack came up with the wrong size, 175/70R13 with a price range of $51 to $58.
I found a correction at Tire Rack to find 155/80R13 tires with a price range of $47 to $50.
Then I went to Discount Tire and found 155/80R13 tires for $57 to $58.
I will repeat that WM has my size for $37, Douglas brand made in the USA by Goodyear. You can check the DOT code on the tire to verify the maker.
Michelins, by the way, are very good tires; I used to use them beginning in the late 1970s and even now have them on a new car that we recently bought. I no longer buy them as replacements as they are overpriced. Other brands have caught up in quality. One day, not long ago, Michelin was the best. They may still be the best but by a very small margin.
On that small margin, it depends on the car. If you want a decent ride on modern low-profile tires, you often end up with Michelins. I tried a number of other brands/models on my TL, and the Michelins were the only ones that got it right.
My local Walmart is the worst place on the world to buy tires, their service is glacial, I was the 3rd customer in line when they opened up, they had 2 technicians on duty and the jobs ahead of me were an oil change and a battery change which were being worked on in separate bays. # 1/2 hour later I was done. I bought Goodyears that I found out later wre made only for Walmart in china and are not sold in Good[ear stores. 12000 miles later they were more than 1/2 worn our. They had a 60000 wear rating.
That was supposed to be 3 1/2 hours.
That’s good point oldtimer - Walmart does that with a LOT of what they sell. You think you’re getting regular name brand products, but they’re really special cheap versions of the product made only for Walmart.
I use Goodyear Integrity tires on my 1998 Civic, and I like them. My last set lasted so long that I replaced them because of age before they actually wore out. They do well in the rain now that Goodyear has added a water channel to the tread design. However, I don’t drive on snow and ice, and if I did, I would have a second set of rims with good winter tires for winter driving.
When we were driving Corollas in the early 1990’s, we had good success with Cooper tires. Understand the current set of passenger car tires are still good choices.