Some of your lesser brands are actually made by the bigger brands. Example - Cooper manufactures several sub-brands and private-label lines, including Mastercraft, Mickey Thompson, Starfire, Dean, and Roadmaster - just to name a few.
Over the years, I have had 100% positive experiences with both Michelins and Goodyears. My one experience with Continental was so bad that I wouldn’t own them again. My multiple experiences with Bridgestone were… mediocre… at best. My one experience with BFG was… decent.
The only experience with off-brand tires (because I knew that I would be trading-in my car in a few months) was… not great. These Falls brand tires squealed like a stuck pig when turning, even at low speed. Pedestrians would frequently look on in horror, as I think it sounded like a car skidding out of control, even though the tires weren’t skidding. I experimented with tire pressures, but nothing improved the squealing problem.
If a customer came into your Firestone store, and they said that their tires were 11 years old, wouldn’t you advise them to replace those tires a.s.a.p., or even… yesterday?
It’s possible the intention was to state that an 11-year-old tire, regardless of how often driven or not, is stil a 11-year-old tire. Chemical breakdowns in the rubber, some related to driving and local climate, some not, will start to happen even when the tire is 5 - let alone 11 - years old.
Extreme example: 1967 garage queen, last driven by the early '70s, alignment checked, and tire pressures kept on top of even long after bell-bottoms and vomit-brown appliances came and went, 
6mm of tread still present, are still nearly sixty year old tires.
Here is a shocker for you that I posted a few years back…
Like I said, the car is NOT driven often at all, it is now a back up of a back up basically… And I just checked their age the other day, time flies, so I have been looking for replacements, just not in any hurry cause again, not driven much anymore.. Now if it was still my DD, then they would have been replaced 2 years ago or more, while still working, tires were ALWAYS replaced ASAP…
And Yes you have heard me say MANY times on here that tires can become unsafe at 10 years of age…
I also said I WILL replace them once I find a suitable replacement…
Until then the car will be parked most of the time, it might be driven down the road about 30 to 40mph to Kroger’s that is 1/2mile from the house and a lot of that is still in the neighborhood (I can see it from the house)… Heck, the tires will never even get any heat build up in them… If the tires are bad enough when I finally go to replace them then I have the option of two trucks to haul them to my old work for replacement…
Next time I will just wright a dang book to read instead of the short version to make sure no one gets confused gezzzz…
BTW I did clearly say towards the beginning of that statement that " I am sad cause the tires on the wifey’s car have aged out," But I also edited in a few words to hopefully clean ANY confusion up…and added a warning…
They continually top the tyre tests in most facets.Get onto ‘Tyre reviews’ Brit guy in the US,does all the testing & reviews @ the Goodyear tyre test track in Texas.Highly recommended.
Talk about a ‘multi National’ family!
Think you need to watch before commenting.
I for one am not giving clicks to someone on Youtube for tire research .
Jonathon Benson is the real deal. But it is understandable because of the way this was presented that you would be reluctant. When the time comes that you’re ready to buy tires, give him a look..
back to the title of this post, yes some people will shop by price.
I once had a tire pickup a nail on the interstate. Changed it to my spare. The other tires were barely above the wear bars, the next exit was near a big box store, when there, got new tires for my Ranger pickup, it came with 70 series tires, but the store had 75s in stock, I don’t remember the brand, but they served me well. Did not worry about the effect on the speedometer. Had another case where my wife pickup a cone seashell in a tire, again other tires were nearing replacement. We were close to a Firestone dealer and a Cooper dealer, went with Coopers. I previously had a bad experience, not tire related, with that Firestone store.
When it come to tires, some people are loyal to one brand or another because of good prior experience. When I can preplan my purchase I search by the characteristics I need. In my case wet traction is number one. The last time I got tires for my truck, the Goodyears that came with the truck and Michelins were rated nearly the same, tried the Michelins this time to see if I could get more than 30K miles.
Car has Continentals. Michelin didn’t even show in the top three.
Off topic,but you still own a Capri? Had one decades ago.