I’m back. About a month ago I wrote about the bumpy ride with Wal-Mart tires I had purchased. They gave me credit for the crappy Douglas tires (I was on a trip, had a flat, was towed to Gallup, NM where there was only a Wal-Mart store and Pepboys. I bought their Goodyear Viva touring tires at a higher price.
I’ve still got the bumpy ride on my 1993 Cadillac de Ville. I took it to my regular tire company where I have always bought Cooper tires. They said the balance was not good and proceeded to balance them. That didn’t stop the vibrations and road noise. Then I took the car to my Cadillac dealer and they did a road force balance. Still the same problem with road vibration/noise.
I plan to go to my Cooper dealer and buy either Cooper tires or Michelins (they sell both). Before I invest $400 to $500 in new tires, does anyone know anything that could be wrong other than the tires. I’ve talked to about a dozen people and it boils down to the tires and how Wal-Mart sells sub-standard tires and are made to Wal-Mart specs. I’m told that the Goodyear tires I bought are not the same as I would get at a Goodyear dealership.
Make sure your rims aren’t bent. Bad alignment can cause the tires to wear in such a way that they cause vibration. (In that case you’ll need both new tires and an alignment.) Bad shocks could also cause tire wear that leads to vibration.
While Walmart sells and warrants these tires, I don’t know that I would call them inferior. A friend of mine has had two sets on his Chev Express van and they have performed to expectations.
There is always a chance you got a poor manufacturing batch, but I would look closely at the rims and the front end.