Best economy tire for 113?

[Kayvan]

I am searching for low priced tires that fit our cars....

I had Pirelli P400 on that used to be $65

Now Michelin Harmony are $125+

[mdsalemi]

Cheap tires, huh...

Well, there is the Kumho Solus KR21 in P195-75R14 about $70 each.  Continental Vanco II in 185R14 about $86 each. Hankook Optimo H724 in P195/75R14 for $59 each.  If you go to a discount tire store, they probably have some, or can order, some no-name tires for even less.  You have to be flexible on the size, looking at 175/185/195/205 widths, with profiles of 80/75/70 all in 14" of course. Probably better forget white walls...

I have, unfortunately, Hankook Optimos on my daily driver (it came with them) and I would simply not buy them at any price--I would have gone with a better tire at a higher price.  They are price-point junk--but that's just my opinion. I can't change them as it is a lease.  The next car will have better tires.

$59 is pretty low for a tire in what today is an "odd size".  You'd really be scraping the bottom of the barrel if you set your sights lower!

[thelews]

Kumho Solus is a nice tire.  Had them on my 190 SL and they were great.  You can go 205/70-14 on the 113

[rmmchl]

bridgestone Insignia, and they have them in whitewalls--------- work very well for me

[FloridaBill]

2nd vote for Kumho Solus, got them from tirerack.com shipped directly to a local Tire Shop sponsored by Tirerack and it was very in-expensive.  The tires ride smooth although I do not run the Interstates too often and have never really pushed them up to speeds above 70 MPH.  I do believe they are rated for > 70MPh though.  Black wall only but they look good, low profile as compared to other replacement tires that look too big for the W113.

[Kayvan]

The Solus look good

Any benefit to Goodyear, Dunlop, Yoko...same price $60s


http://www.tirerack.com/tires/TireSearchResults.jsp?width=195%2F&ratio=70&diameter=14


Also do I just input 195-70-R14 at tire rack or is there special aspects, #,'etc?

[Kayvan]

Moderator

This post is in wrong section

Body ?

[Alan Smithee]

I got the Cooper Trendsetters because I they come in 195-75-14 white wall and I thought they looked the part (no modern graphics like on the Hankooks).  That they were cheap was a bonus.

[Kayvan]

Any special measurements or ratios to input when ordering ?

Leaning toward Goodyear....name brand

[Garry]

This post generated a bit of discussion and some head shaking here in Australia when three Pagoda owners got together the other day.

The discussion centred around the fact that the only thing between the road and your most precious car worth tens of thousands of dollars are the tyres and we were amazed that some one would compromise their car for a matter of a few bucks by seeking out the cheapest tyres to fit and not looking for the best and safest tyre for the car. Like an earlier post by Alan Smithee said ,that they were cheap was a bonus not the prime reason for purchase.

If you want cheap maybe you can get some second hand ones and really only spend $10 if you really don't care what is on the car and only want the cheapest.

[66andBlue]

....  If you want cheap maybe you can get some second hand ones and really only spend $10 if you really don't care what is on the car and only want the cheapest.

Ho, ho, Garry, I think you are going too far with your interpretation, an inexpensive tire doesn't have to be unsafe!  (I do NOT mean performance, longevity or ride comfort)
I would assume if it has a DOT stamp and is rated "S", that is, it is good up to 112 mph or 180 km/h,  and one does not exceed USA speed limits by much (not more than 80 mph) then it is a perfectly reasonable choice.  Why pay for the advertising costs?
It is the almost the same choice you make when you buy inexpensive Wal-Mart jeans instead of designer labeled jeans, most likely they were made by the same people using the same materials.  OK, perhaps the buttons are of a higher grade. 

[Benz Dr.]

Ho, ho, Garry, I think you are going too far with your interpretation, an inexpensive tire doesn't have to be unsafe!  (I do NOT mean performance, longevity or ride comfort)
I would assume if it has a DOT stamp and is rated "S", that is, it is good up to 112 mph or 180 km/h,  and one does not exceed USA speed limits by much (not more than 80 mph) then it is a perfectly reasonable choice.  Why pay for the advertising costs?
It is the almost the same choice you make when you buy inexpensive Wal-Mart jeans instead of designer labeled jeans, most likely they were made by the same people using the same materials.  OK, perhaps the buttons are of a higher grade. 

Hummm....... clearly you don't look at buttons all that much. I agree that some are nicer than others but often they remain completely hidden from view.

You Americans, so up tight about things like this......

[66andBlue]

Dan,
which things, buttons or tires?   

[Garry]

I am searching for low priced tires that fit our cars....

Nothing about what is best for the cars suspension and setup, or what is safe or what he wishes to do with the car, eg dry wet, highway or byway, noisy or smooth ride, just cheap.    It did make us laugh.

Alfred you added the correct proviso

I would assume if it has a DOT stamp and is rated "S", that is, it is good up to 112 mph or 180 km/h

, The OP just wants cheap tires, nothing more was asked.

Doesn't Wal-mart sell cheap tyres as well as buttons.  Would you put them on your car Alfred? I think not. And the reason for not doing so is that you would look for a tire that is suitable to these cars.  Cheap may be a side benfit but not the driver

[Kayvan]

Cheer up guys...u sound like constipated old geezers

Tires are disposable

Spending $$$$ on something u throw out after 3yrs is not smart

[Garry]

Kayvan,

Come on, someone has to be the grumpy old geyser here, and I am trying to give Dan some assistance.

 I agree with the expensive tag.  I do about 5000km in 7 years and then throw out the tyres.  At over $200 each it is quite a running expense.

Garry

[getsmart]

Ok I admit it I was one of the other musketeers that had this discussion with Garry just last week. The 3rd, Dartanion, or was he the 4th ? remains incognito !  it was me wasn't it Garry or did I dream it or read it here ? They seem to be the same thing at times !!!

But seriously it is an often overlooked and underestimated part of a car and is seen as a necessity rather than a safety feature.

I once saw a car, in light rain, on a 3 lane road, change lanes in front of me only to aquaplane straight across the 3 lanes, over the median strip, head-on into traffic coming the other way in the other 3 lanes !!!! All in the blink of an eye at about 60km/h, no great speed !!!!

A good tyre is usually a compromise between grip, rate of wear and road noise. The more grip the more wear (less life) and more road noise and not to mention tread pattern and wet weather performance. You all know this anyway 

Regards, Joe

[mdsalemi]

The OEM tires (one being Bridgestone Potenza) for a new SLK run around $200-$300 EACH, depending on specific model and size.
For a C-class, (Michelin or Conti) OEMs run around $165 to $175 each, depending on specific model and size.
The bottom line and point here is that tires for our Pagoda, on the high end, are just middle of the road for new OEM tires for modern-day equivalents of daily drivers.

I suppose it is far more important to have a "fresh" tire (one that isn't 15 years old) and one with tread, than anything else.
We only touched upon inexpensive tires by name, go to a discount store and you'll probably be offered tires you've never heard of.

The Aussies have a huge and valid point: with the only thing between you inside that precious Pagoda, and the mean streets of wherever, is a small contact patch of rubber--it probably pays to give some consideration as to what that rubber is.

[Alan Smithee]

I have a few comments on the subject:

• I am willing to bet very few Pagoda owners push their cars hard in any regard that affects tire integrity, whether it be cornering limits, high speed, extreme temperatures and/or weather, or load capacity.
• I am willing to bet any tire made in 2013 is better than any tire made from 1963-1971.
• You cannot compare a modern OEM 17" or 18" 40 series tire to a 14" 70 or 75 series tire in terms of price, construction, or performance.  Any tire that fits a standard Pagoda wheel will be an inferior tire.
• The most expensive tire for the Pagoda I am aware of is from Coker.  For the $260 price, all you are paying for is the look as a replica white wall; it is not at all comparable to a $260 modern high-performance tire.
• Similarly, what drives the price up for tires of this size from other brands is low sales volume.  Don't be fooled by thinking if you spend more for a 70 or 75 series tire that you will be getting a 'higher quality' tire.
• Tire name brands are meaningless.  'Top tier' names like Michelin make some fantastic high performance tires, but also make various other tires focused on tread life or fuel economy or ride quality or weather capability - many are OEM tires made to a price - that are absolutely terrible tires in terms of performance.  Every tire for a modern car is a compromise.  But we are not discussing modern cars here.
• While searching for a Pagoda over the last 5-10 years, regardless of price, 95% of the cars I looked at had tires that were visibly old and needed to be replaced, even if the tread was good.  Any new tire is better than any old, cracked tire.

So even though I am a tire snob, when replacing the 10+ year old Goodyears on my recently purchased Pagoda, the most correct look/size, country of manufacture, and price (in that order) were my priorities.  With a 70 or 75 series tire you are guaranteed a comfortable ride and poor cornering performance, with tread life, fuel economy, and weather capability being non-issues for a 45 year old roadster.

[mdsalemi]

I got the Cooper Trendsetters because I they come in 195-75-14 white wall

Good thing you got them when you did...no longer can you get white walls in a 14" Cooper...
Black or white, reports are that they are one of the last remaining tires made in the USA...

[Peter van Es]

• I am willing to bet very few Pagoda owners push their cars hard in any regard that affects tire integrity, whether it be cornering limits, high speed, extreme temperatures and/or weather, or load capacity.

Generally good points that you make, but I disagree on this point. I have summer, and winter tires. I have snow-chains. I, and many of the European Pagoda owners I know (but not all) do drive the cars the way they were intended to.

Peter

[mdsalemi]

Peter, you are probably the extreme!  Winter rallys, and all that.

I do run my car at high speed in the summer...sustained 70-80 MPH, hours at a time, when the temp outside is well over 90 degrees. That's simply the nature of summer highway driving in the American midwest.

People who regularly approach the cornering limits of tires generally don't have a license very long--Pagoda or not.

[Alan Smithee]

Good thing you got them when you did...no longer can you get white walls in a 14" Cooper...
Black or white, reports are that they are one of the last remaining tires made in the USA...

Really?  Wow, that was only a couple months ago.

[Alan Smithee]

Generally good points that you make, but I disagree on this point. I have summer, and winter tires. I have snow-chains. I, and many of the European Pagoda owners I know (but not all) do drive the cars the way they were intended to.

I did say "very few"...I do not think that is inaccurate.

[mdsalemi]

Really?  Wow, that was only a couple months ago.

That's info from Cooper tires. This stuff seems to change daily.  Some people report finding tires very old sold as new; so you might have tires that are 1-2 years old [from manufacture date].  BTW Alan, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Smithee which movies did you direct??