Tires

Just curious what some of you guys are doing for tires. My wife wants to start driving my Crown Vic in the spring and I need to at least replace the ancient Goodyear Aquatred III's I have on the back. I haven't been shopping for tires in this size in a while (225/70R15 is the stock size). It seems like most of what I can find in this size is mostly truck tires. If I wasn't going to lose my beloved dog dish hubcaps I would just upgrade to 16" wheels, but I can't bring myself to do it. About the only thing I am seeing in a somewhat touring type tire is the General Altimax RT which I have no experience with. What are you guys running on your cars?

 

http://www.discounttire.com/dtcs/se...r=ILCINT|pc|60050&ar=70&fqs=true&rd=15&cs=225

The first three are passenger car type tires.....

 

i run LT 6 ply's on all my wagons. I have bridgestones on my 79 ford wagon and it handles like a cop/sports car! Just don't put massive amount of air in em unless you have to haul a LOAD then you have the option you do not have with the lighter tire.

 

I also run LT's, 235/70R15's on the Buick, Goodyear Wranglers. And as mentioned I also only keep them at 35psi. Although they have a more agresive looking tread they are a very quiet and soft ride tire. The buick had 225's on it when I got it and shortly after put the larger size on, ride quality improved big time. Not sure, but I do believe the wrangler is avalible in non LT also.

The Collony I had years ago was running 225's when I got it, again I uped the size to 235's and same thing the ride quality improved. I ran radial T/A's on that one.

 

Hmm, might have to look at those Cooper Cobra's. I've never run Cooper's before. I have nothing good to say about Falken's after I had them on my Saturn (car came with them on it nearly brand new) for an agonizing 2.5 years.

I'm not looking for any heavy load carrying capability. This is just on my Crown Vic. It's not a wagon and I don't tow anything with it or drive it in the snow for that matter. Just looking for a decent touring/performance (maybe that is contradictory these days with a 70 aspect ratio) tire that will give a decent ride.

Which Bridgestones? I can't remember much of what they had, but I think all they had were truck tires. Also not sure what your handling frame of reference is. This is a cop car and I still think it handles a bit floaty.

 

Where's "tireman" when you need him?

 

it's not floaty at all nice and firm Bridgestone dualer A/T and i belive they are 235/70/15's

 

I like the Hankooks I have on my GTO.
They have 3 tire models with 225/70-15 available...

http://www.hankooktireusa.com/Psearch/Search.aspx?pageNum=1&subNum=3

 

You would be better off buying used bald tires than putting a new cheap cooper or Korean kumho tire on your car for your wife unless you are ready for divorce. I personally would stay with a good quality tire like Goodyear or other comparable quality recommended for your vehicle weight specs and driving needs.
There are also plenty of places to buy tires from.
I personally, as with many other car enthusiasts found out many years ago never to to support the anti american working class empire of places such as discount tire or walmart. Solely due to their abusive lobby power (everyday while you are at work) of bringing down the american workers wages to 3rd world status where it is today. Their prices are not cheap for anyone and costs all of us and our kids futures.

My 2 cents, Whatever quality tire you decide on, you should be able to find a reputable tire dealer in most any major city. There I said it.

 

I use the general altimax (similar tread to the aqua's you have now) I have them on both of my roadmaster wagons my wifes altima and my dodge charger (that has the altimax HP's). these are great tires for the rain and snow. They have a nice ride and are about a 60,000 mile tire. The ones on the roadmasters cost me about $450 balanced and mounted. The HP's are a bit more.

 

I'm not about supporting cheap Chinese crap either, but after looking on several notable tire manufacturers websites (Goodyear only truck tires in that size, Michelin, Firestone/Bridgestone, etc) and not seeing my size even listed I decided to look at alternatives. That is one reason I like the General Altimax as they are made in the US and Mexico (at least it is North America), but thanks for your concern.

Thanks for your info DanR63. I like the Altimax from what I have read, but I've never had Generals. I almost got a set for my Saturn, but went with Michelin's instead. Unfortunately the HP isn't available in my size, but the RT doesn't look too bad.

 

If you are looking for a white wall and low price is not the primary consideration, Diamond Back makes a white wall version on the BFGoodrich Radial T/A in the 225/70R15. It is an S rated tire. They also make H rated tires of that size. Unfortunately, they are not inexpensive, at about $250 each. Unfortunately, regular passenger car tires are getting scarce in that size. It used to be that there were many choices, in all sorts of price ranges, and in all sorts of performance categories. I'm looking for 235/70R15 white walls for my 78 Grand Marquis, so I do understand what you are going through.

 

I'm running the Hankook Optimos is the 225/75/15 size. Plus they are almost the only white wall out there. So far its a great tire from the little driving I have done on it. But finding that size in a non-truck tire that doesn't cost a small fortune, I wish you good luck. Sure I could have spend all my savings on a set of BFGs but they would rot off the car before I could use them up.

 

Doesn't Corky Coker still make all these vintage whitewalls?

The Catalina I just bought has whitewalls on it, but they are facing in. I'd have to check to get the brand name.

 

I have the horrible USA made Cooper Trendsetter whitewalls on my Custom Cruiser so I guess they're all going to blow out at once in the near future. I had them on a few other cars and nothing bad ever happened, not even a flat tire, so I'm on borrowed time according to some people.
You can't live forever.