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Opinions...chinese tyres

13K views 25 replies 13 participants last post by  UncleJ 
#1 ·
Winter is coming upon us soon and I'm starting to investigate my options for winter tyres. I have a good experience with snow tyres from well known brands, but my local tyre shop recommended some chinese snow tires that are nearly half the price. Has anyone had any experience with chinese tyres? Are they relable? Apart from tread patern which can be copied to look identical, are the compounds used up to the task? Any insights are welcomed!

Thanks
 
#2 ·
Cheap tires the absolute last thing you want to buy. They wear quicker, so cost per mile really is worse than buying a good set. Personally, I've had Blizzaks in the winter and they are great. I personally will not buy Chinese tires, and I never go cheap on tires. In the long run--over the life of the tire--they are not cheaper.
 
#5 ·
OP, it's up to you to make the call at the end of the day.

Tires come from all parts of the globe these days, so you can't expect quality just Caz the label says deisgned in north American or something.
However, try and search the web to see if the brand is reputable or has been tested thoroughly. If you can't Seem to find anything, then consider an alternative.

Finally a tire is something that is the most critical part of your control over a vehicle, if you go with something inferior, you don't want to find out what the result is, so please make wise decisions.
 
#6 ·
You have to ask? Never cheap on ties or brakes...if the engine fails you stop if you cant stop you die. I know extreme comment but gets the point across.
 
#7 ·
All points are correct. However i really want to know if anyone has had experience. I know that reputable firms make expensive tyres under their brand and on the same plant they make a cheaper older design version of the same tyre, so there is not really much to be gained. Let's not forget that an expensive tyre is not necessarily the best tyre. The important thing is to get something good enough for the use intended and not throw away a fortune.
 
#10 ·
I have used / am using cheap Chinese tires...

You are going to hear a whole lot of theories... conceptual value and opinions... and those things are fine... as these things are like a$$holes... everybody's got one;)

I work in the autoparts industry.. and the industries economics are quite simple...

The manufactures and OE brands spends a ton of money advertising (thru media and sports sponsorship)... the bottomline of these marketing expenditure are intended to add perceived value.. what economies refer as "monopolistic power" ... in that that can charge a higher price to capture above equlibrium consumer surplus. Translation... they can sell their products at a significant higher profit margin as you are willing to pay for. This formula works!! That is why you see ads and commercials. The profit margin is REALLY HIGH!! because most people are convinced (for example) Michellin is better than Kuhmo.

The Chinese brands tyres are here because they have essentially the same cost as the "Bridgestone" tires and they are quite happy w/ a "measly" 100% profit margin than the Bridgestone" tires 500% margin.

I don't think its fair to say "all chinese tires" are cheap and wear out fast and the econmics don't work. I've used 3 different tires from China The first set "Doral" brand was good!! Much like the OEM Toyos that came w/ the Mazda 3. Similar tread pattern (basically a copy) and tracktion as well as wear compound.

I later got some "Westlake" tires... tho my surprise... these were very good "unidirectiona" tires.. the compound was SOFT and these lasted only 14 months..:eeps:

My current set is "Landsail" and it is a nice all-weather set w/ a good wear rating. These tires are all rated differently compound wise... so pay attention w/ what/how they are rated and that they fit to what you are looking for.

Now.. I know someone is going to say "those cheap chinese tires are dangerous!! You can get killed.. Blah blah.." I think that is more of a fear and perception than anything ... paying more... for name brand won't gurantee you won't have problem.. recall the Firestone tire incidence 10 yrs ago..

Good luck w/ whatever you do..

Cheers!!

beewang:)
 
#8 ·
BTW, what brand are we talking about, since most on this forum would be completely clueless without a brand name that doesnt produce RFTs. I do agree that some tires are under the supervision of a big, established tire brand (ie Falken tires arent chinese, but economical and under the Dunlop umbrella), however you do have your ups and down.
 
#11 ·
Everything Chinese is made to break. They don't have to worry about lawsuits, just upsetting the harmony of the Communist Party. When you have one billion people and a one child policy, killing as many as you can is simply called Monday.

Marketing has nothing to do with quality. People do. And Chinese people have the lowest quality products on the planet. Always.
 
#13 ·
I respect everyones opinion.....everybody is right, from their perspective and for their needs.


however people are willing to pay hundreds of dollars for a 100% made chinese product...but designed in the US (see iPhone), and at the same time think of a huawei phone as crap because it's a chinese brand. Therefore, I'm investigating the possibility of chinese tyres, since everything in the world economy is relative and depends on individuals needs and priorities.
 
#18 ·
I respect everyones opinion.....everybody is right, from their perspective and for their needs.

however people are willing to pay hundreds of dollars for a 100% made chinese product...but designed in the US (see iPhone), and at the same time think of a huawei phone as crap because it's a chinese brand. Therefore, I'm investigating the possibility of chinese tyres, since everything in the world economy is relative and depends on individuals needs and priorities.
Would you get on a Chinese made airplane or put your money in a Chinese bank? I have a colleague who worked on airplanes in China. my answer is no.

You are mentioning IPads--electronic gadgets for entertainment--versus a safety item on a vehicle. It's not the same comparison--processing control points must/should be different. Furthermore, I know that Apple has a massive in process defect rate at their Chinese plants. Chinese products in general are made on processes with low quality control and efficiencies, but it doesn't matter because the labor for rework is super cheap.

Spend your money how you so please--that's the great thing about our society. But I personally avoid Chinese products--even if "engineered" in the US--for certain purchases.
 
#14 ·
i guess i should paraphrase a little, dont buy Chinese brand tires, if they are made in China thats not a big deal. Ill give you an example, when i was in Ukraine 2 years ago i asked whats the deal with all these chinese ripoffs and i was told that they are so poorly made that there were cases where after being jacked up for changing a tire, doors would not open.
 
#15 ·
I Googled "safety of chinese tires" and found some old stuff. I'm thinking that if there were widespread problems they would show up on the net.

Here is a video I found:



How good is Greek governments product safety oversight? I know Germany has some very stiff rules (I lived there for a few years).
 
#17 ·
What's the price difference, what company, and how old are the tires (like tires have a shelf life). My thing is check those out first. That's the most important, from there I think you and everyone else who wants to help can better assist you.
 
#19 ·
Haha why are we comparing chinese made airplanes and Chinese made banks. LOL I think If your gonna open up that can of worms, look at the AIRBUS 320 being made in china, and largest share holder of Us treasuries is China, aka bank bailouts as a result of china, hence you can safely say you probably have money held up in a Chinese bailed out bank. But I wander from the op original post.

Let's make this a comparison based on a specific product and it's respective quality, not bring into the mix, iPads, banks, and airplanes. This a tire discussion, not a one-sided rally against Chinese products.
 
#20 ·
Of course, a number of plants in China have been producing tires for many decades.

My impression is that the larger or better ones have struck deals with global tire companies (for example, Warrior Tire Co. of Shaghai and Michelin) to share production facilities and maybe R&D.

I would be fairly confident of buying a well-priced Warrior tire on most any car, and not be concerned about safety, performance or longevity.

However, because of our handling expectations of a BMW, I would be more hesitant to outfit an X3 with them.

The lesser known Chinese tire companies, some of which could have sprung up in the last few years, and having no affiliation with multi-national conglomerates, I would avoid in general.

There may be deserving exceptions, but I'll leave them to establish a track record before I take a chance on them.
 
#21 ·
I would have no problem buying a product made in china with an American brand (assuming genuine) as the product will be subject to American quality control. I would not however buy a made in china tyre with a china brand as I would suspect the quality control. Ie most likely made for domestic China market and there it is definitely buyer beware.
 
#24 ·
I wonder if tirerack offers chinese made tires? I know they do not offer the excellent Nokian tire line. I have wondered why they don't handle those tires.
Yes, they do. Power King and Fuzion brands.

I would imagine TireRack make sure they are fully up to snuff and wouldn't handle something dangerous like Westlake.

I think the reason they don't sell Nokian is because of that brand's preference to have just a few exclusive retailers.
 
#26 ·
Posted this question over on the Tirerack thread on best of bimmerfest and got a great response from orient33inyc that really answered my questions. Apparently many major tire companies mfg tires in China to their specifications and with their QC. Those are just fine. It is the chinese branded tires that while passing US safety tests may not perform well in stopping distances, wet weather performance, etc. I would recommend anyone interested go over to that forum and read orient's thread. It answered my questions.:thumbup:
 
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