What Are The Best Tire Brands To Buy
I selected the best tire brands in a variety of areas, including overall and all-terrain. Price ranges are based on an average of online retailer pricing. Tires with a lower price are marked with a single $, and higher-priced tires are marked with additional $ symbols.
what are the best tire brands to buy
Michelin tires are sold online and in brick-and-mortar stores. While the company does offer discounts, especially on outgoing models, deals on Michelins are not as common as with other brands, due to strong demand. In many cases, Michelin tires are also more expensive than comparable models from other manufacturers. While there is a tangible quality and performance benefit to Michelin tires in many cases, the price difference may not justify the upside for some buyers.
Although Kumho avoids many of the pitfalls that commonly impact low-cost automotive products, there are tradeoffs that come with discount pricing. Kumho tires tend to fall short on longevity compared to the competition, and its snow tires are limited in variety and performance.
Goodyear tires are an iconic product in the U.S. with a strong history and record of success. The company was founded in the late 1800s in Akron, Ohio, where its headquarters remains today. Beyond cars, Goodyear makes tires for many applications, including aviation, farm and heavy equipment, motorcycles, and powersports vehicles. Its motorsport resume is long and varied and includes the title for the winningest tire manufacturer in Formula 1 history. Goodyear is also the official tire supplier to NASCAR.
Goodyear has provided original equipment tires for several automakers over the years, and the company also owns Dunlop and Kelly Tires brands. The Goodyear Wrangler All-Terrain tire is well-known in off-road circles for its durability and traction, and the WinterCommand tire is a great option for cold-weather performance.
Tires are the only part of your car designed to touch the road. In other words, the only thing standing between you and certain death in many situations is your tires. Focus on a brand that offers the type of tire and size of tire that your vehicle and driving style require. The top choice for me is Michelin.
Despite advances in tire technology, tread life is finite and will vary by car type, tire type (such as all-season or ultra-high-performance all-season), driving aggressiveness, and even road and weather conditions. You need to replace your tires a few times or more during the life of a typical vehicle. As the adage goes, nothing lasts forever.
Proper maintenance and responsible driving can maximize the mileage in a set of tires. Monthly tread inspections can reveal when the tires warrant replacement, well in advance of the federally mandated treadwear indicators. And when it comes time to buy, you can use CR treadwear ratings to find tires that should provide a long service life.
All-season tires come in sizes to fit everything from small cars to light-duty SUVs and pickups. They are for drivers who want year-round traction, long treadwear, and a comfortable ride. But all-season tires typically lack the precise handling and grip of performance tires.Speed rating: T (118 mph) or H (130 mph)Treadwear warranty: None or 40,000 to 100,000 milesTypical wheel size: 15 to 20 inches
Performance all-season tires provide year-round grip tuned for enthusiastic driving. They have a higher speed rating than standard all-season tires, and they generally provide better handling and braking than regular all-seasons. Some performance all-season tires, denoted by a snowflake mountain symbol on the sidewall, have cold-weather traction that rivals dedicated winter/snow tires, yet they can be used on the car year-round. These all-weather tires do not need to be changed seasonally. Speed rating: Typically V (149 mph)Treadwear warranty: None or 40,000 to 85,000 milesTypical wheel size: 15 to 20 inches
All-season truck tires are designed for the heavy loads an SUV or pickup can move. These are well-rounded tires designed to perform well in most conditions.Speed rating: S (112 mph), T (118 mph), or H (130 mph)Treadwear warranty: 60,000 to 80,000 milesTypical wheel size: 15 to 22 inches
All-season SUV tires are specifically designed for modern SUVs, splitting the difference between car and truck tires. They are tuned for the performance, comfortable ride, and light-duty towing capabilities of those vehicles.Speed rating: H (130 mph) or V (149 mph)Treadwear warranty: 60,000 to 90,000 milesTypical wheel size: 16 to 20 inches
Engineered for more heavy-duty applications, all-terrain truck tires are suitable for use on paved roads and for light off-road use. The more rugged tread is designed to provide added traction on unpaved and snowy roads.Speed rating: S (112 mph) or T (118 mph)Treadwear warranty: 50,000 to 65,000 milesTypical wheel size: 15 to 20 inches
Winter/snow tires offer superior grip to go, stop, and corner in cold, inclement weather. But they typically have faster treadwear than all-season tires because the tread is specifically designed to bite into snow and ice, and the rubber is formulated to stay pliable at freezing temperatures. Also, winter/snow tires generally take longer to stop than all-season tires on cleared roads. We test winter/snow tires suited to cars, performance winter/snow tires for sports cars, and truck winter/snow tires for pickups and SUVs.Speed rating: Q (99 mph), R (106 mph), S (112 mph), T (118 mph), H (130 mph), or V (149 mph)Treadwear warranty: None for mostTypical wheel size: 15 to 22 inches
Performance winter/snow tires come in sizes to fit cars using UHP all-season and summer tires. They are designed to be seasonal replacements for those vehicles, providing improved cold-weather grip.Speed rating: H (130 mph) or higherTreadwear warranty: None for mostTypical wheel size: 17 to 20 inches
Truck winter/snow tires are specifically designed for pickups and SUVs. Like car winter/snow tires, always use truck winter/snow tires in a set of four for optimum grip to go, stop, and corner.Speed rating: R (106 mph), S (112 mph), or T (118 mph)Treadwear warranty: Typically noneTypical wheel size: 15 to 20 inches
A treadwear grade is found on most new tires. But that grade is a comparative tool, and it does not tell in miles how long any one tire might last. Further, manufacturers use different methodologies in making treadwear mileage claims, which in turn makes comparing tire mileages across tire brands challenging.
Consumer Reports provides a comparative tread-life mileage figure in our tire ratings chart, offering projected mileage of all-season and performance all-season car tires. The predicted mileage is based on our rigorous vehicle treadwear test, in which we run tires around the clock, over 1,000 miles a day. Car and truck tires are run to 16,000 miles. You can check our tire ratings for details.
Tire pressure monitoring systems (TPMS) have been standard equipment in all new cars since model year 2008. Since their introduction, government studies have found that the systems have led to a significant reduction in underinflated tires on the road, benefiting fuel economy and safety.
Founded in 1912 by George F. Armstrong, the Armstrong tire company became the fifth-largest tire maker in the world by the 1960s. Pirelli bought the company in the late 1980s. It was acquired in 2012 by Zafco, a global tire manufacturer that also owns the Accelera, Forceum, and Zeetex brands.
Based in Tokyo, Bridgestone is one of the three largest tire manufacturers in the world. Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations has its headquarters in Nashville, Tenn. The corporation manufactures and markets Bridgestone, Dayton, Firestone, and Fuzion tires, as well as other brands. It supplies tires for most applications in the U.S. Bridgestone is a pioneer in winter/snow tires and currently makes a dedicated replacement run-flat tire line called DriveGuard.
Continental is in a distant fourth place in North American and global sales, behind Goodyear, Bridgestone, and Michelin. Still, it offers a full complement of original and replacement tires. Continental, based in Germany, is a top automotive supplier of brake systems and various vehicle components, in addition to tires. The U.S. tire operations have headquarters in Lancaster County, S.C. The company sells the Continental and General tire brands.
Goodyear claims to be the best-selling tire maker in North America, and it is one of the leading tire manufacturers in the world. Based in Akron, Ohio, Goodyear is a major supplier of original and replacement tires and sells tires for most applications. Founded in 1898, Goodyear owns the Cooper, Dunlop, and Kelly brands of tires sold in the U.S.
A French company, Michelin has its North American headquarters in Greenville, S.C. As a global tire maker, it offers tires for almost all applications. In North America, it owns the BFGoodrich and Uniroyal brands. Founded in 1891, Michelin first introduced the radial tire, and the company continues to be a pioneer in tire technologies. Michelin tires generally perform impressively in our all-weather tests, and many models offer low rolling resistance and long tread life.
Started in the early 1960s to support motorsports, Mickey Thompson tires were first to market with numerous innovations, including 50-, 60-, and 70-series sizes and numerous street-legal drag slicks and high-speed tires for cars and motorcycles. The brand was acquired by Goodyear in 2021, when the corporation purchased Cooper.
Founded in 1949, Nitto shares facilities and some technology with Toyo. The brand caters to car and truck enthusiasts. Tire lines focus on ultra-high-performance tires, and tires for pickups and SUVs. 041b061a72